Tackling The World

The next morning Scott leaves early and heads home while I lay there thinking about everything about whether I really want to go back to London or not. Eventually, I get up and have a shower and get ready to look after Isabella for the day. I text Dani to tell her that I’ll be at her place shortly before I get into the car and drive there.

I pick up a special treat for Isabella on the way and get to Dani’s just before 10 am, I knock on the door and head inside where Isabella quickly runs up and hugs me tightly “Hey Princess” I smile as she hugs me and I look at Dani who is scrambling to get to work.

“You alright over there, you look like you’re in a panic?” I ask Dani who is rushing around “Yeah just trying to get ready you know” I wander over to her and put my hands on her shoulders “Calm down, you said you didn’t have work until 12 so just chill and let me make you a coffee”. I say wandering over, starting to make her a coffee.

“How did you know where everything was?” she asks me smiling “Dani, just because this is a different place I highly doubted you’d change where you put everything” she laughs and shakes her head at me. “Am I that predictable?” she asks me as I shake my head “No, just knowing you for so long and being married to you is an inside advantage”.

I finish making both of us a coffee and we sit down on the couch as Isabella colours in at her table “You still working on a plan to get my parents to see me again?” I ask her as she stammers through her answer. “Yeah of course I am, I just need to have the excuse to do it and something that you wouldn’t say no to” she laughs nervously.

Trying to not let on that I know about the party on Wednesday night, “So look before I go, I want to do something with you and Isabella and a few friends alright, so why don’t we do it all on Wednesday night as a farewell thing”. Dani stops for a moment and rolls her eyes “Scott told you about the party didn’t he?”.

I sit there shaking my head “What party? I was just thinking about what you said the other day about having them get together seeing as we both were busy this weekend”. Dani looks at me “You’re not a very good liar Joshua, knowing you for so long and being married gives me an inside advantage too”.

I just laugh at Dani’s response “Yeah yeah alright, in Scott’s defence he didn’t know he was telling me about the party, we were hanging out when you rang and I mentioned you were having a surprise for me tonight meaning dinner and he thought you were telling me about the party”.

“So how’d you agree to get everyone to come you know?” I ask knowing that if my family knew the real reason for the party they probably wouldn’t come. “Well, we missed the family get together over new years with everything so I just thought Wednesday night is the only time where we don’t have everything on so I told them about it and they jumped at the idea” Dani replies “But of course I didn’t tell them you would be here because that would make things weird”.

I smile and nod as Dani finishes off her coffee and leaves for work leaving me with Isabella “So princess what do you want to do today?” her smile and bubbly little personality always sparks me up “We could go to the park; we could go for a drive and have a picnic”.

Isabella smiles “Let’s go to the big park with the big slide” I smile “Alright, how about we make sandwiches and have a picnic at the park?” She nods excitedly and I start to make her favourite Nutella sandwich which she overs over “Can’t you make it like Nanna’s with the wavy edges?”.

I smile and think back to when that’s how I always got my sandwiches cut for school and how close and special Mum was to me then. “I can try but that’s really a Nanna special isn’t it?” I say doing a pretty average job of it. “How’s that princess?” Isabella gives it a really funny look at it “I’m not good at using big scissors either but Miss Anderson says I just need to practice”. I laugh feeling embarrassed that I got shut down by a child.

“Thanks, princess, I think I just need some more practice at it,” I say laughing still thinking about it. We pack her backpack and I grab a shopping bag our and grab some stuff to eat and we head to the big park. I find a spot on the grass and put out the picnic blanket and I sit down as Isabella goes off and plays for a little while. I sit back watching her thinking about everything again just nervous about how the plan for Wednesday is going to go down.

Isabella comes back to me after a little while and we sit there and have lunch as we just talk and then lay and watch the clouds making animals out of what’s there and then her making me tell stories about each one of the cloud animals we made. Eventually, we both get up and Isabella goes and plays for a little bit while I sit there scrolling through emails, social media, and messaging with Scott.

Isabella comes back about half an hour later totally exhausted and we head back to Dani’s house as Isabella goes straight into her room and falls asleep taking a nap. I put the TV on and watch the Footy that’s on and messaging with Scott about things in general.

“You’re in trouble bro” I send to him with a laughing emoji before getting an instant reply “Well how are you going to punish me this time”. I laugh as he replies and think of the best way to reply, “It’s not in trouble off me bro, you’re in the shit with Dani”. Scott sends back a laughing emoji “Told you not to tell her”.

Our texting goes on for a bit as I go in and check on Isabella who is still napping, I smile at the amazing little girl that I’m proud to call my daughter, having to deal with the fact that her Daddy doesn’t live at home with Mummy and lives so far apart and never get to see her other than via video call and eventually dealing with people when she finds out her Daddy will have a boyfriend, not a girlfriend.

Dani checks in with me via phone to make sure everything is fine and I tell her about our day and how Isabella is asleep after playing at the park all afternoon. I keep watching the footy as Isabella comes out and plays with her dolls getting me involved every so often.

At about 6ish Dani gets home with food for dinner and she laughs “You sitting there watching the football on a Saturday is something that has never changed now has it” as she talks to me and Isabella, kissing me on the top of the head and giving Isabella a big hug,

“Hey be fair, I never was always sitting here on a Saturday afternoon watching games, I was quite often playing in them on the TV,” I say replying. Dani laughs “Yeah I know, I remember getting a phone call on a Saturday afternoon telling me that you were in hospital in Townsville or Auckland for one reason or another and with me no way to go see you so far away”.

I shake my head “It was Auckland and it was only precautionary remember, I flew home the next day with the team you know, I had all my scans”. Dani rolls her eyes “Yeah because that was the only time I had to deal with you being in hospital or in a sling or in a cast”.

Dani dishes up the dinner she bought for us, I wander over and pinch some chips out of the container and she whacks me on the hands “Oi, no picking until I dish it all up”. I can’t wait for the Chicken, Chips, and Salad that Dani got from the greatest place on earth.

We sit down and have dinner as a family again with makes me smile and I see Dani’s smile on her face as Isabella chats away to her at dinner “Mummy, Does Daddy have to go home, can he have a sleepover” Dani smiles and looks at me “Well it’s up to Daddy if he wants to stay the night and he can stay in the bed in the toy room can’t he?”. Isabella smiles and nods and I end up agreeing “Alright but I have to go and get some clothes from where I’m staying because I need to get ready so we can go to the Zoo tomorrow”.

After dinner, I head back to the hotel to get some clothes to wear tomorrow and my bodywash so I can take a shower. I look at my phone and see that Liam has messaged me trying to get some more advice on trying to see his mum, I take a moment to reflect before decided whether my advice is really going to be the best for him.