Page 42 of One More Time

He took a breath, and then another – tired didn’t even scratch the surface of how worn-out he was. If only he could hit the pause button on their life, just for one blissful day. Rubbing his temples, he contemplated just how crazy it was that he missed his wife so much when they lived beneath the same roof. The only time she seemed to have for him was whatever crumbs she had left at the end of each day. And he would always find time for her. That’s what he found most upsetting.

Bending to pick up Hope’s Rubik’s cube on his trek down the hallway – he had tried and tried to complete the darn thing and couldn’t – he placed it on the hallway table beside her Walkman. Post-it notes were stuck to the wall above the key bowl – drop videos back, hairdresser Monday 4pm, car service Friday 9am, dentist 4pm Thursday. So many need-to-dos and must-dos, but no want-to-dos. Charlie almost wrote his own note, date night Friday 7pm, but stopped himself. Grace would fly off the handle if he asked Jenny and Marty to watch the kids because, as she firmly told him the last time he did it, four kids were a handful at the best of times, and especially at bedtime.

He strode into the kitchen, a man on a mission, but found himself at a loss as to what job he should tackle – the dishes, feeding the twins, entertaining sweet Ava? MTV played from the kitchen television, and Whitney Houston’s ‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody’ competed with the loud clatter of kitchen noises. The microwave came to a halt and beeped three times. Grace flung the door open and retrieved a bowl of porridge, with their newest addition balanced on her hip. Ava tugged at her mum’s loose hair as Grace blustered around the kitchen, banging and slamming everything she touched. In the twins’ boosters, side by side at the dining table, Hudson and Bryn thumped their spoons against their plates. Charlie was sure there was more scrambled egg in their laps, squashed into their hair and thrown to the floor than in their bellies.

‘Boys, that’s enough!’ Depositing Ava on the floor, Grace fired her warning at her three-year-old sons as she straightened then stormed to the sink, retrieving the boys’ washcloths.

Falling silent, the boys scowled at each other, as if weighing up their next move. Then they began to cry. Grace grumbled beneath her breath as she made a beeline for them.

‘Here, let me do it, love.’ Charlie turned to Hudson and Bryn, pulling funny faces as he wiped them down. They giggled madly, and it warmed his heart to no end to see their happy faces.

The back door slammed and Hope skipped into the room, her face and dress covered in mud, an equally dirty Nugget eagerly in tow. ‘Can I have one of the chocolate cupcakes we made yesterday, Mum? I’m absolutely starving,’ she said right before blowing a massive pink bubble with her gum.

Lifting Hudson from his booster, Charlie stifled a chuckle as the bubble popped and Hope tried to pick strawberry Hubba Bubba from where it had burst all over her face.

Hands on hips, Grace slid to a stop in front of her daughter. ‘My god, child, look at the state of you.’ She fruitlessly tried to tidy Hope’s mop of chaotic hair. ‘You know we’re meant to be going to town soon,’ she tutted. ‘You’re going to have to have another bath, and get changed.’

‘Sorry, Mum.’ Successfully getting all the gum back into her mouth, she looked at Nugget, who now sat devotedly at her feet, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. ‘Nugget made me do it.’

‘Do what, exactly?’ Grace tipped her head, her left brow rising in interrogation.

‘Slip over in the puddle.’ Eyes wide, Hope’s expression was deadly serious.

‘Did he now?’

‘Yes.’ Hope nodded exaggeratedly. ‘We were playing with the ball and then it landed in the water, and then …’ She threw her hands up in the air, ‘… you can guess what happened next.’

‘Knowing you like I do, I think you chose to play in the puddle, Hope.’ Grace folded her arms. ‘And that was very naughty, given you are in your good dress.’ She pointed out the doorway. ‘Upstairs, now, and get cleaned up please. Then you can come back downstairs and have some fruit for morning tea. There’ll be plenty of opportunity for sugar at the party.’

‘Okay, Mum.’ Her bottom lip dropping and her chin wobbling, Hope’s gaze was downcast as she shuffled past Charlie.

‘She wouldn’t have been able to drag her feet any more if she tried,’ he said, once Hope was out of earshot, trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere.

Grace made a humph sound as she disappeared into the walk-in pantry. ‘Can you please take the boys upstairs and bathe them? Then get them in the outfits I have at the end of their beds, so I can at least try and find some time to look somewhat presentable for the barbecue.’

Halfway through the feat of catching a grape in the air, much to the twins’ delight, Charlie almost choked when it landed in his mouth. ‘What barbecue?’ he garbled.

Grace reappeared with two Tupperware containers and a don’t-mess-with-me glare.

He pulled an oh-crap face.

‘Damn it, Charlie!’ She dumped the containers on the bench. ‘I told you on Wednesday that the Girl Guides are having a barbecue this afternoon to raise money for their field trip.’ She sucked in a sharp breath, her gaze narrowing. ‘And don’t even think of trying to get out of it this time. It’s a family event and we’re all going.’

‘Oh, bugger, yes, you did.’ Charlie mentally slapped himself. Between the bedlam of his job and the chaos of their home life, Hope’s Girl Guide gathering had totally slipped his mind. ‘I’m so sorry I forgot. I’ll go and get the boys sorted, and you take all the time you need to get ready.’

‘Thank you, Charlie.’ She breathed what sounded like a sigh of relief as she began plonking delectable-looking chocolate cupcakes and her famous macadamia and white chocolate biscuits into the bright orange containers she’d paid an arm and leg for at Jenny’s latest Tupperware party. ‘I still have to bake a batch of brownies, too, I ran out of time last night. I’ll whip a batch up now and then go jump in the shower.’

‘I can help with the brownies, in between wrestling these two munchkins into their Sunday finest,’ he said, over his shoulder, as he ushered the twins from where they were now playing under the dining table.

‘No, all good.’ She flashed him a teeny smile. ‘Trust me, you’re going to need all the luck and time in the world, wrangling that pair of squirming worms into their clothes.’ Her playful cadence lightened Charlie’s heart a little. ‘And they’re both so quick now. One minute they’re right under my feet, and the next, gone.’ She clicked her fingers. ‘Like a pair of little magicians.’

‘Tell me about it,’ he agreed with a chuckle.

‘I just did.’ Her smile spread to her eyes.

That’s when he knew she was genuinely happy. Charlie almost danced on the spot – it was so nice to take part in their banter. Buoyed by her unexpected playfulness, he tried to take the opportunity to tell her how much he loved her and missed her. But he missed his chance as a crash sounded. Ava tumbled backward on the floor from where she’d been quietly balancing on the bottom shelf of the fridge.

‘Oh, my goodness, sweetheart, are you okay?’ Charlie rushed to her aid.