His legs went on forever.You used to wave your legs in the air, she said.He said nothing. Silent, then, Grace carried Danny through to the bedroom, bouncing him in her arms. If Danny laughs everything’ll be OK, she thought, knew it was cheating Bouncing always made Danny laugh. So she bounced him up and down as she walked, something simple, nothing at all, and he laughed as she knew he would. Hearing him laugh without knowing what had hit him, what had hit either of them, Grace knew suddenly she would have to be good She knew that more than anything else She would have to be a very very good person from now on. She knew he was looking at her, not thinking anything was strange about this, nothing at all It was frightening sometimes, that he took your word for it.
He wasn’t going to ask where Aiden was because Aiden hadn’t been in at bath-time There was nothing to explain Not yet, anyway. She thought some more and wasn’t sure he would manage with that few, rounded up some more There were six before the top and that seemed fine Food and six cars She wanted everything to be right before she started. Before she went into Danny’s room.Inside was pitchy, the room trailing a faint scent of peaches and sweat. She stood in the dark listening to the noise of his breathing, gauging how deep he was, and for a moment that was all she wanted to do Then she heard him moving. Something about her being there, something different about the way the room felt with her in it, must have woken him and he was ruffling the sheets, trying to sit up Danny was like that – either asleep or awake He didn’t wait in the space too long. Grace could tell by the noises that he was sitting up properly now, scratching his head, yawning Then he reached She reached back, picked him out of the bedsheets So warm you could have cooked eggs on him. He rubbed his eyes, speechless, and she caught the familiar scent of his breath.
She put them in a box with a snap-on lid that had been living purposelessly under the sink for ages, then got out the kitchen. Halfway up the stairs she banged her shin and noticed her feet were freezing That meant slippers, Danny should have slippers. Enough toys not tidied up left on the stairs gave her two cars – one for each of his hands. I really do.So.So.THE NIGHT Aiden left, the night her man left, Grace went to the opera. She packed two cartons of apple juice, the wee ones with straws, and took both to be on the safe side. A packet of crisps, two wee boxes of raisins instead of sweeties A picnic demanded more, though Her eyes found out the bread-bin They should have the whole thing. There were only two slices left, door-stop ends, but they’d do.