The Silver Bells Christmas Pantomime

by Lynsey James

  He stuck up a hand and shook his head. ‘It’s over and done with, don’t worry. Have you had enough to eat or do you fancy something else?’

  Before I could suggest I whipped up some tasty bacon sarnies, his phone went off. When he looked at the screen, his easy smile vanished in an instant.

  ‘What’s up?’ I asked, frowning at him.

  He got up from the table, shaking his head. ‘Nothing, everything’s fine. Listen, I’ve got a lot to do today, so I’d better get a move on. I’ll see you around yeah?’

  ‘Is everything OK?’ I scraped my chair back and abandoned my half-eaten pancakes. ‘If there’s something wrong, maybe I could help?’

  He grabbed his long black coat from the hook by the kitchen door and pulled it on. A mumbled goodbye and he was gone, leaving me alone. My head spun as I tried to figure out how the easy, relaxed atmosphere between us had changed so quickly. One minute we’d been eating pancakes together, the next he’d taken off like a bat out of hell.

  I went back to my pancakes and tried my best to ignore the unease that had crept into my cottage. It felt empty, really empty. And I had to admit to myself that I felt a little bit lonely. Missing a man who wasn’t Jamie was strange and it confused me. Things were definitely beginning to change and I wasn’t sure if I was ready for it.

  *

  Mum dragging me to the Moonlight Café for lunch was the last thing my rotten hangover and I needed.

  Yet some cosmic force in the universe decided that was exactly how I’d be spending my afternoon. I guessed it was my punishment for how I’d treated Ethan the previous night.

  ‘Two high teas please, Diane,’ Mum said as we walked in.

  I trailed behind her, feeling and probably looking like a zombie. Ethan’s comfort food had made me feel a little bit better, but I was worried about why he’d rushed off so suddenly.

  ‘I hear someone had an eventful evening last night.’ Mum arched her eyebrows and shot me a knowing look.

  ‘You could say that.’ I managed a weak chuckle and fought the urge to let my head droop onto the table. ‘Let’s just say I’ve been reminded why I don’t drink any more!’

  Pain seared across my forehead and I pinched the bridge of my nose.

  ‘Well it’s nice to see you having some fun again, even if you’re feeling a bit delicate today! Anyway, what’s this I hear about a certain Mr Fox walking you home?’

  ‘Nothing, Mum, he just helped me up the road after I tripped over a paving slab. That’s all that happened, seriously.’

  I hoped Diane would bring on the sandwiches and cakes sharpish, so the Spanish Inquisition would come to a swift end.

  No such luck.

  ‘Then why did Jean from the knick-knacks shop tell me she saw him coming out of your house this morning?’

  The game was up; there was no use pretending Jean had been mistaken because her nickname around the village was Hawkeye.

  ‘OK,’ I admitted with a sigh of defeat, ‘he stayed over last night. But it’s not what you think; I drank too much so he stayed over in case I needed any help. Sorry, no juicy gossip for you today!’

  ‘Pity.’ Mum’s face fell. ‘He comes across so nicely when he’s being interviewed in magazines and whatnot. Anyway, how’s the pantomime going?’

  ‘It’s not, really. Christabel threw a hissy fit and quit as the director so now we’re not really sure what we’re doing. The way things are looking, there won’t be a pantomime this year!’

  ‘That’s not quite true now, is it, Alice?’ A shiver travelled down my spine as I realised who was behind me: none other than Christabel Grant herself.

  ‘Hi, Christabel.’ I gulped and tried not to show how terrified I was of her. She was like a shark; she could smell fear. ‘H-how are you?’

  ‘Oh I’m just dandy, thank you. Especially after being thrown out of my own pantomime on Wednesday: that was the cherry on top of a fantastic week! Why don’t you tell your mum the real story, Alice? How you joined the pantomime just so you could oust me as the director and take over yourself? How you turned the entire cast against me and forced me out?’

  I let out a snort of disbelief and got up from my chair. ‘You can believe that if you want, Christabel, but you know it’s not true and so do I. You were wasting everybody’s time with all those stupid exercises you had them doing and then you insulted them by calling them mediocre turds! Oh, and you weren’t forced out; you walked out of your own accord. And I haven’t taken over as the director actually, because I stupidly felt bad that you’d left. I won’t be making that mistake again!’

