Alfie woke at about eight-thirty and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He wasn't a morning person like his mother and could sleep through practically anything when he wanted to. But this morning he felt wide awake and alert. He listened for noise in the lounge, Jack had slept over a couple of times since Alfie had known him and sometimes he heard him snoring or talking in his sleep and knew that he should be quiet and sneak about so he didn't wake him.
"I'm so sorry Kim." He heard Jack mutter to himself as he pushed open his bedroom door and took Bilbo with him to see what was going on.
'Who is Kim?' he thought, looking a bit puzzled. But his confusion soon disappeared when he saw his Mom lying under the blanket with Jack.
"Bilbo look?" he whispered to his bear, with a big grin on his face. "Jack is going to be our Daddy now!" The bear obviously couldn't share his enthusiasm and Alfie felt frustrated at not being able to tell anyone how his wishes had come true.
"Jack can come to sports now and I can be on the pee-wee team at school… and…" he fell silent quickly as he saw his Mom wriggle in her sleep trying to get comfortable on half an old leather couch.
"I'm here Angel, hush now" Jack muttered as Laura drowsily slipped her arm under the blanket and across his chest.
Alfie went back to his room and found his books from school. Mrs. Henshaw had asked him to draw pictures of what he did at the weekend and he carefully took his pencils out of the tin one by one, trying not to make a sound; and started to draw him and Jack and his Mom on the sofa, watching Spiderman on TV.
Jack woke up hearing little scratching noises beside his ear and mutterings.
"We can go to the park all the time and Jack will read us stories and he will hold Mom's hand like David's Mom and Dad do, and we will go on trips to the sea in Jack's car, Bilbo."
Jack smiled and strained his neck to see what Alfie was up to. Without making a sound he gently woke Laura with a kiss and hushed her as she happily smiled at him, her brown eyes, wide and round like her son's.
"No, you can't call him Daddy, Bilbo. You are just a bear, and you have to have a bear to be your Daddy." Jack grinned and reached over to ruffle up Alfie's hair. Alfie jumped and drop his pencils loudly into the tin.
"You woke up!" Alfie said surprised. "I was being quiet". He said defensively, "look I drawed us watching Spiderman." The little boy grinned merrily.
"Drew." Laura told him. "You drew a picture, not drawed. It's lovely. What's this here?" she pointed at a little round thing with sticks on it. It looked like the way he drew dead bugs, but he didn't draw them blue, bugs were always black or green, the nasty green pencil not the grass green or the 'hulk' green.
"It's a cake!" Alfie said annoyed that it wasn't completely obvious. "We have cake when it is special days!" Laura grinned down at her son and then looked at Jack, who was watching it all with enjoyment. She kissed him on the cheek and he winked at her.
"That's funny you should say that Alfie, because it's Jack's birthday." Jack shook his head and sighed. But Alfie was already up and jumping about, the picture forgotten. He was full of questions. Questions about what they should do, where they should go and then the odd one out…
"Who is Kim, Jack?" Laura looked nervously at him as she got up to open the curtains and start breakfast. Jack sat up and told Alfie to sit down beside him. "I'm sorry is it bad to say that?" the little boy asked, a bit confused by the serious turn things had taken. Even though he didn't understand it, he knew it was like when his Mom talked about his Dad.
"Kim is my daughter, she's a lot bigger than you, she lives in L.A." Alfie smiled. "I'm afraid she and I had a bit of a sad time and I haven't seen her for a while. That's why you don't know her."
"Did you make her cry?" Alfie asked. "You said when you were sleeping; you said sorry to her… did you make her sad?" Laura came to hold his hand and was all ready to distract her son when Jack found his answer.
"Yes. Some bad things happened and I made her very sad, I think. I don't know if she likes me anymore." Alfie gave Jack a hug, and then to his surprise he kissed him on the cheek.
"You can ask her to come to the movies with us, kids like the movies, she'll like you again then. When Mommy makes me sad…" He stopped and thought about what he was going to say. "You can never go to sleep when you fight you have to say sorry and cuddle and then it isn't nasty anymore and you can have nice dreams." Laura watched Jack's response and hoped he was going to be okay through all this stuff.
"You're a good boy Alfie." He looked thoughtful for a moment then Laura could hardly contain her joy when he asked if he could use the phone. "Maybe you're right Alfie. I don't think she can come to the movies with us, LA is a long drive from here you know? Maybe we can go see the place where I lived and then we can go to the beach too." Alfie had the biggest grin of his life at that thought.
"Hi Kim!" he said apprehensively, before he realised it was her voicemail.
