Part 10 (2/2)

'Listen, love,' I said. 'Now we've got everything cut out ready, d'you mind if I go for a walk with Levi? He'd probably enjoy an hour in the fresh air and I'll just be a spare part watching you do all this, won't I?'

Riley grinned. 'Skiver! But no, be my guest, Mum. You'll only be under my feet hanging around here, anyway.'

'Charming!' I chided, pulling my coat on. But we both knew I'd be more hindrance than help if I stayed. As well as being artistic, Riley had a real artist's temperament i.e. she'd trash my nice clean kitchen in no time, splattering it with poster paint and strewing bits of card and globs of glue everywhere. And I'd be bustling around then, trying to clear everything up, wiping surfaces that were due to get splattered again shortly, and generally getting on her nerves. I bundled the buggy out of the house before she changed her mind.

Levi was five months old now, and really beginning to notice the world around him. We walked down to our local duck pond and he laughed in delight as I tried to imitate their quacking noises for him. And as I sat there, my gorgeous grandson gurgling happily on my lap, I wondered how my life would be now if I didn't foster. It was like being in another world, sitting there with Levi. And another time, too, surrounded only by nature. No cars speeding by, no modern buildings, no hustle and bustle; just trees and dappled suns.h.i.+ne and early daffodils and crocuses. And the newest member of our family, who couldn't have made me happier. I sighed wistfully as I thought of life ever being that simple for me, of not always feeling pushed to do more. But it wouldn't happen. I knew fostering was me. And it was something I needed to do. All the years working with troubled kids in school had simply served to lead me to my vocation.

'Ah well, baby,' I said to Levi, 'better start heading back now. Don't want you catching a cold, do we?' He smiled lovingly up at me and dutifully clapped his hands his new trick. And as we retraced our steps to home I found myself thinking just how lucky most children were, to have loving families, who would do anything to protect them and care for them. I felt a surge of love for my own two, who I knew I'd always feel proud of. I was so lucky. And I knew for certain that I would always foster, and no matter how bad things seemed we'd get through it all of us as a family, I knew, would do our very best for the sad kids, the damaged kids, the unloved kids, the hurt kids any child that came to us could be sure of that.

I couldn't believe how much Riley had accomplished by the time we got home. She'd painted two life-size witches and a wizard already, and laid them out on the conservatory floor to dry. They would make quite an impact when up on the walls she was so clever. And better still, she'd even started clearing up.

'Leave that, love,' I said. 'I'll see to it. You put the kettle on.'

'Mum,' Riley grinned at me, 'don't think I didn't see your face when you left. You were itching to follow me round with the dustpan. I'm almost done, anyway. Go on, you put the kettle on.'

I laughed. My children knew me so well.

Five minutes later we were both out in the garden with coffees, while Levi slept soundly after our small adventure.

'I have just one problem,' I said, as we ran through the party plans. 'And that's what I'm going to do with Sophia while we get the place ready. I know it's only for a couple of hours, but I don't feel I can ask Kieron to take her out, not with how delicate things have been between them. And I need you here to help me, of course, to do your creative magic.'

'I know,' said Riley. 'Why don't you ask Lauren if she'll do it?'

'What?' I said, shocked. 'I can't see that happening. I don't think there's much love lost there, either.'

'No, listen. It might be the perfect way to help smooth things over. If Lauren agrees to it, it will prove an important point to Sophia that adults don't hold grudges against kids about stuff. And also prove to her that Lauren does want to be her friend. Go on, ask her. I bet she says yes.'

Riley, it turned out, had been spot on. Not only was Lauren delighted to be able to help out, she even went one better and invited Sophia over to hers for a birthday sleepover. And as Lauren was a dance and arts student at college, she also knew exactly what to do with her.

'I thought we could start the evening off with some beauty treatments,' she told Sophia, once she'd put the suggestion to her. 'And then we could get into our PJs gotta do that, haven't we? As it's a sleepover and then I thought I could show you some of the stuff I've been learning for our end-of-year performance. I'm playing the part of Sandy in Grease.'

'Oh, my gos.h.!.+' Sophia squealed. 'I love Grease. Oh, I'm so jealous, Lauren! I know all the moves and everything!' She turned to me now. 'I can go, Casey, can't I? Please say yes!'

I was pleased to see that she was remembering her manners and asking for permission. Such a huge change from the imperious manner of her early days with us. 'Of course you can, love,' I said, laughing at her enthusiasm. All her doubts about Lauren seemed to be gone now. 'You can consider it one of your birthday treats, can't you?'

She lunged at me then, giving me an impromptu hug, and almost knocking me over in the process. 'Oh, thank you! Thank you, Lauren! Oh, it'll be just like Grease, won't it? Like that bit when all the girls are in Frenchy's bedroom, singing about Sandra Dee, won't it?'

I loved to see Sophia like this. But it was funny. When she acted older she seemed so much older than her years, and when she acted younger she really did seem like a much younger child; more like a 10-year-old than a high-school-hardened 12-year-old. Seeing her like this, you'd find it hard to believe she was going to be a teenager in just a couple of days that event that all kids think will magically transform their lives. Such a paradox, she was. Such a conundrum.

So everything now was in place. Lauren would pick her up on Friday evening, then, after their girlie sleepover, would take her into town on the Sat.u.r.day morning, where she'd treat her to breakfast. They'd then go shopping, so Sophia could choose her own birthday present from her and Kieron, now that she was 'going to be so grown up'. Odd, it occurred to me, and also rather sad, that we were busy reclaiming her childhood in order to help her leave it behind.

