The Crown

20

Anna's POV

"You ready to go Poppy?" I ask.

"Yeah." Poppy says and holds out her hand.

I'm finally taking Poppy out to celebrate her being cancer free.

"Let's go." I say and take her hand.

The two of us get in my car and head to Nando's to eat before we do whatever Poppy wants to do.

Once at Nando's, I parked then the two of us head inside and order our food and pay for it.

When our food comes out I listen to Poppy talk about her friends, how her schooling is going, and her new football team while we eat.

"So you're playing as a forward?" I ask.

"Mhmm." Poppy says and takes a drink. "I wanna be like Christen Press when I grow up."

"Oh you do do you?" I question with a smile then get out my phone.

"Yeah." Poppy says with a smile.

"Wanna talk to Christen Press?" I ask.

"Really?"

"Yeah." I say and call my girlfriend

"Hey Baba." Christen says when she picks up.

"Hey Babe." I say with a smile. "There's someone I want you to meet."

"Okay." Christen says so I put the phone down then place Poppy on my lap.

"Christen..." I say as I pick up the phone. "This is Poppy...Poppy this is Christen Press."

"Hi sweetie." Christen says with a smile.

"Hi." Poppy shyly mumbles.

Christen and Poppy talk while I finish off my food.

Periodically I hand Poppy some of her food too.

30 minuets later Christen has to go so Poppy and I say goodbye then we finish our food.

Once our food is finished we get back into the car and head to Buckingham Palace.

When we get to the palace I drive through the gate and park my car then the two of us get out and head to the front of the palace where the royal guards are.

Poppy wants to try to get them to move or smile.

"Do you think they'll move?" Poppy asks.

"Maybe." I say as we approach one of the guards.

I stand off to the side as Poppy tries everything in her power to get the guard to move.

She dances around him, tugs on his pants, and many other things, but like always he remains stoic.

"Meanie." Poppy pouts so I pick her up and take her over to the guard.

"She beat cancer." I say. "Doesn't that deserve a smile?"

The guard chuckles to himself then smiles.

"He smiled." Poppy happily says.

"You did it Poppy." I say.

"Okay I'm happy now." Poppy says and leans her head on my shoulder.

"Ready to go to the aquarium?" I ask.

"Mhmm." Poppy says.

The two of us head back to my car and get in it then we drive to SEA LIFE Centre London Aquarium. Once at the aquarium I park then the two of us head to the ticket booth and pay. We then head into the aquarium and start walking around the place.

"That's a big shark." Poppy says as we walk over sharks.

"That it is." I say.

We continue walking through the aquarium and see different types of sharks, jellyfish, sea turtles, and whole bunch of fish among other things.

"She's so cute." Poppy squeals as we watch penguins playing with each other.

"You wanna see something?" I ask and Poppy nods.

I lead her around the corner to a door then knock on the door. A worker opens the door and lets us inside then she leads us to a conservation room.

"Anna what we doing?" Poppy asks so I squat down to her height then point in front of her.

"Look." I say and point to a penguin.

"PEGUIN." Poppy shouts as the penguin waddles to us.

This penguin can't be returned to the wild, for some reason or another, so this place uses her as a teaching tool for kids to get them more interested in conservation.

"Be careful with her." I say as the penguin gets to us.

Poppy and I gently stroke the penguin for a while then we feed her some fish.

"You tired?" I ask when I see Poppy yawn.

"Mhmm." Poppy sleepily mumbles.

"Ready to go home?"

"Yeah."

Poppy and I say bye to the penguin then I pick Poppy up and carry her out to the gift shop so she can get her a stuffed penguin. Once we have Poppy's penguin I carry poppy out of the aquarium and to the car. I then drive to Poppy's house and once we're there I carry the sleeping little girl up to her door and knock on it.

"Hey." Poppy's mom whispers with a smile

"Hi." I say as Poppy's dad take her and her penguin from me. "She feel asleep in the car."

"Thank you for this."

"Of course." I say.

"Thanks Anna." Poppy says.

"Your welcome sweetheart." I say then Poppy's father takes her to her room. "Enjoy the rest of your evening."

"You too Anna." Poppy's mom says.

I hug the woman then I get back in my car and head to Kensington Palace. When I get to the Palace I park then head to my apartment. Once in my apartment I grab my suitcases and place them on my bed then start packing.

A couple minutes later I grab my Mac and FaceTime my girlfriend.

"Hey Baba." Christen says with a smile.

"Hello My Love." I say and smile at my girlfriend.

"Watcha doin?"

"Packing." I say. "Speaking of which do I need to bring anything special?"

"Not really." Christen says. "Actually bring a nice outfit because we might go to a fancy restaurant."

"Will do." I say.

"So how was your day with Poppy?"

"It was great." I say with a smile. "She deserves to feel like a normal kid again."

"You know you're a really good person." Christen says with a smile.

"Just treating Poppy how I would want someone to treat my future little kid."

"How many more kids do you want?" Christen asks.

"At least two more." I admit. "I can't imagine growing up without a sibling.

"Same." Christen says. "So Anna..."

"Yes Christen?" I say.

"You ready to meet my family?"