It was hard to pick a category for this, but as its a follow up to my original story published in the LW section, i thought it may as well go in the same section. There is violence and no sex, come to that, not much loving in this but the story needed an end. Be warned.
Five years had passed since my divorce.
"Barry, don't forget to pick up John from nursery at 11.30 today will you." April called from the kitchen.
"Ok love no worries, I'm on it. I'll get him on the way back from the store."
John, my step-son is four years old now. I had known him since the day he was born and it was hard to believe he would be starting proper school within two weeks. Myself and April had been married nearly three years and had no children together, but we planned on having at least one before John got too old so they would be of a similar age and I myself had gotten too old. We had been trying now for 18 months with no success but she was desperate to give John a brother or sister.
April had mended my broken heart and put me back onto the right track. I was going downhill rapidly and my life was spiraling out of control. I would've ended up in nick, or worse. I was drinking heavily and bar fights were becoming common place. The year after my breakup was the worst of my life. I spent all of my waking time looking for the man that killed my love for my wife. He had groomed her for months culminating in her taking part in a gangbang with him and his friends. She had come to believe I was having an affair and in her warped brain this was her way of leveling the score. Amber had since attempted suicide twice and was living with my daughter now. I hate what she did and with she had succeeded with her attempt to take her life. I gave up my search for him, in a way it was probably best that I didn't find him at that time.
April is the younger sister of my closest friend Sammy, we have known each other since we were kids. I had always been attracted to her and she is as gorgeous now as she had been in her teens. But Sammy was my friend and well, you don't make moves on friends sisters do you.
That was until about six months after my split with Amber, I bumped into her at IKEA. I was buying some cheap flat-pack furniture for my place. I had moved out of our home and a small flat was all I could afford. She bumped into the back of my legs with a pushchair, I was about to have a go when I saw it was April and my grimace turned into a smile.
"Hi stranger," she said with a broad grin. "I thought that was you."
She brightened my entire day and her old familiar smile made the dark clouds lift. We ended up in a small coffee shop near the university reminiscing on our childhood and lives since. She had married young and had a small child but had since split with the dad. Apparently he had been having a number of affairs with various women from the day they had met until the day she threw him out, he sounded like a real scumbag.
It turned into one of the nicest days I could remember in ages, we exchanged numbers and I gave her a peck on the cheek as we said our goodbyes.
I spent the whole weekend thinking about her and how my life would've been so different if I had married her instead of Amber, but she was a dozen or so years my junior and probably barely sixteen when I had wed Amber. I must have looked at her number in my phone over a dozen times that weekend wanting to ring it but not having the courage. It took over a month before we talked again.
"Hi Barry, I had hoped you might ring me."
It was April, I nearly dropped the phone and my cold turkey sandwich. I felt my tongue tie in my mouth and all the moisture dry up as I tried to talk back.
"Barry, are you there?"
"Yes, yes. I just dropped something." I lied, trying to gain my composure.
"April, what a nice surprise to hear from you." I managed to say as calmly as I could.
"Well," she said, "I am in Canterbury this week on family business and as you said you moved into a small flat there I thought we might meet up, if you want to that is?"
Did I want to? of course I did.
"What?.... oh erm," I stuttered.
She had caught me by surprise with her directness. What was I saying? Of all the stupid things to say, erm! I was free all week and what I should've said was, "Yes, I'd love to."
"You don't sound too sure." She hesitated before adding, "I am sorry I should not have been so presumptuous."
"Wait, wait." I said, but the line had gone dead.
I fumbled with my phone and redialed her number, it just rang and rang. "Fuck it, you stupid fucking mug," I cursed to myself. I tried one more time but to no avail, cursing to myself again I went back to my not very appetizing half eaten sandwich.
Later that afternoon as I was sitting watching my third horse lose on the trot on the tv my phone lit up again.
"Hi Steve, what can I do for you mate?" it was my brother.
"A few of us are playing golf this coming Sunday. We are one down, wanna make up a foursome?" he said.
I guessed it was all bollocks, it was his way of trying to get me out of the flat and into more of a social setting. I had not moved from here since I moved in, I just didn't have the drive to get dressed and go out these days.
I declined his offer and we chatted about this and that for a few minutes before I told him that April Chalmers had rang this morning.
"And.....?" he questioned.
"And nothing," I told him I fucked up.
"Ring her you mug, for fuck sake Baz what's up with you?"
