Wanna find out what Shannon's doing back? Read on my friends...read on...and then review. Go on, all the cool kids are doing it! :D
Allie nervously drummed her fingers on the handlebar of Poppy's pram, the fidgeting infant inside far too captivated by the ducks skimming the smooth bottle green surface of the lake in front of her to pick up on the uneasiness between her mother and the mysterious woman sat next to her.
"I still can't get over her," Shannon smiled, peering over Allie and into the pram. "She's so gorgeous, look at those big blue eyes,"
"Yeah well," Allie rolled her eyes. "She's got an even bigger set of lungs, trust me,"
"Oh that eases off when they hit three months," the raven haired woman told her soundly. "I think by that stage even they're bored of it,"
Stretching her jean clad legs out in front of her, Shannon took a deep breath and bit her lip before speaking again.
"So, I'm guessing at some point we're gonna have to talk about what happened, aren't we?"
Allie looked at her warily and shrugged, tearing another piece of bread into tiny pieces and chucking some in the water, smiling at her daughter's excited gurgle when one of the ducks swam over for it.
"I wouldn't say we have to," she shook her head. "In fact I don't know about you but it's not really an area of history that I fancy reliving,"
"It wasn't exactly my finest hour either, Allie," she replied, her throat tightening as she recalled her behaviour. "I was just a total mess…y'know the last year hasn't been easy and then with Matt here, it just all felt like it was caving in on me and-…"
Her voice broke and she took a deep, shuddering breath, lacing her hands together tightly in her lap.
"I was desperate," she whispered. "I hated Steve for being with that woman, I hated myself for leaving him in the first place, I hated you for having what I didn't…." she shook her head and met Allie's eyes. "I know that none of that is an excuse for doing what I did to you, for making you go behind Pete's back and then for h-…" she stuttered, forcing the words out of her mouth even though they physically hurt. "For hitting you,"
"Hey, you weren't the only one who acted like a total arse," Allie shrugged. "I was running a pretty strong campaign of my own for bitch of the year back then, too."
"But everything I said to you was so harsh," Shannon told her. "If you'd slammed the door in my face this morning, I wouldn't have blamed you in the slightest."
"What good would that have done?" she frowned. "As it is we've already lost a good six months through being stubborn, I think we at least owe ourselves a shot at trying to fix it, don't you?"
"Jesus, when did you grow up?" Shannon laughed.
"What?" Allie frowned, unsure of how to take that.
"Its just, listen to you…" she smiled. "When did the girl from Sloane Square with more shoes than sense turn into mother hen?"
"Thanks," Allie laughed, shaking her head.
"What? It's a good thing," Shannon told her firmly. "I don't think I've ever seen you this happy before," she nodded. "Being a mum suits you,"
"So can I ask you something?" Allie cleared her throat. "And I don't want you to take this the wrong way or anything but…" Shannon nodded for her to continue. "Why did you come back from Boston?"
"Because my family is here now," she shrugged. "It might be falling to shit but its still here, nonetheless."
"Its not falling to shit," Allie rolled her eyes. "Shannon, you've still got Ben and Matt…"
"Things with Matt aren't the way they used to be," Shannon told her honestly. "I think a part of him let me go that day in Pete's apartment. I'm not the big sister he knew anymore, I'm the woman who lost it and lashed out at everyone she loved,"
"Shan…" Allie shook her head.
"And as for Ben," she laughed, interrupting the blonde, her words tumbling over each other. "Alternate weekends and holiday visits don't make you a mother. I mean look at Poppy," she gestured to the baby and then looked at Allie. "Look me in the eye and tell me that you could live with only seeing her every other day,"
Something inside Allie's body seemed to snap as she thought about it, her fists tightening of their own accord at her sides.
"Shannon, I'm so….
"Allie, I didn't come here to get sympathy. More than anything I don't deserve it but..," Shannon sniffed slightly, obviously doing her best to keep from crying. "I came here because I wanted to see you and my still sort of half niece…" she laughed, bending down and pulling a card out of her purse. "I know its late but I hate that I missed your wedding and everything with this little lady,"
"I wanted you there, y'know," Allie told her earnestly, taking the card and smiling. "Even after everything that had happened…you know Jules had to step in for you on the actual day, right?"
