4 YEARS LATER
“Aimee, where’s you’re coat?” I shout up the stairs.
“Katelyn’s got it,” Amiee replies in her soft voice as she peaks down the stairs at me.
I look up at her and see her perfect brown hair fall from where it was tucked behind her ear. I smile at her and she returns my given smile.
“Katelyn, we’re going to be late.” I shout.
“I’m coming mummy,” Katelyn says, rushing to the top of the stairs and holding onto the banister.
I watch her begin to slowly walk down the stairs followed closely by Aimee.
For all they were twins, they didn’t look alike. Aimee looked like me but Katelyn was her dads double. Her green eyes and dirty blonde hair made me think of Joe every time.
They stop in front of me on the last step and I look down at them.
“Do we have to go into work with you today?” Katelyn asks me as I bend down and take the jacket off her.
“Yes, you do. There’s no one left to watch you and I’m not leaving you alone,” I tell her as I put the jacket on Aimee.
“Mummy, can we go shopping later? I want to look pretty for our party,” Aimee says as I zip her jacket up.
“I’ll think about it if you’re both good,” I explain to her as I put Katelyn’s jacket on her and zip it up.
“Mummy, why do we live in such a big house when there’s only one…three of us?” Aimee asks after counting each one of us individually.
“Aimee, we’ve had this talk before…” I start.
“Sorry, mummy…” she apologises, bowing her head down so I can’t see her face.
“Aimee, I’m not going to shout at you. Aimee look at me." She slowly lifts her head up and looks up at me. “Don’t make it hard for me to explain again. You’ll understand later in life. Now move or I’m not going to take you two out shopping later.”
They jump down off the last step and run to the front door. They both pull at the handle and run out towards my car. I follow them out and set the security alarm before closing the front door over and locking it. I walk over to the car and help them get in.
Once I put them in their car seats, I get into the drivers seat and drive to work – but why did I suddenly have a bad feeling about today?
Joe’s POV
I stand in front of the green screen as the photographer takes my photo.
“Joe, raise your head a little…that’s it.” The photographer directs me.
“Come on, Harty. Show a little more enthusiasm like you used to do!” Adam shouts at me.
I shake my head and walk over to them. “Easy for you lot to say when you don’t have a fiancée nagging at you 24/7.”
“Is Kim that bad?” James asks.
“’That bad’? She’s dragged me all over England to try and find the perfect location for our wedding and still, she can’t decide!”
“Why is she so fussy?” James asks, leaning back against the table.
“Better yet, why have you stayed with her after telling that Chelsea girl that you loved her instead of Kim?” Adam counter asks, looking serious.
“This again? I told you lot a million times-” I start.
“You haven’t told us a million times! Harty, you just showed back up here after coming back from a broken leg in the car crash, acting as if you never cheated on Kim. Since then, you haven’t been yourself and quite frankly, I miss the old Harty. Not this one that seems to have forgotten who the hell he actually loves and wants to spend the rest of his life with!” Adam shouts.
“Well, I’m sorry you feel that way but who are you to tell me what to do in my life?” I question him.
“I just think you’re making a big mistake!” He replies.
“Well you ain’t so perfect yourself!” I say, standing up to him.
“Guys cut it out,” James advises, standing in between us. “Grow up, the pair of you!”
“Don’t tell me what to do! Chelsea was a mistake and she will stay that way! A MISTAKE!” I shout before storming out.
Adam’s POV
I watch Joe walk out the room and the door slam shut before looking at James. “He’ll be in for one hell of a shock if he realises that she’s still in the UK.”
“Something just isn’t right with him now. He’s never acted like this,” James says.
“I know he hasn’t but what can we do?”
“I know, nothing.”
“The only one that can do something is Chelsea.”
Normal POV
Work had gone well today and the girls both behaved themselves, so I kept to my word and was going to take them out shopping so they can get a new outfit for their birthday in a few weeks.
I get Aimee and Katelyn out the back of the car before we make our way into Selfridges.
“Whatever you do, don’t let go of mummy’s hand because I don’t want you either of you to get lost in here.” I warn them.
“Okay, mummy,” the both say at the same time as we start looking at clothes.
We spend the first hour looking at dresses and were now moving on to look at what shoes would go with their dresses they had picked.
I sit at the sitting area where people were sitting trying shoes on as a sales assistant went and got the twins shoes in their sizes.
“Mummy, what’s that?” Katelyn ponders, getting up and walking over to a stand full of boxes.
“Katelyn, mummy said we’ve not to wander about.” Aimee says faintly.
“Katelyn back over here,” I instruct, turning round to look at her but she wasn’t there. “Katelyn!”
Joe’s POV
“Joe, stop mopping and come on!” Kim says, dragging me into Selfridges. “I want to get this dress before it gets sold out.”
“How many times have we been in here this week?” I ask her as she drags me over to the dresses.
“Not enough – now move!”
I sigh. She lets go of my arm as soon as she spots the dress she wants. I look at it and without thinking, I walk away from her. She came to just get one thing, so I means well go and get myself something.
I walk over to the men’s clothes and begin looking to see what I can get myself. I hear panicking noises and look round to see where they were coming from. I see a little girl going round in circles and starting to panic. I walk over and kneel down in front of her.
“Hey…” I say lightly. She stops moving and looks up at me.
“I want my mummy,” she whispers as tears begin to form in her eyes.
“Hey, it’s okay. We’ll go and find your mummy,” I reassure, picking her up and putting her on my side.
“I want my mummy,” she repeated but this time, she starts to shake.
“It’ll be okay. We’ll find her and you’ll be-” I start before I hear a woman shout a girls name.
“Katelyn!”
“I think we may have just found your mummy,” I tell her as I begin walking over to the woman.
I walk over to the woman and tap her on the shoulder. She turns to me and my eyes widen.
“Katelyn, thank God!” She sighs with relief, taking the girl off me. “I told you to stay by my side.”
I watch her hug the little girl tightly before she turns away from me.
“She didn’t-” I start.
“Aimee, come on. We need to pay for the items,” she says to another little girl.
I watch the other little girl walk over to her and take her hand. They walk past me and I turn to watch them go. The little girl walking behind her, looks back at me and smiles. My breath catches in my throat when I see her smile…there was no doubt about it, Chelsea was a mum now.
I snap out my trance and realise that she didn’t even say ‘thank you’ to me for finding her daughter.
I watch Chelsea pay for the items she had to pay for and then look down at the little girls as they stand my her at the till. They look just like her. Perfect smiles, eyes that couldn’t keep you angry at. I see Chelsea pick up the bags and take the little girls hands before making her way to the exit.
I look round for Kim and roll my eyes when I see her still looking at clothes. I shake my head before walking after Chelsea.
I get to the exit and look across the road as she helps her daughters into the back of a car. She closes the door before stopping and looking at me. For some weird reason, I just wanted to run over and take her back in my arms and never let her go again but I knew that I couldn’t.
She quickly runs round to the drivers side and gets in the car. Within seconds, the car drives away. What the hell just happened?