Switch! The Dream Has Just Begun

by Claira McGarrett

This is a story about a teenaged baby sitter, Peter Jones who dreams of being like the father of a child he looks after, Claira Green. After visiting a traveling Circus, the child blurts out that Peter wishes to be her father, Michael and their wish is granted by an old women there who gives the child a crystal ball. Peter awakes as Michael and becomes what he has only wished for.

The Dream Has Just Begun

Chapter 1

A teenager by the name of Peter Jones, pulled up outside a house in a respectable neighbourhood in Newark, New Jersey and got out of his car and slowly approached the porch and moved up to the steps to the front door. He now pressed the doorbell and watched his arm glide back to his side as he turned away and watched a young women walk past with a dog straining at the leash. He quickly looked back to the closed door as the young women went past. He then turned to watch her carry on down the side walk as the door opened.

"Definitely out of your league, I would say."

He now looked to see an adult man facing him in the doorway. The teenager coughed and cleared his throat.

"Err, err." He said fighting for something smart to say back to the adult.

"Come on in Peter, Claira is nearly ready." This adult man by the name of Michael Green said pushing his back into the door as he allowed Peter to slip past him. "Claira, come on, your date is here." Michael said closing the door and moving to the foot of the stairs.

Peter spun round and stared at him.

"Very funny." He said watching Michael move to the drinks cabinet and pour out a drink for himself. "I didn't know that working in the city qualified you for jokes and prat falls."

"You'd be surprised what working in the city gives you the liberty to do, oh and being an adult too." He said sipping at his glass. "Sorry, do you want one? Oh, you can't because you're driving and maybe you're still just a little too young. I'm glad that I can trust you with my ten year old daughter, I wouldn't like to find out that a teenager took advantage of her." He said laughing as he turned away and sat down and put his feet on the table in front of him.

Claira now ran down the stairs and looked at Peter staring at Michael.

"Hey Peter." She said moving up to him. "What's going on with you two now?"

"Nothing." Michael said laughing as he swallowed the contents of his glass and stood back up.

"Your father was just telling me how he can trust you with me to be your chaperone for the night."

"And for the rest of eternity for all I care because you will just never reach that pedestal of adult enjoyment that all teenagers crave."

"I don't understand." Claira said looking at them.

"Well of course not, you're only a child, but I saw it in Peter's eyes for a second when a beautiful young woman walked past my door, walking her dog and, the lustful look you gave her." He said pushing him as he moved back to the drinks cabinet.

"He's started early tonight." Claira said looking to Peter.

"Well, of course, I have the whole evening to myself while my daughter goes to a show or whatever with her chaperone."

"Actually it's a circus I have tickets for." Peter said taking out the tickets and showing them to Claira as Michael looked back.

"Great, I love circuses." She said jumping up and down.

"Okay, well I need to stop off at my flat but I am sure we will have a great time together." Peter said putting the tickets back into his jacket top pocket.

"Maybe you'll meet someone there who is not jail bait or a rich millionaire who doesn't mind sharing a bed with a pubescent teenager."

"I'm sure I could find someone if I was you and your age, what was your age last birthday, dead, wasn't it?" Peter said looking at him.

"Thirty one, an age you will not reach for an eternity not even in your dreams."

"Anything is better than having your dreams."

Michael looked at him and laughed.

"I would like to see you do better at my age, oh sorry, I'll be an old man when you finally reach maturity." He said going back to his drink.

"Anyway, we'll see you in the morning, dad." Claira said stepping forward to break their concentration.

"In the morning?" Michael asked looking into his glass.

"Yeah, Claira's spending the night in my bed; remember we discussed this because you're too old to do the big 'it' word these days."

Michael now took a swing for him as Peter stepped away and watched him fall to the floor.

"Dad, are you okay?" She said stepping forward.

"Leave him there, Claira. With any luck he'll still be there in the morning." Peter said pushing Claira out of the door and looking at Michael slowly rising to his feet.

Chapter 2

Peter parked up outside his flat and watched Claira get out and run round to him and took his hand as he secured the car.

"Well, how long are we going to stay here for? It's nearly seven and the circus is already open."

"Will you relax? The circus runs all night; I just have to collect something I forgot." Peter said running up the stairs as a woman from the opposite flat came out.

"Oh, hi." She said and quickly looked away.

"Hi." Peter said trying not to look at her.

Claira now reached the top of the stairs and looked at them.

"Is this your sister?" She asked looking on.

"Err, no, no. I'm…"

"Peter is my chaperone for the night. We are going to the circus."

"Great, well, I've got to..." She said walking down the stairs.

Peter watched her go then looked at Claira staring at him.

"What's the matter with you?"

"She's got to be like, like dad's age."

He opened the door to his flat.

"I must be nuts thinking I could." He said closing his eyes and dismissing the thought.

"Yeah, she's too old." She said jumping on the sofa.

He moved to his bedroom and grabbed his phone and went back out.

"Maybe if I was a little older she would." He said stopping.

"Maybe if you were my dad she would…" Claira said giggling.

"Thanks." He said staring at her.

"Aar, come one dad, you'll find someone your own age someday." She said going up to him and gave him a hug.

"I would be sick if I rocked up as your old man any day." He said moving to the mirror on the door and checked himself. "Come on." He said turning back grabbed Claira's hand and pulled her out of the flat and down the stairs.

They got back into his car as they watched the young woman go back into the flat.

"She would go for my dad any day."

"Shut up Claira."

They now started to laugh as he drove away and headed to the circus.

Peter kept a tight hold of Claira's hand as they walked around stuffing their face with everything they could afford from the stands and playing the games littered around the circus. Peter checked the time as he noticed Claira moving to a tent.

"Claira, it's getting late."

"Hey Peter, come over here."

"We should be getting back to the flat."

"One more attraction please, please dad!" She said laughing as she moved up to him for a hug.

"I'm not your dad." He said pushing her away.

"I know but, come on, one more." She said moving back to the tent and went in.

Peter looked to the sky then followed her in and they joined some other people sitting down watching an old woman holding some kind of crystal ball in her hand.

"There's someone who has just walked in." The old woman said turning to see Peter taking his seat next to Claira. "Someone who wishes he was older, older to please someone else, not himself." She said moving up to him.

"He wishes he was my dad!" Claira blurted out as she started to laugh.

"Claira, will you drop this whole dad thing."

"You wish you could but the child is right, you do want to be her father to show him that you are a man, an adult."

"I am an adult." Peter said looking at her.

The old women reached him and touched his head.

"You are an adult; you are the child's father."

"Yeah right, who wants to be that loser?" He said looking away.

"You do, every night you crave to be him and from this night you will be him."

"Really?" He said looking away. "For how long though? He said laughing.

"For how long you want to be. For how long it will be until you see me again."

"Well, that will be forever then, come on Claira, let's get out of here, this woman's a joke." He said pulling Claira up from her seat.

"But dad…!"

"I'm not your dad."

"You are the child's father until you see me again, until you decide if you want to see me again." The old woman said handing a small crystal ball to Claira.

Peter looked at her taking the ball and pushing it into her chest. He now picked Claira up and left the tent.

He quickly made it back to his car and put Claira into the back seat and noticed her asleep. He looked at the crystal ball and tried to take it away from her.

"No daddy, I want to keep it."

"Sweetheart, if you drop it daddy won't be very happy." He stopped. "What am I saying?" He said shaking as he closed the door and quickly got into the driver's seat and drove away from the circus.

Peter pulled up outside his flat and cautiously picked Claira up and carried her up the stairs and into his flat. He moved to the spare bedroom and put Claira onto the bed and slowly undressed her as she held on tightly to the crystal ball.

She slowly opened her eyes and looked at him and smiled.

"Daddy." She said pushing her head into the pillow.

"Try to get some sleep for me." He said pulling the covers over her and tucking them under the mattress.

He now went out to the door and turned off the light and silently closed the door.

He moved to the kitchen and opened up the fridge and took out a can of beer and sat down as he brought his feet up to the table and laid back.

He eventually went to bed and quickly fell asleep.

Chapter 3

The sunlight shone right into Peter's eyes as he was awoken the next morning to Claira screaming out.

"Oh, Claira, go back to sleep, it's too early." He said turning over and coughed as he realised his voice was deeper.

The door now opened to his bedroom and Claira ran in and started to push him.

