The Bench// a Joe and Dianne Story

15

Legs splayed, tongue poking out, glasses that he generally refused to wear stuffed on his face, Joe Sugg was sat reading the most complicated instructions for a relatively simple looking baby swing. When he had first tipped it out of the box it had looked easy and he had been certain he’d get it built quickly- now, he wasn’t so sure.

Earlier on that day had been Dianne’s surprise baby shower that Amy and Annie had set up for her in a small function room down the road from her flat. Joe had been invited, along with several of Dianne’s dancer friends, male and female, her close family and a small smattering of Luke’s. There had also been some non-dance friends but they were few and far between generally. It had been a surprise party because Dianne had insisted she didn’t want a baby shower, as she wanted to save all the money she had to put towards the baby. Amy had given her one though, stating that she deserved one after the time she had and had paid for everything herself with a little help from her fellow planner.

For Joe it had been a bit of an odd experience because, first of all, he had never attended a baby shower before, he had had to panic phone call his mum and Rina to establish what to do and what to get her. The second was, as with the party, and the wedding a little, although he had been able to stick to Dianne’s side for most of the day, he felt like a bit of a lemon, an outlier, who didn’t know many people who weren’t directly involved in the running of the day.

At the end of the day, or rather the party, Dianne had cashed in one of Joe’s promises and requested that he come over and build some baby bits for her. This was a promise he had made over FaceTime, which was now apparently what they did, when Joe had been in New York working.

Joe wasn’t regretting the promise per se, anything to ease Dianne’s to do list before the baby arrived was the least anyone could do, but was proving a much harder task than it initially appeared. And not one, he noted her significant waddle and pauses to take deep breaths, he could put off.

“So, A into C tighten with star-tipped Alan-wrench. Repeat on other side, seems simple enough,” he mumbled, leaning against the armchair Dianne had in her living room. Joe slowly followed the instructions and eventually one sturdy swing stood in front of him. With Oliver down in the nursery, Joe left it in a corner and grabbed the big box that was his gift to Dianne that he knew, when he bought it, he would have to assemble. He gently set it down and began opening it, thinking back to earlier on at the end of the shower where she had come over and thanked him... and told him off.

■■■

“You’re naughty too,” Dianne said, jabbing Joe’s chest, as he came over, “that is the best swing out there. That’s way too much.”

“Well, it said it might make your life easier and I guessed your mum and Luke’s mum would be getting cots and prams and stuff and I wanted to treat you to something that makes your life easier.”

“You didn’t have to get me anything, honestly.”

“I know but you deserved it. Amy’s right you’ve not had the best time with it all and we all wanted to ensure the whole second baby thing was as easy as we could make it. And honestly,” he added, hugging her tightly, “there’s not anyone I can think of who deserves all of this more.”

“If I hadn’t been crying all day Joseph I’d be bawling now, thank you,” she hugged him tightly, glad to feel him hug her back with the same tightness. He kissed her crown and rubbed her back, which she was grateful for, as the moment his arms had wrapped around her, she had started crying.