Can you guess the characters that feature here?
Don't be rash in closing doors on people; eventually they stop knocking
It's New Years Eve, 11:50pm where a slim, tall woman stands by the window of a dimly lit room. With her arms folded protectively across her chest, she stares down upon Albert Square's residents. The entire square eagerly waits to see in the New Year, preparing to blast the sky with colour for what most consider being a fresh start; the same as every other bloody year… "You not with the rest of them?" She asks without a bother to turn around. Her gaze remains beyond the window on the figures of warmly wrapped people she passes on a daily basis.
The young man behind her - normally not unnerved easily - stands still for a moment, taken aback at the fact he'd gone noticed in a virtually pitch-black room. Regaining his composure instantly and realising it was in this woman's nature to be at least one step ahead everyone else, "Don't see the point. Just another day isn't it? Why wait for a new year to make changes?" He wears a red hoodie and a pair of worn out tracksuit bottoms. Around his neck hangs a tacky gold chain.
The woman sighs and smiles. "Exactly..." Its strange how these comparable characters are frequently under the same roof but never really interact. They share many mutual qualities; though not apparent at first glance.
He steps into the heart of the room, taking a seat on an armchair facing the window. The theme of the room is simple. Decorative wallpaper compliments the plain carpet whilst a large chandelier dominates the ceiling. "So…Where's Danielle?" It was an awkward question, followed by an eerie silence. The gentleman was treading on rough terrain. Very few had been granted the chance to discover his compassionate side. It was a part of him that remains concealed behind a headstrong, tough-man temperament.
The woman smiles while dismissing the notion that higher amounts of caution are required at the mention of the name.
"She's spending Christmas with her Dad." Her left hand is clenched tightly around a small, shiny metallic object. She turns around to face the room and leans against the white windowsill behind her. "I guess it's not been an easy year for you either 'eh?"
The boy chuckles, "no not exactly." He sighs and looks up to her outlined face. "Still, we all got to keep ploughing through."
The towering blonde nods, saddened at how the young boy held an identical attitude to hers when of similar age. It didn't do well to 'plough through'. All that did was exhaust your soul, take you to the brink of destruction. "You're young. You've got a family around you. Don't put so much pressure on yourself." She understands that a sympathetic tone won't go down well with the self-reliant boy and so employs a factual one instead.
The boy cringes, raising his voice ever so slightly in disbelief. "Family? Pshh… I'm sure most of this house would be glad to see the back of me…"
"…That's not true," she interrupts, raising her voice above his.
He shuffles around his seat. "Well come on. There's only one person in this place that ever actually bothers to really talk to me. For one, you and your sister don't want me around." He spitefully avoids names, biting his tongue before voicing the fact that he didn't actually have anywhere else to go.
"Yeah well what can I say?" She softly asks the question with a sarcastic smile. "I seem to give off that impression quite naturally; doesn't mean it's true." Her blue eyes sparkle, reflecting the little light in the room
"Oh well sure, it must be brilliant to let everyone know from the off that you don't like them…" The lad could act beyond cheeky at the best of times. The two exchanged icy stares before the hint of a smile broke out on the lad. "…even though you may not mean it," he finishes sarcastically.
The attractive woman grants the flaw in her character he's pointing out. Normally there would be no need to justify it, but strangely with this young man, she feels his judgment holds significance. "Well you don't give away much yourself? You afraid that people might find out what you're really about?"
The lad hurriedly defends his so-called intentions. "What's that suppose to mean?" He doesn't have a hidden agenda. He just wants a place to call home. He likes it around here, but it seems impossible to integrate fully with the lack of blood relations.
The elegant figure standing ahead adjusts her posture once more, twisting her waist to catch sight of her companion's face. "Nothing," adamantly denying an explanation as to what she means, though advising the boy. "Just consider that not everyone's out there to hurt you. It can't be good to bottle things up."
The young lad let out a laugh, taking its recipient by surprise. "Jeez well hear you out! You seriously need to act on your own advice before you start dishing it out…"
"Oi! That's enough cheek from you!" She knows he has a point but will never credit him for it.
"Ah, can't take it on the rebound 'eh?" His cocky tone sends igniting sparks down the blonde's tongue,
"I'm warning you," she spits.
"Well come on. It's what you were asking me. Why do you like to keep yourself to yourself 'eh?" He sits forward as the classy woman turns to face him.
She steps forward, leaning towards his face, exclaiming in hushed tones, "Because the less people know, the less they can use against you. Alright?" Their similar attitude makes it near impossible to defend against attacks. She has to fight back.
There's a moments silence as both calm themselves. The young teen nods his head with respect for what he's heard.
He lowers his tone. "You can only trust yourself in this world."
She rolls her eyes. Now why did that theory seem familiar? "Who taught you that?" She contemplates the amount of truth behind the statement.
The boy grunts with slight amusement. "Life did." He leans back into the chair.
For the first time ever, she ponders over the boy's past. He truly had had it rough. People he loved had wandered in and out of his life, leading him to conclude that the entire world was out to destroy him. One survives with the only defence they have: To shut themselves away from everyone and become their own confinement.
She moves over to him and takes the seat opposite. There's a moments silence once more. She knows better than to pity him, his values relatable to her own.
She speaks softly. "Hey I never said I was right; more like set in my ways." A smile is sent over to his charming face. He may be forced to act more than it, but really he's just a kid, a youngster who was heading down a dark, lonely and spite filled path unless he learns to let people in.
"Well I for one don't dislike you and if anyone in this house does, believe me you would have heard about it loud and clear by now," she jokes.
He laughs and bows his head. "Yeah I guess you've got a point there."
"Maybe people just need to get to know you better."
"And when have you ever done that without it backfiring?" He snidely barks back at her advice, tired of trying to be straight with people only to find they instantly disregard him.
The woman is amazed at the mirror image she sees in him. "Well take Danielle for example. I didn't think that'd ever work, but we're getting there…" She holds back with even the slightest of detail. He's got the point.
"Fair enough…"
He's interrupted by the roar of Albert Square as the traditional countdown to a new year begins. The woman rises to her feet and moves towards the window once more, the boy not so far behind her. They stand side by side, gazing down onto the square as everyone shout out numbers in anticipation of a clean slate to set in.
"Any resolutions?" she asks, trying her best to be heard above the echoing numbers.
"Never make them," he answers.
'Why wait for the new year to change your ways?'
"Well how about a mutual one? Giving more of ourselves to others?" She announces with a smile.
'Lame,' he thinks. He reciprocates the smile anyway. "Why not?"
3…2…1
Drowning out the ignited rockets, sparklers and recitals of Auld Lang Syne, the two close off the gap between them. They gaze upon the joyful individuals below them.
"Happy new year Jay." She places a hand on his back as they stand at the Vic's living room window.
"Straight back at you Ron," he replies smugly.
Don't be quick to close doors on people; eventually they stop knocking.
A/N Lets imagine that Jay and Billy were never forced to move out of the Vic in the first place and that Jay's been living there since Billy took him on. Peggy's wedding never happened but Danielle revealed herself much earlier :)