"Peter, I've got to get home, I'm late for school and my dad will…" She stopped pushing him and stepped back. "Dad, what?" She looked around. "What have you done with Peter?"

"What do you mean what have I…? Are you alright?" He said getting up. "Arh, my head! I knew I shouldn't have had that beer."

Claira now screamed again and run out.

"Peter? Peter, where are you?"

He now stood up and ran after her.

"Easy, easy, I'm, right here." He said stopping her.

"Dad, what are you doing in Peter's flat?"

"What? "What are you..? Claira, I am Peter, can't you see that?"

She now pushed him away and opened the door and ran out onto the hallway screaming again. Peter now ran out and run straight into the woman from the other flat as she stared at him.

"I'm sorry, I…"

"Not at all." She said stepping up to him. "I think you forgot something."

"I have?"

"You haven't got any pants on, not that I am complaining." She said looking down.

Peter now looked down and realised he was naked.

"Jeez…" He now stepped back inside and grabbed his bath robe but found it to be a little short that morning.

The women now walked into his flat.

"I'm your neighbour, Emily Watson." She said holding out her hand as he fumbled for the cord to tie around him.

"I know you are, we…" He tried to clear his throat. "I don't know what's wrong with my voice this morning."

"It sounds fine to me erm, and you are?"

"You know who I am, I'm…" He stopped and noticed his reflection in the mirror and stepped back. He then looked past Emily to the doorway. "Jeez Claira!"

"Claira, is that the child who just ran out of here?"

"Yes."

"Your daughter I guess, yes?" She said stepping forward.

"No, I, I mean yes, my daughter." He said stepping away from her advances and moved closer to the mirror and looked at himself.

"I'm sorry, I, I must seem very far forward to you but, that other guy who was here…"

"Peter?"

"Was that his name? He used to give me the creeps. It was like being undressed by his eyes, but you, your more my type. I hope that you are moving in here with your daughter."

"Claira!" He now moved away from her again. "I've got to get her back; she's all I've got right now."

"Well not totally, you can have me, if you like." She said kissing him.

Peter tried to push her away then suddenly realised he liked what she was doing and pushed her into the sofa and took off his inadequate bath robe.

Claira now appeared at the door and stared at him with Emily on the sofa and again started to scream.

This made them both jump up as Peter fumbled for his bath robe again then ran to Claira now moving to the stairs.

"Claira, Claira, I know what this might look like but, but something's happened."

"Yeah, it looks like it dad. You're in Peter's flat and you're banging his neighbour."

Peter looked back to Emily adjusting herself and closed the door.

"Claira, I'm Peter."

"Did Peter put you up to this after your argument over being you last night?"

"My god, how can I explain this to you?" He now opened the door and looked at Emily.

"Do you want to go back in there?"

"Yes, no!" He now pushed Claira into the flat. "Erm, I, I have to talk to, to my daughter for a minute, would, would you mind…?"

Emily looked at Claira then Peter.

"Sure, err; you know where you can find me." She said moving forward to kiss him.

Claira watched her go as he closed the door behind her.

"Dad, what are you doing here? If Peter finds out you're here."

He now started to pace the floor and then stepped to the mirror again and undone his bath robe.

"How can this happen?" He said staring at his body.

"Dad!" She said pulling his bath robe.

"Claira, I am not Michael, I am Peter." He said turning to her. "Last night when I went to bed I was me, I was Peter but, when you woke me this morning." He stopped and looked at his reflection again.

Claira looked at him then ran into the spare bedroom and grabbed the crystal ball and ran back out to him.

"Dad." She said handing him the ball. "I said you wanted to be my dad."

Peter looked at the ball in his hand.

"This is a joke. This can't be happening to me. I'm eighteen, not thirty one." He said stepping away.

"Dad's going to kill you." She said watching him.

"If I don't kill you first." He said stepping back up to her.

"Dad!"

"I'm not your dad!" He said looking at her.

"But, but you are." She said moving into him for a hug.

He held her then noticed the time.

"I've got to get you home."

"How can you? The minute dad see's you like him, you, I mean…" She stopped and looked at him. "Dad, I'm scared."

"I know. Look, when does he go to work?"

"About eight but, I should be home by now."

"Alright. I can't go anywhere at the moment because I doubt any of my clothes would fit your dad's frame." He looked at her. "I'll take you home, but you need to get me some of your dad's clothes."

"That's impossible."

"So is becoming your dad, but look at me." He said looking at her.

Claira started to cry as he moved back up to her and held her again.

Peter drove Claira back to her house after Michael had left and they went into his bedroom and Peter looked through Michael's wardrobe as Claira looked on. He now noticed her and stepped forward.

"I know what this looks like, but what else can I do? Until I find out what the hell happened last night then I have to borrow some of your dad's clothes. I'll return them once I'm me again. If this is a dream I will probably wake up soon, but if it's a curse…"

"I said to that old woman that you wanted to be my dad and now you are…"

"We've got to get back to that circus and find that old woman and get her to change me back." He said starting to get dressed.

"But, I've got to go to school, I can't…"

"I know, so, I'll have to go there myself and get her to change me back, hopefully by tomorrow because I can't live like this."

"You would if you were with that woman, dad she fancied you but not Peter."

"Will you stop it with the dad thing; I'm not your dad!" He said raising his voice.

She now got scared and ran off.

"Claira, Claira!" He repeated as he ran after her and grabbed her.

"You, you sound like my dad, you look like my dad and you're wearing his clothes." She said as he held her.

"I know, I know." He said watching her start to cry as he now hugged her. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry for shouting at you. It's not your fault."

"But, I told that old lady that you wanted to be my dad and now you're my dad."

"I wanted to be him as much as you wanted me to be him." He said looking away. "And your right, Emily never looked at me when I was Peter." He said moving back to the bedroom and looked at the mirror. "But, now I look like your dad…"

"She won't leave you alone." She said following him back into Michael's bedroom.

He looked at her via the mirror.

Chapter 4

Peter drove back to his flat with a collection of Michael's clothes stuffed into a shopping bag and casually walked up the stairs to his flat and fumbled for the keys to open the door with.

"Well, you look a little bit more presentable." Emily said walking out of her flat onto the landing.

Peter spun round and looked at her.

"Err yeah, erm, sorry about earlier, Claira, she, she's ten." He said trying to think of something to say.

"And I'm twenty one." She said stepping forward.

"Really?"

"And I'm not interested in jail bait like that teenager who used to live here was. You are more my type."

"Is that so? Well, maybe you're my type too." He said finally opening the door.

"I certainly hope so. I don't mind if you're married either."

"I'm not married, I just have a kid, and she's ten".

"You said that already." She said pushing him into the flat and closing the door behind him.

After Emily had left, Peter went into the shower and noticed his reflection in the mirror as he shaved and smiled to himself contentedly but soon realised that he had to do something about his current situation and quickly got dressed and left his flat to drive to the circus.

When he arrived he found a big empty field where the circus had been. He got out of his car and looked around then found a man clearing up some rubbish.

"Hey, what happened to the circus that was here last night?"

"Oh, they got moved on by the authorities this morning."

"Moved on? Well, moved on to where?"

"The other side of the world for all I care, man." He said moving away from him.

"Wait, wait a minute, the old woman in the big tent, did she go with them?"

"Yeah, of course she did."

"Well, do you know where they're going to next?"

"I just said, didn't I? They won't be coming here again till next year, that's if they ever do come back."

Peter looked at him moving away. He now walked back to his car and looked at the empty ground then jumped back into his car and drove off to Claira's school. She was at lunch and noticed him walking up to her and ran to him.

"Dad!" She said hugging him.

"Claira, it's me, Peter."

She looked down.

"Oh, I thought…"

"He's in the city; he wouldn't be here, would he." He said looking at her looking down then the children watching them and took her hand and led her to the gate.

"Sweetheart, we've got a problem."

"I know." She said looking away.

"Claira, listen to me." He said making her look at him. "The circus has gone."

She now stared at him.

"What do you mean gone?"

"Gone as in it's not there anymore. I've just been there to the field it was in last night and the place is empty. The authorities moved it on this morning, the old woman's tent too."

"But dad, what are you going to do?"

He looked at her.

"Claira, I'm not your dad."

"I'm sorry." She said looking down.

"I'm going down to the authorities and find out where they moved them onto to."

"What are you going to do if they don't know anything?"

"I don't know yet. I can't think at the moment." He said turning away.

