25 December 2023 (2nd)

Once they are in the shelter of the barn . . .

Sioned and Maya are at Penrhewl in the pouring rain, about to collect the generator, but while they are waiting for the worst of the storm to blow over, the barn door swings shut behind them.  “Oh, no!” says Sioned, “I was propping the door open, because it has a dodgy latch – you can’t open it from the inside.”   

. . . they are trapped inside

Despite their struggles with it, the door will not budge.

"We're going to have to wait!"

“Well, we’re going to have to wait, aren’t we?” groans Sioned and Maya protests that she cannot stay there all night, 

Maya's phone is useless . . .

so she gets out her phone.   However she is warned that there is no point, because the signal is rubbish.   Sioned searches around for something, which she knows is there somewhere, 

. . . but at least Sioned had found a light

at last finding a battery-powered lantern which was her father’s.

"Were you close to your Dad?"

She finds a couple of stools to sit on and Maya asks, “Were you close to your Dad?”   

"I miss him a lot"

Sioned misses him a lot and they snuggle together for warmth;  

"Why don't you open your present?"

Maya is invited to open her present now, which she discovers is a bilingual diary for learners.

"There's a section of 'New Vocabulary'"

“If you look inside there’s a section there called ‘New Vocabulary’ every week,” she is told.   

"Thanks, Sioned"

Maya is very grateful to her and Sioned enquires, “What was that all about earlier in the Deri?   Why wouldn’t you open it there?”

"Dee just thinks I like you"

The answer is, “Dee just thinks I like you,” 

"As in 'fancy me'?"

and Sioned realises she means ‘fancies her’.   

"She's just jealous sometimes"

“She’s just jealous sometimes.”

"I thought it was just men who said silly stuff like that"

“I thought it was just men who said silly stuff like that,” remarks Sioned.

Colin does like plenty of HP Sauce

As they sit at the table in number 21, Colin declares, “It’s brown sauce for me with a turkey sandwich, every time,” and he squeezes a large helping on his turkey.   Britt seems to prefer mayonnaise.   “Usually with home-made stuffing, sprouts with bacon, roast potatoes in goose fat, cranberry and bread sauce.”

"Please stop going on, Col"

“Please stop going on about what we can’t have!” Britt instructs him, “Look at us – Christmas is about family – 

"There's no-one here but you and me"

“there’s no one here but you and me, eating sandwiches and crisps in the dark!   The house should be full of fun and laughter and children at Christmas.”

"We're together, aren't we?"

Colin reminds her, “We’re together, aren’t we?   That’s the important thing,” but Britt was hoping to see the kids.   

"We can always go over to the Deri later"

“We can always go over to the Deri later for a bit of company,” he suggests, 

"What's that noise?"

then she hears a strange noise, so goes to investigate.   

Answer:  dripping water

It appears that water is leaking through the roof.

"Perhaps Siôn was right about this weather"

When they arrive at Cysgod y Glyn, Ffion considers that perhaps Siôn was right about not going out in this weather.   “It said on the radio that it is going to get worse,” Iolo gloomily informs her, 

"This pudding had better be worth it!"

“This pudding had better be worth it!”

"It's all right for Cai"

“Well, it ought to be – it wasn’t cheap,” she replies, “It’s all right for Cai, being able to go off, just like that.   Although I’m sure he would prefer to be with the kids – 

"Perhaps that's why he went away"

“it must be hard to be away at Christmas – perhaps that’s why he went away.”

"Well, he didn't say . . ."

“Yeah, well, he didn’t say – it was obviously on his mind,” comments Iolo;  

Ffion thinks it strange that Cai do not tell them directly, as he has been pretty open about his feelings recently;  “It’s strange that he didn’t give you a proper explanation.”   

". . . it was all a bit last-minute"

Iolo continues his father’s story that it was all a bit last-minute.   

"Which part has he gone to, then?"

“Which part has he gone to, then?” she continues and Iolo tells her that it is the south.

"Is there something you're not telling me?"

“Is there something you’re not telling me?” she demands, “You’re on edge, Iolo – are you all right?”   

"I just don't want to be out in this weather"

He says that he just does not want to be out in this weather, 

"Carry this – carefully"

so she tells him to carry the pudding, carefully.   

"What is he not telling me?"

Ffion is concerned about what Iolo is not telling her.

Britt is becoming overwrought . . .

Britt and Colin are attempting to clear up the water on the kitchen floor, which is causing Britt to become rather flustered;  

. . . and is beginning to panic

“No, I’m not all right!” she snarls, “My brother and my nephew are in prison, I can’t even talk to the kids because there’s no Wi-Fi here – and now the ceiling’s about to collapse!”

