Dave and Vinny: School Reunion

Tales from the Rampant Horse

The Rampant Horse pub was the kind of place that had seen better days but didn’t particularly care. Its weather-beaten sign hung precariously over the door, the paint peeling to reveal an older, even less flattering version of itself. Inside, the smell of stale beer mingled with the faint aroma of deep-fried everything, and the regulars were already settled into their usual spots as though they’d been there since time began.

At the bar, Ken was prowling, his face set in a permanent grimace that suggested he’d been personally wronged by every customer who’d ever set foot inside. Behind him, Sandra, the buxom barmaid, was rearranging packets of crisps with a lack lustre vigour that suggested she’d rather be doing literally anything else.

At their usual table, Dave and Vinny were nursing pints of ale, the aftermath of their school reunion written all over their faces. Scraps, Vinny’s scruffy terrier, was curled up on the sticky carpet beneath the table, snoozing despite the din.

“I mean, Dave,” Vinny began, gesturing wildly with his pint glass, “did you see Kevin? Kev ‘The Lad’ Swinton? Used to be able to down a pint in ten seconds flat. Now he looks like he’s spent the last twenty years downing pies instead.”