"Mr Green?" Claira's teacher said walking up to them.

Claira realised he hadn't seen her teacher.

"Dad." She said pulling his jacket.

"I'm not!" He turned back around and then stopped as he noticed her teacher. He quickly pulled Claira into him and held her. "Erm, yes?" He added looking up.

"Can I ask what you are doing here in term time?"

"Erm, Claira, she I, I just forgot something this morning and, I'm just going." He said then kissed Claira and stepped away. "You be a good girl for your teacher, do you hear me?"

Claira nodded and looked at him.

Peter got back into his car as the teacher led Claira away. He drove off and headed for the local authorities to seek some answers as to what had happened to the circus.

"Look, they are a travelling community, like gypsies, we had to move them on for the people's safety." A lady said flipping through some paperwork.

"But would you know where they might be going next?"

"They don't exactly post they're travelling plans on every street corner like they do in other neighbourhoods, you know. As a community, we are trying to discourage that sort of thing."

"I realise that, but it is imperative that I find them again."

"Why, did they mug you or something because if they did then you can claim it back from the city municipal? I have the forms…"

"No, they did not mug me, I, I've got to find them for, for my kid's sake."

"Did they hurt your kid then?"

"No! Look, I just have to find them, that's all and if you can't help me then at least put me in touch with someone who can." He said looking at her.

"How olds your kid?"

"She's ten and she's all I've got right now."

"Let me guess, you're a widow and you took your kid to the circus and you found this incredible woman in the crowd that you just fell for, yes?"

"What, no!"

"Pity, you look the type…"

"You want the truth, I'm really eighteen years old who's never been laid in is life, who took a kid to the circus last night and when I woke up this morning I became this kid's thirty one year old sex god dad with his ten year old holding onto my hand. Now, can you handle that because I sure can't?"

The lady looked at him and stepped back.

"I'll try to find my friend, he might be able to help you, but it might take some time." She said looking at him.

"Whatever it takes and however long it takes."

Peter gave some details to a man and watched the lady step back up to him.

"This is our number on the card for you to contact us. My friend has your number, yes?"

"Yes, I just gave it to him."

The lady handed him the card.

"The number is on the back, if; well, just if you suddenly enjoy being a sex god." She said shyly.

Peter turned the card over and looked at the number then looked at her.

"Thanks, but…"

"Good luck." She said stepping away.

He watched her move away then put the card in his pocket and went out. He got into his car and drove back to the flat.

Chapter 5

Claira jumped off the school bus in suburbia and went towards her house and slowly up the steps to the door and opened it.

"Dad, are you home?" She said throwing her bag down on the floor in the hallway and moving through the house to the back porch. "Stuck in the traffic again, I bet." She said jumping on the swing in the garden.

Within the hour Michael walked through the door and noticed her bag on the floor and moved through to the kitchen and opened the fridge to take out a can of beer and opened it. He then moved out onto the porch and noticed Claira in the garden on the swing.

"No homework this evening I take it from the way you just left your bag in the hallway, ha?" He said stepping off the back porch and moving up to her.

She stopped and jumped off the swing and run to him and hugged him.

"Hey, what's that for?"

"No reason." She said closing her eyes and continued to hug him as he tried to swig his beer.

"How did the circus go last night with Peter?" He said putting her down.

"Okay."

"You go to school from his place this morning?"

"Yeah." She said looking away.

"That's strange because all your school clothes were here and your bag too." He said bringing her face back to look at him. "Do you have duplicate school clothes and bags at his place?"

"Duplicate what?" She said looking at him.

"You heard me."

"Dad he's not duplicate, he is you."

He looked at her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Peter, isn't he what…" She stopped and looked away.

"I was talking about this morning, what's all this about Peter being duplicate, duplicate what?"

"I just woke up late this morning and Peter drove me here to get dressed for school."

"I see, just after I had left ha, to avoid any confrontation after last night?"

"Yes." She said walking back to the swing and jumping on it.

Michael swigged at his beer and watched her.

"When you next see him you can tell him from me that I am not paying him for last night and that his services will not be required anymore. I will look through the yellow for another baby sitter."

"He's not a baby sitter, he's a friend and I like him." She said jumping back off the swing.

"A friend, yeah he definitely showed that last night. What a loser, he couldn't charm the pants off a donkey with all the zits he has over him at the moment."

"You can't fire him dad, he, he's…" She stopped and looked down.

"I'll give you a word for what he is, he's a jack ass."

"That's two words."

"Good, at least the New York education system is working well for the Green family this evening." He said throwing away his beer can and went back inside to grab another one from the fridge.

"I hate you when you drink." Claira said appearing behind the fridge door.

"Well, you and that Peter fink drove me to it."

"No we never. You drank years before you hired Peter to look after me. It was after you got fired from your last job when mom died."

He looked at her.

"Well she drove me to drink too and her kid is only hammering in the nails of my coffin!" He said swigging another can of beer back.

Claira now tried to fight with him.

"I hate you, I hate you!" She screamed trying to think of some way to hurt him as he pushed her to the floor and moved away.

Peter lay on his bed in the land of bliss as Emily moved herself over him as they made love that evening and talked to one another about their lives.

There was now a load bang from the front door.

"Well, who's that?" Peter said jumping up.

"I thought you said Claira was with her baby sitter tonight."

Peter looked at her.

"Err yeah." He said grabbing his bath robe. "Stay there."

"I'm not going anywhere."

Peter kissed her then went out to the living room and moved to the door.

"Who is it?" He said raising his voice.

"Dad, I mean..."

He quickly opened the door.

"Jeez, Claira!" He said as she pushed herself into him. "What's wrong?" He said holding her.

She now started to cry as he picked her up.

Emily now appeared at the door to his bedroom.

"Did she run away from her baby sitter or something?"

"I don't know. I can't get anything out of her, she's shaking." He said as he sat down on the sofa and Emily moved him next to him. "Sweetheart, I'm right here, please talk to me."

"Dad, he, he…" She moved back into his chest. "I don't want to go back there dad, don't make me go back there tonight, please."

Peter looked at Emily.

"It looks like I'm bunking back at my flat again." She said standing up.

"She's my kid, what do you expect me to do?"

"Find a better one in the yellow, that's what it's there for."

"Better daughter?"

"No, better baby sitter, what is the matter with you? You can make love but can't handle your own kid?"

"Of course I can." He said stopping her. "I'll make it up to you, I promise." He said kissing her.

Emily looked at Claira with tears streaming from her eyes.

"Try telling that to your kid and then maybe you wouldn't need a baby sitter and you would have a wife to take care of her."

"She died; I'm all she's got."

"Hmm, I know the feeling." She said grabbing her clothes and went out the door and closed it behind her.

Peter watched her go then moved to the kitchen and grabbed a glass of water and moved back to Claira and sat down.

"Sip it slowly." He said watching.

"I'm sorry dad, but."

"I'm not your dad; you have the real one of me at home, what the hell happened, Claira?" He said standing up.

"He's going to fire you dad."

Peter looked at her.

"Fire me? Fire me for what?"

"Because of last night?"

"Last night? Did you tell him what happened?" He said sitting back down next to her.

She shook her head.

"Dad, I don't want to lose you."

"You're not going to lose me, Jesus what am I saying." He said looking away.

Claira now started to cry again. He quickly put the glass down and held her.

Peter put her to bed in the spare bedroom and watched her sleeping as he cleared some hair from her face as she pushed her head into the pillow.

"Daddy."

"I'm here, I'm right here." He said kissing her. "Try and get some sleep for me baby, please." He said watching her close her eyes.

He walked out of the bedroom and looked around his flat. He moved to the kitchen and grabbed a new bottle of whiskey that he had just bought himself and poured it into a glass and drank the contents as he turned to look back at the door.

The paper boy threw the morning news onto the lawn in front of the flats the next day. Peter slowly moved down the stairs and grabbed them from the path and turned round to see Emily moving up behind him.

"Good morning." She said kissing him.

"Morning." He said holding her.

"How was your night with the off spring?" She said kissing him again.

"Ha?" He said still kissing her.

"Daddy?" Claira said running up to his side and pushing her head into him.

"Never mind." Emily said looking down and stepping away. "Hello Claira." She said patting her head like a dog.

Peter moved forward and grabbed her.

"She'll be at school all day." He said kissing her again.

"Well, let's see if she makes it out of the flat first, ha?" Emily said going back up the stairs.