"Oh, ouch," Shannon laughed. She'd only met Allie's sister-in-law once at her 23rd birthday party but the woman was definitely an acquired taste.
"It wasn't a conscious choice believe me," she smiled. "Jules was the only one skinny enough to fit into your dress. And then I had to listen to her telling everyone at the reception that it was a 'shotgun' wedding because Pete had gotten me pregnant."
"Wow, she's a charmer," Shannon snorted.
"Isn't she just?" Allie laughed and tossed some more bread in, drawing the attention of yet more ducks and provoking another screech from the pram along with some over excited leg kicking.
"So I uh, I should actually get going," Shannon smiled. "I'm apartment hunting at the moment, I want to get somewhere with a garden for Ben but everything in this area is way over my budget,"
"Where are you moving to, then?" Allie frowned, worried for a second that she might say 'Boston'.
"I'm checking out a place in Lambeth Street," she held a photo of a pretty looking three story town house. "Its only ten minutes away from where we used to be so I figured it'll make sense and it's less unsettling for Ben. I don't want him being tossed back and forth over London for the rest of his life, y'know?"
"It looks nice," Allie told her with a smile. "Does Steve know?"
"You're joking, right?" the older woman laughed. "Getting him to actually answer my calls these days is kinda like asking for a miracle,"
"You could go see him?" Allie suggested.
"No," Shannon shook her head. "Not in that house, not with…"
Not with Gemma there.
Allie had to admit that she was a little surprised at how long things had lasted with Steve and Gemma; much like Pete, she had been convinced it was nothing more than a pointless rebound thing but six months later and they were still seeing each other.
Shannon's head snapped up and she stared at the young blonde in surprise as she reached out and took her hand.
"I really am sorry, Shannon," she told her, squeezing her hand a little harder.
"I know," she smiled tearfully. "Me too,"
They sat in silence for a while, the occasional gurgle from Poppy and the breeze passing through the large willows above them was the only thing that could be heard.
"So when do you next have Ben?" Allie asked, her voice so soft that it almost blended in with the breeze.
"Uh, Wednesday," Shannon frowned, counting the days in her head. "Yeah, Wednesday, why?"
"Well, I thought we could come back here," Allie gestured to the park. "I know Ben's too old to play with Poppy but there's a park over there and we can just hang out for a while…" she shrugged. "I don't know about you, but I'm actually starting to think duck feeding is an underrated past time. Who needs Prada when you've baby wipes?"
Shannon laughed and stared down at their hands for a moment before lifting her eyes to the lake in front of them and watching as the rays of sunlight bounced off of its surface, creating prisms in the water.
"I don't know if we can get things back to the way they were but we can sure as hell try," Allie assured her. "So what'd you say?"
"Sure," Shannon sent her a watery smile, squeezing her hand a little harder. "Count me in,"
Pete stepped into the large foyer of what he was finally getting used to referring to as his house. Instantly the smell of what he thought was roast chicken enveloped him, making his mouth water.
"Allie?" he called, chucking his coat and folder onto the table and walking across the hallway into the huge kitchen, frowning when he saw the table set up, freshly chopped vegetables at on the counter and the obligatory cook books strewn about the counter. Where was she?
Making his way back into the hall, he was half way to the living room when he heard her voice. Grinning, he jogged upstairs coming to a stop outside Poppy's nursery and peered in seeing Allie standing over Poppy who was lying on the changing table wrapped in her little bath robe.
"So I said to Jack that there was no way the new Vera Wang would outsell Versace and who was right?" she held up her hands which were covered in baby powder. "Oh yeah, mummy was right."
Bending over, she kissed the baby's tummy, laughing when her tiny hands came up to clutch at her hair, her little legs working over time as she started talking gibberish.
