Kate (8:34)

Kate, lying in her extra large king size bed, blinked as she woke up. She felt like she'd been sleeping for weeks. She checked the time on her alarm clock. It was half seven in the morning. She smiled, relieved. She felt so rested. She was sure she'd accidentally slept in, but no, she'd waken at the perfect time. She looked over to her partner Joe's side of the bed. It was empty and she soon remembered why. She, Jo and their two girls had spent a week with Joe's parents at their house in Norfolk on the east coast of England. Kate had come home a day early to get things ready for Joe's special birthday dinner tonight. Their girls, Thea and Ruth, were five and seven years old. They absolutely adored their grandparents and going to visit them in Norfolk. They loved visiting the sandy beaches and swimming in the sea. They loved exploring the dunes and the quaint village street full of ice cream parlours and little museums. They had wanted to stay an extra night and Kate and Jo had agreed that Kate would go home ahead of them. Jo didn't like to make a fuss when it came to his birthday. He preferred to keep the celebrations small and intimate. No big parties or halls full of people. He didn't enjoy the attention being on him. He just liked to be around the ones he loved. Kate stretched and enjoyed the feeling of having the bed to herself. Getting an extra large king sized bed had been a treat they had gifted themselves and it certainly had been worth it. The luxurious mattress seemed to spread out for miles. They'd enjoyed plenty of Sunday mornings, all four of them blazing around on it, reading, chatting or watching movies. Kate thought about what she needed to get done today before Jo and the kids got back. Later on she was going to make Jo's favourite meal. A variety of Spanish tapas dishes, tortilla, atatas, bravas and more. She needed to buy all the ingredients, prepare them, wrap Jo's gifts and decorate the kitchen and hallway. The street outside her bedroom window was peaceful as always. The odd person could be heard passing by. Their footsteps clip cropping away on the concrete. But apart from that, it was quiet and still. Birdsong came from the nature reserve that sat on the other side of the house. It connected to the end of their garden and all four of them enjoyed the wildlife it brought butterflies, frogs, squirrels and all kinds of birds. They had recently gotten some bird feeders so they could see the birds close up. Jo and the kids wouldn't be back until later. Kate thought about what she would do with this morning that she had to herself. Maybe go for a walk, maybe sit and read in the park. And then an idea popped into her head. She would go to her favourite cafe. She'd first gone to this particular cafe as a little girl on her seventh birthday. Her mum had let her take the day off from school. She'd never done that before. Kate's older sister and brother had had to go to school as usual while she got to stay at home with her mum. She'd waved goodbye to her siblings from the front door. Still in her pyjamas, she'd eaten ice cream and waffles for breakfast. She'd been allowed to wear her favourite costume as real clothes. She'd chosen a blue princess dress and worn it with her new red Converses. She'd never looked better. Then. Her mum had said they were going out for lunch together. They'd walked down the street and through the park. Kate had felt so special knowing all of her classmates were probably doing reading or number work right now while she got to walk around dressed like a princess. They'd walked up the high street until the cafe came into view. Kate had squeezed her mum's hand. This cafe was her favourite place ever and they only got to go there on special occasions. The cafe could be seen from a mile away due to the brightly coloured paintings all over the exterior. It had images of animals and plants from the jungle creeping up all sides. The doors were painted a vivid green and window boxes were filled with plants. You couldn't help but smile when you saw the place. Kate had pushed open one of the green doors, a tinkling sound coming from above. Inside, a long old fashioned counter ran along the middle of the space with tables and chairs filling the rest of it. There were old music and film posters all over the back wall and on the left the wall was completely covered with drawings done by children. The cafe had a wonderful tradition of providing all children who visited with crayons in a clean welly boot and paper. Then at the end of their meal, their drawings would be added to the wall and there they would stay forever. One of the waiters greeted Kate and her mum. He had saved them a table by the window. The best table in the house. Kate climbed up onto a chair as the waiter placed down a red welly boot full of crayons with sheets of plain paper. Kate's mum told the waiter that it was her seventh birthday and he'd asked if Kate would like a special birthday drink. She had of course said yes. The waiter was soon back, holding a mug of delicious hot chocolate covered in whipped cream with sprinkles over the top. Kate's face had lit up, a huge grin spreading from ear to ear. As she dipped a spoon into the warm milky drink, she discovered yet another surprise. The hot chocolate was full of little marshmallows, her favorite. Her mum asked her what she'd like to eat for lunch. Kate had fancied a classic bangers and mash with loads of ketchup on the side. Kate's mum would have their famous Mediterranean breakfast. The food at the cafe was always delicious. You could taste the love and care the chefs put into the ingredients. Kate didn't leave a single scrap of food on her plate. She ate every last morsel. Kate's mother looked at her clean plate and smiled. Did Kate want dessert? Kate had gotten her favourite, vanilla ice cream with sprinkles on top. But the really special part came at