Peter looked at Claira looking up at him.

"I see someone had a nice sleep." He said picking her up and kissing her. "You, you've got to go back to your dad after school."

"But you're my dad."

"No, I am not." He said moving back up the stairs and into the flat "Claira, I haven't got time to argue with you. Do you want to tell me what happened with your dad last night?" He said moving to the kitchen.

"I told you, dad he's going to fire you from being my baby sitter."

Peter looked at her then made her some breakfast.

"You eat your breakfast and then I'll drive you back to the house after your dad has left so you can collect your school things."

"Dad, I could leave a set here so that when…"

"No!

"But, dad!"

"No Claira, and that's final." He said raising his voice.

"You even shout like dad."

"I shout like dad, I look like dad, I am you're dad!" He stopped as he realised she was looking back at him. "Just, just eat your breakfast Claira." He said turning away and grabbing the whiskey bottle again.

Chapter 6

Peter drove Claira over to the house and noticed Michael just getting into his car.

"Dad?" Claira said looking at him.

"Yeah, I see him too!"

Michael noticed Peter's car and moved up to it.

"Get out of the car."

"What?"

"If he sees me like him he'll flip, now get out."

Claira quickly got out as Peter sped away as Michael tried to look at him.

"Was that Peter driving his car?" He said moving up to her.

"Yeah."

"Sure didn't look like him, he looked bigger, older." He said watching the car disappear out of the neighbourhood. "Did you spend the night at his place again?"

"Yeah."

"Well not anymore you won't. We're going round there tonight and his services will be terminated forth with."

"You can't!"

"I can't, what?"

"You can't go around there tonight."

"Why not?"

"Because, because he has a job."

"He has a job, as what? A paper boy?" He said laughing and moved away.

Claira looked to the sky as she had dodged another bullet.

Peter went shopping for himself and noticed his reflection in a shop window and looked at himself for a minute or two.

"I know and you're not getting any younger." A lady said looking at him.

"Excuse me?"

"You're looking at yourself in the window. How old are you?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." He said looking away.

"Children?"

He sighed and looked back.

"Yeah, just one and she's the love of my life at the moment."

"Don't tell me, just thinking of her puts years on you, yes?"

Peter laughed and smiled.

"Yeah, you're right."

"Don't lose her, even though you might lose your looks in the years to come, you won't lose the child unless you do something stupid." She said walking away.

Peter returned to his flat and found Emily waiting for him and they made love for the rest of the day.

That evening he watched her getting ready to go out.

"I thought you would be staying the night. You know to make up for last night." He said moving forward to kiss her again.

"I wish I could but I promised a friend I'd see them tonight."

"A friend? Man or women? Boy or girl."

"Are you jealous?" She said looking at him.

"Well of course, I thought we had something going here."

"We do, but I have friends and you have Claira."

"Claira is my daughter, what can I do with her? Besides, she's with her father tonight."

Emily looked at him.

"Come again."

"I mean she's with the baby sitter tonight."

"The same baby sitter as last night?"

"Yes."

"So, the yellow didn't help then?"

"What?"

"Oh forget it. You know if I read somewhere that a baby sitter is abusing a kid in the days to come, I just hope it's not Claira because although she's a kid, she's your kid and she's okay."

"Thank you." He said grabbing her and tried to kiss her.

"Michael!"

"Who's Michael?" He said kissing her again.

She pushed him away and they looked at one another.

"What is wrong with you tonight?"

"I don't know, maybe I like what is happening between us."

"It's just sex."

"And I have never had it before."

"No?" She said looking at his "Then how did Claira become your daughter, by magic?"

"Sort of, an old woman touched my head and I became Michael Green and I love the sex we are having together." He said pushing her up to the door.

"Will you stop it, you're like a teenager on heat and I hate teenagers with a passion."

"I know you do." He said still kissing her.

"I have to go, now."

"No you don't." He said pulling her away from the door and towards the bedroom.

The next day Peter checked his jacket pocket and noticed the business card that the lady had given him at the municipal building and put it on the side as he collected a few things for the Laundromat in town. He checked his wallet and found that he was running low on money and realised that he had to find a job to tie him over. He checked the local wanted ads as he sat watching the washing going around in the dryer then looked at the clothes he was wearing.

That evening he drove into the neighbourhood where Claira lived with her father and pulled over watching the house for any sign of movement. The sun had already set when he noticed Michael walk out of the house and get into his car and drive out of the neighbourhood.

Peter now got out of his car and casually walked up to the front door and opened it and found Claira watching the television. He looked into Michael's bedroom then moved out to Claira.

"Sweetheart." He said moving forward.

"Hey." She said munching at her chips.

"Claira, it's me, Peter."

She stopped and looked at him.

"Dad!"

"Yeah, look I need to borrow some more of your dad's clothes." He said moving back to the bedroom.

Claira jumped off the sofa and moved to the window and looked out for the car.

"Dad, if dad catches you in here." She said moving into his bedroom.

"Then help me get some clothes, I also need some money too, look I'll pay the family back, I promise." He said grabbing Michael's wallet.

"Dad, you can't…!" She said stopping him.

Peter looked at her and pulled her into him.

"Sweetheart I would never hurt this family, you're as much mine as you are his, you know that." He said kissing her. "I've got to get some of my own clothes and I need a job."

"You have a job, you're a baby sitter."

"No-one would employ a thirty one year old man to look after their kid. I need a real job, a real job for once." He said looking at her. "I've got to think like your dad now that I look and sound like him too."

"But dad, they could find that old women any day now and you can go back to being Peter." She said watching him stuff some more clothes into a shopping bag.

"Until they do then I have no other choice than to be a man and do things adults do. I don't expect you to understand that, maybe one day I'll explain it to you…." He stopped as he noticed the car headlights.

"That's dad! My other dad I mean." She said moving forward.

"I'll slip out through the back street." He said moving onto the back porch.

"Dad wait!" Claira said running out to him.

"Claira, you're dad's going to be walking through that door any second now."

She now hugged him.

"I don't want to lose you daddy, I love you." She said closing her eyes as Peter held her.

"You're not going to lose me." He said stopping and kissed her. "I love you too!" He said then ran out and jumped over the fence.

At that moment Michael walked through the front door and saw Claira on the back porch with tears in her eyes.

"Well, what's the matter with you?"

She now run to him and hugged him.

"Peter was just here." She said looking up to him looking down.

"On our back porch?"

"Yes." She said nodding.

"Well, what's wrong with the front door?"

"I don't know." She said walking away.

"I tell you that kid is mad and thought I fired him."

"You did." She said sitting back on the sofa and munching her chips again.

Michael now heard a car start up and went outside to see Peter's car speeding off down the road.

Peter pulled up back at his flat and looked at the suit he had taken from Michael.

Emily walked into his flat later that night to see him trying on the suit and looking at himself in the mirror.

"Well, Mr Green where did you find the money to have a tailored suit made up?" She said moving up to him.

"I had some money put away for a rainy day." He said checking the cut. "I can't believe it fits me, and I do look good if I do say so myself." He added moving back to his bed and taking the jacket off. "I've got to look for a job and I hope that this will help me."

"Fine, but just as long as you do not give your new boss the news that you have a ten year old daughter locked away at the baby sitters every evening." She said moving up to him to sort his tie out.

"Do you mind, I thought Claira was my greatest asset?" He said looking at her.

"That's not what every employer wants to hear."

"Every employer or, just my girlfriend?" He said pushing her onto the bed.

Chapter 7

Claira had managed to make it to Peter's flat one evening for dinner and sat in the small makeshift kitchen playing with a small hole starting to begin in the PVC table cloth. She then noticed the business card on the table by the bedroom and jumped off the stall and went over to it and picked it up and moved back to the stall and jumped back on it.

Peter now burnt his finger and moved to the sink to soothe it.

"Hey dad."

"Hmm?" He said grabbing a towel and moving back to the oven.

"Is this the card you got from the municipal building in town about the circus?"

He turned round and looked at her waving the card in her hand.

"Yeah, now go and put it back on the table where you found it because, if I lose that…" He stopped and watched her jump back off the stool and put it back on the table.

"Sorry." She said moving back to the stall and climbing back onto it.

Peter smiled and felt content inside then looked at the card on the table and turned away back to the dinner and started to place the food onto the two plates and put them onto the table in front of her.

He now moved his hand over her head and kissed her.