A pile of post is knocked from the worktop on to the floor and she shouts, “That’s it!   Brilliant!”   There are some letters which 

"Some of these haven't been opened"

and she can see that some of the letters have not been opened yet.   He anticipates that they will be either bills or junk mail.

"This one's from the fostering service" 

“There’s one here from the fostering service,” and she finds inside a letter 

"They've got someone who needs us!"

informing them that there is a foster child for them, short term.   “They’ve got someone who needs us!” she squeals, 

"Merry Christmas, Colin!"

“Merry Christmas, Colin!”

Jinx has made the emergency pizza delivery

Jinx returns home after delivering the pizzas to the Deri;  

"I told Kath we might go to the Deri later"

“I told Kath we might go over to the Deri later,” he says.   Dani praises him for always wanting to help everyone.   

"The world is a better place when . . ."

“You know what?   The world is a better place when everyone helps each other,” he tells her.

"The perfect bloke is right under my nose"

“Why has it taken me ages to realise that the perfect bloke was right under my nose?” wonders Dani 

"I'm not so sure about 'perfect'!"

and Jinx says he has rarely been called ‘perfect’.

"I do really like you"

“I do really like you,” she adds, but Jinx does not sound to her as convinced, so she imagines that there is a problem.   

"I do feel the same way, Dani"

He assures her that he does feels the same way and by now she is feeling nervous.

"Now that I'm settled here . . ."

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking – now that I’m settled here, and you and I . . . understand each other, don’t we?   So, what I’m trying to say is . . .”

"Spit it out, Jinx!"

Dani urges him to, “Spit it out, Jinx!”   

"Come and live with me here"

He invites her and the kids to come and live at number 9. 

He maintains that it would make sense, as there is plenty of room there;  “And it would solve the problem of Seren not letting me stay over.”   

"We're not easy to live with, Jinx"

Dani is dubious about this, pointing out that they are not easy to live with and that she is not sure about what is going to happen with Gwern.

"Well, if you're looking for an excuse . . ."

“OK, well, if you’re looking for an excuse,” he begins and Dani insists that it is a huge step.   

"Yes, but I still want to do it"

“Yes, but I still want to do it,” Jinx promises her.

"I need to think about it"

“You’re one in a million, but I just need to think about it – is that OK?” she replies, 

"Yeah, OK"

and he, rather disappointed, agrees.

"That was a lot nicer than we usually have!"

As they sit round the dinner table at Y Felin, Arwen comments, “That was a lot nicer than we usually have!”   Siôn is glad that they enjoyed it, and she continues, “What do you think Cai had for Christmas dinner?”

"Where did you say he was, Siôn?"

Her mother thinks that it depends on which part of Thailand he is in;  “Where did you say he was, Siôn?”   

"In the north"

Predictably, Siôn replies that it is the north of the country, 

"Well, Iolo said . . ."

which does not concur with what Iolo told her.   

"He intended to travel around"

Siôn tries to wriggle out of it by saying that he intended to travel around;  “To Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket, I think.”   

"That's a bit ambitious in a fortnight"

She considers that to be rather ambitious in a fortnight.   “Yes, well, he was going to see how things went.

"He's obviously not in Thailand!"

“OK, I’ve had enough of this!” exclaims Ffion, “What’s going on?   He’s obviously not in Thailand – has he gone to see Twm and Lleucu?”   

"I told you – he's on holiday" 

Siôn insists that he is on holiday, 

"Come off it – you're hiding something!"

but she angrily answers, “Come off it – you’re hiding something!   If he’s had to go back to hospital, you can tell me.”

"He's gone on holiday!"

Siôn wonders why he is not being believed, repeating, “Cai has gone on holiday.”   

"Let's have a video call with him, then"

In that case, Ffion proposes that they can do a video call with him to wish him a Merry Christmas, but Siôn protests that it is the middle of the night over there, and that she should not wake him.

She suggests that he may be out enjoying himself.   As there is no reply, she imagines that he may phone back when he wakes up.   

Iolo is not happy with the way this is going

All this time, Iolo has been keeping very quiet.

In the Deri, Kath cannot believe that Brynmor is actually here, and demands why he did not tell her;  

"I wanted to give you a surprise"

he replies that he wanted to give her a surprise, and she agrees that he certainly did that.   Cassie is sure that he deserves a drink after that journey, 

He has had a nightmare journey

and he recalls that trains were cancelled, he could not find a taxi and roads were closed.

