April 2021

- Ready? asked John to Anna and Timmy, as he was parking his car right in front of his mother's house.

- Yep! exclaimed Timmy.

Anna had explained to him the day before that they would go visit a house where they could all live together and John would stay with them permanently. The child had been thrilled by the prospect of both living with his stepfather, who was pretty close to being his new hero, and by the fact that the house had a generous backyard, where they could grow some flowers and vegetables, and put their own swing, just like at the Carsons' house. The house was in a quiet residential street. It would be a little longer ride for Anna to the hospital, but she said it would still be manageable, and she didn't mind.

- Shall we, then? said John, looking to Anna.

- Alright, let's, she answered.

She felt a bit nervous with the big step they were about to take, even if she had no doubt about the seriousness of her and John's relationship. They all got off the car, and John opened the small front-yard gate.

- If you will, lady and gentleman, he said, bowing to Anna and Timmy as they made their entrance into the front-yard.

As he was searching for the key to unlock the house's front door, he turned to Anna and said:

- I had started to get rid of some of my mother's stuff before the lockdown, but there's still some. Mainly the Scottish paraphernalia… I had a hard time choosing what to keep and what to throw away…

- Well, we'll choose together, if you want, offered Anna. Maybe there are some things I'll like.

- Alright, he said, as the door finally unlocked and he ushered them inside. There's also the furniture… We'll have to discuss what we want to keep and what we don't want.

- OK, said Anna, absent-mindedly, as she was looking around the hallway.

- It's rather an old-fashioned house, see, so I think we should do a thorough upgrade. We'll have the money from my flat for that.

- Oh, yeah, I see what you mean by "old-fashioned", Anna laughed, pointing at the very "eighties" wallpaper in the dining-room. Jesus, when was that ever a thing? Why did people have such poor taste in the past?

- What can I say…, chuckled John. I was a kid when we redecorated that house, and at that time it was very fashionable.

- Well, I agree on the need of a thorough refurbishing, she went on, going from the dining-room to the kitchen. Apart from the ugly wallpaper, this is a nice and sunny room, she judged. Could we maybe tear that wall down between the kitchen and the dining-room, that'd make a fair-sized open room.

- Where's my bedroom? cut Timmy, tugging on John's sleeve.

John smiled to him:

- Impatient, are you lad? The bedrooms are upstairs, let's go check them.

They went up the stairs and John introduced them to the three bedrooms. As the rest of the house, they would need modernizing, but they were large enough to be comfortable.

- So, this was my room when I was a kid, said John to Timmy.

- Oh, really? asked the boy, obviously struggling to imagine the large-sized man in front of him as a child. Can I have it? he added eagerly.

- Of course, if you like it, answered John kindly. You might still find some toy boxes in the back of the closet, he teased. My mother was rather a keeper, he said, turning to Anna.

As Timmy busied himself with exploring said closet, John and Anna went on with touring the rest of the floor. There were two other bedrooms, and a bathroom, very much eighties-styled too.

- So this is the master bedroom, said Anna, picturing herself settled here with John. I like it…

- I'm glad you do darling, he replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

- And how are we going to use that third room? she said casually.

- It could be a study… John mused. Or…

- Or?

He eyed her hesitantly, not daring to voice his thoughts aloud, fearing they would not be in the same place.

- Maybe… I've been thinking… In a little while…

Anna looked at him expectantly, and finally chuckled at his shyness.

- I very well know what you're thinking about, Mr Bates, so get on with it. I'm not going to bite you, you know!

- I know, I know, but… I don't know if that's something you'd like… Maybe a little sibling for Timmy?

Anna beamed as he finally managed to utter the words. She snuggled close to his chest, and kissed his jaw.

- I'd love it darling.

A wide grin broke out on John's face, and he bent towards Anna to kiss her back.

- Not now, though, she warned. In a while.

- Sure. There's no rush. I like the way we are now.

- I like it too.

They both stood for a while looking through the window to the rather unkempt backyard, until John mused:

- If someone had told me, a year back, that I would be planning to live in this house, with my own family, that I would be a stepfather, and that we would be making plans for another child, I would have sent them straight to the asylum.

Anna laughed.

