“I don’t know yet,” I admit. “I’m not miserable. I’m just… recalibrating.”
He chuckles at that. “You and that word.”
“It’s having a moment.”
Before he can respond, the door opens and the entire atmosphere shifts.
“DADDY!”
Theo straightens instinctively as Lucy barrels in, one hand gripping Ivy’s, the other waving wildly in the air.
She skids to a stop in front of me, practically vibrating. “I got my birthday shoes.”
I smile immediately. “Did you.”
“They’re sparkly,” she says, lowering her voice like this is classified information. Then she turns sharply to Ivy. “Can I have them now?”
Ivy lifts the shoebox slightly out of reach. “What do we say?”
Lucy closes her eyes. Breathes. “Please can I have my birthday shoes so I can show Uncle Geoff?”
Theo nods. “Excellent manners, Ladybug.”
Ivy opens the box and Lucy leans in, gasping like she’s seeing them for the first time.
“Look,” Lucy says urgently.
I crouch a little. “Wow.”
“They’re very sparkly,” she tells me.
“They are,” I agree. “Top-level sparkly.” She gently touches the pink and white trainers like they would vanish if she handled them too roughly.
Lucy turns to Theo, triumphant. “Daddy. Uncle Geoff likes them.”
Theo exhales. “That’s a relief.”
“They light up,” Lucy adds. “But I’m not allowed to stamp in here.”
Theo points at the floor. “Correct.”
Lucy nods, satisfied, then looks back at me. “I’m nearly six.”
“That explains the confidence,” I say.
“And six-year-olds don’t have bedtimes,” she adds.
Theo snorts. “Still under discussion.”
Lucy thinks about this very seriously, then reaches for my hand anyway.
“Uncle Geoff,” she says, tugging gently. “Come look at the cakes.”
Theo groans. “We arenotchoosing cake right now.”
Lucy ignores him completely. She’s already walking, confident I’ll follow.
“Is this for your birthday?” I ask, humouring her.