the end of the meal. The bill always arrived in a coconut bowl along with multi coloured jelly beans. Kate was so full by the time they came, she asked her mom if she could save them for later. She scooped them up and put them in one of the pockets on her princess dress. With her belly full and the jellybeans clinking in her pocket, Kate had walked home holding her mum's hand. Life didn't get much better than that. Kate, still lying in her massive bed, smiled at the memory. That's it then. She'd get dressed and walk to the cafe. She'd never taken anyone else there. It was her own special secret. It's important to keep some things just for yourself, she thought. It was a warm summer's day outside as Kate stepped onto Florence Road. She breathed in the smell of the blossoms on her giant blue mophead hydrangea bush. The flowers were huge and formed heads as big as a football. She and Jo had planted it together when they first moved here. They had seen many homes, but as soon as they turned onto this street, they'd felt at home. They couldn't put their finger on what made Florence Road so special. It was more of a feeling, a peaceful, safe feeling of being exactly where they were meant to be. Kate pushed her gate open and stepped onto the pavement. The gate creaked as it shut behind her and she made a mental note to pick up some oil for it. She enjoyed doing little jobs about the house. She wanted to take care of their home and keep it as lovely a place as she could. She hoped she and Joe would live here together for the rest of their days. She turned left and headed down the street. She passed by her neighbour's windows and saw they were enjoying their Sunday morning inside. She came to the bottom of the road and headed towards the park. Kate's childhood home had been on the other side of the park, so the walk through was familiar to her. The sun shone through the trees, casting a dappled light onto the paths and grass. Birds tweeted and sang morning songs from the branches above. There were lots of dog walkers out and about this morning. Happy furry faces bounded past Kate, chasing after a bull or a stick or towards a group of pigeons who always flew away. Just in time, Kate noticed a couple of familiar figures in the distance over to her left. Her neighbour Nick and his brown Labrador Juno were off on their morning. Kate waved, not sure if Nick would recognise her from such a distance. He did though, and waved happily back before following Juno off into the trees. Kate soon came to the edge of the park. She exited through a side gate and walked on towards her destination. She felt a flutter of excitement as she rounded a corner and finally spotted the cafe's green doors and brightly coloured walls, just as she remembered. There were the pictures of jungle animals and plants creeping up the building and the window boxes full of lavender. Kate stopped and bent a little to smell them. Their beautiful scent filled her nostrils as she inhaled deeply. The smell of lavender reminded her of being a child. Her mother would place small bunches of lavender under Kate's pink pillow to help her sleep. She would often drift off to the Land of Nod, dreaming of fields full of the purple plant. Kate pushed open one of the green doors and heard the familiar tinkle coming from above. Inside the same old fashioned counter stretched out in front of her. The classic music and film posters were still covering the back wall and children's drawings were still spread all over the wall on the left. Nothing had changed. The cafe was like its own time capsule. The wellies full of crayons were still in the same spot over by the counter. The only thing that was different were the waitstaff. One of them greeted Kate warmly. Kate asked for a table for one and the waitress smiled and told her to take her pick. The cafe was quiet this Sunday morning so Kate could sit wherever she pleased. She looked around for a moment before choosing the table she had sat at all those years ago with her mother. The waitress brought her a menu. These were the same too, and asked if she would like a drink in the meantime, Kate thought for a moment. She asked if they still did hot chocolate specials. The waitress smiled and nodded before leaving Kate to peruse the menu. Kate read the whole thing, seeing the familiar staple. She remembered her parents and brother and sister ordering from their visits as children. She saw her old favourite bangers and mash, but decided it was too warm a day for such a wintry meal. She decided on the Mediterranean breakfast, her mum's favourite. The waitress returned Holding a mug of hot chocolate, Kate saw the whipped cream and sprinkles on top and laughed. She thought it silly for a moment, a woman her age having such a childish drink. But then she thought, why must we stop allowing ourselves the things we love and enjoy simply because of our age? Her love of sweet things had never gone away. Why shouldn't she have a special hot chocolate? She thanked the waitress and ordered her breakfast. She stuck a spoon into her beverage and to her delight saw that the mini marshmallows were also in there, bobbing around in the hot liquid. While she waited for it to cool and for her breakfast to arrive. She stood and walked over to the wall on the left to look at all the children's drawings. Her eyes scanned over the hundreds of pictures, images of dogs and cats, of houses and families, of robots and aliens. She smiled at the images, the inventive creations and special individuality of each child's imagination. Finally, her eyes rested on a drawing. It depicted a grown up woman who wore a beautiful gown of pinks and blues and red Converses on her feet. Her hair was big, her smile was wide and she was so tall. She towered above trees that had been drawn next to her. There were sparks and stars emanating from the woman. There was something magical about