"I know, I know. I did try but she won't pick up." I protested.
"Do it now, I'll get off the line."
Steve hung up and I sat looking at my phone again questioning why on earth I shouldn't ring her? I came up with so many excuses not to ring but to be honest, none were valid.
I tapped her number, it rang three times. I almost bottled it and hung up when the fourth ring was absent. The phone was silent,
"April, are you there?" the line stayed silent.
"April?"
I almost hung up when I heard a soft "Yes."
I sighed, "April, I am sorry for earlier. I would love to see you."
My voice came back with a boldness that surprised even me, and I must've rambled on for ages talking all sorts of shit, anything that came to my mind, I said it. She must have thought I was bloody insane but agreed to meet me at my place the following Tuesday. We hit it off, she spent the first night at her mum and dads and the next night at mine. That was over three years ago.
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The town was crazy this week, it was packed because of freshers week, kids and students everywhere! No-matter where you turned it was manic. Every shop, supermarket, even the small cobbled streets were full of pain in the ass teenagers who thought they ruled the world. I was glad to get our groceries and get back home.
I had time today to pick Johnny up from nursery, he put me in a much better mood the moment I saw him as he came running into my open arms at the classroom door. One of the teachers handed me a picture he had drawn, it was him, his mum with myself in our garden. It filled me with pride, I had never in a million years thought my life would turn out this way, I was as happy as I had ever been in my life.
That night when he was tucked up in bed we sorted through all his new stuff for school. The first week he would only be doing half days so he would eat at home, but we had bought the obligatory dinosaur picture lunchbox with matching drink bottle, the dino pencil box with sharpener and his uniform. We were all set and he was so excited to be going to the big school. We were far more nervous than him it seemed.
The big day came and April took him in, we were expecting tears but she said he ran into class to meet his new teacher and classmates with hardly a glance back. She came home in floods of tears. I put my work aside to comfort and console her. I am lucky enough to spend 3-4 days a week working from home now as the job I have since leaving my last employer can be done remotely, only having to make the trip into the office once a week. It took a few strong coffees and cuddles to calm her and we settled with her head snuggled into my neck on the sofa.
"Sorry love," she said between sniffles. "I know I am being stupid. He'll be back in a few hours, I just miss him so much already, he is growing up too fast."
I held her close, snuggling her to my chest kissing the top of her perfect head. At that moment my life was perfect too.
That first week of school carried on in much the same way, she would drop him off and come home upset. It got a little better as the week went on, but not much. On Friday I had the pleasure of picking him up from school, I loved the feeling of walking through those big school gates to pick up my boy. The other parents were gathered outside in the playground waiting for their children to come out with the teacher. I struck up conversations with a couple of mums who knew who I was, others looked at me quizzically because I was by far the oldest of the group. There are about 25 children in Johns class, most of the waiting throng were mums but there were a couple of dads sticking out like sore thumbs. One of these dads looked very familiar but I couldn't place him. I thought he must be one of the dads from Johns old nursery school.
As the kids came out John was with his friend Harry, they were laughing and joking around when the dad I thought I knew called to him. Harry said bye and ran to the man as John rushed to me very happy to see me standing there instead of his mum. I nodded to Harry's dad and the blood visibly drained from his face. He looked like he had seen a ghost, he quickly took Harry into his arms and briskly walked across the playground almost running out of the gates. Strange fella I thought to myself.
At home we got talking about Johns day at school.
"Well, did you enjoy the pickup? Was it all you hoped it would be?"
"I loved it, I wish I could get him every day. You mums do not realise just how lucky you are sometimes."
"Oh I do, I adore picking him up. It's the dropping off in the morning I hate. Some of the other mums feel exactly like me and a few of us were talking about having a coffee morning twice a week, maybe at each of our houses in turn, we won't get in your way......I hope you don't mind." She added.
"Of course not, they can come here as much as you want, I'll tuck myself away in my office. Are dads welcome too?" I enquired as a throw away comment.
"There are not many there, Harry's dad is ok. He is the only one that has spoken to me so far." She said.
"Really? he couldn't get away from the place quick enough earlier." I replied.
"That doesn't sound like Bob, he is usually quite the chatty type."
"Oh, Bob now is it?" I said, raising a quizzical eyebrow.
"Oh behave." She said, playfully punching my arm.
We laughed and carried on preparing lunch together.
