Never Really Over

Chapter 33

January 2020

"Hi my little mate," John smiles fondly at the face on his phone screen and resists the urge to stroke James' chubby little cheeks. The baby is sitting on Gigi's lap, on his rocker chair that has been transplanted from John's apartment to JJ's new bedroom, in Georgia's new house.

His new nursery has a safari theme with touches of green and yellow throughout. A leafy feature wall sits behind James' cot with a set of animal prints hanging above where the baby sleeps. A giraffe print rug covers the floor, which has plenty of space for James to play on, much more than at John's. There's a large faux paradise palm in a corner, and smaller pots of artificial ivy rest on floating shelves, well out of reach. James' toys are stored in animal rope storage baskets, and his books on a set of giraffe shelves. His cuddly toys now sit on a rattan elephant shelving unit that is low enough for the baby to help himself whenever he wants something. A tepee tent filled with cosy blankets and pillows dominates one corner, a sanctuary for JJ to hide when he wants to be alone when he is a little older, right now it's somewhere for him to play peek-a-boo. John thinks this room has much more personality than James' old room, which now lies completely empty.

Georgia and James have been gone a week now. John's Christmas schedule has meant he hasn't really had time to miss them, and when he's been free, he's popped in to oversee James' bedtime and then stayed for dinner with Georgia. The nights where he is working, FaceTime has had to do.

"Is he okay? He looks flushed?!" James is wearing a white baby gro decorated with Christmas motifs like snowmen and Rudolph, he looks far cosier than John, who has just watched City beat Everton from his box at the Etihad and is yet to regain the feeling in his toes. The heated seats keep your bum warm but can't help your digits. He's alone, his parents and Jenny having headed to the hospitality area right on the full-time whistle, keen to continue their New Year celebrations. 'Make sure you bring Beth down if you find her!' Janet had said as they were leaving.

"He's fine," Georgia strokes James' hair. "House is just a bit toasty."

Her new home has large rooms with high ceilings, Georgia has the thermostat set quite high to keep things warm, maybe she's set it a little too high; she's still getting used to having so much space after the three of them being crammed into John's apartment for so long.

"Keep an eye on him, eh?!" John worries that every little sniffle, every tiny cough, every poorly tummy, is something gravely serious. He is obsessed with the readings on James' smart sock, constantly checking the app.

"Promise," Georgia smiles. She keeps John on camera as she reads through James' bedtime story (That's Not My Lion), and as she lays him down, snug in his sleeping bag, and they duet on Seniorita, as JJ prefers it to a lullaby. James is awake enough to blow John a kiss, smacking his little palm against his pouted lips, his newest trick, mastered on Christmas Day at Georgia's parents'. It's the first milestone John has missed, he was upset about it, but knows this is something he will have to get used to now they are living apart.

"Night JJ, love you!" John says as the room falls into darkness as Georgia turns off the bamboo lamp that sits on a dresser.

"Have you seen her yet?" Georgia asks as she walks downstairs leaving James to drift off to sleep alone.

Adjusting to living with stairs again has been quite something, the first few mornings she would wake up with her calves burning; John's apartment, with everyone set on one floor, and its lift that moved at the speed of light, have spoiled her.

"Nope."

Another injury has kept him out of the match day squad. In the past, this might have thrown John into a panic, thinking that the chances of his and Beth's paths' crossing would be damaged, but not anymore. Now he has come to realise something. The universe always brings them together, even when injuries try to throw things off course. Almost two years ago, he bumped into her at the restaurant when concussion had kept him out of the squad. Last year, a muscle injury had done the same, yet she was in Little Rome. He'll see her again today, it might not be here at the ground, but he will see her. He is utterly convinced of it.