Their Lives In Her Hands

A Birthday To Remember. *Part Two*.

A Birthday To Remember.

Part Two.

Tuesday 14th, January. 15:10pm

       Mikaela left school with her best friend, Bethany, who lived in the same block of flats as her. Andrew always gave them both a lift to school in a morning, knowing full well that if it was left to them, they would almost definitely be late.

They laughed and joked, and obviously as teenage girls do, talked about a boy from their class. "Isn't he just gorgeous though?!" Bethany beamed, as she watched him while he walked up the other side of the road.

"I guess. Anyway, you going straight home or coming to my grandma's for my party? By the way, a warning, my dad will be there." She giggled, knowing her dad wasn't really that bad.

"Yeah, sure, I'll come. Saves spending time with my family. My brother has the flu and is in a really bad mood so I'll take just about anything to get out of that damn flat." Bethany said.

"Oh, so my party is 'just anything' now?" Mikaela said, giggling.

"You know what I mean. And hey, your dad isn't that bad. Stop complaining. At least you know your dad. I don't even know my dad's name!" She had never been bothered about that. She'd grown up with just her mother and brother, it was all she knew. It was normal.

In fact, people having fathers seemed a little alien to her, because her mother never spoke about her dad, or told her his name, how they met or whether he was even still alive. 

And Bethany never questioned any of that. She was with her mother and older brother, Darren, and that was all she had ever needed.

So at three forty-five that afternoon, Bethany had changed out of her school uniform, while Mikaela spoke to Sally-Ann, Bethany's mother, in the front room.

"Okay, we're off." Bethany told her mother.

"All right, have a nice time. And happy birthday, Mikki." Sally-Ann said.

Mikki was Mikaela's nickname. Sometimes even her father called her Mikki. Unless she was in trouble. They made their way from Bethany's flat and walked about half an hour until they got to Pearl's home. When they got there, Pearl was outside, putting some rubbish in the bin.

"Hey, grandma." Mikaela said. She smiled at her grandma.

"Happy birthday Mikaela!" Her grandmother beamed. "You're homemade cake is all ready. Strawberry icing because I know it's your favourite." Pearl smiled.

"Thanks. This is Bethany." She gestured to her friend standing quietly by the side of her. "My best friend from school."

"Oh, hello, love. Mikaela's told me about you. Nice to meet you." She smiled at the blonde fourteen year old.

"Nice to meet you too, Mrs Devall." Bethany smiled.

"Oh, please. Call me Pearl." She waved a hand in the air and grinned.

"Okay, nice to meet you Pearl." Bethany smiled.

"Go on inside, it's cold out here, and your father had spent all day preparing the front room for you. He even set up one of those CD player things so you can have some music." Pearl said.

"Okay, thank you grandma."

Mikaela let her friend follow her into the house where she was greeted by her Aunt Katerina and her husband, Luke, and her father. Obviously no one else had turned up yet.

Suddenly little Marshall ran over to her and said, "Mikki! Look at my Spiderman!"

"Oh, wow! That's so cool. Can I have it?"

"No!" He shouted and clutched it close to his chest. "It's mine. Kat gave it to me."

Kat was what he called his step-mother, Katerina. "So leave it alone!"

"Okay, I was only joking!" Mikaela said.

"He's not been well." Katerina said as she approached her niece. "Happy birthday, missy." She gave Mikaela a hug. "How was school?"

"Same old. You know, a fight kicking off in the field, a teacher getting shit for being a di-"

"I don't think your father would approve of that language." Katerina interrupted, glancing behind her at her brother. "But he can't hear, so go on..."

"A fight in the field, a teacher getting shit in the hall for being a dick. Dinner ladies having snowballs thrown at them and being told to 'shit off'. Never heard that one before but I think I'll claim it." Mikaela said, and shrugged.

"I take it you're Bethany?" Katerina asked the blonde girl standing shyly behind Mikaela. "I'm her auntie, call me Kat." She smiled.

"Okay, nice to meet you Kat." Bethany said quietly. At school she seemed so outgoing, and confident. But secretly she was shy, and quiet.

They continued with the party as soon as more of Mikaela's school friends and family arrived. There was music, cake and they all sang 'happy birthday' to "Mikki".

They ate cake, danced a little more, messed around with party poppers, balloons and Andrew made Mikaela and all her friends laugh by singing 'Happy Birthday', again, but this time after inhaling helium, and Mikaela talked and gossiped with her friends until they had to go home at eight pm. Her dad helped tidy up and Mikaela went home at about nine p.m

When her dad awoke the next morning, Mikaela wasn't there.

So he assumed that had walked to school, then got himself ready for his part-time job at Tesco.         

Carry on to Chapter Two:

*****

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