  Christabel’s cheeks bloomed with colour and she tightly pursed her lips shut.

  ‘As if I’m going to believe a word you say, after what you did! Direct the pantomime or don’t, I don’t care.’

  With that, she flounced off towards her table, almost knocking a few chairs over on her way.

  ‘You had the chance to direct the pantomime?! Why didn’t you say anything?’ Mum asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

  ‘Well, because I said no. I’ve got no experience directing and I wouldn’t have a clue where to start. Plus there are only four weeks until opening night; even if I’d said yes, we’d have had no chance of being ready for then!’

  Mum cocked her head to one side. ‘And there was me thinking you’d started believing in yourself again. Alice, you can do anything you want if you put your mind to it. You’re the kind of person who brings out the best in people and I reckon with your knowledge, Luna Bay could finally put on a decent pantomime.’

  I looked over to where Christabel was sitting with her friends. Our eyes locked for a brief moment and she shot me a very dirty look. Her mouth curled up, her nose scrunched and her eyes narrowed with furry.

  Her onslaught, coupled with Ethan and Mum’s belief in me, caused an idea to form in the back of my mind. As much as I tried to bat it away, it grew and grew until I couldn’t ignore it any longer.

  ‘You know what?’ I said. ‘I am going to direct the bloody panto!’

  Chapter Eleven

  I didn’t waste any time in breaking my news to the cast. The next day, at our fourth rehearsal, I asked them all to take a seat as I took to the stage.

  ‘I have a bit of an announcement to make…’ I paused as I took a deep breath and prepared myself, trying not to let my excitement shine through quite yet. ‘I’ve changed my mind; I’d like to direct the pantomime if you’ll still have me!’

  All at once, the four of them cheered and came to join me on stage for a group hug. As we jumped up and down, whooped and clapped, I felt giddy with excitement. This felt like a wonderful new opportunity and for the first time in a long time, my heart felt fluttery and light.

  ‘This is gonna be so much fun!’ Lauren did a little happy dance on the spot and waved her arms. ‘What made you change your mind?’

  ‘Let’s just say something happened yesterday that made me see how silly I was being by saying no,’ I replied with a coy smile. I decided not to mention my showdown with Christabel because I didn’t want to make her out to be the villain of the piece. ‘Are you all ready to get started?’

  The group boomed out a resounding YES and the hug broke apart. They all looked at me, awaiting my instructions. My skin tingled with happiness; although I had no idea where to begin, I now felt that this was a challenge I was more than happy to sink my teeth into.

  ‘OK, so you’ve probably noticed that we’re a bit thin on numbers and we have a lot of roles left to fill. So I thought we could have a quick run-through of the first scene as best we can today, and I’ll organise some auditions for the parts we’re missing. How does that sound?’

  ‘Sounds perfect to me.’ Callum winked at me and I felt heat rush over my skin. He walked up to me, doing that swagger of his that seemed to be his trademark. ‘Whatever you say, boss.’

  I couldn’t help noticing he didn’t offer an excuse for leaving me outside the pub and that he’d conveniently forgotten that I’d brushed
him off.

  He leaned in and whispered in my ear, ‘There’s nothing I like more than a challenge. I’ll win you over one of these days.’

  After a quick rise and fall of his eyebrows, he headed over to the other side of the room.

  To my right, I saw Lauren’s lips purse into a sulky pout. As soon as she clocked me looking at her, she quickly changed her expression to a sunny smile. I decided to ignore Callum’s comment and get on with the rehearsals; we were pushed enough for time as it was. I felt a little unsettled at his determination to win me over, but didn’t want to show it.

  ‘Right then!’ I clapped my hands to get everyone’s attention. ‘Let’s get started shall we?’

  *

  A few minutes later, I’d made myself comfortable on a plush red velvet seat in the front row, while the cast got themselves ready. I couldn’t wait to see all their individual talents shine through, away from Christabel’s stifling chokehold. They were probably an amazing bunch that just needed the opportunity to show exactly what they were made of.

