Cwmderi Diary 2018: 4 April 2018 (2nd)

They are finding it hard to cope

Neither Chester or Hannah slept much last night; “I don’t know how I’m going to do a double shift at APD as well as the driving test this afternoon,” he complains. Hannah assures him that the adrenaline will keep him going.

I can't wait for us to be able to escape from Cwmderi

“I can’t wait for us to be able to escape from Cwmderi whenever we like,” he says, but she points out that they need a car first, and that is not going to happen with this debt. She looks to see how much money they have got.

"What's that money you're trying to hide?"

Then Colin comes breezing in; “What’s that money you’re trying to hide?” he asks, “Britt said you were saving for the wedding – is that what you’re doing?”

Hannah tries to explain

but Hannah replies that it is more serious than that, although Chester makes light of their problem.

“We’re in debt!” Hannah announces, but Chester insists that it is no big deal.

"Work and pay off the debt!"

According to Colin, the solution is simple; they have to work off the debt. There are no shortcuts – just an honest day’s graft.

"Someone else breathing down our necks"

Chester now realises that they have someone else breathing down their necks. Hannah goes to take a shower, but is told that there is no hot water left

Ifan appears to be a messy eater

Ifan is being given his breakfast, which seems to be going everywhere but in his mouth,

104 people liked Sara's video

then Sara receives a message that her video has ‘104 likes’.

"This debt is serious, Col"

In the shop, Hannah wants a private word with Colin, and stresses that the debt is serious;

"Gwyneth's threatened us!"

“The person to whom we owe money has threatened Chester – they’ve actually hurt him! I’m scared!” When asked who it is, she tells him, “Gwyneth! She loaned us money to pay for the flights to Australia. When we cancelled, we couldn’t get our money back. Now she’s charging us higher interest – we are willing to repay her,

"It's all going out of control"

“but I’m scared that it’s all going out of control!”

"She's not as wicked as that!"

Colin cannot believe that Gwyneth is as wicked as that, but agrees to speak to her and try to persuade her not to charge any interest.

This comes as a relief to Hannah

Hannah breathes a sigh of relief.

"We had a bit too much to drink"

In the salon, Sheryl is working on Sara’s hair, and telling her about the tapas bar – as well as the large amount of alcohol they consumed. “It was a lovely evening, and we enjoyed ourselves.”

"I'll go and get another one"

Then she discovers her hair spray has run out, and goes to the back room for another one.

Gethin is lying in wait to accost her

Gethin is lurking in wait and surprises her; “We’re not supposed to meet until later!” she scolds him,

His hands are all over her

but he cannot keep his hands off her, protesting that he hates not hearing from her.

"I loved that video log"

She returns to Sara, who is enjoying the peace and quiet of the salon; “I loved that video log you uploaded the other day – it was hilarious!” Sheryl tells her, “Are you going to do another one?” Sara thinks that she may do one, now she has had her hair done.

Sheryl is getting tired of his antics

As soon as Sara is out of the door, Gethin comes in and grabs Sheryl; “What do you think you’re doing?” she demands,

"This is not what we agreed!"

“This is not what we agreed – I’ll see you later –

She propels him towards the door . . .

“go now!”

. . . and he eventually goes

Gethin reluctantly exits by the back door.

Colin goes to reason with Gwyneth

Colin goes to Awyr Iach, and tells Gwyneth, “I understand they have to pay you back, but they’re school pupils – they can’t work all hours of the day and night.”

"I'll give them time to pay"

She replies that she is willing to give them time to pay, but he continues that it will take months of full-time work to pay the interest, let alone the debt itself.

"They should have thought of that!"

“They should have thought of that before stealing my money!” she exclaims, “They need to learn to be responsible!” He points out that they borrowed the money, and she replies, “They were running away to Australia, with no intention of paying me back – Chester said he wanted to buy a car – they scammed me – I can’t write off the debt, I’m teaching them a lesson.”

"They're both scared stiff of you!"

He says that they are both scared stiff of her, but she points out that she has been very reasonable,

"I could have reported it to the police!"

and could have reported it to the police, but she wants to sort it out among themselves. He guarantee that she will get her money back, but wonders if she can forget about the interest.

“As a single mother, I depend on the interest to pay my bills!” she replies,

She is pleased with her performance

and smiles broadly as Colin leaves, rather crestfallen.

Eileen will not agree about supplying the tapas place

At Penrhewl, Eifion has been unsuccessful in persuading Eileen that the farm should supply the tapas bar with organic vegetables.

"We'll try with Penrhewl organic meat"

Cadno thinks that they may be more successful with Penrhewl organic meat, as they control that, rather than Eileen. Eifion will be meeting Anita this afternoon to discuss it;

"The solicitor should ring today"

Cadno is expecting to hear from the solicitor later today.

Sara begins another video

Sara begins another of her videos; “I came back from J&S salon this morning, looking fabulous, gave Ifan his lunch and – disaster! Jam in the hair. I’m going to show you the quickest way to get rid of jam in your hair!

"A mother's best friend – the baby wipe!"

“Use a baby wipe – I don’t know if there is a perfect technique, but try not to spread it to the rest of your hair. If that doesn’t work,

"Maybe the only option left is . . ."

