Fresh Starts//Cheradine

Home Sweet Home.

Everything is of course fictional..

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The front door unlocked as Nadine turned the key in the lock, clutching Ayaiya's hand in her own Nadine smiled down at her daughter as she pushed the door open.

Almost two days worth of travelling back from Australia had Nadine exhausted so she couldn't imagine how tired her little girl was. Lifting the young girl up on her waist, Nadine dragged their suitcases behind her and closed the door over.

It was just the two of them for tonight, Nadine had made it clear she wanted a night alone with her daughter despite both Jason and her parents insisting but after a month away all she wanted to do was cuddle up in bed with Anaíya by her side. The plan was to stay in London for a week or so and then head back to Ireland for Christmas with the whole family and Nadine couldn't wait.

"Mammy?" Nadine smiled at the young girls tired mumbling against her neck, enjoying how clingy the young girl had been the past few days.

"Yes baby?" Nadine replied, chucking the house keys on the kitchen counter as she moved towards the fridge glad to see someone had kindly stocked it up for their return.

Pulling out a carton of milk, she opened the kitchen cupboard above the counter to grab a plastic cup before filling it half full.

Placing Anaíya down on the kitchen counter, Nadine handed the young girl the cup as she brushed back the stray hairs from her daughters face.

"Can we go to bed?" Nadine chuckled at the question, glancing up at the clock hanging above the kitchen door it read 10 o'clock in the morning.

"Of course we can honey." Nadine knew it was best not to let the young girl sleep for too long but it was the only way to avoid any tantrums later in the day. Anaíya lifted her arms up, motioning to get lifted up again.

Nadine couldn't help the tears that sprung to her eyes as her daughter nuzzled her face right into her neck, Anaíya's arms and legs wrapping tightly around her body.

It had been a roller-coaster of emotions, facing her fears and trying to get back to her old sense of self confidence. One thing she had learnt was that she would do anything to make her daughter proud, it was a new beginning for them but first they were most definitely in need of some sleep.

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Anaíya was fast asleep, wedged as tightly to Nadine's body as possible her little arm possessively clung around her mother's waist.

Jetlag hardly ever affected Nadine, years of travelling back and fore between LA and London had her more or less immune to the side effects. The Irish women couldn't be sure how long she had been laying watching her daughter sleep for, happy to watch the rise and fall of her little chest.

The sound of her phone chiming not for the first time on the bed side table broke her out of her thoughts, carefully reaching behind her Nadine picked the phone up thankfully not waking Anaíya in the process.

Hitting the home button, Nadine's phone screen lit up with multiple notifications appearing. Jason's name popping up with multiple texts wondering how she and Anaíya were. It was the phone call from an unknown number at the top of the list that had her eyebrows knotting together, not recognising the number at all.

Just as she went to unlock her phone, a text came through from the same number.

'Hey Nadine. Not sure if this is still the right number. Its Kimberley. X'

Nadine's eyes widened, not sure she was seeing things properly she read over the text multiple times.

Although Nadine avoided reading newspapers and online articles it was hard to miss the rumours of a WhatsApp group set up by the other girls to plot against her. It was one of the first things her sisters had mentioned when they were sat in the car after her departure from the jungle headed back to the hotel. Every single interview she had given, it was brought up but all she could do was give a vague answer and hope that they didn't twist it into something it wasn't.