Chapter Thirty-six

"Mummy! Mummy! Can I come in?" I hear through the bedroom door. I sit up quickly and look around. Andy is stirring and looks up at me. I hold my finger to my lip for him to be quiet as I crawl out of bed and look for some clothes.

"Hang on honey" I call out to Lilly as I frantically look for some pants. Once I have some on and pull a t-shirt over my head I quickly look back to the bed to see Andy with a pillow over his head and I pull the door open a little bit and slide outside into the hallway.

"What's wrong honey?" I ask her.

"Max is being horrible to me. He won't let me watch the cartoons. He says that it's his turn to play the Wii this morning."

I push my hair back from my face and wipe the sleep from my eyes. "Okay, come on. Let's go sort this out" I say leading Lilly out to the living room.

After the kids are being nice and quiet again I look at the clock and see it's after eight already. I was obviously worn out last night. Thanks Andy.

I flick the switch on the kettle and go back into the bedroom to go to the toilet and tame my hair. I creep back in, careful not to disturb Andy's sleeping form and go to the ensuite and close the door behind me.

When I've finished I tip-toe to the bed and pull the pillow back from his head a little. He's sound asleep and I smile to myself. I bend over and give him a soft kiss on the cheek, careful not to disturb him, and then go back out to the kitchen to make coffee.

I make breakfast for us all and I get the kids to play out the back so they don't wake Andy up. It's just after ten o'clock and I'm hanging washing on the line when I hear a car pull to a stop out the front. I have a look over the side gate and can see Shaun's car. He must be dropping Bradie off.

I hear a door slam and Bradie call out "see ya."

I continue hanging out the washing and then go and sit at the back table with my laptop whilst the kids play. I check my Twitter account and see that I have over twenty requests for followers. Thank goodness I changed it to a private account.

I glance through the requests and see that I know none of them except for Shannon, Sonny and Shaun. I add them as followers and reject the other ones. I don't know how they've figured out who I am so quickly.

I check through recent tweets and do a search for my Twitter name. It seems as though some very astute tweeters have worked out through a tweet by Bradie that I'm Andy's girlfriend. Oh never mind though. It was going to happen. Thank God I listened to Brooke when she told me to protect my account.

I decide to do a google search again for my identity and for myself and come up with nothing still. Thank goodness. Out of curiosity I google 'Andy Clemmensen girlfriend' to see what appears. There are two photos of us taken in the street the other day that come up and a heap of forums asking if anyone knows my name. My face is obscured in both photos so when I've finished looking through the forums I close my browser.

I log into my email account as well and see that I've got a couple from my parents, one from my brother and one from the solicitors confirming the court date for the 8th of April.

I'm reading my brother's email when I hear Bradie call out from over the fence.

"Hey Elle, are you out here?"

"Yeah I'm at the table, come on over" I reply.

I hear the side gate open and close and Bradie appears from around the corner.

"Morning" I say to him.

"Good morning. Hey kids" he yells out. "Andy not up yet?"

"No, not yet. He didn't get in till late last night. I didn't have the heart to wake him this morning," I say, closing my laptop and stifling a yawn.

"You have a late night too?" Bradie asks me.

"I was asleep when he got in," I reply.

"That was a successful way of avoiding the question," Bradie says with a smile. "But point taken."

I smile at him and say "So how was your night?"

"Better than practice. I swear I've never known Andy to screw up us much as he did yesterday. It was like he wasn't even there half the time. I was going to choke him in the end."

"He mentioned that he was having troubles" I say.

"You can say that again. I think I might drag you to the next practice and see if that makes any difference" he says.

"When is it?"

"Monday, can you come?"

"Depends on how long it's for it guess. I'll have to be back in time to get the kids and I'll have to bring my laptop with me. I'm supposed to be working from home on Monday."

"If I can get Mum to promise she'll get Lilly and Max from the bus stop if we're running late, will you come then?" he asks me.

"Yeah, sure. That'd be great actually. Andy took me to the studio on Thursday for a look around. I guess I can have a go at working in there somewhere. Just have to find somewhere quiet enough."

"Good. I'm curious to know if that will make a difference or not," he says. "So, tell me more about this girl Alice that's coming over tomorrow."

I smile at him and start telling him everything I can recall about her.

We get sidetracked and by the time Andy emerges rubbing his eyes we're talking about the latest DVD releases for his 3D TV.

Andy sits next to me and kisses my cheek. "Morning sweets" he says and puts his head on my shoulder. "Hey dick wad" he says to Bradie.

Bradie shakes his head and says a quiet morning to him before we go back to our previous discussion about movies. Andy puts his hand on my leg and rubs it up and down, trying to get my attention.