“maybe the only option left is to use – a pair of scissors! Good luck!” As she prepares to post her video, Ifan’s cries can be heard coming from upstairs.

"Check it's in neutral – ignition on!"

Chester is sitting at APD, muttering to himself, “Check it’s in neutral, ignition on, put it in first, check the mirror,” when Hannah creeps up behind him

"I work here now!"

and announces that now she too works there, since she asked her Gran, just for a couple of shifts to get some money.

"I've been talking to Gwyneth!"

Colin finds them there; “I’ve been talking to Gwyneth,” he says,

"She won't cancel the interest, but . . ."

and Chester is horrified. “She won’t cancel the interest – but if Britt talked to her . . .” Chester says that his mother will kill him, but Colin fears that Britt will kill him if he does not tell her;

"She's going to find out anyway!"

“She’s going to find out anyway!”

Chester worries about all the stress with Uncle Garry, and with the tension between them, the last thing he wants to do is to give his Mam another reason to hate him. “Heads down and work hard – everything will be all right, guaranteed!” maintains Colin,

"To keep the wolf from the door"

“Look, I know it’s not much, but here’s something towards the cause – to keep the wolf from the door.”

"The wolf wants more than twenty quid!"

As Colin walks away, Chester laments, “The wolf wants more than £20!”

Gethin is making a pestilential nuisance of himself

Gethin is all over Sheryl, telling her he could not sleep last night thinking of her, but she insists that someone is waiting for her in the salon. “Can’t you put them under the dryer for half an hour?” he demands, “It’s been too long!

"There's a limit to how long I can wait!"

“There is a limit to how long I can wait, you know!”

Sheryl shows him the door – again

She shows him out of the back door.

"This is all we managed to save"

Gwyneth, with a face like thunder, marches into APD, and Chester tells her, “This is all we managed to save this week – we’re both working as hard as we can.”

"You must be joking!"

She counts the money, and concludes that they are joking; “It doesn’t even cover the interest. Think of it as punishment for trying to steal my money!”

"We would have paid you from Australia"

Chester insists that they would have paid her from Australia, but she does not believe a word of it.

"You'll just have to be patient!"

Hannah says that she will get her money, but will have to be patient.

“Don’t you talk to me like that!” snarls Gwyneth,

"Find someone with more backbone than Colin!"

“And if you are going to send one someone to scare me, find someone with more backbone than Colin! I will be back next week – and I shall expect proper repayment!”

"You've had an excellent response to your blog"

Sheryl thanks Sara for the plug for the salon in her latest blog; “You’ve had an excellent response! See, people love you, including a couple of mother and baby websites.

Look who is hanging about across the street

“I’m looking forward to the next one!”

"I need to see you!"

Gethin comes dashing across the road, saying that he needs to see Sheryl;

"I might have time over the weekend!"

“I might have time over the weekend,” he informs her, and she simply replies that she will get in touch.

Chester has pre-driving-test nerves

Sitting on the bench outside the salon, Chester is doubtful that he has taken enough lessons, and wonders, “What if I mess up?”

"Something has to go right for us"

Hannah urges him to be positive, as he is sure to pass; “Something has to go right for us – I wish we hadn’t got ourselves into this mess,” but he reminds her that they are both in it together. He leaves, as he will definitely fail if he does not turn up.

Hywel has a secret for Sheryl

Sheryl is guided into the living room with her eyes closed;

"Welcome to the Gnome Spa"

“Welcome to the Gnome Spa,” says Hywel, and she sees their little friends, suitably clad in towels.

"These therapists are ready to pamper you"

“These therapists are ready to pamper you, and all you have to do is relax.” She wonders what Prince Charming is going to do, and he replies that she will find out later.

Sara is becoming obsessed with these videos

Sara is getting into this video production business, and begins another one; “Let me introduce you to a mother’s second best friend, after the baby wipe –

The subject of this one is the post-it note

“the post-it note, which is very good for people suffering from baby brain.” She reveals the various notes, posted around the room, ending with,

She sits down with a glass of wine

“While Dadi’s away, I deserve this!”

"Thank you for trying to speak to Gwyneth"

In the flat, Colin says that Hannah looks as if she could do with a cup of tea; she thanks him for trying to have a word with Gwyneth.

Chester lies that he passed . . .

Chester returns, attempting to look triumphant, and announces that he passed the test. Apparently it took Colin three tries to do that, but as Hannah hugs Chester,

. . . but does not look very convincing

the expression on his face reveals that he is lying.

Sheryl is downstairs after her bath

Sheryl has had a relaxing soak in the bath, and comes downstairs to champagne, and apparently, sushi.

"You deserve spoiling!"

“You deserve spoiling,” Hywel tells her, “I’m determine to make you as happy on our wedding day as you are today! Why can’t the happiest day of our life be full of fun?”

Sheryl feels guilty

She looks somewhat troubled as he fetches glasses for the champagne.

"This says you failed!"

Hannah cannot find her phone, as Colin is going to get them a takeaway; however she finds the driving test certificate, which indicates he has failed. “With one major and several minor faults,” she reads, “You lied!”