  The first scene was Cinderella, aka Lauren, being treated like dirt by the wicked stepmother and ugly sisters. Since Eileen had quit, I’d agreed to read her part until we found a replacement.

  ‘Hurry up and clean those floors, you silly girl!’ I did my very best attempt at a cold, cruel voice. ‘And when you’re done, you can clean the windows and start on dinner!’

  I looked up from my script to see Lauren playing on her phone. She seemed oblivious to the fact she’d missed her cue.

  ‘And when you’re done you can clean the windows!’ I repeated, hoping to attract her attention.

  Nope, still nothing.

  ‘Lauren, it’s your line next!’ Angie hissed, nudging her and almost knocking her phone out of her hand.

  ‘Oh bugger, sorry!’ Lauren’s cheeks reddened and she scanned the script to see what she had to say next. ‘Ahem, YES, STEPMOTHER; RIGHT AWAY, STEPMOTHER!’

  My hands flew to my ears and I winced. Angie and Helen’s faces twisted into grimaces and they backed away from Lauren a little.

  ‘Um, why don’t you try that again but maybe a little quieter?’ I chuckled. ‘I know we want the whole theatre to hear us, but we don’t want to deafen them!’

  Lauren’s sunny smile twitched and the sparkle disappeared from her big brown eyes. ‘Why don’t we rehearse the final scene, the one where Cinderella and Prince Charming kiss? I mean, that’s a really important scene isn’t it?’

  She batted her eyelashes in Callum’s direction. I could’ve sworn I saw him grimace and shift uncomfortably from foot to foot, but only for a split second. Moments later, his winning smile was back in place.

  ‘Um…I think we should wait to do that,’ he said after clearing his throat several times. ‘We need to really get into our characters first before we tackle the kissing scene, don’t you think?’

  ‘Oh all right then,’ Lauren huffed, ‘let’s get on with the first scene; we haven’t got all day.’

  Over the rest of the rehearsal, I began to see just what a big challenge I’d taken on. Not only did Lauren insist on screaming out her lines – she claimed it was “projecting” – but also Angie and Helen were about as wooden as the stage they were standing on. Their voices were meek little mutters compared to Lauren’s banshee-like shriek. I tried to keep up a smile as we went over the first scene again and again, even though it didn’t get any better. If anything, it became progressively worse as the actors became more and more frustrated.

  ‘Ugh, it’s no good, I can’t do this!’ Lauren threw her script down and stormed off the stage. I could hear her throwing things around and muttering angrily under her breath.

  ‘OK, why don’t we finish up there for today?’ I suggested. ‘Well done, everyone. That was a really good effort.’

  I ran a hand over my tired face and blew air out from my cheeks. Although we’d only been rehearsing for an hour, I felt like someone had knocked the stuffing out of me.

  ‘You look like you could use a stiff drink.’ I looked up to see Callum standing in front of me, devilish grin and all. ‘Why don’t we head to this swanky pub I know in Harrogate? It’s a hotel too, so we could even stay over if we fancy it.’

  ‘Callum, I don’t mean to be rude but I’m not really looking to date anyone right now. Why don’t you ask Lauren? You can’t have missed her staring at you every chance she gets!’

  His top lip curled and he rolled his eyes in disgust. ‘I don’t have time for silly little groupies like Lauren. You, on the other hand, are cut from a different cloth. I’ll tell you now, Alice; I don’t take no for an answer. Just you wait and see.’

  He winked at me, shot me a charming smile and made his way towards the theatre doors. Before he went out to the foyer, he threw me a cheeky little look over his shoulder. I felt my heart flutter a little, but ignored it. Although it was nice to be fancied again, Callum definitely wasn’t my type. Besides, I had more than enough on my plate with the pantomime; there was no way I could afford any distractions. Especially not ones with Cheshire-cat grins and big green eyes, or certain actors who seemed to pop up everywhere.

  *

  I spent the rest of the day making fliers for the panto auditions to stick up all round the village. Although the actors needed a lot more practice, I was confident that everything would improve once we had all the vacant roles filled.

