Clara the firecracker

Clara always loved Bonfire Night. As a child she and her friends had enjoyed collecting old clothes and stuffing a good guy for the night. As she grew up, she still looked forward to it, and was generally quite successful.
During the days leading up to 5th, she also looked forward to the fireworks themselves, and so was delighted to learn of a new shop which had recently opened.

Its windows were full of promise: stacks of colourful boxes and posters showing wonderful displays of explosions and colour. Clara loved a good banger so she pushed the door open and went inside

The guy behind the counter did not look at all like the ones from Clara’s youth: his outfit was much smarter for a start, he was far bigger, and he head did not loll to one side. On the other hand he filled his clothes very well – as if he had been stuffed into them. Clara gave him a little smile and then walked around looking at the displays. Although early November it was still mild, and she was wearing a tight fitting jumper which gave the impression that every thread was struggling to contain parts of Clara. In some areas, threads had almost given up, feeling that the struggle against her heaving bouncifuls was just too unequal. It was a mesmerising battle to watch, and the man, Tarquin, was duly mesmerised.
After a few moments Clara caught his gaze. She wasn’t really sure what to do with it, and tucked it into her jumper where it was blissfully happy.
She couldn’t help noticing that his stuffing seemed to be getting a little uneven in places. Especially around the trousery area. This was careless, she thought. With guys, filling the trousers had always been her particular speciality, and she knew a well-filled trouser when she saw it.

She leaned forward over the counter, which seemed to relish the experience. In truth her bangers could compete with those sold in the shop. This provoked further modifications to the stuffing.
“Hello…”
He smiled, and the shop lighting glinted off his neat white teeth, sending beams of light across the room… Someone had done a good job filling his shirt with musculoid stuffage.
“Can I help you?” he asked
She nodded. Her mouth was a little dry. All the moisture seemed to have gone elsewhere.
“I’m looking for some fireworks” she managed to say
He smiled again, causing her to squint momentarily.
“You’ve come to the right place. We have the biggest and best selection for miles around”
Clara looked impressed
“Are they for a private party or a public display?”
“A private party” she murmured, “but I like them BIG, so I’d like to see your most impressive ones”
“I see. Well I am sure we can impress even a girl like you” he replied
He turned to walk to the back of the shop, adding “will you come this way?”
Clara looked hesitant: “I can’t say for sure at this stage, but you never know”

They walked into the less well lit area at the back of the shop. Here the man could smile broadly without Clara having to screw up her eyes. He proudly showed her what he’d got.
“Now this one is based on the old Roman Candle, but of course much bigger. Do you like Roman Candles?”
Clara wasn’t sure: he said that her memory of them was that they took a while to get going and when they did, there was just an instant cascade which was then all over just when you were starting to enjoy it.
The man assured her that his were much better, but added that perhaps she should look at something else. He asked her if she wanted big bangs, and Clara’s eyes lit up. This could have been dangerous, but luckily there was nothing flammable in the immediate vicinity. So he was just left gazing into her eyes, wide with excitement and anticipation.
“Oh I DO!” she exclaimed. “That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? First you light the fire, and everyone get’s nicely warmed up. Then we start the fireworks, small ones at first, and then we have a MASSIVE bang to finish, and we all have parkin”

The man commented quietly, almost to himself, that often he had a massive bang when he went parkin…he wasn’t sure if Clara would like that.
“So you like to have a big fire do you?” he asked.
“Yes, I do! At the end of the evening it’s nice to be able to sit on a big log and keep warm”
“What about sparklers? Do you like to hold a sparkler?”
Clara replied that she loved it; indeed it was something she had always enjoyed, but her mother had warned her off and said it was risky.

He assured her there was no danger with his. Clara was impressed when she saw the size of his sparkler: how many times had she picked one up and it had fizzled out before she could do anything with it? No, these were big, with a lot of staying power. Just what she liked.

The man was spellbound by Clara: such a firecracker! His fuse was lit. As for Clara, she had never been offered so many tempting explosions at once. She let him persuade her about his Roman Candle: He promised it would impress – big enough to excite anyone’s interest – and it did! The sparks really began to fly! She followed this with a Triple Air Banger, and when the rocket went up she was ecstatic: She fizzed like never before! And afterwards they snuggled near the embers and she licked his toffee apple.

Tarquin was the best guy she had ever made