Every word that I said

'I will gladly break my heart for you'

She wasn't sure if she made the right decision, she never would know because once you've decided, you'll never know what would have happened otherwise.

She had been woken up early, Eve had run into her room, telling her that it was her birthday. She had smiled and given her daughter a hug, the three of them singing her happy birthday. She had her party the day before, her birthday being on a Sunday meant that the four of them are spending it at home. It's what she had asked for, there had been a big party at an indoor play centre, the three of them seemed to have a wonderful time. Plus, it tired them out enough to give Dianne a free evening to wrap her daughters presents.

It had been similar to the one they had taken the kids too when Eve and Ivy were little, but it wasn't the same. They had moved to the other side of London, a fresh start for the family. The gang had disbanded, her parents were dead, Brenden was dead, and Andrew was in prison, she was on her own. For the first time in her life, she had been alone. She was able to make her own decisions, without thinking of the consequences it would have on everyone but her own family. If she weren't so sad, she would have found it liberating.

She had made it work, she had enough money to buy her house outright, a mixture of drug money and her inheritance. She had gotten a job, working uptown and the kids had moved to a new school, they were young enough to adapt. They had made a life and she was about to threaten it all, she didn't know how this was going to work out. Just by talking to Joe, she had risked everything.

In her younger years, she had been reckless. Then she had kids and suddenly her life had a new meaning. It was her job to protect them, it was her job to make sure they were happy. All the decisions she had made in the last two years was because of them, because they meant more to her than her own life. She didn't know if this was going to be the right thing to-do, she told herself it wasn't a good idea but, in the end, she had relented. She doesn't know why she agreed to meet him in the first place, it was almost like a form of torture, seeing him and have everything brought up again.

Except, she needed to focus on the kids. If she told herself it was for the kids, it didn't seem to hurt so much. It was the whole thesis of the measure of motherhood was how much of yourself would you give up for them. In Dianne's case, it was her whole life. Everything about this was wrong, she was letting the man who was solely responsible for ruining her family and her family's reputation. She was doing it to make her children happy.

'Right Eve, I have a present for the three of you.' Dianne declares, as she sees a car pull up.

'But it's my birthday.' She pouts, Dianne raises a finger and warns her, as the doorbell rings, she wonders if the sound of it went up during the night, because it seemed to be much, much louder.

'Ivy, for the love of God, hold marmalade properly. Actually, give her to me, and we'll open the front door. Don't want her running out now.' She says, kissing the cats head as she coerces the kids towards the door. 'Your present is behind the door, why don't you open it together.'

She studies the kids face as the door is pulled back. Billie is the one who first sees the figure, as expected she remains emotionless, clearly unsure as to who the figure is. Ivy is the same, which had consolidated Dianne's belief that she was only asking because of Eve. That if it wasn't for Eve, she probably could have gotten away with never seeing Joe again because they have seemed to have forgotten him. But Eve wanted him, and she needed him to be there.

Eve, one the other hand, looks back at her mum, tears springing into her eyes. Dianne knows that she made the right decision, silently communicating with her daughter through a nod of a head.

'Mumma.' Billie looks up, tugging her mums' arm. 'Who is he?'

'Daddy.' Eve throws her arm around him. 'You've come back.' In that moment, it reaffirmed to Dianne that it was the right thing to-do, she watched as her nine-year-old daughter reduced the man to tears, as she tried to hold back her own tears, watching the two younger girls understand what is going on.

'I'm home baby girl.' He cries, his voice distorted, 'I'm back and I'm never going again.'

The End

(A/N Thought's?)