“Why do you both have tissues in your ears?” Hana stared at Wiri and Phoenix in disbelief. Logan walked into the kitchen behind her and pulled a face.
“Where’s Nonie?” he asked, using Leslie’s self-styled title of ‘Grandma’ with reluctance. The children ignored him, tucking into cheese and crackers without hearing. Every time Phoenix moved her head, the tissues fluttered like ear extensions and Mac pealed with laughter in his high chair.
“What?” Wiri pulled the fluffy end of the tissue and the balled up piece popped out of his ear hole.
“Pardon,” Hana corrected. “What’s with the ear defenders?”
“The what?”
Hana felt herself growing irritated. “Why do you have tissues in your ears?” she repeated.
“Oh.” Wiri squeezed the waxy-looking end of the tissue and wedged it back into his ear. “Nonie’s doing horrible singing. We’re protecting the instruments in our ears.”
“What instruments?” Baffled, Hana turned to see Logan grinning.
“Ear drums.” He squeezed her shoulder and leaned over Wiri for the tissue box. “If she’s singing opera, this is a grand idea.” He balled up the ends of two tissues and shoved them into his ears, leaving the long white tufts sticking out past his hair and joining the white mouse lookalikes at the dining table.
Leslie bustled back into the room, her cracked soprano well past its sell by date as she sang to Hana. “I just nipped to the toiletttttttttt! Would you like a cup of teaaaaaaa?”
Hana winced at the sound and managed a nod. “Yes please. Why are you so happy?”
“Ah.” Leslie’s expression drooped. “Sorry, Hana but I’m going home. My Alfie called while you were out. He misses me. We’ve been talking on the phone a lot this last week.”
“Oh. That’s great.” Hana glanced across at her husband, not doubting his skill at lip reading when he balled his left hand into a fist and pumped the air.
“Yesssss!” he hissed and Hana glared at him in warning.
“I’ll miss you of course, but you should be with your husband.”
“How will you manage?” Leslie seemed to be talking herself out of the idea. “Will you get a housekeeper and a nanny to replace me?”
Hana shook her head. “No. I’m sure I’ll manage.”
“I can stay if you want.”
Logan narrowed his eyes and gave Hana a silent warning which made her smile and feel tempted to defy him just for the sake of it. But the thought of running her own family, taking her own children to school and kindy and imposing her own moral standards over their behaviour felt too good to be true. “No thanks,” she replied. “It’s been amazing having you to stay, but I’ll be fine.”
“That’s good. This life with youse is far too exciting for my poor old heart.” Leslie handed Macky another cracker, a lump of cheese glued to it with butter. She added a burst of rusty soprano to the action. He laughed at her open mouth and Hana winced.
Glancing across at Logan, she watched as he licked the tip of his index finger and drew a line in midair. “Another one down,” he mouthed.