Kath realises that the earlier phone call was not the postman after all 

"Brynmor was the present"

and Cassie confirms that Brynmor himself was the present.

Just as Colin and Britt arrive from next door, 

Delyth is becoming suspicious

Delyth decides that she is going in search of Maya.   

"Back from the US of A!"

Colin is amazed to see Brynmor;  “Back from the US of A!” he shouts.

"Can we go upstairs?"

Kath asks Brynmor how things are going with Eleri, but he would like to go upstairs first, as he has been on his feet for over 24 hours.   

"Why don't we do some practice?"

In the barn at Penrhewl, Sioned proposes that they should use the time to practice Welsh;  

"To keep the jealousy at bay"

“I can teach you some lines to tell Delyth – and keep that jealousy at bay.   You know ‘Rwy’n caru ti’ [I love you] – try this one, ‘Rwy’n dwlu arnat ti.’ [I am in love with you]   

"Every day with you makes me happy"

‘Mae pob dydd gyda ti yn neud fi’n hapus.’” [Every day with you makes me happy]

"I can't stop thinking about you"

Sioned goes on to teach her, “I can’t stop thinking about you,” 

Well, that was pretty much inevitable

and as she turns to look into Maya’s eyes, they kiss (as has been expected for some time).

Their romantic moment is broken . . .

Then they look at each other, as the door suddenly opens and Delyth comes in;  

. . . by the arrival of Delyth

“I thought there was something wrong – you’ve been ages!” she says.   Sioned explains that there is a dodgy latch on the door and the wind blew it shut, so they could not get out.   

"I knew someone would come and save us"

She had been confident that someone would come and save them.

"Let's get this generator to the Deri"

Delyth rather angrily decides they should get this generator to the Deri, although Sioned recommends waiting for the weather to improve.   

"Your place is with your family!"

“Maya and I will be fine – I’ve got the car outside!   Your place is with your family!” she reproachfully tells Sioned, 

Sioned can see what Maya means now

who now realises the extent of this ‘jealousy’.

"Your spare room is now a castle"

Dani comes downstairs, advising Jinx that his spare room is now a castle, with dragons and unicorns living there;  “They’ve done that in a day – imagine what they’d do if they lived here!”   

"More interesting than a pile of dirty clothes"

He maintains that it sounds a lot more interesting than a pile of dirty clothes.

“I can’t make a cup of tea without electricity, so do you fancy wine?” he asks her, 

Jinx is scared of a mouse

then suddenly shouts with alarm and jumps up on to a worktop, having found a mouse in the cupboard.   

Dani hates them, 

"They're more scared than we are, Dani"

but he points out that they are more scared of people;  Dani squeals,“Do you want to bet?   

"There might be a family of them!"

“There might be a family of them there!”   He does not know what to do.

"It was a mistake, Cheryl . . ."

Gaynor is clearing away the wrappings from the presents at Maes-y-Deri when Cheryl comes downstairs, and again says how sorry she is, stressing that it was a mistake.   

". . . I would never have looked at Mark Jones otherwise"

“I’d been drinking – I would never have looked at Mark Jones otherwise!”

"What does that say about me?"

“Oh, thanks – what does that say about me?” Cheryl demands, and Gaynor simply confirms that she does not fancy him.   “But I do and you knew that!” her sister yells, “Why did you bunk up with him?”

"If only I could turn back the clock . . ."

Gaynor does not know the answer to that, only that it did happen and if she could turn back the clock . . .

“Well, you can’t – we’re sisters, Gaynor – and I thought we were friends, but you know what?   

"What't the point in staying?"

“If I don’t have a sister or a boyfriend keeping me here any more, what’s the point in staying?”

Mark just wants a pint of lager

The thunder continues to roar as Cassie tells Mark she was not expecting to see him on his day off;  he replies that it is not a Merry Christmas and would like a bottle of lager.

Delyth comes in and tells Cassie that the the generator is in the car;  “But what am I supposed to do with it?” Cassie asks.

“Sioned didn’t say,” is Delyth’s terse reply, 

then she returns to Maya;  “I was so worried about you.”

"Kicking that door in like Superwoman"

Maya is so proud of her for coming to the rescue;  “Kicking that door in, like Superwoman or something – it was impressive – you’re one in a million, Dee.”   

She repeats her newly-learned phrases . . .

Then she deploys what Sioned recently taught her, 

. . . and they appear to work

which seems to have the desired effect.

Colin is celebrating . . .

Colin is insisting that he wants a bottle of Asti Spumanté, as they are celebrating.   Britt invites everyone to join them, 

. . . whereas Mark is doing the opposite

while Mark simply leans on the bar, looking very sorry for himself.

