The Mince Pie Mix-Up by Jennifer Joyce Page A

speech.
    ‘Are they doing the lights now?’ Charlie whispered.
    ‘Any minute now, sweetie.’ Judy wrapped her arms around Charlie to keep her warm. The village began its countdown from ten and then, flicking the switch, Mrs Ephron lit the green up with multicoloured lights. The tree shone and twinkled while festive characters attached to the street lights beamed down at them. It offset the cold of the night, giving the village a cosy glow. The choir broke out into song one final time that evening, belting out ‘O Christmas Tree’ in tribute. Once the song was over, the choir children wandered out into the crowd, handing out candy canes and chocolate coins.
    ‘Isn’t it lovely?’ Judy breathed a sigh of pure contentment. Christmas was well and truly on its way now. All they needed was a flutter of snow and the night would be absolutely perfect.
    ‘Do you think they’ll have anything left at the hog roast stall?’ Calvin asked. Judy chose to ignore him and instead watched the little stage where Scott and his band mates were gearing up for their gig. Judy could see that Scott’s hands were trembling as he adjusted his mic stand and wondered whether it was through nerves or the cold. Probably a combination of the two. Mrs Ephron introduced the band and the familiar sounds of ‘Fairytale of New York’ began to play.
    ‘They’re pretty good, aren’t they?’ Judy was both pleased and relieved. As Scott and the band practised either at school or in the garage of band mate Jack, Judy had never heard them play as a complete unit before.
    ‘I’m starving.’ Rather than watching his son with pride, Calvin’s eyes were on the hog roast stand. It was cruel to make him stand out in the cold without any sort of sustenance.
    ‘They really could be stars, couldn’t they?’ Judy flashed Scott two thumbs-up, but he didn’t see. Or refused to acknowledge the sign of encouragement.
    The band finished the song before going straight into ‘Last Christmas’, leaving their own song until the very end. Which was probably a wise decision. Scott and his friends had penned a song titled ‘Christmas Can Kiss My Arse’, which wasn’t going down too well with the organiser of the village lights switch-on. Who also happened to be the vicar of the local church. Judy suspected they wouldn’t be invited to play again next year.
    Despite the questionable lyrics of their self-penned song, Judy thought the boys had played wonderfully and she was one of the first to storm the stage. Fighting her way through the throng of teenage girls, Judy rushed towards her son and pulled him into a tight hug.
    ‘You were amazing, Scott.’ Judy kissed her son’s face over and over. ‘Absolutely brilliant. I’m so proud of you.’
    ‘Dad! Get off!’ Scott managed to wriggle free of Judy’s grip but suspected his image was already ruined. None of the girls would want to get off with him now.
    ‘Sorry. I got a bit too enthusiastic.’ Judy couldn’t resist giving Scott one last peck on the cheek. ‘I’ll see you at home. Make sure you’re home by nine.’
    ‘
Nine?
’ Scott’s reputation was going to be crushed beyond repair.
    ‘Yes, nine. You’ve got school in the morning.’ With one last wave, Judy located Calvin and Charlie and they made their way home, stopping off at the hog roast stall on the off-chance that there would a scrap left.
    There wasn’t.
    Not even a trotter.
    Calvin sulked all the way home. All he had to show for the night was a foot full of blisters and a scalp that was red raw from scratching.
    ‘I’m exhausted.’ Kicking off Judy’s flat but still tortuous shoes, Calvin slumped into his armchair. He didn’t want to move until bedtime – if he hadn’t fallen asleep in his chair by then.
    ‘I wouldn’t get too settled,’ Judy said. ‘Charlie needs a bath and a bedtime story.’

Chapter Ten:

Monday’s To-Do List: Tattoos, Waxing and Make-up
    It was such a luxury to wake up at the more reasonable hour