"Ugh, why do I have a feeling that the next six months are going to fly?" she shook her head sadly. "I don't want to go back to work and leave you," she tugged off her socks and kissed her little feet. "Personally, I think Vogue could do with a nice little mascot….babies are very in style right now, you know? And Jack would have field day with you, you remember Uncle Jack, right?" Allie wrinkled her nose. "The man in the pink shirt who thought 'hit me baby one more time' counted as a lullaby?"
Poppy blew a bubbled and fidgeted on the tiny mattress, making a sound of distress when she realised the bunny rabbit toy she always had with her was too far away to reach.
"Where's Mr Bunny?" Allie asked, picking up the rabbit and grimacing at the amount of drool on its ear. "Mr Bunny is going in the washing machine," she picked up Poppy and held her, rubbing the soft skin of her back as she buried her face in Allie's neck, hiccupping slightly.
"Come on missy," she kissed her daughter's head. "Let's get you dressed and ready for bed, huh? Daddy's going to be home soon and that means that I only have about 20 minutes left to burn the dinner so…"
"I dunno," Pete stepped into the room, making her jump. "Smells alright to me,"
"Hey stranger," Allie grinned broadly at him, sighing happily when he came over and kissed her. "How was the first day back?"
"Yeah, it was good," he nodded, taking Poppy's hand and kissing it lightly. "The boys were glad to see me, a little too glad actually," he snorted. "They wouldn't stop asking questions about this one," he picked Poppy up out of Allie's arms and held her up. "How's my girl?"
"Clean," Allie answered, reaching for a clean nappy and chucking it onto the bed. "Turns out your ability to projectile vomit is hereditary," she told him cheerily, making him laugh.
"She didn't puke on you did she?" Pete raised an eyebrow.
"Oh yeah," Allie nodded, folding up Poppy's bathrobe and throwing it on top of the rabbit for washing. "On me, the floor, Lara's shoes…"
"Good girl," Pete nodded at his daughter. "If you're gonna do it, do it in style."
Placing her back down on the bed, he smiled as she stared up at him her blue eyes registering who he was and making her babble excitedly.
"Heads up," Allie called, laughing when the clean nappy she had thrown at him hit him square in the face.
"Aw, do I 'ave to?" Pete moaned, staring at her pleadingly.
"Pete, its really not that hard," she shook her head.
"Says you," he snorted. "You can practically do this in your sleep,"
"That's because most nights I do," she quipped.
"That was such a cheap shot," he laughed.
"What?" she looked at him innocently, playing with the mobile above Poppy's crib. "Come on, you think I knew how to do this a month ago?"
Allie bit her lip, trying not to smile at how clueless Pete looked as he peeled back the tabs on the side of the nappy and lifted Poppy, shoving it under her.
"Am I doin' it right?" he asked, frowning. "It looks weird,"
"No, no you're fine," Allie told him encouragingly. "Just remember to-…"
She was cut off when the timer on the oven started beeping.
"Shit," she hissed, running towards the door with the washing in her arms still. "You finish changing her, I'll check on dinner,"
Pete stared down at his daughter as they were left alone and raised an eyebrow.
"She's a right nut job, your mum," he told her, frowning at the state of the nappy. "Right, I don't care what she says, this don't look normal,"
Trying to tug it together, Pete cursed when he realised that he's somehow put the bloody thing on the wrong way around.
"Fuck it," he shook his head, pulling the nappy off her and throwing it in the bin. "Let's try that again, shall we?"
Letting go of her little feet, he walked over to the changing bag and pulled it open, rifling through its depths in search of a new nappy. Finding them, he yanked them out, frowning when a bright pink envelope fell out onto the floor. Bending down to pick it up, Pete tugged the card out of it and instantly his eyes widened.
He'd know that handwriting anywhere.
"Oh, prepare to be amazed," Allie told him, strolling back into the room and winking at him. "I, Alyssa Har-…uh, Dunham," she winced, catching herself. "Have just managed to cook a roast without burning a single th-…"
She stopped mid-sentence, her jaw going slack when Pete held up the card and stared at her expectantly.
"Since when are you seeing Shannon again?" he demanded, his voice cold.