"The storm has eased a bit"

Ffion is ready to leave Y Felin and calls to Arwen;  “The storm has eased a bit so we’d better go.”   

"Better than sandwiches in the dark"

Arwen tells them that it was better than sandwiches in the dark.   

"We're looking forward to seeing Cai's photos"

“Remember us t0 him when you speak to Cai – we’re looking forward to seeing the photos,” Ffion continues.

"Greta loves her present"

Iolo thanks them for Greta’s present, which she loves, and they leave the house.

"You do know she doesn't believe us?"

“You do know that Ffion doesn’t believe us?” says Iolo, and his father concedes that she did ask a lot of questions.   Iolo confirms that she did the same thing at Cysgod y Glyn, too;  “She knows that we’re hiding something, Dad.   I can’t believe this – how could you say what you said?   We should have phoned the police the minute we knew Cai was missing!   Have you seen the weather?   He could be injured in the storm somewhere.”

"He's in a hotel or with a friend"

Siôn tries to convince his son that Cai is in a hotel somewhere or with a friend.   

"He's injured – he's vulnerable!"

“We don’t know that, do we?   That’s the point – he’s injured, he’s vulnerable – and we don’t know where he is.”   Siôn confesses that Iolo might be right and maintains that they will contact the police tomorrow, 

"One more day won't make any difference . . ."

still insisting that Cai is fine and one more day is not going to make any difference.

". . . but now it's Christmas . . ."

“But for now, it’s Christmas – 

". . . and your little girl is on her own"

“and your little girl is upstairs playing on her own.”   

He permits Iolo one more tablet

He permits Iolo one more of the tablets 

"Go to Greta"

and tells him to go to Greta.

Up in the Deri flat Kath brings Brynmor a hot drink;  

"Americans can't make a tidy cup of tea"

“The Americans can do a lot of things very well, but they can’t make a tidy cup of tea,” he tells her, and she reassures him that there will be plenty of time to drink tea.   She is just glad to have him home.

"You would love it there, Kath"

“You would love it there, Kath – so how have things been here?” he goes on 

"We make a good team"

and Kath says that she and Cassie make a good team.   She is glad to have some responsibility, to be honest, then asks if things are moving forward with Eleri.

"Our solicitors are real little terriers"

“Yes – it hasn’t been easy, not by a long way – or cheap – but our solicitors are real little terriers.”   

"So what happens next?"

Kath enquires as to the what happens next and he advises, “There’s one more trial to go, and I feel we have a chance to free her this time – 

"The trial could take months"

“but the trial could take months, which means I have a long journey ahead of me again.

"I want you to come back to America with me"

“Nothing would make me happier than having you there with me.   It’s going to be a difficult time – and I miss you.   I want you to come back to America with me, Kath.”

Siôn hits the bottle . . .

Siôn pours himself a glass of Dutch courage, 

. . . to help with his situation . . .

which he downs in one swig, 

. . . and is about to have another one

then pours another one.   

The phone rings

The telephone rings and he looks apprehensive, but eventually answers it and he hears a familiar voice.

"We've been worried sick!"

“Merry Christmas, Siôn,” and he is overjoyed to hear Cai’s voice, pointing out that they have been worried sick.   

"You're going to pay for this!"

However Cai continues, “Oh, don’t worry, Siôn – you’re going to pay for this!” and the line goes dead.   Siôn’s elation has now changed to a look of horror, 

The power cut is spreading

and at that moment the power cut spreads to Y Felin.

Dani has escaped to the Deri with the children, vowing that she is not going back to that house until the mice have gone.   Jinx assures her that he is going to sort out the matter and she orders two white wines and two orange juices.

"That's a good idea"

"I'm not going back there, Jinx!"

has brought his guitar with him, which Britt thinks is a good idea;  Cassie fancies some carols, 

"I want you all to join in with the words"

and he wants everyone to join in with the words.   

♫"Silent night"♬

They begin to sing, “Silent night, holy night.”   

A lull in the hostilities

The rift between Maya and Delyth appears to have been temporarily mended.   

♫"Round yon virgin mother and child"♬

Dani with Gabriel muses upon the words ‘virgin mother and child’, 

Brynmor and Kath have come down

while Kath and Brynmor stand behind the bar.   

No singing from Mark

Mark of course is still in no mood to sing.

Cassie confesses that it was a good idea to invite everyone to the Deri;  

"We make an OK team, don't we?"

“We make an OK team, don’t we – onwards to 2024!”