Notes:

Complete fluff and nonsense.
With a bit of added sauciness a bit later maybe...? Just for the heck of it ;-)

CHAPTER ONE

Saturday the 6th of April 1963 dawned clear and settled, with a gentle warmth that was hopeful for the summer to come.
Patsy sat in the window of the Silver Buckle cafe, sipping a cup of black coffee and enjoying a smoke in the welcome sunshine. The winter they had just endured had been one of the worst on record.
Only a couple of weeks after she'd returned from Hong Kong, the snow had started in earnest, and continued right through into early March, before a slow thaw had finally begun. It had been a true test of endurance as communities the country over - Poplar included - battled against the elements. It had been cold - brutally so - and the winter darkness had seemed endless.
For herself and Delia in particular, the whole of last year had been dark, but for very different reasons.

Early in the new year, a large parcel had arrived from Hong Kong. It contained a last few personal items of her father's and also all the documents pertaining to her inheritance of his estate. She had looked through it all carefully and in private, digesting it all, and tried to make sense of what it meant for her and Delia's future. In the following weeks, she'd gradually accepted the change in her circumstances and felt that the time was right to talk to Delia about it.

Now, sitting in the sunny window seat of the cafe, waiting for Delia to arrive, Patsy felt a new sense of optimism.

Today was Delia's 26th birthday.
For Patsy, Delia's birthday always seemed to herald the change of the season, echoing the move from winter into spring - bursting with life and excitement. They always made sure that they took time to celebrate their respective birthdays. This year, Delia's fell on a weekend, and they had both arranged their leave requests well in advance. This time, it would be a weekend away from Poplar, and Patsy had spent the last month arranging something that she hoped would be fun, but also very special and significant for both of them.

Earlier in the week she'd written Delia a note:

Deels.
It's your birthday weekend!
Meet me at the Silver Buckle - Saturday morning at ten o'clock sharp.
Pack an overnight bag.
Dress code: practical - but stylish!
P x

She'd popped it in a small envelope and left in on Delia's pillow for her to find on return from her shift.

Since Patsy had returned from Hong Kong, she and Delia had made regular visits to the Silver Buckle and the Gateways much more regularly. She very much wanted to move forward with Delia now - more than she ever had - and she knew that Delia wanted that more than anything.

On several occasions, as the bus had carried them west through the snowy streets to the Gateways Club - or during a late-night taxi ride home - Patsy had seen Delia's eyes drawn to a particular establishment along the route - and a particular item for sale there.

It had planted the seed of an idea…and so, a few days ago, on a free afternoon when Delia was still on shift, she made her way up west to make a purchase and arrange it's delivery.

Now, she sat waiting for Delia, feeling both excited and apprehensive. How would Delia react? Positively, she hoped…
She felt slightly giddy at the amount of money she'd spent - although, it hadn't really made much of a dent in her inheritance. And it would be worth it - this was just the start of what she hoped would be a new beginning for both of them.

Just then, the bell on the cafe door rang brightly, announcing Delia's entrance - right on time, as always. She caught Patsy's eye and grinned, making her way over to the window seats. Patsy quickly stubbed-out her cigarette and stood up, leaning in to greet her love with a continental-style hug and kiss on the cheek. Lots of girls did that these days, and Patsy was slowly learning that this apparent easy familiarity between two 'friends' was unlikely to be misconstrued as anything else.

She leaned back then and quickly took in Delia's figure, bottom to top: a pair of shiny, white patent-leather lace-ups encased small feet; then bare ankles and shins; neatly fitting capri pants in navy blue; a white blouse with blue polka-dots, and finally the glorious, glossy dark locks held in a thick, high pony-tail. She carried a blueish-green cotton blazer over her arm and her overnight bag in her hand. She look so very pretty, and Patsy's heart suddenly flipped and fluttered about in her chest like an excited butterfly.

Delia smiled brightly, eyes flitting from Patsy's lips to her eyes and back again "Does my attire meet with your approval then?"

"It certainly does Deels - you look lovely" Patsy grinned, "Excellent choice of footwear too. Heels would have been a mistake…" she added cryptically.

At Delia's querying eyebrows she quickly changed the subject, continuing "Would you like a coffee before we get going?"

"Oh - no thanks Pats. I grabbed a quick cuppa before coming to meet you… I had a feeling you'd want to get cracking!"

"Excellent!" Patsy winked, quickly drained her coffee cup and grabbed her things "OK then - let's get the celebrations underway!"

The morning was warming up nicely as they walked along the street side-by-side

"So, where are we heading Pats - are you ever going to tell me the plan?"

Patsy glanced down at Delia "Well, I thought we might take a run down to Brighton" then added "Well, Hove actually…"
Then, just as they were about to round the corner into the next road, Patsy placed a hand lightly on Delia's arm, drawing them to a slower pace. "…but we won't get far without this" she continued, pulling a ribbon-tied box from her bag and handing it to Delia.