I lift my shoulder up slightly to get him to move his head and when he's looking at me I ask him if he want's a drink.

"Coffee please" he says with a smile.

"Bradie, you want tea?" I ask.

"Yes please Elle," he replies.

"You want anything to eat yet?" I ask Andy as I stand and head inside.

"No thanks" he replies.

I go in the back door and put the kettle on. As I'm standing waiting for it to boil I look out the window to where Andy and Bradie are sitting. They're talking and I can see Andy's face screw up before he shakes it and puts it down on the table. They're obviously having a disagreement of some sort again.

I make the drinks and carry them back outside handing them to the guys. I go back in and grab a glass of water for myself before coming back out and sitting next to Andy.

"Bradie tells me you're coming to practice with us on Monday. Are you sure you want to come? Aren't you working?" Andy asks me.

"Yeah, it's fine. Sandra told me yesterday that she only needs me in the shop on Fridays now so it'll be okay. I'll just bring my laptop and stuff with me. Bradie said he's going to ask Sarah if she can get the kids from the bus if I'm running late." I turn and look at Andy. The look on his face is telling me that he's not okay with me coming though. "Is it okay with you if I come?" I ask him and for the first time I feel like he's about to lie to me.

"Yeah, its fine, I just hope it's not going to be too loud for you to concentrate, that's all."

"Oh, well, maybe I shouldn't come then. If there's not going to be anywhere for me to work. You know, I might just stay at home after all. Sandra wasn't feeling too well yesterday anyway so I may need to go into the shop yet." I can't believe I just lied to Andy.

I can feel Bradie watching me and I look up at him. He gives me a half smile and I think he knows what I just did. I can feel the threat of tears and excuse myself to the bathroom.

I go into the ensuite and take deep breaths calming myself down. I grab the face washer and wipe my eyes softly hoping they aren't all red yet.

I look into the mirror and mentally ask myself questions.

Why wouldn't he want me to go?

He said last night that all he could think about was me so why would it be a problem?

Is he expecting someone else to come by the studio?

Maybe he considers that his 'guy time' and doesn't want me intruding.

But why wouldn't he just tell me that?

Why would Bradie ask me to come if he didn't think Andy would want me there?

What the hell just happened?

I lied to Andy to make him feel better about not wanting me at his practice.

I shake my head at myself in the mirror and realise I have to go back outside again. I give myself a final once-over and head back out to the guys. When I come outside they both stand and I can see Bradie looks pissed. Andy doesn't look much better.

"I'm going to head home Elle. Thanks for the tea" he says putting the empty cup in my outstretched hand.

"No worries Bradie, anytime" I say and he walks towards the side gate.

"I'm going to grab my bag and go home to do some washing and sort out a few things. I'll give you a call later on when I'm done okay," Andy says.

"Yeah sure, no problems," I say reaching for his cup and going inside to the kitchen. Andy walks past me and into the bedroom to get his stuff.

I rinse out the cups and put them in the dish rack whilst leaning on the sink and trying not to fall apart at Andy's sudden distance.

I hear him walk back in and over to where I'm standing. He gives me a quick kiss on the cheek and says "I'll see you later" before turning and heading out the front door.

I quietly say "bye" before turning around and looking out the window into the back yard where the kids are still playing.

Pull it together Elle. Don't let them see you break again.

I look at my watch and it's just after lunch time. I go back out to the kids and ask them if they want lunch at McDonalds. They jump up and down and I get them inside and ready to go in ten minutes.

We all pile into the car and head out to get some lunch. I figure I might as well do some grocery shopping afterwards for the BBQ tomorrow and kill two birds with one stone.

While we're eating I get a text from Bradie.

Are you okay? Do you want me to come over and keep you company?

I reply quickly.

I'm okay. What the hell happened this morning though? I'm so confused. We're not home at the moment. Took the kids to McDonalds and then I'm going shopping.

I take a bit of the burger I ordered but it taste like cardboard in my mouth. I have trouble swallowing it and I'm washing it down with my diet Coke when my phone buzzes again.

Want to meet me at the park in half an hour? Kids can play and we can talk.

I think to myself that maybe I shouldn't be talking to Bradie about this but really, who else have I got? I trust Bradie anyhow and decide to meet him.

I'll be at the playground. See you then. And thanks.

I tell the kids that we're going to go to the park before shopping and they nod their heads in agreement. After we have all finished eating we drive over to the park and I find a nice spot near the playground to sit. I've brought the picnic blanket from the back of the car for us to sit on and I watch the kids run straight for the swings.

About ten minutes later I see Bradie walking towards us. He has a hat on and sunglasses, almost like he doesn't want to be recognised. He says a quick hi to the kids before coming over and sitting with me on the blanket.

"Hey" he says and I smile at him.