- Well, I think I would have reacted just the same. But, you know what they say: "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans". And I must say I rather like what life has done to us. Although there are some parts I would correct, if asked. But I guess we have to take it as a package.

- Rather a nice package, if you ask me, he replied, planting yet another kiss on her lips.

- Hey, look, Mummy, John! I found some Transformers robots! exclaimed Timmy, barging in the room.

Anna and John broke from their embrace, turning their attention to the boy.

- Oh, nice, said Anna, although it was quite clear that the niceness of Transformers robots was lost on her. Hey, what if we went down and visit the backyard? she offered.

- Yay! said the boy, rushing to the stairs.

Plans for the move and the refurbishment of the house occupied most of their conversations of the following weeks. John put his flat on sale, and every free day they had they spent at the house, sorting out everything from the furniture to the kitchenware, deciding what to keep and what to sell or donate. Both of them felt filled with a new energy, John gradually feeling better physically and forgetting the hospital stay, and Anna being able to more easily put out of her mind the grimy situations she still faced at work. They decided to hire an architect to help them with the house renovation. Two weeks after coming back from the rehab centre, John started to work again. He noticed at first that he had trouble focusing on intellectual tasks, as if his brain was still slow and foggy. But the doctor at the rehab centre had warned him of that possibility, and he had reassured him that it should get better with time.

x x x x

- Anna, John, hello! Happy thirty-three, girl! beamed Mary as they entered the Crawley's garden just before noon. Hi Timmy, she added, ruffling the boy's blond locks.

It was the end of April, bars and restaurant had been allowed to reopen their outdoor spaces a fortnight ago, and an end-of-war feeling was roaming across the country. Anna's birthday had come again, and Mary had insisted to host a party for her in her garden, as indoor gatherings were still prohibited. Unfortunately this time, weather was not on their side, as a light but cold drizzle had been going on for the last three days. But Mary had decided not to let that get in the way of their joy of seeing everyone again, and she had ordered a large Barnum tent to be put into their garden. She had hired a caterer who had set up a buffet of hot and cold dishes.

- Mary… You shouldn't have done all this, this is too much, exclaimed Anna when she discovered the lengths her friend had gone to. Really, I would have been happy with a bunch of pizzas and beers and a cake.

- Nonsense Anna. Your last birthday was sad as hell, and you've worked yourself out day and night for the last year, so believe me, you deserve a little treat.

- You spoil me, Mary Crawley… Has my mother arrived? she asked, looking around.

- Not yet.

Mary had not been as lenient as the Carsons when she and Anna had talked about Anna and her mother's reconciliation. She still felt quite coldly towards Eileen Smith, and was not so inclined to forgive her for the hurt Anna had had to go through as a teenager and all through her young adult life. But Anna had asked her to swallow her feelings and accept the fact that she, herself, had moved on. After all, it was her birthday, and she wanted her mother to be there, so Mary had grudgingly extended an invitation to Eileen.

- Please, be civil with her when she's there. You're used to being nice to people you dislike, aren't you? You're taught that ability at a young age, you posh people, Anna teased.

- I will be charming, I promise, answered Mary with a steely grin.

And indeed she was, when she welcomed Anna's mother moments later.

- Hi Mum, said Anna as Mary introduced Eileen into the garden.

- Hi sweetie. Jesus I see global warming has not yet changed Yorkshire weather, she moaned, as she wrapped her jacket closer around her frame.

Anna chuckled.

- Yes, some things still remain. I need to introduce you to John and Timmy, she added, looking around for the boy.

Seeing him in the distance, in deep conversation with George, she called out to him:

- Timmy, darling, would you come here for a moment?

The boy came running to her, an expectant look on his young face:

- Yes Mummy?

Anna took Timmy's hand, and gestured towards Eileen:

- Timmy, I'd like you to meet my mummy.

Timmy looked dumbfounded for a while:

- Your… mummy?

He had asked in the past about Anna's own parents, and she had told him the truth, or at least a part of it: that she and her parents had fought hard and that they were not talking to each other any more.

- So… he asked, you're not angry any more?

- No, we're not angry any more, and I'm sure she would like to meet you.

Eileen crouched in front of Timmy, beaming, her eyes shining with unshed tears:

- Yes, my boy, I would be very glad to get to know you. You are a very big and beautiful boy. You look just like your mummy.

