Life as Scott Joe Mills
With Chris away, Scott caught up with the listener formerly known as Joe. His new name had already brought an unusually successful football match and renewed interest from a local radio station where he had previously presented.
The station was considering putting “Scott Mills in the afternoon” on air, although it knew this was not the BBC presenter. Scott warned him not to dilute or damage the name and asked for an update if the programme genuinely materialised.
The new Scott Mills was a dedicated podcast listener who sometimes exhausted the available episodes. Playing them at half speed made the original Scott sound grand and unusually posh while Chris sounded drunk; double speed provided a frantic way to catch up on years of programmes.
A £9.99 flight to Poland
Sam’s friends had used a £10 Secret Santa limit to buy him a one-way flight to Szczecin in Poland for £9.99. He had promised to take any random trip they found and therefore travelled alone, despite needing two days away from work and paying separately for transport and a hotel.
His friends quietly supplied the return flight as his proper Christmas present. Sam arrived near a bleak industrial port, became lost while finding the hotel and planned to search for somebody who spoke English. The gift had cost the buyers less than £10 but created a much larger adventure for its recipient.
Fiona’s dentist
Fiona finally answered Scott’s request for somebody who had developed feelings for a dentist. She had not actually dated him, but returned from time abroad to find the Glasgow practice staffed by a younger, exceptionally attentive dentist.
He calmed nervous patients, offered music during treatment and discovered that he and Fiona had attended the same university. She found his photograph on the practice website to show her friends, made a greater effort with her appearance before appointments and noticed that he asked her mother and sister about her. Her broken tooth had unexpectedly made trips to the dentist something to anticipate.
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