Nobody’s Son: Part 2 of 3: All Alex ever wanted was a family of his own

On Tuesday morning Alex was so excited that his mummy, daddy and brother were coming again that it was no surprise he told his teacher. At the end of school she came out to see me in the playground.

‘Alice Cork,’ she said. ‘We met briefly before.’

‘Yes.’

‘Alex has been telling me all about his new family. He’s so excited. His social worker spoke to our Head and I understand he’ll be able to stay with us for the rest of the term.’

‘Yes, that’s right. You’ll meet Rosemary, his mum, next week when she collects him from school.’

‘I’ll look forward to it. Well, I just wanted to say have a good evening. You can tell me about it tomorrow,’ she said, smiling at Alex.

We said goodbye and she went over to speak to another parent while Alex, Paula and I began across the playground.

‘It was all right to tell her, wasn’t it?’ Alex asked me.

‘Yes, of course, love. It’s your news, you can tell who you like.’

‘I told one of my friends, but he wasn’t really pleased, not like Miss. He said it was sad that I couldn’t live with my proper mummy, but he doesn’t understand, does he?’

‘No, he doesn’t,’ I agreed, ‘but Miss Cork will.’ I thought it must be virtually impossible for a young child brought up by loving parents to comprehend why Alex would be excited when he would never see his birth mother again. Whereas his teacher would have some experience of children, like Alex, who’d been neglected or abused by their birth family.

On the way to collect Adrian from school Alex asked me if I thought his dad would be able to come to dinner this evening with his mum and James. I had to say I didn’t know but that I hoped so. He asked me again when we arrived home and I could only give him the same reply. He was still very excited and I settled the boys at the table to do their homework while I made dinner, as they wouldn’t have time to do it after Alex’s family had left. When they’d finished they went to play and I laid the table ready for dinner. As 5.30 approached – the time they were due to arrive – Alex began to grow nervous again, which was understandable. When the doorbell rang he fled upstairs, saying he was going to hide in his bedroom and they could find him. Adrian went up with him, which left Paula and me to answer the front door.

‘Great. You’ve made it,’ I said, pleased to see Edward. ‘Alex will be glad.’

‘It was a rush but this is too important to miss,’ Edward said, coming in and kissing my cheek. He was wearing his office suit but had taken off his tie.

‘Hello, poppet,’ Rosemary said to Paula, patting her head. She grinned shyly.

‘Alex and Adrian are hiding,’ I said to James. ‘Perhaps you’d like to find them? Upstairs, turn right and Alex’s room is on the left.’

James ran upstairs while I showed Rosemary and Edward through to the living room. ‘How has Alex been?’ Rosemary asked.

‘Very excited and a little nervous. He’s been telling his teacher all about his new family. She’s lovely. You’ll meet her next week.’

‘I’m looking forward to it. Miss Cork, isn’t it?’

‘That’s right.’

‘Something smells good,’ Edward said, collapsing into an armchair. ‘I didn’t have time for lunch.’

‘Edward!’ Rosemary said, lightly chastising him.

‘It should be ready soon,’ I said. ‘It’s chicken casserole. I’ll check on it.’

‘Can I help you?’ Rosemary offered.

‘It’s OK. There’s nothing much to do. Make yourself comfortable.’ I offered them a drink but they both declined.

Paula came with me into the kitchen, where I kept her away from the oven as I checked the casserole, which was ready. A couple of minutes later I went into the hall and called everyone for dinner. The boys, who were still upstairs, stampeded down like a herd of elephants.

‘Hello, love,’ Rosemary said to Alex, greeting him in the hall. ‘How are you?’

‘Hungry,’ Alex said.

Edward laughed. ‘So am I.’

‘Me too,’ Adrian and James agreed.

I showed them to the table and then served the meal. To begin with all that could be heard was the sound of cutlery on china.

Sometimes it can be a little awkward eating with people you hardly know, and while the adults might have felt this, the children were relaxed in each other’s company and ate and talked without reservation. Edward just ate – he clearly was hungry – while Rosemary and I made polite conversation, and Paula stared at our guests, fascinated, and had to be reminded to eat. Once the boys had finished we excused them from the table and they went into the living room to play while Edward had a second helping. Although this evening was about Alex continuing to get to know and bond with his family, it was important that we kept the atmosphere as relaxed and natural as possible, so it would have been unwise to insist that Alex spent every single minute in the company of his parents.

When Edward had finished eating, Rosemary helped me clear away the dishes and then we returned to the table to talk. Paula was content to sit on my lap listening and watching us. Edward told us a bit about his work and also that they’d just booked a holiday for the spring break to Disney World in Florida.

‘James and Alex will love that,’ I said.

Rosemary nodded. ‘James has been before, but he wants to go again. And I know Alex hasn’t been abroad at all.’

‘No, he hasn’t. What’s happening about a passport for him?’ I asked, aware that obtaining one can be an issue and takes time for looked-after children.

‘Debbie is applying for it,’ Rosemary said.

‘Good.’

‘Do you think it’s all right to tell Alex he is going?’ Rosemary asked.

‘Yes. I don’t see why not. It’s nice to have something to look forward to. He’ll be so excited.’

As it turned out there was no need for Rosemary or Edward to tell Alex about the holiday as James, brimming with the news, had told him. When I called the boys for pudding the first thing Adrian said was, ‘Mum! Alex is going to Disney World.’

‘I know, isn’t he lucky?’ But I felt a little sad for Adrian, as a trip to Disney World was something John and I had talked about doing before he left, and there was little chance of that happening now.

Everyone enjoyed the crumble and custard, and once we’d finished we all went into the living room where Alex set out his football board game. He, his parents, James and Adrian played while I kept Paula amused with her toys. It was nearly her bedtime now and she was becoming a little fractious, but, as I’d said to Rosemary, this introductory period would disrupt all our routines.

They had two rounds of the football game and it was just after 7.30 when I saw them to the door. ‘We’ll phone you tomorrow,’ Rosemary told Alex. ‘Then on Thursday we’re taking you out for dinner.’ Alex threw her a really warm, appreciative smile. ‘Would you like a hug?’ she asked him.

He nodded and, delighted, Rosemary gave him a hug, and then Edward shook his hand. As they left I could tell by their faces that they, too, felt the evening had been a great success. Alex had taken another step closer to his family and before long they would all be together. He would have his forever family and Rosemary and Edward the son they so dearly wanted.

As it was close to Adrian’s and Alex’s bedtimes I took the boys up to bed at the same time as I took Paula, and then left them to get ready while I put Paula to bed. She fell asleep almost immediately. I was pleased that Edward had managed to come this evening, as I knew it would mean a lot to Alex. As I tucked him into bed that night he said, ‘Dad left work early so he could see me. That shows how much he loves me.’

‘It does,’ I said, smiling.

‘I think he’s going to be a good dad, don’t you?’

‘Yes. I’m sure he will be.’

‘And Mummy will be a good mummy and James a good brother. I’m so happy.’