Life Or Something Like It

‘Hmm,’ replied Cat.

‘He admitted that he should have told you not to let Ellie have a Coke.’

Cat sighed. ‘I thought he was being too nice to me at that point.’

‘I’m sorry. That was partly my fault. You sort of assume people know this stuff but why would you?’

‘Well when you say it like that,’ said Cat a little hurt.

‘Sorry,’ said Andrew. ‘I don’t mean to preach. You’re doing me a huge favour and I really appreciate it. It’s just that kids aren’t really bothered about grand gestures. The best thing you can give a child is your time.’

‘Not an Xbox then?’

Andrew laughed. ‘Not even that.’ He stared at his sister for a moment as if he were choosing his words carefully. ‘Don’t take this the wrong way but I’ve sorted out an activity for you for tomorrow.’

‘Oh yes?’

‘Ye-es. You’re meeting up with some people at the park.’

‘Oh right,’ said Cat, not used to having her life organised for her.

‘Honestly, it will be fine. I promise. You’ll have a good time. It’s just a picnic in the park but it will mean that you don’t have to do all the running. I know it can get a bit intense if you’re on your own with the kids. Even I find that and I’m their father.’

Cat shrugged. ‘Fine,’ she said taking a biscuit. ‘But you’re making the picnic.’ That night, despite her exhaustion, Cat couldn’t sleep. She lay in bed feeling irritated by the day’s events; it wasn’t so much Charlie’s behaviour and Ellie’s vomiting drama that was bothering her, it was the looks she’d received from Caroline Henderson and the feeling that she had been shut out of the world she loved. She felt in limbo at the moment – her life hovering just beyond her control – but she told herself that as soon as Melissa was back, she would skip back to her old world without a backward glance. She was certain of this. It was another hour before she fell asleep.

Chapter Five (#ulink_ea0da589-4abf-5dad-855d-4651626e9b9d)

It was a perfect summer’s day; the temperature warm without being too hot, the sky a pleasing shade of blue with the odd wisp of cloud floating by. It was glorious. They were due at the park at eleven and, true to his word, Andrew had packed a picnic, read Charlie the riot act and left Cat directions so that there could be no hiccups.

Cat tried to ignore the way Ellie clung on to her father’s leg as he made his way to the door.

‘Have fun!’ he cried with only the merest hint of irony. Cat’s heart sank as she heard the door shut behind him. She poured herself another coffee and padded into the living room. Ellie was sitting on a beanbag, chewing a piece of dry toast and watching Tom and Jerry. She still looked a little pale but had thankfully lost the greenish hue of yesterday. She glanced up at her aunt and then back at the screen.

‘Do you want to watch with me?’ she asked.

Cat remembered Andrew’s comment about giving children time. ‘Okay,’ she said, sitting on the sofa, wondering how much she would need to contribute. Ellie’s eyes didn’t leave the screen so Cat took out her phone, longing for a moment’s connection with the outside world. She didn’t get very far.

‘You have to watch,’ said Ellie. ‘This one is really funny.’

Sighing, Cat put down her phone and glanced at the screen. Tom was wearing a concert pianist’s outfit, his face composed and serious as he played a sombre piece of music. It wasn’t long before Jerry made an appearance.

‘Look!’ cried Ellie. ‘He’s sleeping in the piano.’

As Cat watched, she began to feel a disconcerting sense of déjà vu. Her mind was transported back to when she was around eight and Andrew was four. They were sitting on a battered velvet sofa, two beakers of orange squash and a plate of digestives in front of them. A beautiful woman was perched on the arm of the sofa holding a cup and saucer containing her afternoon tea. Cat wanted to shake off the memory but she couldn’t take her eyes from the screen.

‘I love this one,’ said Ellie happily.

‘Me too,’ whispered Cat.

Ellie looked over at her, oblivious to the emotion it had stirred up in her aunt. ‘Are we going for a picnic with Daisy today then?’

Cat suddenly realised that, despite her brother’s preparations, he hadn’t actually told her who they were meeting. ‘Er yes, I think so.’ Grateful for the distraction from her memories, she hurriedly texted Andrew. The reply came straight back.

‘Claire, Izzy, James, Finn and Daisy. Said you’d meet by the café at eleven.’

