Here We Stand [H.S]

127.

Luckily for me, you turned out to actually be a girl when we went for your mother's scan and not only did I have those dreams of you being daddy's girl- but I realised that I would have to watch over you for the rest of my life; like when you'd play kiss chase with the local lads in the street or when you'd finally hit seventeen and you'd want to borrow my car to go out with your friends... or if you'd be wearing a short skirt that I wouldn't deem fit enough because it resembled a belt buckle and not an actual skirt- I had it all baby, including the dreams of giving you away to your future husband.

The second I knew you were a girl, my whole life had changed forever.

I wonder, depending when you're reading this now- have you met him yet?"

Harry stopped, his hand tugging around mine as I cried.

"Carry on," I instructed, "Please, carry on."

He nodded.

"If you have met someone, the lad needs a slap on the back. Thomas women are tough to crack, my mother was one of them, so good luck to the poor boy. He's going to need it.

I hope he treats you well, Isabelle. I hope he makes your dreams come true and is there for you in ways that I cannot be. They say the first man a girl ever loves is her daddy, and that she tries to aim for her partner to be like him- don't do that. Don't end up with somebody like me, baby. Don't reach for the stars, reach for the moon because it's a lot higher. And never settle for less.

You deserve the whole world Isabelle and I hope, one day, if you haven't found him yet, that you will and he will make your world a better place.

As your father, that's all I've ever wanted for you- your happiness was a priority for me and always would be.

So I guess you're wondering why I'm writing this letter, hm?

I wish I knew what it was that you knew baby, but I don't. So I'm going to start right from the beginning, and hopefully you'll have all of your questions answered and everything will make sense."

I nodded, wiping at my face with the palm of my hands.

"I grew up with your mother, I loved her pretty much from the start. We were inseparable, and she, was the love of my life. We did everything together and I was so blessed the day she came into my life, she was the one that every man wanted Isabelle. Your mother was so beautiful, inside and out, she made me laugh, she made me cry, she made my heart ache and fill with pure love just by looking at her- she was everything and more.

We were together pretty much from our teenage years right up to the minute she died.

We never left each other- except for one night, which will haunt me even though by the time you read this, I'll be dead and gone.

Your mother and I had just moved into our flat. We had scrimped and saved for ages, working all the hours to try and get everything that we needed for our new home. We were excited at what the prospect of living together could bring us- we didn't have much, we had a black and white TV for goodness sake, and because we didn't have enough money for a proper settee, we ended up with deck chairs in our living room so we had something to sit on- yes, deck chairs!!"

I giggled, God I giggled so hard, tearfully imagining the both of them sat in the front room on deckchairs watching the television.

"But we were happy, Isabelle. As long as we had each other, we were happy- nothing else mattered. Your mother worked as a cleaner and did gruelling, stupid hours, while I worked at the local garage. Simple, easy money- and we lead a simple, easy lifestyle. We weren't flash people, we didn't care that we didn't have what other people our age had, we just made do with what we had and saved if we wanted something.