Cwmderi Diary 2017: 3 May 2017

"I have to speak to Debbie!"

At Maes-y-Deri, there is a hammering on the door, and Kath lets in Josh, who is in a hurry to see Debbie, but she is still in bed.

"Take it slowly, Josh!"

“I know you have to talk, but for now, leave it, take it slowly,” Kath tells him. He feels that he should not have said what he did.

Mark is not happy to see him here again

Mark comes downstairs and tells Josh to get out, now.

“Please, Mark,” Josh begs, “I have to talk to her – I didn’t sleep a wink last night!”

They have even woken Vicky

Vicky comes downstairs and wants to know what is going on.

Kath takes charge and issues instructions

Kath tells Josh to sit down, and instructs Mark to go and fetch Debbie.

Gaynor is having difficulties

Gaynor is having problems with the cashpoint, Elgan asks if he should give it a kick,

Elgan offers to lend her money . . .

and offers her some money to keep her going, but she refuses. “Why don’t I buy you lunch?” he asks, “Headteachers and doctors have to eat – I’ll pick you up at about 12:30.”

. . . but she looks less than keen

She protests that she cannot leave school, and has a lot of work to do, pending an official enquiry; she rushes away.

"I feel so ashamed, Debbie!"

When Debbie comes down, Josh says he feels so ashamed of what happened last night are, explaining that he had too much to drink and does not know what came over him.

"I couldn't get hold of Mam"

Debbie had tried to ring her mother but could not get hold of her.

"It was a pack of lies"

“The fact is, Debbie, it was a pack of lies,” he tells her, “I lost my temper, and I was looking for sympathy – they were the words that just came out.”

"You must have had some reason to say that"

Debbie considers he must have had some reason to say that, and concludes that her Mam is not a gypsy at all; she tells Josh to go.

"You and your pathetic caravan!"

“You and your pathetic caravan should move a long way from Cwmderi!” and she goes back upstairs.

"I wanted to tell her, but I couldn't"

“I wanted to tell her, but I couldn’t,” Josh tells Kath, “I’ve hurt her enough already!”

"The fish are coming after six"

Dani reports to Garry that the fish will be delivered to the salon this afternoon, but the van will not arrive until after six.

Garry is not going out after all

Garry had intended to go out, but has changed his mind and will go next week instead.

Dani urges him to go, as he needs a break;

"You don't trust me with Gwern, do you?"

“You don’t trust me with Gwern, do you?” she realises, “I’ve said I’m sorry.” Garry is going to return to the bar,

"No – I haven't finished!"

but Dani rages, “No – I haven’t finished! Every time I go near Gwern, I can feel you watching. You can’t accept that it was a mistake and move on.”

"If I had arrived any later . . ."

Garry protests, “I saw my son drinking alcohol – if I had arrived any later . . .”

Dani picks up her bag and leaves for the salon,

"You assumed I would look after him!"

advising him, “By the way, he was keeping me company in the bar, because you forgot to book some cover. You just assumed I would look after him and run the bar.

"Next time, don't ask me to help!

“Next time, don’t ask me to help! We’ll see how you cope!”

"Is it safe to come in?"

There is a knock on the Headteacher’s door, and Elgan Pritchard asks if it is safe to come in. “I’m starving, and I hope you are too,” he says.

Looks like he has brought a slap-up meal

He is carrying two bags of food.

Gaynor is affronted; “Listen, maybe I wasn’t clear enough this morning – unless you can make this pile of work disappear . . .”

All this attention from the good doctor scares Gaynor

He puts down the two bags on top of the paperwork on her desk.

"Running away, are you?"

Kath visits Josh in his caravan, and asks if he is running away; “Half an hour ago you wanted to sort things out with Debbie!” she says,

"Moving on is best for everyone"

but he queries whether Debbie wants to sort things out with him. He doubts that, so he is doing what is best for everyone and moving on.

Kath demands that they talk properly

She makes herself comfortable, and insists that she is not moving until he sits down and talks to her properly. She wants to know where he is going, and tells him he is going to get some advice. “Give her a chance to cool down and then try again, being totally honest this time.”

Josh maintains that he cannot live in the same village as someone who hates him, especially his own daughter.

"You're sensitive and kind"

“You may be an idiot at times,” says Kath, “But you’re sensitive and kind – you’re funny-ish. I wish I was half as positive as you – you get on with almost everyone.”

"I'm going to miss you, Kathleen"

He looks Kath in the eye, saying, “I’m really going to miss you, Kathleen – we had fun, didn’t we?”

