"For one night, and one night only we welcome back Britain's biggest girlband ever. Oh yes that's right, it's Girls Aloud" Dermot boomed down the microphone as the studio audience screamed furiously in delight.
Backstage the girls all held each other's hands tightly as they could hear their introduction being played out to the nation. The screams grew louder, the clapping grew more forceful, the wait was almost over and all five of them couldn't have been happier. Cheryl had let Lola sit in the audience with Holly so she would be able to see them perform and would also be in close quarters with her father. She still couldn't believe how well both Lola and Simon had taken to each other and she hoped that it was a sign of things to come.
Simon watched the screens in front of him; he saw flashes of Cheryl's life right before him. Her auditioning for Popstars, her winning, numerous music videos, the girls winning their Brit Award and numerous other monumental moments in their lives and he couldn't help but smile. He saw her smile transform from her teenage years right up until now, in her early thirties and no matter what tragedies had happened to her throughout her time in the limelight, the dimpled grin had remained permanently on her perfect face.
He saw a clip of Girls Aloud performing on X Factor as their official final television appearance and his mind worked on overdrive. He watched as Cheryl darted around the stage in her tiny dress and killer heels, she would have been two months pregnant he had figured. He guessed she might have known, and she still was willing to perform in those ridiculous shoes and a tight dress knowing that it wasn't good for her. That was Cheryl through and through he sighed, she was a performer down to the bone. When everything else was going wrong he knew she could stand on the stage and would be immediately happy, it was her facade and he realised that was what she had done then. The night that Girls Aloud ended, she pretended she was fine when in reality she was already planning on escaping from Simon and taking their baby, evidentially a daughter, away from him.
"Girls Aloud" Peter Dickinson boomed over the speakers in his legendary voice and the room fell into an anticipated silence and Simon looked across to his right and saw Lola sitting on Holly's knee. She was grinning and crossing her fingers as she waited for her mum and aunts to appear on the stage. She turned her head slightly and saw Simon watching her, she immediately smiled that all familiar dimpled smile and waved in his direction. Her father responded by winking back at her and giving her a thumbs up to which she giggled.
* * *
"It's good to hear your voice; you know it's been so long. If I don't get your call, then everything goes wrong. I want to tell you something you've known all along" Cheryl sang seductively as she waltzed around the judges' desk, wiggling her hips as she slithered passed Simon. He caught her gazed and rolled his eyes at her, she laughed into the microphone and he was pleased with himself as now everyone knew she had just sung live.
The girls finished and were met with a standing ovation from the audience, judges and crew. They hugged each other and jumped around on stage as the adrenaline took over their petite frames. It was only when Dermot grabbed Cheryl's hand that they began to calm down, "now it's amazing to have you all back on this stage, especially you Cheryl" he smiled as she blushed a slight crimson colour, "want to explain why you girls were persuaded to get involved with Children In Need again?"
Cheryl looked out to the audience and spotted Simon and Lola waving to each other and her heart melted. That was the moment she had waited for, the moment where her family would be watching her perform and then be able to communicate with each other about it. Lola jumped up and down in excitement which Cheryl knew was a good thing whereas Simon simply saluted her. She felt the tears forming in her eyes at his gesture; she remembered how they fought over who had saluted first.
Simon watched as her eyes glazed over at his salute towards her, he thought about how he had laughed at her for saying she was saluting her fans. He had called her big headed and she had retaliated with the statement that he had stole it of her, it had become their thing. It was their salute and he prayed he hadn't pushed her too soon by repeating it after so long.
"Children In Need, err right err..." she tried to explain but was left a stuttering wreck with her emotions taking their toll on her once more like they had done numerous times in that tv studio.
Kimberley stepped forward towards Dermot and placed an arm around Cheryl's waist, "we agreed to do this as it's an amazing charity focused in Britain and helps single parent families, which is something close to our hearts"
Cheryl gulped; she knew no one would pick up on what Kimberley was talking about. She knew they'd probably think it was just a reference to their childhoods, after all three of them had grown up with only one parent. She glanced quickly across the room and saw the two people she cared for most in the world, they were beaming, they looked do pleased and happy and she didn't want to keep things a secret anymore.
She looked into the audience more closely and saw the girls' children, the press knew about them, knew their names and their birthdays, knew who their fathers were and everything. Cheryl wished people knew about Lola and not just so she was paraded as being the most famous woman in the world's daughter, but just so Cheryl could leave the house and go out for the day without trying to hide Lola like she was something to be ashamed of.
"What Kimberley is trying to say is that we grew up in single parent households" Cheryl explained, "and we know the charity helped us out a lot but it closer to home than just that"
The studio silenced, Cheryl looked at Simon and he nodded his head supportingly, knowing what she was going to say. "We have been single parents too" she announced, "and even though we are extremely fortunate it is still extremely difficult and so we know all the good work this charity does to help make things a little easier for those less fortunate than us"
The audience looked bemused, Dermot could tell they didn't have a clue what was going on yet he knew Cheryl was trying her hardest. He thought she was mad, trying to announce live to twenty million viewers that she had a seven year old child with her former boss, it was ludicrous. "Cheryl, all the girls have partners to look after their children" he suggested as he tried to steer her in the right direction.
"Aye Dermot, they do and they are extremely lucky but I didn't. In fact we still don't really, me and our Lola" she stammered whilst dropping her head to the floor.
The audience gasped and the room was filled with an eerie silence, one that had never filled X Factor studios before. Eventually the silence was broken as Simon pushed his seat out and stood up, the cameras immediately zooming in on him. "Cheryl is fighting for the equality between single parent families and nuclear families" he announced, "and I want to help her as it was me that forced her into becoming a single parent. Lola is our daughter"