Heavens, thought Cat. If anyone’s going to know how to deal with kids, it will be a woman with four children. She carried her coffee mug to the kitchen and went upstairs to get dressed. Charlie’s bedroom door was half open so Cat took a deep breath and tapped gently before going in. They hadn’t spoken since yesterday’s events. Charlie was hunched over his desk and as Cat approached she noticed that he was drawing a picture of the Sunflowers they had seen yesterday.

‘That’s really good, Charlie,’ she said, moving forwards to stand beside him. As he jumped in shock, she realised that he had been listening to music and hadn’t heard her come in. He scowled at her and tried to cover his work.

She held up her hands in apology. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to creep up on you like that. I just wanted to say that we’re leaving in half an hour.’

His scowl loosened but only a little. ‘Are we meeting up with James and that lot?’

Cat nodded. ‘I like your picture, by the way,’ she said. He regarded her for a moment as if trying to work out if she meant it. She smiled. ‘Really,’ she said.

‘Thank you,’ he muttered. She turned towards the door. ‘Sorry about yesterday,’ he said quietly.

She looked back at him. The troublesome child of yesterday had been replaced by a little boy who looked much younger and more vulnerable than his ten years. ‘It’s okay. Let’s put it behind us and enjoy today, okay?’ He nodded. ‘Half an hour,’ she repeated as she walked out of the room.

The park was a teeming mass of overexcited small children and harassed adults. Cat could vaguely remember coming to this park on one awkward weekend trip to see Andrew and Melissa shortly after Charlie was born. She had come out of duty and recalled her brother being so tired he could barely speak and Melissa fussing around the overdressed, fractious baby. Cat had made the mistake of suggesting that he was perhaps upset because he was too hot and had received a withering glance from her sister-in-law in reply. Heaven only knew what Mel thought of this current arrangement.

They made their way along the path towards the café, a dark wooden building with a playground attached. Cat could smell the toilets before she reached them and prayed that neither child would need to go, although given Ellie’s recent record, she knew this was probably unlikely. Cat let the children lead her into the café area. There were around half a dozen picnic benches set out with brightly coloured umbrellas offering some shade against the already fierce sun.

‘There’s James,’ said Charlie, leading them to the bench nearest the playground gate where a woman was basking in the sun whilst a blond boy of around Charlie’s age sat with a football at his feet. He immediately brightened when he saw his friend.

‘Hey, Charlie. Hey, Ellie,’ he said.

The woman opened her eyes and lifted her sunglasses to peer up at them. She jumped up when she saw Cat. ‘Oh hi! You must be Cat. Lovely to meet you,’ she said holding out her hand. ‘I’m Claire.’

Cat smiled and shook her hand. The woman was small and casually dressed in cut-off jeans and a slouchy T-shirt bearing the words ‘I love happy endings’. She wore her brown hair in a loose bun and her skin was freckled from time spent in the sun. She had a friendly warmth about her that Cat liked immediately. ‘Where’s Izzy?’ asked Ellie, standing close to Claire.

‘Oh hey, Ellie-wellie.’ Claire smiled, wrapping an arm around the small girl and tickling her. Cat noticed the easy affection between them and was surprised to feel a little envious. ‘She’s over on the climbing frame. Do you want to go and find her?’ Ellie nodded and ran off. ‘But stay where we can see you,’ called Claire. She turned back to Cat. ‘Can I get you a coffee? It’s actually okay despite being made by a machine.’

Cat was more used to single-estate freshly roasted coffee but felt she should be sociable. ‘That would be lovely, thank you.’ She smiled.

‘Will you stay here with the bags while I go and get them?’

‘Sure.’ Cat felt the sun on her face and had to admit that today could turn out fine. Claire seemed lovely and the children were happy with their friends. She took out her phone to check her e-mails. She had sent a message to Jesse earlier about meeting up to discuss their plans. No reply as yet but if she knew Jesse, he probably wouldn’t get to his e-mails before lunchtime. She was just checking Twitter when Claire returned with their drinks.

‘Here you go. Oh are you on Twitter?’

‘Thanks,’ said Cat taking her coffee. ‘Yes, I use it a lot for work. It’s great.’

Claire smiled. ‘I’ve never really go into all that. Don’t have the time with the kids to be honest.’

‘I can imagine,’ said Cat. ‘Four kids must keep you busy.’

Claire looked surprised. ‘No, I’ve only got Izzy and James. That’s quite enough for me!’