Completely & Stupidly: Forever and Ever

Chapter 3. Charity

 The pub had started to fill up with regular faces by four o'clock, each time the door swung open those already inside startled, expecting it to be Jimmy and Nicola, even though they weren't due to arrive for another hour at least. Victoria had left to meet Matty at two o'clock, leaving Charity in the hands of Marlon in the kitchen. She leaned boredly against the kitchen counter with her chin resting upon her fist. Every now and again she took in a waft of onion from her fingertips, even though she'd washed her hands twice since sliding them onto cocktail sticks, accompanied by little blocks of cheese and small sausages. It hadn't taken long and ended up being the only task in which Marlon allowed her to partake. Always the perfectionist, Marlon very slowly and carefully lifted the plastic lid off Jimmy's birthday cake. He'd baked and iced it himself from scratch and had strictly instructed Charity not to even breathe in the cake's direction. "Careful" Charity quavered, as the lid rose up over the cakes third tier. Marlon's hands wobbled a little, almost causing him to bump the icing. His face curled up into a ball as he regained his balance and sucked in a deep breath. Charity's lips twinged as she held back the urge to laugh at Marlon's concentration. Finally, the lid had made it over the top of the cake and revealed Marlon's creation. "Wow" Charity breathed, taking a step closer to get a better look at the finished piece. Flat across the top of the cake lay an edible photograph of a young, teenage Jimmy in a school uniform that screamed the 1980s. Marlon placed his hands upon his hips and cocked his head to the side as he admired the masterpiece he had created. "It may not look that appealing" He began, as he too pulled faces at the photo Nicola had provided, "But it's going to taste out of this world" he finished off, chef's kissing the air. "Not afraid to toot your own horn, hey?" Charity quipped, raising an eyebrow at her cousin. "These hands are just simply amazing at what they do" Marlon replied, unfazed by the comment. "Yeah, so's mine" Charity whispered, staring into the distance. "Yeah right, you don't even come in on time" Marlon joked. "Oh, I wasn't talking about pulling pints" She followed up with a wink. Marlon gagged as he cottoned on to Charity's trail of thought. "You see that? Almost threw up in my mouth" He cringed. Charity rolled her eyes and forced herself up straight. "Right, are we taking this grub out the front now, or what?" She asked, peering over a tray of ham sandwiches. "Yes, and be careful, please" Marlon sighed as he prepared to push the cake trolley over the threshold between the kitchen and the bar. Ham sandwiches in one hand and tuna in the other, Charity made her way into the bar to set down the trays upon the table that had been cleared for the food spread. Photographs of Jimmy's balding head stared at her everywhere she looked as she glanced around the filled-up pub. "Oh, the food's out" Pearl chatted, tapping Paddy on the back of the hand. "You can't have any yet, we have to wait for Jimmy" Charity told her, stepping in front of the table to block the view from the busy body. Pearl's smile turned into a pout as she turned her back on Charity in a huff. "Charming" Charity whispered to herself. As she began to move away from the table the door opened and finally in came Vanessa and the kids. A smile crept up Charity's face as her eyes met those of her fiancé's from across the room. "Babe" she breathed, taking Vanessa's face in her hands. Vanessa's breath warmed her cheek and her lips felt soft upon her own as they kissed one another in the middle of the room. A few of the villagers took a sneaky glance at them while they hugged one another lovingly, but Charity didn't mind, gone were the days where she cared about showing affection in public. When she was with Vanessa it was like the rest of the world faded away leaving just the two of them wrapped up in one another's arms. "I missed you" Charity breathed in Vanessa's ear, playfully. "I missed you too" Vanessa cooed, pulling her head back to see Charity's face. Vanessa's smile stayed firmly glued on as she sniffed the surrounding air. "You smell like onions," she said. "Yeah, that'll be the onions" Charity confirmed, nodding. Vanessa giggled. "Are we going to sit down or what?" Sarah moaned, as she, Noah, Johnny and Moses all stood huddled around them embarrassed. "Yes" Charity retorted, her voice breathy and sarcastic, "Go sit in that booth over there" She added, gesturing towards an empty seating area. Upon the table sat pointed party hats, plastic party blowers and little glittery sequins which read 'happy birthday'. Sarah and Noah immediately slinked into the corner of the booth, followed by Johnny and Moses whose little legs were far from touching the floor. "I'll go get the drinks in" Charity told Vanessa, stepping out of the way for her to get past. As she made her way behind the bar, Chas had come back downstairs and was carrying a large box with a set of black speakers inside. "Woah, woah, woah, what's that doing out?" Charity asked, staring at the dusty microphone attached to one of the speakers. "It's the karaoke machine?" Chas pondered, looking down to double check she had picked up the right box. "Yes, I know what it is, what I'm asking is why you have it now and how you even found it in the first place?" She growled, jabbing the box with her finger as she vividly remembered hiding it after the last party they had hosted. "Nicola wanted karaoke" Chas shrugged, as if it was beyond obvious why she had brought it down. Charity groaned and put her head in her hands, "Well you won't catch me near that thing anytime soon" she remarked as Chas wandered away from her.