Moments

Chapter four.

*FLASHBACK* 

Alexia wrapped her tiny arms around her fathers leg, the highest place she could reach, hugging him tight. He ruffled her hair, before picking her up in his arms and tickling her stomach, making her giggle loudly. 

"Thank you, thank you, thank you" she squealed happily, squirming to jump down from his arms. He let her go, a grin on his face, smiling at his daughters innocence and happiness. Henry always felt bad, that him and his wife were never around much, he was chief of surgery at the local hospital, and it was a demanding job that kept him working unsociable hours. His wife ran the ER, in the same hospital and her job was much the same. He missed seeing Alexia and Jake grow up, but he knew he was doing what was best for them. He could provide for them both, feed them, clothe them and buy them all the toys they wanted, not that they were spoilt, and hopefully pay for their university education in the future. He bent down to his daughters level, kneeling on the damp, leave covered grass.

"Would you like to go up" he asked, grinning into her smiling face, laughing as she nodded eagerly, before pausing.

"Can I ring Jack, pretty, pretty please" she begged, jumping up and down. Henry chuckled at that, Alexia had him wrapped around her little finger, and she knew it, he rarely ever said no to any of her wild demands. 

"Sure pumpkin" he smiled, watching her as she turned, darting back into the house, to ring her best friend. Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he walked to the base of the old oak tree at the bottom of their garden. Looking up, and into the leaves, where a string of fairy lights wrapped around the branches. He had nearly broken a limb, climbing out there to get them on, but seeing the look on Alexia's face was worth every scratch. He smiled at his work, it wasn't much, but it had taken weeks of sneaking out into the garden in the early hours of the morning after long shifts at the hospital to get it built. Sure he could have paid someone to do it, but it was something he'd wanted to do himself. The treehouse, was a simple wooden structure, with a small wooden porch, with a rope guard around the edge. A ladder hung down from a gap in the boards. Moments later Alexia ran out of the house, leaping and galloping, before careening into her father.

"He's coming, he's coming" she yelled, whooping, running laps of the trunk of the tree. She had always been a hyperactive child; always into something, mainly trouble. He remembered clearly, her first day of Kindergarten, when he'd got a worried phone call from a Mrs Nolan, telling him that his daughter had hit her child over the head with a plastic digger, for throwing sand at her. Henry apologised profusely for his daughter, arranging a playdate at the weekend, so the kids could make up.

That weekend was the first time he met Jack Nolan. A small gap-toothed boy, with a grin as wide as his head and yoghurt all down his batman t-shirt. Jack and Alexia really hit it off that weekend, and had been inseparable for the two years ever since. He didn't even question anymore the sight of the two of them raiding the cupboard in the kitchen, or running around the garden with tea towels wrapped around their heads. 

"JAAAACK" Alexia screamed, running towards the tiny ball, wrapped in an overlarge duffel coat barrelling towards her. 

"ALEEXXX" he screamed back, before the two of them collided, giggling in a way that only young children could.

"I got a treehouse" she grinned excitedly, pointing a small finger towards the tree. Jack looked up, his mouth dropping open.

"WOW" he said, drawing out the O. "Can we go up?" Alexia nodded quickly, before turning and running towards the ladder. Jack followed close at her heels, the two clambering up the ladder, scrambling onto the platform in one quick motion.