"You like being here, having dinner with your dad, don't you sweetheart?"

"Yeah." She said picking up her knife and fork and starting to eat the dinner Peter had made.

He sat down across from her and watched her enjoying her dinner then looked at the card on the table again as he tried to look away.

"You know, now that I have a job I can start to look after you more. We could do something like this say three or four times a week, ha?"

Claira looked up and then looked towards the door.

"What about Emily?"

"What do you mean, what about Emily?"

"Well, she lives here now, doesn't she?

"No, she still has the flat across the hall." He said watching her. "Claira, yes I am having a relationship with Emily, but I'm still your father and I would like a relationship with you too! You're my child."

"But, but you said that you were Peter because..."

He now looked away and sighed.

"Look, can we just drop this Peter stuff right because, because I'm your father and I would like to spend some more time with you."

Claira now dropped her knife and fork and ran into the spare bedroom and closed the door.

"Claira, Claira?" He said standing up and moving to the closed door. He now opened it and saw her crying on the bed.

"Doesn't this room have a lock and key?"

He now moved up to her and held her.

"The next thing on my list of jobs your daddy needs to do in our home." He said kissing her. "What was all that about back there?"

"You, you said to drop being Peter." She said wiping her tears away. "You told me first of all that you're not my dad and now you're saying you are."

Peter held her.

"Sweetheart, I know what I said and it's confusing for you as it is for me because I look and sound like your dad, but I am your dad and maybe I was a fool trying to tell you that I wasn't because I know that I am."

"So, so what's happened to Peter? Where has he gone?"

"Well, he's probably in here somewhere but I'm just keeping him under wraps at the moment." He said kissing her. "Will you come back to the table with me?"

She looked at him and nodded.

"Good." He said picking her up and carrying her out to the living room and noticed the card on the table.

He made sure Claira wasn't looking and picked the card up and crumpled it in his hand and put it in his pocket.

He put Claira back onto the stall and watched her pick her knife and fork back up.

"I'm your dad and that's all you have to know at the moment, baby." He said sitting down across from her and smiled contentedly at her.

Emily walked into the flat some hours later as they were watching television.

"Hey." She said moving up to kiss him.

"Hi."

"Is Claira staying the night or is she going back to her baby sitter tonight?"

"She's staying here tonight, isn't that right Claira?"

"Dad said it would be alright." She said looking up.

"Oh, and dad made that decision all on his own, ha?"

"I did." He said kissing her then moved into the bedroom with Emily. "As a matter of fact I want to see more of her." He said closing the door behind him.

"You're joking right?"

"No."

"Michael, I work, you work, and Claira is full time work. She's better off with the situation how it is."

"I want more."

"Again with the 'I want more thing', ha?"

"Claira's my child and I miss her when she's not here, like I miss you." He said touching her.

"Michael, we're not ready for a child, Claira's age or younger." Emily said pushing her away.

"Well when will we be right for a child Emily, I love her and I love you, and I want us to be a family."

"What is it with men when they get a job? I mean it's not like this is your first job, is it?"

He looked away.

"I can support a family now."

"No!" She said grabbing her coat and bag.

"What are you doing?"

"I'll spend the night in my own flat thank you very much, when you finally get your head out of cloud nine." Emily said going back out. "See you again Claira."

She watched her going out.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing, your father is being dumb again."

"Emily, I just want us to be a family, I love the two of you so much."

The door closed hard in front of him. He now looked at Claira looking on.

"I think I better go to bed." She said getting up and moving towards the spare bedroom. "Goodnight." She said moving up to him for a hug.

Peter knelt down to her.

"Sweetheart, I'm going to sort this out, I promise."

"You mean you're going to find Peter in there?" She said touching his chest.

He now looked at her.

"I'll work something out for us." He said kissing her.

She now ran to the table and looked for the card.

"Where is it?"

"What?"

"The card you have to help you find the circus and the old woman." She said looking around then ran into her bedroom and grabbed the crystal ball and ran back out to him. "You have the ball, so where's the card?" She said handing him the ball as he looked at her puzzled.

He then reached into his pocket and took out the crumpled card and looked at it.

"You've got to phone them dad."

"Claira."

"You've got to ask them if they have any news." She said taking the card from him and put it back on the table.

Peter now went to her and turned her around.

"Claira, listen to me." He said as she looked at him.

He now looked at the card then back to Claira.

"What am I doing?" He said stepping away.

"If you call them first thing tomorrow they may have news about the circus."

He looked back at her then looked at the crystal ball in his hand.

"Yeah, I'll ring the number first thing, after I get you to school."

"I've got to get to dads first to collect my school bag."

"Didn't you leave it around here?"

"No, why would I leave it around here? I left my bag at home before I caught the taxi over here."

"Oh yeah, I keep forgetting. Alright, well I'll drive you over after your dad has left for work in the morning."

"But, haven't you got to work too?"

"I have but, I've got to get you to school, haven't I?" He said handing the crystal ball back to her. "Go put this back in your bedroom, I'll come and tuck you in, in a minute."

"Dad?" She said taking the crystal ball from him.

"Yes?"

"Are you and Emily okay?"

"We're fine. Now, go and get undressed." He said pushing her into the spare bedroom and watched the door close.

Peter now walked back over to the table and put the crumpled business card back on the table and turned back to look at the closed door then looked towards the front door and thought about what Claira had just said.

Chapter 8

Peter had a late lunch at work and pulled up outside the municipal building and waited in line to be seen by the first available receptionist. He was shown to another room and sat silently looking at the welfare posters pinned to the notice boards.

The door now opened behind him.

"Mr, Green?"

Peter stood up and spun round.

"Yeah."

"I'm Michael Coleman; I noticed we share the same first name." He said shaking his hand.

"Is that so?"

"Michael, yeah?"

Peter looked at him and nodded.

"Yeah, yeah of course, sorry."

"No need to apologise, please sit down."

"I wasn't expecting to be shown to a room, I guess, you see, I just need to locate that Circus that was here last month."

"In Newark, yes?" He said opening a folder as he sat down.

"Yes, yes." He said sitting forward. "Do you have any news for me?"

Peter watched the man look up and put his hands on top of the folder.

"You have a daughter that wants to go there again, so I understand."

He sighed and moved back and nodded.

"Yeah."

"I know what young kids are like…"

"Do you?"

"Mr Green, Michael, if you are having trouble looking after her…"

"Wait a minute; you, you think I'm having trouble raising my kid that she is leaning on me to take her to more circuses? He said then started laughing.

"It's where a lot of family problems start. You're a widow…"

"Claira is my life, you, you don't know how much she's my life at the moment."

"Every parent has trouble with their off spring one time or another."

Peter jumped up.

"I am not having trouble with my daughter, we're a family."

"And that family member is hassling you to find a circus that could be in Seattle for all we care by now?" He said closing the folder. "I'm sure that there are many other attractions you could take your child to that would be equally excitable to her."

"No, I want." He stopped and looked at him. "She needs that circus and only that circus, period."

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why that particular circus, Mr Green? There are thousands of circuses that travel all over North America every year. I'm sure that your child would be fascinated with any other circus or similar attraction that comes to New Jersey every year."

He looked away.

"No, it has to be that circus."

"And, I ask again, why that particular circus?" He said standing up and moving up to him. "You're a young man still." He said making Peter face him. "Is the reason why you need to trace that particular circus is because you made out with one of the girls there and she's written to you telling you now that she is pregnant?"

Peter looked at him then pulled his fist back and hit him square on the chin and watched him fall down. He watched him hold his chin then looked at the folder on his desk.

"I'll find that circus on my own." He said grabbing the file.

"Good luck because she's gone!" Michael said rising to his knees.

"For your information, I'm a father, to my ten year old daughter only and if I did decide to have any more children that would be my decision and my decision alone." He said opening the door and leaving the building as the security now arrived to see him off.

Peter drove away and went back to work.

That evening he drove into the family neighbourhood and watched as Michael's car pulled up on the driveway. He now watched the door open as Claira ran out of the house and hugged her father and watched them disappear into the house and close the door behind them. He now started up his car and glanced back at the house as he drove away slowly down the road.

He returned to the flat and found Emily on the steps leading up to the flat.

She moved out to him and kissed him then looked back.

"No Claira?"

"No she's, she's at her baby sitters tonight." He said taking a deep breath a looking at her.

"Okay, well that means you can spend tonight with me instead."

