It was a chilly November afternoon; a Thursday, to be precise. Joe huddled into his scarf while waiting for Katrina to get out of school. Soon enough, the bell rang, and the teacher corralled the students outside to get picked up.
All the way home, Katrina talked about Claire, and how she had been telling her about a sleepover she had been to a few weeks ago. "It sounded like the funnest thing ever," she concluded. "I wish I could have been there."
Joe mulled on that for a bit. Katrina didn't have friends over very much. And he wasn't very acquainted with many other parents in the school. Maybe this was a golden opportunity for the both of them. "Tu sais, Katie, nous pouvons passer une soirée pyjama ici à notre maison." (You know, Katie, we can host a sleepover at our house.)
"Really?" Katrina's eyes sparkled at the idea.
"Oui," said Joe. "Tu peux inviter Claire, et nous pouvons regarder un film ou quelque chose." (Yeah. You can invite Claire, and we can watch a movie or something.)
Katrina leapt into Joe's arms. "Thank you, daddy! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"
Joe held his daughter close. He was happy to have made her so excited.
The next day, when school let out, from a slick black car stepped Viona Gwan, the neighbourhood "cool mom". Sharply dressed, never late, and always remembering school events; yes, she was the envy of many a parent at Pine Needle Elementary School.
Today's agenda; arrange sleepover specifications with Katrina's dad. And there he was, knelt down talking to her. He was an awkward, lanky sort of fellow; a single parent just trying to keep it together, she guessed.
Nevertheless, once she had collected her daughter, Viona went to speak with him and extended her finest graces. "Mr. Beaufort, so nice to finally meet you."
"Bonjour, Mme. Gwan." Joe shook Viona's hand.
"Oh, we don't need to be so formal," said Viona, "my name's Viona."
"Et moi, c'est Joseph," said Joe. (And I am Joseph.)
"So," said Viona, "where are we planning this, my place or yours?"
"Je préfère qu'elles se rendent chez moi," said Joe. "Je suis nerveux de laisser Katrina rester à une autre place toute seule pour si longtemps." (I prefer that they come to my place. I'm nervous about leaving Katrina somewhere else alone for so long.)
"Alright," said Viona, "but me and the wife don't bite, you know." She took out a notepad from her purse. "How does next weekend sound?"
"Ca c'est parfait," said Joe. (That's perfect.)
"Perfect," said Viona. "The girls can have their sleepover, and me and Wifey-poo can have some one-on-one time."
"Eh bien, j'espère que vous passez un bon moment," said Joe. (Alright, I hope you have a good time.)
"I hope so too," said Viona. "You know, ever since we found out about the baby, Cath's been so anxious about everything. Names, clothes, the delivery; it all gives her the jeebies."
"Oh, je ne savant pas que vous étiez enceinte, félicitations!" (Oh, I didn't know you were expecting, congratulations!)
"Yeah," said Viona. "Claire didn't blab nearly as much as we thought. I don't think it's quite sunk in yet that she's going to be a big sister." She closed her notepad. "Right; next weekend after school. I'll be seeing you then."
A week passed, and as planned, Viona came around 5:30 to drop off Claire.
"Tu es juste en temps pour le dîner," said Joe, welcoming Claire inside. "J'ai cuisiné le gratin de fromage." (You're just in time for dinner. I made cheese gratin.)
"I've never had that before," said Claire.
"I think you'll like it," said Katrina. "It's like macaroni and cheese, except a casserole, and it's got bread in it instead of macaroni."
"Alors, avez-vous choisi un film à regarder ce soir?" (So, have you picked a movie to watch tonight?) Joe asked the girls while they were eating.
"Kitty on the Water," said Katrina.
"It's an amine," said Claire.
"D'accord," chuckled Joe; he found Claire's mispronunciation adorable. "Je vais être ici, travailler sur des papiers, si tu me besoin." (Alright. I'll be here, working on papers, if you need me.)
About two hours later, Joe found himself waking up head down on the table; he had fallen asleep after finishing his papers. He rubbed his eyes, and pulled himself up to put the girls to bed.
…Except, when he entered the living room, the TV was turned off, and neither Katrina nor Claire were anywhere to be seen.
Thinking of the first place they could have gone, he went upstairs to Katrina's bedroom, where the two of them were laying in bed, fast asleep. The sight of it melted Joe's heart. He took a picture of it to send to Viona, shut the light off, and kissed both of them goodnight.
The next morning, Joe was humming a jaunty little tune to himself while preparing some French toast for breakfast when there was a knock at the door. He turned the stove off, plated the toast, and went to answer, where he found Viona waiting for him.
"Salut," said Joe. "Tu es tôt ce matin. Viens, reste pour le p'tit déjeuner." (Hi. You're early this morning. Come in, stay for breakfast.)
"You're too kind," said Viona as she came inside. "Are the girls still asleep?"
"Oui," said Joe, looking at the staircase. The two of them went upstairs to wake their daughters.
"Hi, momma," mumbled Claire sleepily. Katrina sat up, her hair a wild mess. All four, the Beauforts and the Gwans, went back downstairs for some nice French toast.
"Did you have fun?" Viona asked Claire.
"Uh huh," said Claire. "We watched our movie and it was good."
"That's good," said Viona. "Oh, and we got a call from the doctor this morning. You're going to have a baby sister."
"Cool," said Claire as she finished her toast.
"Thank you for having her," said Viona to Joe, getting up to go.
"De rien," said Joe, handing her a sandwich bag with some more toast inside. "Ceci, c'est pour ta femme." (You're welcome. And this is for your wife.)
Viona and Claire left to go about their day. As for the Beauforts, Katrina pulled herself up into Joe's lap and hugged him. "I love you, daddy."
"Je t'adore aussi," said Joe, kissing her forehead. (I love you too.)