"So what's the go?" I ask him. "I don't understand what happened this morning with Andy. Why doesn't he want me there?" If anyone is going to tell me what the hell is going on, it's Bradie.

"Honestly, I don't know what his problem is. I told him that I'd asked you to come to practice on Monday and he flew off the handle at me. So I asked him why he didn't want you there and he clamped up and wouldn't say anything. He's still chucking a tantrum now. He won't talk to me, won't even look at me. He's got himself locked in his room and is ignoring everyone."

I look down at my hands and say "I don't know what's going on? Everything was fine last night; he even told me how he couldn't concentrate at practice yesterday because I wasn't there. But now he's basically said he doesn't want me to be there. I just don't understand it. It's like he's hot then suddenly gone cold."

I feel the tears roll and quickly wipe them away before the kids see me upset. I feel Bradie slide over next to me and put an arm around me, pulling me to him. I rest my head on his shoulder and pull my sunnies over my eyes.

"I don't know what's going on Elle, but he better sort his shit out soon. I'm not going to stand by and watch him make you upset like this."

"Thanks for coming here Bradie. I didn't know whether or not I should talk to you about this, being that he is your brother and all. But I don't trust anyone else besides you and Andy, and he doesn't seem to want to be truthful with me at the moment."

"It's okay, really," he says as I hear my phone buzz.

I sit upright and grab it from my back pocket. It's a text from Andy.

Hey, still washing and working on something for the tour. Probably be a couple of hours yet. Call you later. X

I show Bradie and his phone buzzes as well. He grabs it out then shows me after he's read it.

Where the fuck have you disappeared to? Need a hand with something.

"If I head home now, will you be alright?" Bradie asks me.

"Yeah, I'll be okay. I'm going to go grocery shopping anyhow. Need to get some stuff for the BBQ tomorrow."

"Do you want me to take the kids back home with me?" he asks.

"That's sweet of you to offer but its okay. They haven't been shopping in ages and they'll want to help me pick the food anyhow."

"Okay, if you're sure," he says as he replies to Andy's text.

"I'm going to go see what he's cranky about. Hopefully he'll sort his shit out soon and will be back to normal. I'll see you later on okay? I was thinking of getting out Despicable Me on DVD and watching it tonight. Do you and the kids want to come over?"

"That sounds good actually but I'll wait and check with Andy first okay."

"Alright, I'll mention it to him then. See you later," he says.

"Bye Bradie. And thanks again."

"No problems, anytime," he says smiling and walking back to his car. He waves goodbye to the kids on his way past the playground and they wave back.

I stand and fold the blanket back up and walk over to the kids and tell them it's time to go shopping.

We all climb into the car and make our way to the nearest Woolworth's to get the stuff we need. An hour later and we are pulling into the driveway and unloading groceries from the car.

Bradie appears out of nowhere and gives me a smile.

"Hey, want a hand?" he asks me.

"Yeah that'd be great" I say as I grab some bags and he takes some as well.

We walk up to the front door and I put a bag down so I can unlock the door and let us in. We walk into the kitchen and Bradie says "Where do you want these then?"

"Just on the bench is fine" I say as I put mine down.

When the kids have headed to the bedrooms Bradie turns and says "I think he's over his bad mood now."

"Oh, okay. He still doesn't want me to come with you guys on Monday though does he?" I ask Bradie.

"Well, no. But he does have a legitimate reason that I'm sworn to secrecy over. It's nothing bad at all, just can't say anything about it yet."

"Oh. Okay then. Couldn't he have told me this?" I ask.

"Well, yeah, probably. If he wasn't busy cleaning up his room at the moment. He had bit of a moment when he came home earlier and trashed it. So now he's busy trying to tidy everything up. Oh and I asked him about the movie tonight and he said yeah but he'll probably tell you that later okay."

"Okay, thanks Bradie."

"No problems. I just wanted to let you know everything is okay so you can stop stressing about it."

"Thanks" I say as I hug him tight. He returns the hug and kisses the side of my head before letting go.

"Are there anymore bags to come in?" he asks me.

"Nope, I think that's everything."

"Okay, well I'm going to go and help that emo brother of mine clean up so he can get over here quicker and cheer you up. I'll see you tonight Elle."

"Thanks again Bradie, see you later."

"Bye kids" he yells out on his way out the front door.

I put everything away and clean up the kitchen whilst I'm waiting for Andy to arrive. When I'm done I sit on the couch and pick up my book to keep me occupied for a while. My phone rings at three thirty and it's Andy calling.

"Hello" I say.

"Hey gorgeous, I'll be over in a minute if that's okay?" says Andy.

"Okay. See you soon." I reply.

"I can't wait. Bye."

I pick my book back up and read until he arrives.