"That sounds like a good idea." He said leading her up the stairs to his flat.

He took his jacket off as the business card fell on to the floor and Emily picked it up.

"What's this?"

"Oh, you know that circus that blew past here last month?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, they hand out business cards; I guess Claira just collected it…"

"Like that crystal ball in her bedroom, ha?" She said kissing him. "She'll collect anything that catches her eye." She said dropping the card onto the floor.

"Even dad's" He said as they now started to make love.

The following Saturday as Peter was busy shopping, Claira had caught the bus into town and noticed him in the mall and moved through the crowds and slowly approached him.

"Dad!" She said pulling his jacket.

"Claira!" He said kneeling down to her and hugged her. "Did you get the bus in or is Michael around here somewhere?" He said looking around.

She stepped back.

"Oh, I thought…" You left early this morning before I had…, I mean dad..."

"A-ha, well it's a good job you ran into me then, I'll give you a lift back to the flat and you can spend some time with me." He said grabbing her hand and leading her on.

"Dad didn't say where he was going."

"Of course not, he has a whole different life to me." He said keeping his rage at bay.

Peter bought Claira a cake in the mall's cafeteria and watched her eating it.

"You didn't have breakfast this morning either then, ha?"

Claira looked at him and shook her head.

"Jesus, if the children's courts could see this family now they would award you to me because I'm a better parent than he could ever be any day, and you made me your dad from a wish told to an old women in a circus!" He said looking away.

"Did you find out anything from the lady at the municipal building the other day?"

He looked back at her and smiled then moved forward to kiss her.

"Yeah, your dad's going to find that circus any day now." He said lying as he watched her get all excited.

"That mean's Peter will be back anytime soon now daddy, yes?"

"Yes, any day soon, but in the meantime you love staying with daddy, yeah?" He watched her nod approvingly as he kissed her again. "And I love you staying with me, too!"

They soon left the mall and Peter drove Claira over to the flat and he watched Claira trying to carry some shopping up the stairs and started to laugh.

"Are you okay with that bag, sweetheart?" He said as he reached the top of the stairs.

"I'm okay."

Peter opened the door as Emily came out of her flat.

"Hey Claira." She said hugging her.

"Hi."

Emily moved to Peter and looked at him.

"What happened to the baby sitter today?"

"He blew Claira out. It was lucky I was in the mall where Claira was when he did it."

"I told you to fire him weeks ago." She said moving closer to him.

"Don't worry; I'm seriously thinking about it. She's had no breakfast so I bought her a cake in the mall."

"Well, at least someone's had something to eat." Emily said kissing him.

"I know the feeling."

Claira now walked into the flat and helped Peter put the shopping away. He looked at Emily reading a magazine like it was a waiting room.

"I thought the family could go for a walk in the park this afternoon?"

She looked up.

"Family?"

"Come on, we haven't seen her days."

"Good, well you go and play daddy to your kid."

"I would like you to come with us." He said moving up to her.

"Sorry, I don't dig the family scene."

"Claira, would you like Emily to come to the park with us?" He said looking back.

"Yes…" She said moving up to Peter and hugged him.

"I want us to be a family. Jesus her own, I mean, the baby sitter doesn't care less about her." He said turning to look at Claira then back to Emily.

She now got up and grabbed the yellow pages book.

"Why don't we sit down as a family and find a better one for her.

"But, dad's my baby sitter."

"What?"

"Oh, that's what she's saying now, because I'm not spending time with her like I used to. She calls me the baby sitter." He said moving back to the kitchen and looking at Claira sternly.

Emily went through the book.

"Hey, there's one just down the street. She's could spend some time here each evening before she's goes back to the sitter."

"Or, we could finally be a family and Claira wouldn't have to be pushed back and forth between dad's, I mean sitters." He said the quickly looked down.

"Call the sitter first." She said getting up and handing him the book.

"Dad, I don't want…"

"Claira, this is for your own good. Your father and I are trying to work things out and I; we don't want a child getting in the way. A new sitter is what you need, instead of this time waster."

Claira now looked at Peter and pushed him away.

"I hate you, I hate you!" She said running off to the spare bedroom.

"Claira!"

Emily now looked back at him.

"Do you want to call them now, or later?"

Eventually Peter drove her back into her father's neighbourhood and pulled up across the street and noticed that her father's car was still not there. Claira opened the door and got out as Peter now got out and secured the car.

"Dad, what are you doing?"

"I'm taking you in."

"But, but if my dad see's you."

"He's not here. Do you see his car anywhere on the street or on the driveway?"

She looked up and down the road.

"No, but he could be here any minute."

"Then I'll sneak out the back like I did before." He said crossing the road to the house.

Claira followed him in as he looked around.

"Dad please, go!"

"Why? I belong in this house as much as he does. Have you got any homework for Monday?"

"No, dad, if my dad catches you here..."

"Then I'll explain to him what happened at the circus last month."

"You wouldn't dare because you know what he'd do."

"Well maybe I need a good fight, someone to knock my block off once in a while."

Claira now moved up to him and they hugged.

"I'll put some dinner on for us. If he turns up you can say you were hungry. It might wake that son of a bitch up a bit."

"Dad, he's you."

"All the same, you're a growing girl, go sit and watch the TV or something." He said pushing her away as he went into the kitchen.

Claira slowly moved into the kitchen and watched him making dinner.

"Dad, are you going to marry Emily?"

He stopped and looked at her.

"I thought I told you to watch TV."

"Dad, I'm ten years old. I know where dad goes when he's not home and I know what you do with Emily back at the flat. I bet it's the same thing because you are him." She said picking the paint off the doorway.

"I bet I'm a better lover than he will ever be!"

"Do I have to call her mom?"

"No!" He said looking at her. "Claira, just go and sit down!"

She stepped back looking at him.

"I'm going to be a teenager in less than three years' time."

"Do I look like a teenager to you? I'm thirty one years old and I'm your father now go and sit down out there before I make you sit down!" He said shouting as Claira stood rigid then turned away and ran off to the living room.

A few minutes later Peter heard a car pull up and quickly ran out onto the back porch checking that Claira was still watching the television then noticed his alter ego walking through the door. He quickly jumped over the fence and got into his car and drive away.

Chapter 9

Autumn and winter went so quickly in a New York minute and Claira had settled into a routine of sharing two dads' every few days.

Emily had sold her flat to a friend and moved in permanently with Peter and started to get the flat sorted out the way they wanted it as Claira helped where she could decorating the spare bedroom to something presentable.

Peter returned home one day and collected the free newspapers along with the mail from the letter box and walked into the flat as Emily was walking out of Claira's bedroom carrying some brushes and paint cans.

"I hate to look at what my off spring and fiancée have done to my old spare room." He said closing his eyes and looking away.

"No daddy, you can't look!" She said running to him and pulled him away to the kitchen as Emily closed the door.

"We need showers before we can be touched by human hands." Emily said moving forward and kissing him.

"Not even a hug?" He said moving forward to try and hug then as Emily pulled Claira away.

"Not even a hug. We've been painting all day to get the bedroom how the child wants it."

"Oh, so mummy and daddy have no say on it, ha?" Peter said looking at Claira.

"Well, you didn't consult me other your bedroom." She said looking away.

"That's because your father has started putting his sexual aids in there he doesn't want you to see." Emily said laughing.

"Sexual aids? I'm thirty one not dead!" He said moving forward and passionately kissed her.

"I'm not looking." Claira said moving away.

"See, house trained in less than six months, how's that for a family?"

"Hmm, I'm starting to warm to it." She said kissing Peter. "Maybe when the rooms ready she could move in permanently."

Peter looked at her.

"You're serious, yes?"

"Yeah!" She said nodding him.

"No more baby sitters." He said kissing Emily.

Claira now looked back.

"No more baby sitters? Well, what does that mean?"

"What it's supposed to mean." Emily said looking at her.

"What about dad?"

"Claira!" Peter said turning to her.

She now ran out the door and down the stairs.

"Well, what's the matter with her?"

"Stay there. I'll get her back." He said kissing her then ran out down the stairs and found Claira by his car and slowly walked up to her.

"Sweetheart, back there, what you're mom said, she…"

"You said she wouldn't be my mom."

"I know what I said but…" He moved up to her and moved some hair from her face. "We're a family aren't we? We're just taking it to the next level and that includes you."

"Does that include my dad too?"