Josh kisses her

and he kisses her.

Just then, the door opens and Vicky appears;

"Does everyone think I'm thick, or what?"

“Does everyone think I’m thick, or what?” she demands, “You turn up before breakfast, Mam’s trying to phone Gran every 20 seconds, and everyone goes quiet when I walk in. What is going on?”

"I said something stupid last night"

Josh explains that he said something stupid last night,

"I have to go and do some shopping"

but Kath decides to go, much to his discomfiture. He wants her to come back this afternoon.

"Right, tell me what's going on"

“Right, well, I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what’s going on,” declares Vicky.

They enjoy their desktop picnic

Gaynor and Dr Pritchard share their lunch; “I thought picnic at your desk would be fun,” he tells her,

"It's a lovely idea"

and she agrees it is a lovely idea. “You remind me of my wife,” he says,

He starts talking about his wife, but then stops

“She was a solicitor, and I always joked that she thought more of her clients than of me.” He seems rather reluctant to go any further.

Gaynor remarks that it is better than the food in the canteen;

He can see she is a busy woman

the doctor realises that she has a lot on her plate, with the future of young people in her hands, and he thinks she copes remarkably well.

"Why did you call Mam a gypsy, then?"

Vicky wants to know, “Why did you call Mam a gypsy if she’s not? I liked the idea of having a bit of the Romany in us – it’s romantic.”

"There is a lot of prejudice"

Josh replies, “Well, it’s not all gypsies, tramps and thieves – there is a lot of prejudice. It’s hard work when everyone hates you – you’d be surprised – look at your mother’s reaction.”

"Mam's like a firework!"

Vicky points out that it was the fact that he lied which caused her anger; “Mam’s like a firework – lots of noise, but no real damage – and she always forgives in the end.” As she leaves, he says that she is a very sensible young woman.

Dol is still incommunicado

Debbie is still getting no reply from her mother; she is looking through a tin her mother’s papers, but does not know what she will find. She muses, “It was a strange remark, if there is no truth in it.”

She discovers a relevant photo . . .

Then, at the bottom of the tin, she finds an old photograph of a family sitting on the steps of a gypsy caravan, but Mark comments that it does not prove anything.

. . . with names and a date, sixty-nine years ago

On the back is written, “James and Anna Collins May 4th 1948.” Debbie realises that Josh was telling the truth.

"Sorry if I intruded"

Dr Pritchard leaves Gaynor’s office, telling her that she can now carry on with the daily grind, and that he is sorry if he intruded; she is glad that he did, as it was nice to talk about something other than work.

"Call me Elgan!"

“Why don’t we stop being so formal?” he suggests, “Call me Elgan! Perhaps I’m being a bit forward, but how would you feel about changing your doctor?

"The new surgery in Llanarthur is supposed to be very good"

“I do enjoy your company, but officially a GP is not allowed to date any of his patients. So, if you changed your doctor . . . The new surgery in Llanarthur is supposed to be very good.”

Gaynor enters her phone number . . .

He hands her his phone, and invites her to put her number into it; she looks forward to his call,

. . . and looks pleased with herself

and appears quite happy as he leaves.

"Is everything all right between you and Garry?"

In the Deri, Dani brings Sioned a cup of coffee and is asked if everything is all right between her and Garry, as he seemed angry with her on Monday.

"He's forgiven me now"

Dani replies that now he has forgiven her.

"It should be up to you to forgive him!"

Sioned says, “It should be up to you to forgive him, the way he spoke to you in front of everyone. He should have stuck up for you!”

"Well, you know what Garry's like"

Dani tells her she knows what Garry is like, and that she puts up with him because she loves him.

"I wouldn't let my husband speak to me like that!"

“I wouldn’t let my husband speak to me like that!” exclaims Sioned.

"We all know how you treated your husband!"

Dani coldly informs her, “We all know how you treated your husband, and like you said, it’s none of your business!” This is not appreciated by Sioned.

Josh is waiting for Kath

Kath returns to the caravan, insisting that she and Josh need to have a chat;

"That kiss was a mistake"

“That kiss was a mistake. I would like it if we could clear the air here and now. The fact is, with all that’s going on with Debbie, I don’t want to complicate matters. You’re not the type of man who wants to be tied down, are you? The open road beckons.”

"I'm going to stay"

Josh reveals that he has decided to stay, as Kath was right earlier, saying that he could not run away, and somehow he will have to try and build bridges with Debbie.