"I'm not," she shook her head, sighing heavily. "Look, Pete she showed up on the doorstep this morning, she just wanted to talk. It was nothing,"
"Oh, right well in that case…" he spat, tossing the card into the bin and yanking the fallen nappy up from the floor forcefully.
"Babe, she just wanted to talk, alright?" she bit her lip nervously. "She's really sorry for everything that happened,"
"Well fuck me, you've changed your tune, 'aven't you?" he snorted.
"I'm sorry?" Allie frowned.
"Six months ago, you were out for 'er blood and now she just shows up and says a quick sorry you're back to kissin' 'er arse?" Pete laughed. "You're unbelievable,"
"Its called forgiving someone, Pete," she spat back, getting angry. "Its what adults do,"
"Don't fucking turn this on me," he told her. "I made my thoughts on Shannon crystal clear."
"Yes, you did," Allie shrugged. "And what? I'm supposed to put on my apron, get a lobotomy and agree to hate whoever you hate?"
Pete stepped back from Poppy who wasn't interested in her parents exchange at all, instead choosing to stare at the Vogue-mobile Lara had made her, the miniature pairs of designer shoes and handbags glittering temptingly in the light.
"Are you 'aving a fucking laugh?" he half shouted, getting impatient. "Allie, this isn't about us, its about her. She acted like a twat, she fucked my brother over, tried to take his kid and smacked you," he shrugged. "Or 'ave you magically blanked all of this out?"
"She was messed up." Allie shot back.
"No, she wasn't," Pete shook his head and started attempting to put Poppy's nappy back on. "She knew exactly what she was doin', just like she does now, I mean, are you that fucking blind that you can't see she's using you?"
"For what?" Allie cried. "What could she possibly need me for? The divorce has gone through, Steve's moved on, she doesn't need to use me for anything,"
"Y'know there's a fine line between been naïve and been straight up stupid," he snorted, tugging on the elastic of the nappy. "And as much as I love you, I'm tryna work out which side you're on."
"So what, just because she messed up means she can't ever change her mind? She's not entitled to a second chance?" Allie asked him.
"No," he laughed. "Think about it, will you? What the fuck has she ever done for you other than piss me off, judge us, take you for a mug and screw us over?" he looked her in the eye and shook his head. "Ignore whatever Cosmo's been tellin' you sweetheart, people don't change over night,"
"Wow, could you actually be any more patronising right now?" Allie looked at him in disgust.
"Could you actually be any more of a mug?" he shouted back, gritting his teeth when he realised the nappy was on backwards again. "How the fuck do these things work?" he shouted.
"Hey!" Allie lurched forward. "Don't yell at her,"
"I'm not yelling at her," he snapped, his eyes softening when he looked down at his daughter. "Tell mummy that I'm not yelling at you,"
Poppy gurgled something and reaching up, trying with all her might to grab onto his tie.
"There's my girl," he rubbed her tummy. "Now tell 'er she's being an idiot,"
"I'm not being an idiot," Allie snapped. "You're being a tosser, there's a difference. If you tried talking to her on Wednesday then maybe…"
"'old on," Pete frowned, turning to look at her fully. "What'd you just say? What the 'ell is Wednesday?"
Allie sighed and ran a hand through her hair, shoving her hands into her jean pockets.
"I said that because Shannon has Ben that day that she could come here and we'd go to the park or something,"
Pete stared at her with his mouth hanging open, shaking his head lightly in disbelief.
"Call 'er now and tell 'er that it ain't happening," he ordered.
"What?" Allie shook her head. "No,"
"Allie," he snapped. "That bitch isn't coming anywhere near this place, or our daughter or you," he stared at her determinedly. "And I ain't fucking around,"
"What'd you think she's going to do exactly?" Allie laughed. "You think she's planning on doing a Peyton Flanders on me and taking Poppy?"
"You can make all the little jokes you want," he shrugged. "But she ain't setting foot in this house,"
"Who the fuck are you to judge her this harshly?" Allie snapped.
Pete stared at her in shock, unsure whether he had actually heard the words or whether he was so exhausted from his first day back at work that he'd imagined them.
