"Options... I've ran out of Options..." (Book 3)

Chapter 7 - "Double Figures..."

Chapter 7 - "Double Figures..."

September 2021 (story now continues from this date)

Clara's PoV

'Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Look what Daddy showed me. Daddy showed me how to hold the flowers' Poppy said as I slammed the front door and found John teaching Poppy how to throw the flowers correctly and playing with Henry on the floor.

'Very good. So your going to be a very good little flower girl for us then?' I laughed.

'Yessss' she squeaked.

I chuckled kissing the 4 year olds forehead and went into the kitchen where I found Avia hunched over yet another book.

'What you reading now?'

'Pride and Prejudice. Daddy said that it was okay now that I'm almost 11' Avia said proudly.

'Afternoon Lil' I said as she started plating up the dinner that she had obviously been slaving away at all afternoon.

'Hey Clara. How was the inset day?' Lilly smirked.

'It was good. I hate inset days because I always just end up sitting in my classroom all day doing nothing. It's so dull. But I stopped in to see Evie on the way home'

'Is she excited about the wedding?'

'Not really. She doesn't even want to come. Richard is trying and I'll give him his do for that, but what she doesn't realise is that her life will be completely different with Richard. John gives her everything. Richard doesn't make nearly as much money as John does - and whilst John wouldn't make her go without... He could still cut her off at any moment'

'Have you explained that? Because she's only 9. She hasn't thought about that?' Lilly pointed out lifting Ollie into his high chair.

Ollie was a cute little thing. Defiantly a lady killer in the making, but put him and Henry together and it's like asking for trouble.

'John pays for her school, so she wouldn't be at Oakwood anymore with her sisters. She'd not see her sisters as often and all her money would be cut off' I said rolling my eyes.

'She would still see them. She would see Ollie?' Lilly suggested.

Richard moving into a flat on his own was a very dramatic moment that Richard actually hated the idea of but Lilly was the one who kicked him out.

He still sees Ollie every weekend when Lilly drops him off there - but it's more complicated now that Evie has moved in with Richard. I still remember the argument day vividly.

'She'll be fine'

'We said that two weeks ago. I thought she'd be on the doorstep the next day begging to come back but she hasn't' I complained. 'He lives in a two bedroom flat in London. I don't know how she can bare it. She wouldn't have her horse anymore either. Or the dog'

'Maybe you should tell her all this stuff? The last thing you want is to come back from the honeymoon and find that she has made this a permanent choice' Lilly said cutting herself off as John walked in.

'What are you talking about?'

'The damn wedding dress. Clara can not make up her mind if she should get it altered or not'

'Clara you'd look beautiful if you walked down the isle in a bin bag. Don't fret too much about the dress' John said rolling his eyes, and kissed Clara's forehead, then depressingly sat down at the table.

He was sulking still two weeks later basically that Evie had decided to move out. It was all his fault in my opinion but at the end of the day I suppose Evie was no angel either.

It was also quite awkward in the fact the Richard still works with John in close quarters but that Evie now lives with Richard.

The tension is thick when their in a room together - I've witnessed it and its not fun.

'So how was your day? What did you guys get up too?' I asked changing the subject quickly before it was too late.

'We went to buy Ollie and Henry's suits. They looked really cute' Avia assured me as she squeezed her little brothers cheek.

We had decided that we would leave their suits to the very last minute considering they are only just 2 and are very much growing all the time.

Ollie's 3 next month and Henry will be 3 in December, so they are very close in age and size.

In fact their very close in everything, and like Lilly says they are a nightmare when they are together.

They are best friends already, and stir up trouble - mainly for Poppy who is only two years older than them - all the time. They know exactly what their doing in just their toddler age.

Henry was becoming the little man of the house now, as he was growing older and starting to resemble his father a lot more than he used too.

We haven't forgotten about Lucie - we tell him about her and explain that I'm not his real Mum but because the others call me Mummy so he does as well.

There's the odd occasion where he will say Clara even at his age and I'm sure that will become more frequent as he grows up.

Poppy is a proper little girl now with her dimples and long brown hair - the absolute spitting image of Evie as when she was little. She looks exactly like her that it's frightening and really quite impossible how.

Avia is a woman now - at almost 11 years old gone are the days of teddies and Sylvanion families, she wants clothes and knickers now. I mean she asked John about bras the other day and he nearly spat out his tea sending her in my direction.

He wasn't prepared for what came next in their lives and unfortunately for John it had come a lot quicker than he wanted.

Even with their petite figures they were too old and too cool to be carried now and didn't want cuddles or bed time stories like they used too which has hit John a lot more and a lot harder than it has hit me.

At least he still has Poppy and Henry for now because when he doesn't have them any more - who knows how he might react.

He very nearly had a fifth child in the last three years - with us both getting on to 35 at the time it was a bit of a shock to say the least when we found out I was pregnant - but it didn't go to plan and unfortunately for the both of us it was quite recent and we are still mourning that.

Mostly John though. That's half of his mood problem.

Evie is a right little diva now. I remember the days when John couldn't let her choose her clothes because nothing would match but suddenly she's come out of her box and chooses all of her own taste now.

She doesn't need her Dad to pick her jeans anymore because she chooses them herself.

We always thought that she would grow up slower than the others but she has excelled in the last 6 months faster than John could count which is why they had been bashing heads all the time.

Lilly and Richard were happy as pie until she kicked him out 6 months ago.

It was just after mine and John's rough patch - and I still wasn't completely sure the reason why they weren't together anymore.

All I ever heard was that they needed space and a break from each other.

They weren't divorced though. They hadn't even filed for divorce. They were making it work apart from each other.

It was sad really because they had just celebrated their 5 year wedding anniversary and couldn't be happier then something happened which made if all go wrong but because we were in a rough patch ourselves - nothing was really explained.

I don't need or want any more kids now though and realistically neither does John. He's just upset that he's got a child in the double figures. Soon the teenage years will take them over and things will not quite be the same. Boobs and boyfriends - that John was not looking forward too.