"She's not home?" Alfie said sadly. Jack smiled a bittersweet smile and shook his head. He clicked the phone off and sighed.
"Maybe she's still asleep? You can phone her after the movies though, when we have cake."
"I'm so sorry Kim." He heard Jack mutter to himself as he pushed open his bedroom door and took Bilbo with him to see what was going on.
'Who is Kim?' he thought, looking a bit puzzled. But his confusion soon disappeared when he saw his Mom lying under the blanket with Jack.
"Bilbo look?" he whispered to his bear, with a big grin on his face. "Jack is going to be our Daddy now!" The bear obviously couldn't share his enthusiasm and Alfie felt frustrated at not being able to tell anyone how his wishes had come true.
"Jack can come to sports now and I can be on the pee-wee team at school… and…" he fell silent quickly as he saw his Mom wriggle in her sleep trying to get comfortable on half an old leather couch.
"I'm here Angel, hush now" Jack muttered as Laura drowsily slipped her arm under the blanket and across his chest.
Alfie went back to his room and found his books from school. Mrs. Henshaw had asked him to draw pictures of what he did at the weekend and he carefully took his pencils out of the tin one by one, trying not to make a sound; and started to draw him and Jack and his Mom on the sofa, watching Spiderman on TV.
Jack woke up hearing little scratching noises beside his ear and mutterings.
"We can go to the park all the time and Jack will read us stories and he will hold Mom's hand like David's Mom and Dad do, and we will go on trips to the sea in Jack's car, Bilbo."
Jack smiled and strained his neck to see what Alfie was up to. Without making a sound he gently woke Laura with a kiss and hushed her as she happily smiled at him, her brown eyes, wide and round like her son's.
"No, you can't call him Daddy, Bilbo. You are just a bear, and you have to have a bear to be your Daddy." Jack grinned and reached over to ruffle up Alfie's hair. Alfie jumped and drop his pencils loudly into the tin.
"You woke up!" Alfie said surprised. "I was being quiet". He said defensively, "look I drawed us watching Spiderman." The little boy grinned merrily.
"Drew." Laura told him. "You drew a picture, not drawed. It's lovely. What's this here?" she pointed at a little round thing with sticks on it. It looked like the way he drew dead bugs, but he didn't draw them blue, bugs were always black or green, the nasty green pencil not the grass green or the 'hulk' green.
"It's a cake!" Alfie said annoyed that it wasn't completely obvious. "We have cake when it is special days!" Laura grinned down at her son and then looked at Jack, who was watching it all with enjoyment. She kissed him on the cheek and he winked at her.
"That's funny you should say that Alfie, because it's Jack's birthday." Jack shook his head and sighed. But Alfie was already up and jumping about, the picture forgotten. He was full of questions. Questions about what they should do, where they should go and then the odd one out…
"Who is Kim, Jack?" Laura looked nervously at him as she got up to open the curtains and start breakfast. Jack sat up and told Alfie to sit down beside him. "I'm sorry is it bad to say that?" the little boy asked, a bit confused by the serious turn things had taken. Even though he didn't understand it, he knew it was like when his Mom talked about his Dad.
"Kim is my daughter, she's a lot bigger than you, she lives in L.A." Alfie smiled. "I'm afraid she and I had a bit of a sad time and I haven't seen her for a while. That's why you don't know her."
"Did you make her cry?" Alfie asked. "You said when you were sleeping; you said sorry to her… did you make her sad?" Laura came to hold his hand and was all ready to distract her son when Jack found his answer.
"Yes. Some bad things happened and I made her very sad, I think. I don't know if she likes me anymore." Alfie gave Jack a hug, and then to his surprise he kissed him on the cheek.
"You can ask her to come to the movies with us, kids like the movies, she'll like you again then. When Mommy makes me sad…" He stopped and thought about what he was going to say. "You can never go to sleep when you fight you have to say sorry and cuddle and then it isn't nasty anymore and you can have nice dreams." Laura watched Jack's response and hoped he was going to be okay through all this stuff.
"You're a good boy Alfie." He looked thoughtful for a moment then Laura could hardly contain her joy when he asked if he could use the phone. "Maybe you're right Alfie. I don't think she can come to the movies with us, LA is a long drive from here you know? Maybe we can go see the place where I lived and then we can go to the beach too." Alfie had the biggest grin of his life at that thought.
"Hi Kim!" he said apprehensively, before he realised it was her voicemail.
"She's not home?" Alfie said sadly. Jack smiled a bittersweet smile and shook his head. He clicked the phone off and sighed.
"Maybe she's still asleep? You can phone her after the movies though, when we have cake."