They looked at one another then he looked away and sighed.

"Go on, get in."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not about to explain to your, to Emily that you have another dad all the way across town now, am I?"

Emily looked out of the window and saw Peter drive away with Claira in the passenger seat and then stepped away from the window and looked at the door to the spare bedroom.

Peter watched Claira as he drove through the streets towards the family neighbourhood.

"Are you okay?"

"No, I'm confused. I don't know what's going to happen. I can't stay full time with you because my dad could find out about you. I can't upset you and Emily because you're my dad and I know I belong with you."

Peter sighed and looked away

"I know it's a fucked up situation."

"What about the old woman?"

"What old woman?"

"The old woman at the circus dad, remember?"

"What? You want her to marry us or something?" He said looking at her.

"No, if you find her now, you could go back to being Peter and we wouldn't be where we are now."

Peter stopped the car and looked at her.

"I am never going back to being that loser! I have a life now Claira, I'm your father, I'm Michael Green and I am having great sex with your new mom! Get used to it." He said as Claira leaned away from him into the passenger seat. "Peter was a kid who couldn't even lay a hat!" He added looking out of the window.

She now opened the door and jumped out of the car and ran off down the street.

Peter jumped out and tried to run after but she was already in her road and running into her home.

He soon returned to the flat and found Emily watching the television.

"I thought you said you'd get her back."

"I know, I know. I guess she still likes the comfort of the baby sitter more."

"Yeah, it's going to be hard for her, after losing her real mom."

"I'll make this family work Emily, believe me, I won't give up on the two of you."

"It's not me you should be talking to, is it?"

Peter looked at her then thought of Claira.

Emily had left for work early the next morning which left Peter alone to tidy up and he soon opened the door to the spare bedroom as he noticed the photos on the wall of the three of them over Christmas and New Year as a family. He moved closer to study them and looked at Claira in particular as he now felt a tear in his eye and looked away. The crystal ball the old women had given her at the circus now twinkled as he wiped his eyes and stepped up to it and picked it up as the light played with the colours and corners as he moved it around in his hand.

He soon went back out to the kitchen and started clearing away the breakfast things when he remembered the post from yesterday and picked it up and went through it. A flyer now fell to the floor and he picked it up and glanced at it as the word Circus caught his eye.

Claira walked out of school and saw Peter running across the road from his car waving to her. She looked at her bus then casually moved back as Peter reached her.

"Hey." He said kissing her.

"I think my dad's home today so I better catch the bus, okay."

"I won't let you miss the bus."

"Good, then I have to go." She said pulling the bag over her head.

"Do you remember this?" He said handing her the crystal ball.

"Yeah!" She said looking back to the bus.

"I won't let you miss the bus, I promise." He said putting his hand over hers holding the ball together. "It's what made me your dad, yes?"

"Yeah, dad, the bus."

"Now take a look at this." He said handing her the flyer."

Peter watched as Claira focused in on it and her expression changed.

"Dad, it's the circus." She said hugging him.

"Our circus." He said holding her. He now looked at her. "You made me your dad; it's where we have to go if you want to see Peter again. Do you understand me, sweetheart?"

She nodded like a dog as Peter brought the crystal ball back towards her.

"Can I get another crystal ball to go with this one, daddy?"

Peter looked at her and laughed then kissed and hugged her.

"Sure you can, you can do anything you want." He said looking at her.

Peter allowed Claira to get on the bus and watched it sail away as he looked back at the crystal ball in his hand then moved back to his car and got back in.

Emily returned home later that evening and they made love all night.

The next morning Peter watched Emily making breakfast as he thought about Claira and the circus.

"Are you okay this morning?" Emily said looking at him.

"I'm okay." He stopped and looked at his breakfast then back up to Emily. "Do you remember that Peter kid who lived here before I moved in?"

"Yeah! I told you about him last year, gave me the creeps just looking at him."

"If you saw him again would you talk to him?"

"Of course not. We have nothing in common; he's a kid who just lusted after my body. It just made me sick just knowing that he might have been thinking of me in that way." She said shaking.

Peter watched her.

"So, you wouldn't talk to him even if it was just for, well say just for the time of day?"

"Have you seen him or something?"

"I might have."

"What did he say to you?"

"Nothing! He, he just wants a place to stay and I was thinking of giving him this place."

"Are you mad? We've just spent our entire wages getting this flat sorted out to how we like it."

"I have another place for us to live in, as a family."

"Another place?"

"In a family neighbourhood."

"How could you afford another place?"

"I told you, I have some money put away. Claira's already seen it and she loves it."

"Oh, I see, so you try the place out on Claira, but not your bride to be, ha?"

"I wanted you to see it, but I just haven't had the time to show it to you yet. Claira saw it because I was picking her up from school the other day and the real estate called while she was in the car. What else could I do? You were at work."

Emily looked at him.

"Alright, I have a spare hour or so this evening."

"No, I have to choose the time."

"Why, is your girlfriend in there, or something?"

"You're my girlfriend. You and Claira are all I need in my life at the moment." He said moving up to her and kissing her.

"Okay, well when you're ready I'll let you know if I am."

"What about Friday night?"

"Friday night? That's when Claira is here."

"Yes, so?"

"Well, she's already seen the place."

"Is there a problem with off spring seeing the place more than once?"

"No. But I just thought that we could see the place on our own, let me see the place without Claira running around our feet."

"She's our child; I love her running around us." He said kissing her.

"Are you serious about the place?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, Friday night."

"Great." He said then kissed her again.

Chapter 10

That Friday night Peter collected Emily at the flat and drove out to the neighbourhood and noticed that Michael's car had gone.

"Where's Claira?"

"Hopefully she's already in there." He said as Emily looked at him. "Will you trust me?" He said kissing her. "I dropped her off here before I came over and picked you up."

They walked towards the house hand in hand as Claira opened the door and ran out to them.

"Mom, dad! She said running to them.

"How did you afford a place like this?"

"I told you…"

"I know, but this must have cost thousands."

"Only the best for my family." He said leading her in. "It's already decorated but, I know that you will want to change it again as soon as we move in."

"Come and see my bedroom, mom." She said taking her hand.

Emily looked at Peter.

"Now it's mom?"

"She's showing off, just like I do." He said pushing her on as he slowly followed.

Peter watched Claira walking her around the bedroom as he took out the crystal ball and put it on the night stand next to her bed as Claira noticed it.

"Dad."

"This belongs with the family, the family that we made." He said kneeling down to her.

Claira fell asleep on the sofa as Peter held her and kissed Emily next to him as he watched the television that night.

"I'm going to put her to bed."

"Okay." She said and kissed him.

Peter now picked her up and carried her into bed her bedroom and put her into her bed as she opened her eyes and watched him.

"Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"You've got to get out of here before my dad comes back."

"Shush, it's Friday night. You know as well as I do that your dad won't be back till the morning and we'll be long gone by then." He said kissing her.

She now sat up and put her head into his chest.

"I don't want you and mom to leave me."

"We're never going to leave you."

"But, but Peter…"

"I'm working on it." He said pushing her back into the bed. "When Peter comes back I'm going to be with your new mom and so are you because we're your family as much as you are mine." He said kissing her. "Now get some sleep."

Claira looked at him puzzled then closed her eyes.

"I love you daddy."

"I love you too, forever."

Peter turned off the light and moved back to Emily and held her.

"So, what do you think of the place?"

"When I first walked in, I thought a bomb had hit it."

"It's going to need some work, but when I get some more money and when we're married…" He looked around. "I can get some money off that Peter when he takes over the flat."

"Are you sure about Peter, I mean, he's a creep."

"I know I am. I mean I know he is, but you'll get used to him, Claira has."

"Yeah, that's because they're basically the same age." She said laughing as Peter looked at her then laughed and kissed her.

The next morning Peter kept an eye on the time as they had an early breakfast and he got the family out of the house before Michael returned in his car.

They walked around the mall window shopping as Claira played on the go karts. He drove the family home to the flat that evening and had dinner. He noticed the flyer for the circus on the table and looked at Emily and Claira eating.

"You know the circus is in town this week."

"Yeah, I saw the flyer." Claira said getting excited.

"How about if we all went this Tuesday night, the three of us, as a family?

"Tuesday?"

"Yeah, If that's alright with you." He said looking at Emily.

"Alright." She said looking at him then Claira. "Is that alright with you Claira?"

"Yes, mom."

