Big Blue Eyes

A Story by Emma

She looked up at me with her big blue eyes and asked “Mummy, where’s daddy? Why is he never home?”
I came to my knees so I was face to face with her and said, “Honey, daddy is at work for now. He’ll be home later tonight, and he’ll be home tomorrow. We’ll go out with him, okay?” I had to pull a smile, just for my beautiful daughter, Lulu. She was only 5, and didn’t understand why her father was away from home all the time. I pinched her cute red cheeks and said “Why don’t you go get ready for bed, and I’ll come in and read you a story?”
“Yes!” She replied excitedly. She ran off down the corridor to her room. I made my way to the study room, which was filled with papers, books, laptops and all sorts of other belongings my husband, Eric, had for his work. I picked up the house phone that was laying on top a bunch of papers, and dialled Eric’s number. It rang five times before he picked up. At first, there was nothing but silence, and then he spoke into the phone. “Hello?”
I was so mad that I almost hung up, but then I said “Yes. It’s your wife, Rosie. Or have you forgotten about her?” I couldn’t resist sounding so harsh, although I did feel bad after saying it.
“What? Honey, don’t be like that.”
“Don’t be like what, Eric? Don’t be mad? I have a right to be mad!”
“Honey, please stop yelling. I’ll be home soon, we can talk then.”
“No, we can’t!” There was a brief silence and then I said “If you’ll excuse me, I have to go say good night to our daughter now. I’ll see you later.” And with that, I hung up the phone. I walked to Lulu’s room to find her asleep. I felt terrible for not reading her a story, or praying with her. I kissed her softly on her forehead, and silently made my way out of her room. I left the door open a tiny bit, as she liked a bit of light shining through the door.
I walked to the kitchen and pulled out a bottle of red wine from the cabinet. It wasn’t past 10 O’clock, so I could still have a drink. I poured myself half a glass, and poured another one for Eric. I sat down on the couch and turned the television on. I flicked through the channels several times, but I couldn’t find anything to watch. I decided to leave it on a romantic movie, which reminded me of the earlier days with Eric. Oh, how I missed those days.
The front door opened, which awakened me. Eric walked into the room, and the first thing he did was kiss me. It was a nice kiss, one he hadn’t given me for ages. It was almost a ‘sorry’ kiss. I smiled slightly, and looked at the time. It was 11 O’clock, so I was asleep for about an hour.
I ran my fingers through my hair, and stood up. I got myself a glass of water, and made my way into our bedroom. Eric entered a few minutes after I did.
“What were you doing?” I asked him sleepily.
“I was kissing our daughter goodnight.” He smiled and turned off the bedside lamp. He gave me another kiss on the lips, and we both started dreaming.

The sun shone through the window, waking me up. I woke up alone, which I was used to. I started to think that maybe Eric had got called into work, which angered me. It was then that I heard a giggle come from the living room. I got up out of bed and made my way out of the room, to find Eric and Lulu playing together. It was a happy sight, and I joined in. We were all there, on the floor of the living room, in laughter. It was pure happiness.
“Mummy!” Lulu took me by my hand and led me to the dining table. “We made you breakfast!” There on the dining table sat a lovely plate with bacons, egg and toast.
“Oh, you angel.” I kissed her on the cheek, and sat down to enjoy my breakfast.
“Daddy says we’re going to the zoo!” She said while smiling.
“Did he now?” I turned around to face Eric, and smiled as I did so. “Well, you better go get dressed. What are you going to wear?”
“My new dress! May I?”
“Well, why not? It’s a beautiful day, why waste it?” Lulu skipped off to her bedroom just as I finished speaking.
“Don’t forget to brush your teeth!” Eric yelled. I laughed loudly. I felt like this was the happiest I had been all month. I felt like we were the family we used to be. Saturdays were always my favourite day.