Sean Lipton

Chapter two

Christmas Eve!!!

Tis the season to be as jolly with balls of holly!

Well, tis the early day to be jolly!

I'm such a kidder.

7:45 in the morning. Really dark but sun's slowly coming up.

We've had our breakfast, we got cleaned up and dressed and we're about to get going with our trip to Ballyrock – where grandpa and nana's house is.

Our minivan outside is nearly packed. The van has got it's trailer clipped on because we're going to grab our tree on the way up.

Mum, Dad and I are wearing our Christmas jumpers and hats, since we've got Christmas spirit in ourselves! Niamh is wearing hers too but she's bit of a humbug.

I got my bag packed up with my things and went downstairs, leaving my bedroom door open, heaven knows.

Before I could head on outside (due the fact it's like minus three degrees), I slipped on my winter scarf over this big coat that I've been wearing since I was 10.

Mum and Dad are already heading out to the car just as I was about to. "Hey son, are you ready to go?" Mum asked me, car keys flashing by the Christmas lights from the mirror.

"Yeah, sure am." I said, smiling. "Is there anything I can help you with?" I asked her. "Nope, nothing at all, thanks for asking." Mum replied.

She wondered where Niamh is, she's in her bedroom doing her make-up. Apparently, she has spent the morning not doing anything except putting her make-up on.

Dad sat the box of Christmas food down on the coffee table to go upstairs to get my sister. I borrowed the keys off Mum and carried the box of food out the house and in the minivan.

I unlocked the minivan and open the boot to find a clear spot where I can set the stuff. Last time, I sat a box of groceries in the boot, one of our bags crushed them and we had to go back and buy the food again. I had to pay for them myself, wasn't easy.

Good golly, this weather! Don't think I can spend a minute or two alone in the freezing cold! Especially in the countryside. If I were to do that, I'll end up like a Game of Thrones washed-up-ashore Viking.

One who doesn't have a boat, spear, shield or even a sword.

The only thing he would have to defend himself is his head.

I went in the house to get my bag, then I saw Niamh coming down the stairs with Mum behind her. I'm guessing Dad tried to get Niamh out of the bedroom, she wouldn't listen to him.

Instead, Mum ordered her to get out the room and like that, she did was supposed to have done less than twenty minutes ago.

Niamh has her bag with her, Mum and Dad got their things already in the car.

"Morning, Niamh. Merry Christmas." I said politely. She only said "Hey, Sean." Her voice said "Bah, humbug" as did her face. Whatever.

"Everybody ready?" said Dad. "All set." I said. "Ok, let's go, Eskimos!" said Mum. Before we would leave, we made sure that all the lights are switched off, the windows were closed and the only set of lights that were left on were our fake Christmas tree that we bought from Tesco in 2009.

Our real tree we're not getting until we get to Ballyrock and the van will be emptied out of our things.

I got into the back seat with Niamh sitting beside me, even though there's that much stuff in there, the crampy conditions of the backseat couldn't harm a couple kids. If you're an adult, it's different.

Mum and Dad got in the car and switched on the car engines. The radio came on blasting, waking us up a bit more. Boothwood FM is playing their Christmas Top 20.

"Merry Christmas Everyone" started playing, even though it's at number 10, it's my all time favourite Christmas tune, never gets old, I even know the words to it by heart!

"Wooooo!!!" Mum, Dad and I whooped in joy to the song's opening sleigh bells ringing. "#Snow is fallin', all around me, children playing, having fun! Tis the season, love and understand it, Merry Christmas everyone#"

Yeah!!! Christmas time is near!!!

We left the driveway and drove down to Worsley Village, the town that could keep Boothwood shining bright in pitch black, besides the pale moonlight.

But since it's now 8AM, there is no need for any of that, except for traffic jam-packed roads, that we've yet to come across. Hope we don't end up in traffic since it's Christmas Eve.

58 minutes later...

Ballyrock!

Wow, this town sure looks different from last summer. I can see the big tree near the monumental site round the corner.

It should look better if it was at the front of a pub or even a restaurant.

Shopping mall, perhaps?

Can't wait to get our own tree set up. Mum and Dad can hardly wait for school to start again! Again, I'm only joking! They're looking forward to the tree as much as I am!

"Are we there yet, now?" Niamh groaned and moaned that phrase a few times. Mum says either wise up or she will have to spend Christmas with someone else...something she can't do!

"It's just this way, we're about nearly there." Said Dad, turning us to our left away from the Bally Bank and Castlegione's. Castlegione's is the best Italian eatery that we've been to, wished it was in Worsley village.

Niamh gets their lasagne and garlic bread, I only go for the veggie Bolognese...and their garlic bread also!

A little further up the road, the town's pretty much gone, all we're driving through is the fields. I've had vague memories of the fields of Ballyrock.

There's a funny story I came up with when I was 13:

A flock of sheep, when it gets to midnight, would trick their farmer and his dog to count them until they hit the sack.

Once they have their chance, they would roam free on the green grass, drinking beer and blasting Lynyrd Skynyrd's greatest hits, later the likes of Steve Earle, Christy Moore and Shane MacGowan.

It wasn't the fields that interested me. It was the woods far behind the house. I've been in the Sequor Luminum (Trail of Lights) forest several times. It's only around the corner and a good walk.

But I heard that the Ballyrock Forest has got a massive river that goes all the way from the Kavinsky River to here then all the way down to the Laan Bay.

Wait? Could it--! Oh, yes!!!! THERE IT IS!

"The bungalow!" I said, oops! Could've kept that to myself!

"Yes, so it is!" said Mum happily, seeing the bungalow from her side. "Home sweet home!" said Dad, he's the one filled with joy and happiness the most.

Niamh is busy texting to her friends from the other-side of town.

Thank God after an hour of "driving home for Christmas", we've arrived at the bungalow once owned by grandpa Gordon and grandma Julie.

Getting out of the car...

Can't wait to check out the house!