Delia hesitantly took the box, slowly untied the yellow ribbon and lifted the lid.
Inside was a pair of black Ray-Ban Wayfarers nestled on top of a teal and navy coloured silk scarf. Patsy silently congratulated herself on the colour choice - it would match the smaller woman's outfit today perfectly!

"Oh - I've always wanted a pair of Ray-Bans, and this scarf is beautiful!" Delia exclaimed happily. She was lifting these two items out of the box as they rounded the street corner - and then noticed a set of keys still sitting in the bottom of the box. She lifted them up holding them in front of her face, brows furrowed, "Patsy, what's this…?"

"Happy birthday Deels" Patsy touched Delia's arm again and nodded to a spot in the street a few feet ahead.

Following Patsy's gaze, the sight before her stopped Delia in her tracks. Her jaw literally dropped.
There, parked at the kerbside, was the neatest little sports car she'd ever seen. Cute as a button it was - the shiny paintwork a bright, sunny yellow - and it had a black soft-top.
Still clutching the sunglasses and scarf, Delia distractedly handed the empty box back to Patsy. Silently, she walked over to the little car and circled all the way round it, stepping back, then forwards, viewing it from every angle - even hunkering down at one point to view it as though from road level.

Meanwhile, Patsy could only look on in trepidation - this was going to go one of two ways…

Finally Delia turned, finding her voice.
"This is a '62 Lotus Elan, drop-head roadster. 1,558cc twin-cam, steel chassis, fibre-glass body, four-wheel independent suspension with a peachy power-to-weight ratio…."

Patsy swallowed, and blinked.
It was as if Delia had suddenly started speaking a foreign language…talking like a Kings Road grease-monkey - only much, much cuter…
It was bizarrely attractive actually. How on earth did she know all that…car-stuff? Patsy made a mental note to find out later…

Delia's voice continued, focussing Patsy's attention back on the moment.
"Patsy, is this the same car I've been noticing for months? This can't be for me…how did you…where did you…how did it get here!?"

Patsy took a deep, steadying breath and began to relate why and how the car came to be here…
"….so then I asked the sales chap if he could deliver it here, park it up and then pop the keys in to me a Nonnatus early this morning." she finished.

Delia nodded slowly "…I wondered why you were up and out before me so early this morning…"

Patsy looked at the smaller woman sheepishly "Do you like it though? You haven't said you like it…" worry edging into her voice.

Delia gazed up at Patsy steadily "Cripes Pats, I LOVE it - but, I just can't believe it…" then added quietly "and how on earth are we going to explain it…?"

Patsy put her arm around the smaller woman's shoulders and gave a gentle squeeze.
"This is your birthday Deels and I want you to enjoy it. What if we don't get too far ahead of ourselves just now?" and then continued "would it make it easier if I said the car was most certainly yours - but also OURS?"
Then turning to face Delia again "This is just one part of what I have planned this weekend - for you - and for us" she explained, "there's a lot that I need to talk to you about Deels, but I want it all to be fun and exciting for us both - hence the weekend away. Does that sound OK?"

Delia nodded again "OK, I can go with that just now" then she smiled up at Patsy all dimples and sparkling eyes, "You know, I really, really want to scream and hug and kiss you right now…"

Relief washed over Patsy, she chuckled and then quickly scanned the street, "Well, there's actually no-one about to see, so by all means please do" adding with a grin "maybe just the hugging and the kissing though - not the screaming…"

And then she was enveloped in a diminutive Welsh whirlwind of a hug - and in between lots of giggles - received several quick, firm kisses planted squarely on her lips.

Notes:

This idea has been rattling around in my head ever since the 'Delia driving lesson' scene in Series 6.
I'm hoping I'm not the only one who thinks Delia strapped-in behind the wheel of a cool car is a hot idea...

Chapter 1 notes:

Delia's birth date - I made it up. I don't know why, but I imagine her to be a spring baby.

Delia's Lotus Elan was launched at the 1962 British Motorshow in October, so Patsy might JUST have gotten her hands on one in time for Delia's birthday.
If you google '1962 Lotus Elan' you might see a yellow one in the images - does that car have Delia's name written all over it, or what? - Patsy certainly thinks so ;-)

Definition of elan in English:
Elan (also élan) noun. Energy, style, and enthusiasm.
Synonyms: flair, stylishness, smartness, elegance, grace, gracefulness, poise, polish, suaveness, sophistication, urbanity, chic, finesse, panache, flourish, taste.
Origin: Mid 19th century: from French élan, from élancer 'to dart', from é- 'out' + lancer 'to throw'.

Winter of 62/63: officially one of the worst winters on record in UK recent history.
I read somewhere that Heidi Thomas has written it into the upcoming Christmas Special...