Loving Family

Evalynn: Musical Countdown

Mamma was true to her word of helping me get singing lessons, which I tentatively attended for the first two weeks before finding out I did actually quite enjoy them. The teacher came into school so I got to miss part of a lesson on Tuesdays, and was very kind, letting me pick whichever of the songs she had sheet music for. Turned out, where she'd been teaching since the mid-nineties, she had a lot of the nineties songs I adored - naturally plenty of Steps tracks. And it didn't really feel like learning, so there was certainly that. The teacher, Miss Pike as her name was, wanted me to do some singing exams and kept trying to talk me into entering the school talent show, which I was more than happy to attempt but I was convinced I wouldn't do well at. I was definitely going to get stage fright performing in front of an audience, I could still barely sing in front of mamma, Ben and Mick.

Since mamma had scared me that one weekend there'd been no other episodes of me having unfortunate reminders to things I wish I didn't have to remember. In fairness there were very few and the terrifying reminder of my foster uncle was probably the worst of them, but it wasn't a welcome thought. I'd be more than glad if that one stayed away forever more. The nice thing, strangely, was it didn't feel like mamma was being unnaturally kind or doing things out of balance to make up for it, and we both knew and trusted the other enough to know it hadn't been a deliberate effort to scare or upset the other. I knew that she was getting anxious about being away from home for a long time for the musical rehearsals, and I was worried about it too, but I was excited at the idea of seeing her on a stage at the other end of that rehearsal time. I knew though I'd spend every day she was away wishing she'd come home and give me a massive hug. I suspected saying that out loud anywhere near school would probably get me quite badly teased, you're not meant to still be a mummy's girl when you're almost a teenager it turns out. I didn't mind the fact people thought it was weird, weird was normal within the Steps families it seemed, I was more fussed about the teasing that would follow - after Christmas, by which time the pictures of me and mamma from the magazine in November had finally circulated round my entire school I'd received a more than fair share of teasing for being the daughter of a washed out pop star, but it had died out just as rapidly as it had started and seemingly everyone cast their eyes away from me and back to their normal teasing targets. Or certainly most people had put who my mother was out of their minds again. I wasn't going to stir up more reasons to bring the teasing about unless I had to.

Ben's 5th birthday passed and as ever it was spent with the four of us just being together and enjoying each other's company. This time it was watching movies and playing games as it was too wet outside to go out. The weekend before his birthday (it fell mid-week) he had a birthday party which had been quite something. Big birthday parties had never been my thing, seemingly Mick and mamma were the same, and about 20 four and five year olds in the same space really did feel a little bit like hell. There was certainly nowhere to sit and read, or just play on the Gameboy like I'd hoped. But it was the first time Ben had been able to have a birthday party so we had to just bare with it - I think all three of us had convinced ourselves it would get better over the years. The only real highlight, besides how happy it seemed to make Ben and his relentless excited chatter afterwards, was I got to meet the little girl who'd become his best friend recently. She was called Abigail, and was incredibly sweet. She was basically the only one there besides Ben who didn't seem entirely hell bent on irritating me.
"We're not doing that again." Mamma declared as she flopped onto the sofa between Mick and I that evening after Ben's birthday party.
Mick sighed, looking up from the puzzle he was currently trying to solve. "Leave him be it was his first real party."
I groaned but refused to take my eyes off the Gameboy screen, fearing the Zelda dungeon I was currently in would likely spawn something to kill me if I did. Having been picked on most of the day by Ben's classmates because I was the older kid I was much more inclined to agree with mamma. "Doesn't make that many small children enjoyable company." I said.
"Yeah they didn't like you did they?" Mamma said. I shook my head in reply while borderline smashing the A button hoping I'd take out the monster that had just appeared before it dealt me too much hit damage.
"You can't tell me you and your friends never tied up Clare at a party surely?" Mick asked her.
Mamma smirked. "I mean we might have once. She wasn't keen either."
"And you wonder where he gets it from." Mick teased, slipping his arms around her.
"Definitely half of it's from you. I can't take all the responsibility." Mamma replied, rubbing her cheek against him.
I giggled, and then had to look away as they kissed. Despite my best efforts, how much I adored them both and their relationship I still couldn't actually look when they kissed on the lips properly. It hadn't stopped me yet from thinking they were the cutest married couple and that I was incredibly lucky that my mamma and the man I'm fairly sure I now saw as a father figure had such a beautiful and loving relationship.