  My first port of call was the Purple Partridge. When I nudged the door open with my bum, I saw Lucy Harper standing behind the bar serving customers. I couldn’t help but notice the sparkly engagement ring on her finger either. I went to approach her to ask if I could stick a couple of fliers up and I froze. Even though I’d had the confidence to take on the panto and all that came with it, putting myself out there and talking to people I didn’t usually talk to was still a struggle.

  I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and tried to calm the storm of emotions raging inside me. I hated feeling so scared of doing something that other people took for granted every day. I reminded myself that this was for the good of the panto: loads of people frequented the pub and it was probably the best place in the village to advertise auditions. We were so short on bodies that it was essential we pulled loads of people in to give it a go.

  With that in mind, I tried to push through the fog of fear clouding my brain, ignored my sweaty palms and walked up to the bar.

  Lucy noticed me and shot me a beaming smile. ‘Hi, you! You’re becoming a regular in here these days; we’ll have to get you your own special booth or something. What can I get you?’

  Blood pumped in my ears and my heart made a desperate attempt to burst out of my ribcage. All I wanted was one clear thought, one that wasn’t twisted up by fear.

  ‘Um…I…’ I stared down at the wedge of fliers in my hand then back up at Lucy, who was leaning over a couple of the beer pumps. ‘I-I was just wondering if I could stick some fliers up in the pub? We’re holding auditions for the pantomime.’

  She nodded slowly and frowned. ‘I thought there had already been auditions? Mind you, my head’s so filled up with all this wedding stuff I couldn’t even tell you what day it is!’

  She chuckled and a sunny smile lit up her face. I felt myself begin to unwind a little; the muscles in my shoulders started to relax bit by bit and my heart rate began to slow down.

  ‘There was, but I’ve recently taken over as director and we’re still really short of bodies. There’s still a lot of roles up for grabs; maybe you should come down?’

  ‘I’m really busy with this place, especially since Christmas is only five weeks away! We’ve got four Christmas parties booked in over the next couple of weeks, plus all the wedding planning to do. If I get five minutes away from all that, I’ll pop down. But you’re welcome to stick as many fliers up as you fancy.’

  ‘Cheers, Lucy, I really appreciate it,’ I replied with a smile.

  I turned my back to go and put my fliers up, but her voice stopped me in my tracks. ‘Listen, Alice�
� I know we haven’t seen much of each other since I got back to the village, but maybe we could have lunch or something together one day? We could even invite Emily from Sunflower Cottage too if you fancy? What do you think?’

  I opened my mouth to respond, but no sound came out. I was all too aware that I looked like an absolute idiot, miming words that I just couldn’t say.

  Lucy nodded and gave an awkward smile. ‘Let me know eh? When you’re a bit less busy, maybe.’

  She went to serve a customer at the other end of the bar, leaving me with a red face and a heavy heart. I pinned up some fliers around the pub and left as quickly as I could, before I embarrassed myself further.

  *

  Next stop was Sunflower Cottage. Although it didn’t have a very high footfall of villagers, I was still hopeful that some of the Breakfast Club regulars might take an interest. In the back of my mind, I sort of hoped that Ethan might be around too. I still had a lot of making up to do after blowing up at him on Saturday; the man had even fixed me breakfast the next morning!

  I poked my head round the door and shouted hello. There was no immediate response, so I edged into the lobby.

  ‘It’s only me,’ I called. ‘I’m just leaving some fliers for panto auditions if that’s OK?’

  I heard some muttering coming from the sitting room and followed it. Maybe Noah and Emily were in there having a chat or a quick break in the middle of a busy day?

  ‘You should both come down and have a go,’ I said, walking towards the sitting room door. ‘You never know, you might end up being the two halves of the horse or…’

  I was stopped in my tracks by a very unexpected sight: Ethan with his arms around a pretty blonde woman. The same pretty blonde woman he’d been photographed with last week, in fact.

  ‘Oh!’ I squeaked. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt anything!’

  ‘You’re not interrupting anything.’ Ethan’s eyes had gone wide with horror. ‘Why don’t you sit down?’

  I shook my head and pulled some fliers out of my pile. ‘I can’t stop; I just came to stick a few of these up, that’s all. I-I’ll let you get back to whatever you were doing.’