The Draw

35

She could hear giggling, it sounded far away. It was loud enough to wake her from her deep sleep but far away enough that she was initially confused. Evie had been in bed with her all night. Where was she now?

The giggling got louder and she could also head Dan, shushing. Stacey could hardly bring herself to peel back the warm, cosy covers from her bed. Her head was pounding. She couldn't remember what time she stumbled up to bed but it had been very late. She and Daniel had stayed up talking and drinking, mostly about stupid stuff. She didn't want to think about the breakdown of her marriage anymore. There was a knock at the door and more giggling. She compromised by sticking just the top of her head out to see what was going on.

In the door stood Evie and Dan, he holding a tray. Evie was dressed in mismatched tshirt and shorts combo with her hair in a side ponytail. Stacey laughed.

'Morning mummy!' Evie threw herself onto the bed, landing on Stacey's stomach and knocking the air out of her.

'We thought we'd make you breakfast in bed.' Dan grinned. Stacey sat herself up and cuddled her little girl, making her squeal. Dan placed the tray onto her legs.

'I made the toast!' Evie yelled. The toast was burnt and had holes where she had tried to spread the butter.

'I made the cereal.' Dan grinned again. 'And the tea.'

'Thank you so much baby.' She kissed Evie.

'Danny said I'm allowed to come to work with him today, but I have to ask you.' Evie said, bouncing around the bed.

'Erm.' It was too early for thought processing. She looked at her watch, it was 9am. She hadn't meant to sleep so late.

'I thought you might like a day to get stuff sorted.'

'If you're sure? That would be great.' She could go back to the house and talk to Liam. Surely he would've seen how much he'd over reacted by now. 'You can go with Daniel baby, that's fine.'

Evie screamed and ran out the room, dragging Dan with her. He shouted that they'd be back later.

'Dont forget the carseat Dan.' She called. 'Don't give her anything fizzy! And good luck!' She lay in bed for a few more hours. It had been years since she'd been able to do this. And it felt good. She wondered how Dan was getting on with Evie on his own for the first time. She wasn't at all worried about how Evie was getting along, she would have him running around after her, she was sure. Then her mind switched to Liam. He was supposed to be in the office that day. She'd rang and text him but had no reply. She was tempted to go and see him at work. She didn't want to cause a scene but she couldn't sit and do nothing any longer.

She got up and dressed quickly and dived into the car. She went to the house first and let herself in. His car wasn't in the driveway. What she found inside broke her hopes entirely. Everything she owned was in boxes. All of Evie's things were in boxes. Toys, clothes, photos, pictures she'd drawn, cards she'd sent to Liam for Father's Day and his birthday. All trace of them was scoured from the house they'd shared. Even Stacey's favourite mugs were boxed up. She tried not to cry. She tried her hardest not to fall apart. Why was he doing this? It seemed such a disproportionate reaction to such a silly argument. Bernie, their golden retriever dog, sat happily wagging his tail at her.

'I'm sorry baby, I can't take you with me. Be a good boy.' She said sadly, scratching behind his ears.

As she loaded the last box into her car, she looked back at the house. She refused to fight for a man who had so easily given up on her. Once again, she was heartbroken and alone.