Maggie Sullivan - Christmas on Coronation Street - The perfect Christmas read

Elsie wasn’t at all convinced she would be able to do it. To her, it sounded a crazy idea, but Stan was so enthusiastic she didn’t want to be a spoilsport and say no.

‘If I learn how to do it, can we really go out for my birthday?’ she asked, spurred on by the thought of such a treat.

‘Like I said, it could be fun. And me brother need never know I’ve borrowed his bike.’

Elsie for once was speechless. No one had ever done anything special for her birthday before. So that made her more determined than ever that by Sunday she would learn how to ride a bike.

By Sunday morning the rain had stopped. Elsie couldn’t see out clearly through the grime on their bedroom window, but when she made her way downstairs she couldn’t hear any rain pattering against the glass pane. She was up even earlier than usual, wanting to make the day stretch out as long as possible even though nobody else in the house would be stirring for another couple of hours. She was determined to enjoy every minute of her birthday. Others down at the factory were forever talking about the things they had done to celebrate their birthdays; now, for the first time in her life, she wanted to be able to experience what it was to feel pampered and special. She wanted to go back to work on Monday morning and talk about what she had done and how much she had enjoyed herself on her big day. And Stan Walsh was going to make sure she did.

As she cautiously descended the stairs, however, she felt as if the day was already less than perfect. It might be her birthday, but she still had to do her early morning chores. Collect the water from the pump in the courtyard. Set up the cauldron. Rake out the ashes and get a new fire going in the grate. She needed to get through as much as she could and be gone from the house before anyone else was awake.

As she got dressed, she wished she could have worn something different. But that of course was impossible. She was by far the tallest in the family so she couldn’t even pinch anything from one of her siblings. At least today she didn’t have to cover up her dress with her work overalls or wear a wretched headscarf. The flowered print of her cotton dress had once been quite pretty, she thought as she smoothed her hands over the tight-fitting bodice and gathered skirt, but that was before all the flowers had faded. The only thing she could find to wear that made her feel different was a pair of fine lawn knickers that she pinched from her mother’s drawer. Alice had shown them to her once and said she’d only worn them on very special occasions. What kind of occasions her mother would have needed such pretty delicate underwear for, Elsie really couldn’t imagine. Not that Alice could fit into them at the moment, so Elsie was sure her mother wouldn’t miss them. They felt really light and special as she ran her hands over the fine gauze material. The knickers were still pretty even though they were no longer white. Just the thing to comfort her aching sit-upon.

The chill of the early morning was likely to remain throughout the day, so Elsie would need to wrap up warm. But when she had worn her coat last night for the trial run on the bike, it had flapped annoyingly around the chain, getting in the way, so today she put her cardigan on instead. She fastened all the buttons against the wind, but even so she found herself wishing she had darned some of the larger holes.

Elsie was still excited by the fact that she had learned to ride a bike last night. It hadn’t been easy, but she had conquered her fear and maintained her balance and by the time Stan had said they should call it a day, she’d been riding up and down the street in triumph. She’d never have believed it could be so exhilarating, riding the length and breadth of Coronation Street without anyone holding on to the saddle, and when she wobbled off a couple of times it had cost her nothing more than her dignity. But now she realized she was paying the full price for Stan’s tuition, for this morning her legs ached when she tried to walk, and sitting down was so painful she didn’t know how she was going to get back on to the bike.

They had taken a chance and hidden Charlie’s bike overnight under some old rags in the courtyard, and when she went out to use the privy she was relieved to find the bike was still there. She wheeled it to the factory gates where she was to meet Stan, hoping that by walking slowly alongside it she would be conserving her energy for today’s ride. She had no idea how far they would be going, Stan was keeping that a secret, but it was bound to be a fair way.

He was already at the factory and was leaning on his bike as it stood propped up against the iron gates. He was wearing his cap as usual, but today he had tied the bottom of each of his wide trouser legs with a band of string. Elsie thought he looked very dapper and dashing, smoking a cigarette while leaning casually on the gates, and she had to pinch herself it was so hard to believe that a man was taking her out specially for her birthday.

As always, Stan doffed his cap when he caught sight of her. ‘At your service, madam,’ he said as she drew near, giving a slight bow and making Elsie giggle. ‘And some little bird has told me it’s your birthday today,’ he said. From behind his back he whipped out a small package covered in pretty paper.

Elsie turned away to brush her eyes with the back of her hand. ‘No one’s ever given me a present on me birthday before. Is this really for me?’ she asked, overwhelmed at the gesture.

‘Really.’ He laughed as she began feeling the package, trying to guess what might be inside. ‘You’d better open it or you won’t be able to see what it is.’

It was just like one of the packages under the newsagent’s Christmas tree. She unwrapped the paper carefully, so as not to tear it. Inside, as she had suspected, was a bar of dark brown Bournville chocolate. A lump rose in her throat. ‘Thank you – thank you very much, Stan. I shall treasure it.’ She wanted to hang on to her precious present but realized she had no pockets to put it into.

At that Stan laughed again. ‘I was rather hoping you’d eat it. And you can give me a bit an’ all. But for now you can put it in me saddlebag.’ He indicated the small leather pouch on the back of his bike. She handed the chocolate over reluctantly. It did make more sense to put it away for the time being. And afterwards she would keep the paper he had wrapped it in. This was her first-ever present, and that was something she would never forget.

‘We can have it when we gets to the moors,’ he said.

‘The moors?’

‘Aye, I thought it would be nice to get out into the country. It’s not far, not now that you can ride.’

She nodded. She couldn’t tell him she was too sore to get on a bike today. Not when he’d gone to so much trouble. And after all the effort he’d put into teaching her to ride last night. She remembered how pleased he had been and knew she really couldn’t let him down.

‘Look, I brought this too.’ He brandished another package, this time in a brown paper bag. ‘It’s a sandwich, in case we get hungry at dinner time.’ He leaned towards her and kissed her lightly but tenderly on the lips.

A bar of chocolate and a sandwich! Elsie’s stomach fizzed with excitement; she felt really special now.

‘So, let’s go,’ Stan said, turning his bike. ‘You can follow me, I know the way. I’ve been up on to the moors loads of times.’

Elsie was afraid that he would see how difficult it was for her to lift her leg over the crossbar of Charlie’s bike, but as it turned out it she didn’t need to worry. He wasn’t watching; in fact, he was already halfway down the street. She wobbled along behind him for a short way then gripped the handlebars tightly while she tried to shut her mind to the pain.