"What?" he asked her hoarsely.
"You…you let Matt move back in with us after you found out about how he felt about me," she watched his bright blue eyes darken at the memory but carried on talking. "And don't even get me started on Bovver," she scoffed. "Don't get me wrong, Pete, I love the guy, but he almost got Steve killed and yet oh, there he is in our living room, playing playstation, drinking beer and playing with our daughter,"
"What're you getting at?" he asked her.
"What I'm getting at is how come there's one rule for me and none for you?" she hissed. "Before everything kicked off Shannon was actually my friend, y'know?"
"Oh I'm sorry," Pete laughed sarcastically. "I'll just go out and buy 'er some flowers shall I? Or maybe to save time we could just hand our daughter over and wait for Shannon to fly back to her nest with her so she can eat her,"
"You know something?" Allie held up a hand. "I'm not even talking to you when you're like this,"
"Like what?" he raised an eyebrow. "Realistic?"
"No, an arsehole," she shot back at him, shoving him out of the way and reaching down to sort out Poppy's nappy.
"Oi, I was doing that," he told her.
"Yeah, badly," she hissed, fastening the sides and sitting the baby up so that she could pull on her sleep suit.
"You know why you're pissed off at me don't you?" Pete raised an eyebrow.
"I have a vague idea, yeah," she looked at him and cocked her head. "Again, I'm tempted to go with my 'you're being an arsehole' argument,"
"Nah," he laughed. "You're pissed off at me because you know I'm right; you don't trust Shannon, you don't even fucking like 'er,"
"Pete, she was my friend…"
"Yeah, I know," he cut her off. "But the key word there is 'was'. She's not the same person, Allie, you said it yourself,"
"God, you are such a fucking hypocrite!" she yelled, throwing her hands in the air and glaring at him. "Pete, have you listened to a word I've said to you? Bovver and Matt both screwed you over pretty royally but they got forgiven," he opened his mouth to speak but she laughed bitterly and pointed at him. "And don't you dare stand there and tell me its different because its not!"
"It is different though," he shouted back. "Bov's been my best mate since I was 11, alright? He was there way before you, before this," he gestured around the room. "Funnily enough I did actually have a life before this."
Instantly, he knew he's said the wrong thing and closed his eyes, sighing deeply.
"That came out really fucking wrong," he told her, opening his eyes and wincing at the look on her face.
"No actually," she shook her head, picking Poppy up and cradling her against her chest. "I think it came out crystal clear,"
Stepping around him, she made her way to the door.
"Allie, wait," Pete called. "I didn't mean it like that…"
Her response was to simply let the door slam behind her, leaving him standing in heavy silence for a long moment before he gave in and followed her.
"Allie!" he knocked on their bedroom door.
"Seriously, Pete just piss off, will you?" he could hear the tears in her voice and banged his head against the door.
"How am I supposed to make it better if you don't let me in?" he called, it was quiet for a long moment and he laughed, shaking his head. "Y'know what? Fine, you want to piss off, then I'm fucking well outta here,"
Storming down the grand staircase, he didn't bother with a jacket, grabbing his wallet and leaving his keys on the table; quite frankly, given the state he planned on being in later tonight, having his car with him wouldn't be the best of ideas.
Yanking the door open, he ignored the sickening feeling in his gut, mixing with the anger as he replayed the argument over and over in his head. Jogging down the long drive, he stepped through the gate and out onto Sloane Avenue, dodging an old couple who were walking their dogs. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he searched the phone book and pressed call, sighing when as per usual it had to ring about 20 times before anyone picked up.
"Petey Pie," Benjamin laughed down the phone. "Its only been about two hours…you're not missing me already are you, you big soft tart?"
"You free tonight?" Pete asked.
"Aye," he responded. "What for?"
"Go put your lipstick on, Scotty," Pete smirked. "I don't know about you, but I am in serious fucking need of a beer."
I promise to get the next update out a bit quicker and thanks to a certain person, I've thought of a new story arc which actually approaches being exciting! Please review and I'll try and update tomorrow... ;)