For part one, click here.
For part two, click here.
‘Well?’ he pouted as Granny ended the call.
‘Grab your coat, love. Let’s go and see your mum.’
‘She’s not dead?’ Craig’s eyes widened and he sprinted down the hall, his anorak on and out the door.
‘And she’s got a surprise for you,’ Granny called after him.
Craig swung round, the grin plastered to his face. Daddy had proposed. They were going to be a proper family, the three of them.
Craig raced up the hospital steps dragging Granny behind him. The lift took an eternity.
‘Where is she? I want to see my mummy.’
Granny led the way and Craig peeped round the corner.
‘Mummy! Daddy!’ he raced round to the bedside, his arms reaching up to be embraced.
‘I’ve missed you, young man,’ Mummy stroked his face longingly.
‘Me too, mate. I’m sorry, Craig. I don’t have any excuse. I just couldn’t cope with things. Grown ups can be a bit silly sometimes,’ Daddy gave him a big hug, ‘but I’m back for good, son.’
Craig looked up into his blue-green eyes. They reminded him of the dirty water in the canal. He liked the canal. Daddy took him fishing there.
‘Anyway, we’ve got some exciting news for you,’ Mummy’s eyes filled with tears. ‘Meet your baby sister.’
They weren’t getting married. They weren’t going to be a family. And it wasn’t just going to be the three of them. Craig peered into the cradle. His shoulders slumped and the corners of his mouth dragged down. He had tried so hard to forget about the baby.
‘Ugh, she’s yellow.’
‘The nurse said she’s a bit jaundiced,’ Daddy said.
‘Is it catching?’
‘No, Craig, Mummy said.
Craig looked at his mummy, then his daddy and back to his baby sister. You couldn’t like everything, he supposed. And at least his mummy wasn’t dead and his daddy was back and maybe one day, he would come to like his sister.
The End
***
Esther Chilton 
Leave a comment