Peter smiled and carried on eating.

That night Peter watched Emily get ready for bed and moved up to her.

"I want you to promise me something."

"Promise you something?"

"Yeah."

"Promise you what?"

"If I look at you funny, if I tell you I don't know who you are, don't give up on me. Look at Claira, listen to her and don't listen to me."

"What are you likely to say that I won't like?"

"I don't know, maybe I might say I don't love you and that I don't like you, don't believe me, because you know deep down I'm madly in love with you." He said kissing her.

"Are you ill? Oh my god, you're dying, the doctors have found cancer, haven't they, and this is why you've been acting funny lately."

Peter hugged her.

"No, but if I change, from how I am with you today, don't throw me away, don't cast me out because you know I love you, it's just that I may not show it for a while. I maybe off with you; I may drink a little more than I should…"

"Michael, you're scaring me."

"When I act like that, don't be afraid to try and change me. Do everything you can to stop me pushing away. I'll tell Claira to keep trying for you too."

"Are you going away or something?"

"Never. I'll never leave you two alone, not once."

"Then why?"

"Just promise me Emily, please."

"Alright, I promise."

"Promise me with love." He said pushing her onto the bed.

That Tuesday night Peter arrived at the circus and looked at the many attractions there then noticed the name he had been looking for and running from that past year.

He kept hold of Emily's hand as Emily kept hold of Claira's hand as they enjoyed the attractions as a family. They slowly made their way round the various tents until Claira caught sight of the tent that Peter had been working his way to.

"Well, one last tent to come." Emily said stepping forward. "Are you two coming?"

"Yeah, err, we'll follow you in." Peter said as Emily went behind the tent flap.

Claira moved up to Peter who now knelt down to her.

"Sweetheart, you know what's going to happen tonight, don't you?

She nodded then looked at him.

"The dream is over?" She said looking down.

"No!" He said lifting her head up to face him. "This was never a dream to you and me, you're my family, you and Emily, but I need you to do something for me." He said holding her. "Tomorrow I'll be plain old Peter again, but your dad is still going to be out there and so is your mom. You just have to do all you can to get them together. I'm going to help you too, but whether your dad will listen to me, whether Emily will talk to me from tomorrow, who knows but, we have to try, for our family, yes?"

"Yes daddy."

"I love you." He said kissing her. "I guess I always have. Even as plain kid Peter, ha?"

Claira laughed and hugged him.

"Don't leave me."

"Hey, I never have left you, not once. You, you just got to work on me, you know." He looked away. "God, I can only guess what I am going to be like tomorrow, but Peter is going to do something about the way your daddy is, but you have to help too. Are you ready for that sweetheart; are you ready to find me in here somewhere?" He said putting her hand on his chest. He watched Claira nodding frantically. "Then, we're as ready as we are ever going to be, as a family." He said kissing her again.

Peter led Claira in to the tent as he instantly saw the old women in the chair and watched as she stood up like an energy had entered the room and started to move towards Michael pushing Claira towards Emily.

"You have returned after your long trip with your family." She said reaching him.

Emily watched the old woman moving closer to Peter as Claira jostled with her.

"I have a family now but I can't hurt them anymore..." He stopped and swallowed the lump in his throat. "…Anymore as Michael, when I know I want to be Peter, however hard I might find the decision at the moment."

"The child loves you as Peter, yes?" The old woman asked him.

He stopped and looked towards Claira. She now pushed Emily away and went to Peter and took his hand.

"His name is Peter and I want him to be my friend." She said pushing her head into his side.

"Yes, she loves me as Peter!" He said looking up as a tear fell from his eye.

The old woman now touched his head as before.

"You are the child's friend again." She said handing a crystal ball to Claira and moving away.

"Daddy, look, just like last time." She said handing him the ball.

Emily moved up to him.

"Is this where you got the other crystal ball from?" She said looking at him.

"Yes." He said as he turned around and slowly led Emily and Claira out of the tent and to their car.

"What happened back there?" Emily asked watching Peter and Claira together.

"I don't know." He said opening the back door to allow Claira to get in holding the crystal ball.

"Claira was talking about Peter, wasn't she?"

"Who's interested in that kid, he's a waste of time." He said opening the door up for Emily to get in.

He now got in as Claira leaned forward as he noticed the crystal ball in her hand.

"Are we going home, daddy?"

"Yeah." He said looking at the ball twinkling at him. "Sit back, now." He added as he started up the engine and headed towards the family neighbourhood and parked up outside the house.

Peter held tight onto Emily and Claira that evening as he looked at the crystal ball by the door.

"I'll put Claira to bed; she's had a long day."

"Don't be long, we've had a long day too and we're not getting any younger, you know." Emily said kissing him.

"I'll be right back." He said kissing her again then picked Claira up and then grabbed the crystal ball and moved into her bedroom and put the crystal ball next to the other one and looked at them as he put Claira into bed.

She opened her eyes and looked at him.

"Hey Peter." She said hugging him.

"Hi Claira." He said kissing her.

"Has dad said you can stay now?"

"Of course he has. You love me, don't you?" He said watching her nod and smile. "I love you too and I'm always going to be your friend, right here for you and your mom and dad, you just remember that." He said kissing her as he now tucked her in.

He moved to the door and turned off the light then closed the door and moved out to Emily.

"Now, where were we, oh yeah, we're not getting any younger." He said leading her to the master bedroom. "You can speak for yourself from tomorrow." He said smiling as he put her on the bed and they started to make love. He looked at her as he lay on top of her. "Don't give up on me, even if I don't treat you right in the morning." He said kissing her.

"I won't, now that I understand, Peter." She said looking at him.

Peter stared at her then realised what had happened and carried on kissing her until they both fell asleep.

Chapter 11

Peter awoke early and looked at himself in the bedroom mirror then looked back to Emily sleeping silently. He quickly grabbed a bath robe and pulled it on him as he moved up to Claira's bedroom and looked in on her still sleeping. He moved out into the living room and grabbed his car keys and taking one last look around the house, he left and drove off back to the flat and sat alone in the living room that morning.

He found some old clothes he had and took a long shower to try and wake himself up.

That evening he drove back to the house and parked up behind Michael's car as Claira ran out to him.

"Hey Peter." She said hugging him.

"Hi, so what's going on in the Green family today?"

"Nothing much. I think their trying to talk, if dad would only listen to mom."

"Maybe we should just leave now, ha..?"

"Peter!" Emily said moving out to him.

He stopped and looked at her.

"Hi, erm, I'm just collecting Claira, if that's alright. I won't be any trouble." He said pulling Claira into him.

"I have spent the best part of the day talking to him, your right, he won't listen, but his body is screaming out to me at the moment. Could you look after Claira…?"

"Sure." He said turning her around.

"After you've talked to him." Emily said taking his hand.

"Erm, Michael and I don't really get on. He thinks he's a sex god." He said stepping forward.

"Isn't he a just?" She said moving closer. "I thought you said you were going to help."

"In looking after the child, that's what I get paid for, not as a marriage counsellor."

"Marriage? I don't know who the hell she is." Michael said from the front porch. "What the hell are you doing here? I thought I fired you." He said moving up to them.

"Well I employed him again. You know how Claira feels about Peter and, between you and me; he's all she's got."

"He's a loser. You know the other day I caught him lusting after a female dog walker."

"Who for, the dog of the walker?" Emily said laughing as Peter looked at her.

Michael now looked at Emily.

"You know maybe we do still need a baby sitter."

"Look how long I have been telling you this." She said taking Michael's hand as she looked at Peter.

"So, what time do you want Claira back?" Peter said grabbing his watch.

"By the morning." Emily said looking back and winking at him.

He watched the door close and looked at Claira looking at him. He now opened the passenger door up and let her in then ran round and got in and pulled out of the drive.

"Peter."

"Yeah?"

"Do you think mom and dad are going to be okay?"

"They just need some time together, to work it out. At least it gives you and me some free time. What do you want to eat?"

"Pizza!"

He looked at her and smiled.

"Pizza, of course." He said driving away from the neighbourhood. "My place okay?"

"Yes, or we could go to the circus."

"No!" He said looking at her sternly with a sneaky smile peeking through. She now chuckled as he leaned over and kissed her. "I think mom and dad are going to be okay." He added looking at her.

"Yeah, I think so too!" She said contentedly.

She now moved into Peter for a hug as he drives out of town.

The End