Eileen held out her hand to Timmy, and after a few seconds' hesitation, the boy took it and they gingerly shook hands.

- You'll have to think about how you want to call me later. My name is Eileen. But if you want, you could call me Granny, or Grandma, or anything else you'd like.

The boy looked at her thoughtfully for a while, and replied:

- Alright. I'll think about it. Can I go play with George now, Mum?

Anna twisted her lips a bit, somewhat disappointed that her son was not showing more interest in his grandmother.

- Yes, you can go… Sorry, Mum, she said when the boy had ran off.

- Oh, no, it's quite alright, said Eileen. I'm a stranger to him, and I can only blame myself for it. I won't begrudge him for that. But now we'll have some time to bond. And maybe John will grant me a little more attention for the time being, she smiled, looking up to John who was standing near Anna, silently waiting for his turn to be introduced.

- So nice to meet you John, she said, extending her hand to him.

- Nice to meet you too Eileen, he said politely.

His opinion about Eileen Smith was yet to be made, and he didn't spontaneously feel that friendly towards the woman who had let Anna be hurt for so long. But he wanted to believe Anna when she said that she had moved on and that she wanted to rebuild their relationship, so he was prepared to put his anger aside.

- Anna told me you've been quite sick lately, are you feeling better now? Eileen asked, genuinely concerned.

- Yes, thank you, I'm getting better by the day. But it has been a struggle.

- I'm so very happy to finally make your acquaintance John. I only know what Anna has told me, and I can say she seems very happy with you, so there's that.

- Well I'm glad if she is, he said, pulling Anna closer to him, wrapping an arm around her waist, because she does make me the happiest of men.

Anna giggled to the compliment. They sat and chatted as the other guests arrived gradually: the Carsons, Robert and Cora, Tom and Sybil Branson soon completed the party.

Timmy was playing with George and Willow, Sybil's eldest daughter, and John was deep in conversation with Robert about future investments for the estate. Coming back from the inside of the house, Mary came again to Anna, and sat beside her, an inquisitive look on her smug face.

- So, tell me Anna, how's the "not dating" routine going on these days?

- Ha, ha, very funny Mary, pouted Anna.

- I hear the Smith-Bates household is swimming in domestic bliss?

Anna rolled her eyes, and admitted defeat, knowing her friend would not let go until she had said it out loud:

- Alright, you were right, I was wrong, John and I are very happy together. There. Are you satisfied?

Mary looked back at Anna with an indeed satisfied smirk.

- I will not lower myself to the "I told you so" level, but it does feel good to hear that I was right all along. You could have saved yourself and John months of beating around the bushes, and a drama, if only you had listened to me sooner.

- Yes, well, I was scared and there was some trauma to be sorted out. They are now, and you'll have to thank your mother-in-law for that.

Mary flashed her an earnest smile:

- I'm very glad that you're happy together Anna. I was teasing, but really, I'm happy for you both. You're very well assorted. Papa tells me you'll be moving into his mother's house?

And the two friends engaged in a lengthy discussion about home makeovers, the Crawleys having modernized their own house a few years ago, until they were interrupted by baby Alicia's wailing coming out of the baby-phone Mary was holding.

- Oh, sorry, I need to go check on her, said Mary.

- Please, do, replied Anna.

Seeing that Anna was alone for a moment, Eileen left the Carsons whom she had been talking to, and went to sit next to her daughter.

- Are you having a good time Mum? Anna asked.

- Erm, well, it's rather strange talking to all these people I haven't seen in all those years. But I'm so very glad to see that you have managed to build and maintain such strong ties with all of them. Your family was not supportive, so you crafted yourself a surrogate one. I'm proud of you for that. You've always been very resourceful. I'm glad you have not been alone all those years. You've been in better company than I have, to be honest. I wish I had had the strength to slam the door on your father as you did.

- I didn't really slam the door… He slammed it on me…

- Yes, but you made the best out of it. You led your life as you wished, you didn't let him decide for you. That's what I never dared to do. I've been such a fool.

- Now, Mum. We've been through this before. The past is behind us, and we can't change it. Let's focus on living the life we have now, alright?

Eileen smiled to her daughter and squeezed her hand:

- Yes, you're right. Let's do that.