her. Kate's eyes were drawn to the bottom right hand corner of the piece of paper. The artist had signed it Kate, aged seven. She smiled. She'd drawn it on her seventh birthday and couldn't believe it was still there up on the wall. What a special place. She returned to her seat and sipped her hot chocolate. It was now the perfect temperature. The marshmallows had begun to melt and the whipped cream which had sunk into the liquid had made the chocolate even sweeter and smoother. Delicious. Her breakfast soon arrived and as she ate she watched the world going by on the other side of the window. She could sit here all day, just people watching. She looked on as the lady in the flower shop opposite welcomed customers and presented them with beautiful bouquets and plants. Each of her customers left happier than they had entered. She watched people with equipment on their way to play sports in the park. She saw people rushing, people taking their time, people sitting outside their shop fronts enjoying the sun. She saw people with big dogs, with small dogs. She saw a cat sneaking across the walls and balconies above. Kate finished her breakfast and relaxed back in her chair. Her stomach was full and she felt a happy glow coming from within. She was so glad she decided to come here this morning and treat Herself. It wasn't often she got the chance to do things for herself or even to do things alone, so this was really special. She couldn't have spent her morning anywhere better. She checked her watch and knew it was time to be getting on. She wanted everything to be perfect for Joe when he returned with the kids later. She thanked the waitress and exited. Back out onto the street, she headed towards the shops, pulling a shopping list from her pocket. Kate visited the greengrocers for her vegetables, the butcher's for her meat, and the flower shop she'd been watching earlier for her decorations. Loaded with things, she walked back through the park towards her house. She couldn't wait to get everything ready. She loved putting Joe's favourite things together for him. Like her, he rarely treated himself, even on his own birthday. He always made such a fuss over Kate on her birthday. So today it was his turn. Even if she had sneaked in a secret morning treat for herself, she was soon back on Florence Road, pushing open her squeaky gate and entering her quiet house. She stood for a moment, appreciating the peacefulness of it. Her mind couldn't help but wonder and she felt a pang in her heart. She couldn't wait to have Jo and the girls back. She did miss them. Kate set up her ingredients in the kitchen and got to work. She chopped and boiled potatoes for the tapas. She sliced sausage and tomatoes. She cleaned the peppers. She chopped onions and garlic, herbs and spices. She added them to oil and tomatoes to make sauces and fried half of the potatoes to make the patatas bravas. She placed the other half into a pan full of whisked eggs for the tortilla. Once everything was done or in the oven, cooking slowly, she went upstairs to wrap Joe's presents. Each time she'd asked him what he would like, he'd given her the same answer. Nothing. So she'd gotten him things she knew he'd enjoy. There were fresh new tools for pottering around in the garden, his favourite thing to do on the weekends. She'd gotten him a book on cultivating fresh produce in small spaces and she'd written him a lovely message inside a handmade card. She wrapped everything in brown paper and tied each package with a ribbon. She'd set the table with a white linen tablecloth and the flowers she'd bought earlier were in a vase in the middle. She blew up two balloons and tied them to the back of Jo's chair. This was something his mum had done for him as a child and she knew it would make him laugh. As she checked the time and began to place the food into classic ceramic dishes, she heard noises from outside. The gate squeaked and soon a key was turning in the lock. Beaming, Kate welcomed her family home. Her two girls rushed over to give her tight bear hugs before letting their dad hold her closely. It was as if they'd all been apart for weeks rather than just one night. Kate wished her Jo a happy birthday and led them all through to the dining room. A veritable feast awaited them. They all dug in as Jo and the girls told Kate all about their morning in the countryside and the journey home. The food was delicious. Everyone had second, third and fourth helpings. The potatoes bravas were Kate's personal favourite. She loved the hint of spice in the sauce she had smothered them in. Jo and Kate had bonded over their love of food when they first met all those years ago. It was a wonderful way to express their love for each other. What could be better than having your favourite meal cooked for you by your favourite person? As they finished, Kate promised they could leave the washing up until the morning and they headed into the living room to give Joe his gifts. He unwrapped each one carefully and took his time exploring and thanking Kate and the girls. For all of them, he had had the perfect birthday and this was the perfect end to it. Just him and his three girls. The four of them sat on the sofa together, decided to watch a movie, Jo's Choice. As they snuggled under the same blanket, Kate smiled to herself, looking over her family. How lucky she had gotten. She couldn't think of anywhere she'd rather be. That warm glow from earlier had tripled. She nestled into a cushion, one of her girls on her lap, the other with her legs draped over her, and rested her head on Joe's shoulder. As the movie music started, she yawned. Her belly and her heart were full and she could feel the heaviness of her eyelids. No sooner had the movie started and she began to drift off into the coziest sleep ever.

Nicky (40:33)

Sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa sa.

Kate (46:56)

Sa.