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It was now six Earth weeks since Nancy’s funeral, and Marcus and Hope both put a brave face on their feelings in public, even though they missed their parents more than either of them could say.
Hope resembled her mum in the looks department, and Marcus had taken to calling her ‘mini-me,’ which Hope had become quite fond of. Her school had been more understanding than Marcus had expected, and they sent her to a counselling class every Thursday. Being eleven, traditional counselling wasn’t appropriate, but the school put on a small class with other emotionally challenged children to take their mind off their troubles by doing activities and group talks.
Marcus arrived home with fish and chips for him and his sister. The meal always brought back great memories of their parents. Almost every Friday, the family used to share a fish supper, so Marcus wanted to keep the tradition alive.
Nicola stayed good to her promise of being there for Nancy’s children, calling them several times a week and popping into the house when she had time. Her job in the hospital meant that she always finished before 5 p.m., and her boss was sympathetic if she needed to finish early to offer a shoulder for Hope to cry on or an ear to listen to Marcus.
Nicola and Marcus moaned about Niall from time to time, even though Marcus always felt a little deflated when the subject of his mum’s ex-boyfriend came up. Hope, thankfully, didn’t really remember him.
Hope doused her chips in vinegar, to Marcus’ amusement, and he said, ‘I know you never got to meet Dad, but he always put loads of vinegar on his chips too. It must be a genetic thing.’
‘So is this annoying hair!’ Hope rolled her eyes, pointing to the ginger mop on top of her head. ‘I’m going to make an appointment for after school tomorrow. Mum always said I could have my hair as I liked.’
Marcus pointed his fork at her and said, ‘I don’t think so, young lady. Maybe when you are like eighteen, but Mum would have had veto over your hair. I’ll let you go if Nicola takes you for some girly time.’
Hope rolled her eyes. ‘Okay, Dad!’
Nicola walked through the door to find the pair rolling about with laughter.
‘Nicola!’ squealed Hope. ‘Can you take me to the hairdressers please? Pretty please!’ She fluttered her eyelashes at the older woman, who laughed and agreed without question.
Nicola plonked herself down between the siblings and stole a chip from each plate. She looked at Marcus and said, ‘How’s the work going at the museum?’
‘Really well, although I still don’t know what the curator’s real name is,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘It’s probably something weird that she doesn’t like.’
‘Quite possibly,’ said Nicola. ‘Or maybe she hasn’t got a name and she is a humanoid or a robot or something.’ Laughter pulsed around the table. ‘I’ll make you an appointment for after school, whichever day they can fit us in at the salon.’
Hope smiled with satisfaction, knowing full well that her mum would not have agreed to her plan of having her hair styled to within an inch of its life.
Nicola took another chip from Marcus’ plate and said, ‘I’ve often wondered why you weren’t angry about Niall moving into a relationship with your mum so quickly after your dad disappeared. I didn’t know you then, but I know you would have felt protective over her.’
Marcus sighed and pushed his plate away, not feeling hungry anymore. It was a question he had asked himself a hundred times since Niall left. He said, ‘I think it was because Dad just vanished. Inside, I think I must have torn myself apart with the thought that Dad had done a runner, so good riddance. And I just wanted Mum to be happy, you know, especially with another child in the house. Perhaps I was desperate for a father figure, and Niall is a nice guy.’
‘I’m sorry, Marcus, I didn’t mean to upset you,’ Nicola said in a quiet voice.
‘It’s alright; it does me good to talk about it.’ Marcus smiled through moist eyes as if a tear was going to fall, and then he pulled his plate back and tucked back into his dinner.
He looked out of the window and smiled happily. ‘Still, we got to see Mum’s fierce side when she told him to sling his hook. I think he thought she’d beg him to stay. When all is said and done, I know that Dad wouldn’t have walked away so... Anyway, that’s old news really.’ He sighed, his shoulders slumping forwards once again.
Nicola smiled sadly, remembering Nancy and wishing that she hadn’t lost touch with her in the past. She resolved to keep Marcus and Hope in her life. Wanting to cheer him up, she changed the subject and forced a smile to try and lighten the mood. ‘Tell me more about how it’s going at the museum.’
Marcus’ demeanour changed instantly, his face lighting up as they navigated back onto his favourite subject. Nicola eyed up the biggest chip on his plate and tried to steal it. ‘I don’t think so!’ Marcus laughed and stuffed it into his mouth. ‘The course is really good, and I’m way ahead of where I should be. Hopefully, the curator will give me more responsibility. I think I should be running the museum soon...’
His eyes sparkled with a cheeky glint and Nicola shook her head. ‘You watch that ego of yours, young man. Pride comes before a fall, remember?’ She mockingly shook her finger at him.
Hope laughed, not really understanding what was being said, but she was glad that the conversation was more light-hearted. She was starting to see Nicola as a stand in for her mum, and she knew that Nicola had a large place in her heart for her and her older brother.