It was a great help having Sophia away at Lauren's on the Friday evening, not just because it meant we could get the decorating under way earlier, but also because it gave Mike and me a precious evening to ourselves, which was something we both badly needed. And that meant that I woke up feeling refreshed rather than frazzled, and looking forward to the special day ahead.

Not everyone shared my serenity, however. I came into the living room to find Riley, having put the finis.h.i.+ng touches to the decorations, transforming a very reluctant Kieron into a wizard.

'Riley, please,' he whined. 'Can't Dad be the wizard? I wanted to be the prince,' he added petulantly.

'Oh, stop moaning, Kieron! The prince stuff is too big for you, I told you! Besides, the wizard is the real star of the show.'

'Riley,' he huffed. 'I'm not eight years old now. You can't con me like you used to, so don't try.'

I smiled to myself. There were many downsides to fostering for my 'apparently' adult children. But the upside was the chance to continue their own childhoods by dressing up in silly outfits and squabbling like little kids. It was enriching in the most unexpected ways. For me anyway I loved hearing them together.

'Hey, you two,' I called to them, from my precarious perch on the step-ladder in the conservatory, 'once you've finished bickering you can come in here and help me pin up all these goats and munchkins, or whatever they b.l.o.o.d.y are!'

I really needed Mike with me, so he could pin up the high bits, but by now he was off upstairs transforming himself into a handsome prince. Riley, too, was all done she made a brilliant bad witch Elphaba so it was just me all behind, undressed and unpainted. I really needed to get a move on.

Upstairs all was ready for Sophia. We'd got her a Glinda costume, Glinda being the beautiful Good Witch of the North, which we knew would be the costume she'd most want for herself, and the best suited with her pretty face and blonde locks. That said, now that I'd at last familiarised myself with the story, I couldn't help thinking she was more of an Elphaba, the witch that didn't start out bad, never wanted to be bad, but the one who ended up bad the tragic product of her circ.u.mstances. The one who, by the end of Wicked (which was before The Wizard of Oz story started) had become the witch we all knew and loved to hate. I got down from the step-ladder and had a moment of sad reflection. I could only hope Sophia's future wasn't so certain.

But this wasn't the day for negative thoughts or amateur philosophy, so I popped 'Defying Gravity' on the CD player my favourite song from the musical which shook off my melancholic musings about the birthday girl and put me in a party frame of mind again. We had quite a lot of people coming and they'd soon be arriving: my eldest brother, who was visiting from Ireland and his children, my sister and hers, plus my mum and dad, of course, and Jack Boyd, Sophia's social worker. He was clearly her favourite and seemed genuinely fond of her, and was keen to make the effort to come and join us for an hour.

I'd also managed to invite three mates from her school. Despite her protestations that all the girls hated her, it seemed Sophia had made a few friends, and fortunately I already knew the mothers of three of them. So I'd secretly invited Mollie, Corin and Dannika, and had them promise to keep things quiet till the big day.

Which was fast disappearing, I thought, as I bolted upstairs to get myself ready. A quick five-minute transformation and I was finally good to go, and Riley and I could lay out the buffet. I'd gone overboard, as always, and Mike's two pasting tables were groaning with food. We had sandwiches, sausage rolls and all the usual savouries, plus lots of themed stuff green cupcakes, green jellies with bugs in and a green trifle, as well as a big green-and-black birthday cake, in the shape of a witch's hat, which came courtesy of my very clever mum. Riley was just finis.h.i.+ng filling the gaps between the plates with plastic spiders when Mike came down to help us finish off.

'This looks great, Case you've surpa.s.sed yourselves as usual, girls,' he told us.

'And so have you, Dad,' Riley answered. 'You almost look handsome.'

'And you,' he came back, quick as you like, 'darling daughter, look like the little witch I always knew you were!'

'Ahem!' I coughed, doing a little twirl. 'And moi?'

Father and daughter both shrugged and pretended they hadn't heard, which earned the pair of them a friendly slap on their rears.

'You look gorgeous, love,' Mike said eventually, laughing. 'No matter how many warts you start to grow. But listen, it's nearly one, and Jack Boyd will be here any minute. How about I go make us all a quick coffee?'

He was just pouring them when the doorbell rang. Kieron answered. It was Jack. 'h.e.l.lo, young man!' he said, in his booming Irish brogue. Sophia's favourite social worker was nothing if not a character. 'Look at you!' he exclaimed. 'I wish I'd known you were all going to be dressing up. I'd have brought my own witch along, so I would!' Kieron ushered him into the kitchen and Mike got another mug down for coffee. 'But as it happens,' Jack continued, 'she's taken the kids shopping ...'

'I'd like to see you say that to her face!' Mike laughed.

Jack grinned. 'You're into blood sports, then, Mike?'

So far so good, I thought. This was going to be a great party. Just as long as the birthday girl was having a good day as well. And it seemed, when she arrived, that she was. I'd had everyone hide in the living room for her arrival, and, bang on cue, they all leapt out. 'Surprise!'

And she seemed genuinely thrilled. 'Oh, my gos.h.!.+ Oh, you guys! Oh, Casey, I don't know what to say! And oh my G.o.d! It's all Wicked! And you're Elphaba, Riley! Oh, it's brilliant!' She was practically jumping up and down.

'And you're Glinda,' I told her. 'Or you will be, in a minute. Just as soon as you pop upstairs and put on your costume ...'

She clapped her hands together. 'Oh, that's brilliant!' she cried, needing no further encouragement. Screaming her delight, she shot straight off upstairs.

I turned to the a.s.sembled guests. 'Yup, I think she's happy, don't you? So let the party start. Kieron? Music, maestro, please!'

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