A Storm Is Brewing

Rocky Road to Divorce

The hardest days of all came when the boys went to Leah's matches. It used to be a family event; we would get dressed up in heavy coats and gloves and sit in the freezing cold for hours just to watch her play. Nowadays, the only person who wasn't invited was me.

They spent the entire morning talking about the match that night, telling me about the fireworks that went off at the last Champions League match and how they were allowed a fizzy drink and a hot chocolate. I guess you could say sometimes it worried me that Leah's lifestyle was more appealing to kids than mine was. How could my trips to the park ever be as fun as watching your mum play in a sold-out Emirates?

Amanda picked them up just after lunch, letting me know she would drop them back in the evening. It was just by chance that I was off that day; I guess you could call it lucky. Just before 4pm, my phone rang, and when I saw Leah's name, I thought maybe the boys had asked for a sleepover. Again, how could I compete with the excitement she could offer them?

"Hey."
"Are you working?"

She sounds stressed.

"No. What's wrong?"
"Teddy isn't well. He's crying for you."
"What's wrong with him?"
"He's burning up, says he feels sick, and just keeps saying he wants you. Can mum bring him back?"
"Yeah, of course. I'm just in the house anyway." As usual.
"Leo still wants to come. Is that okay?"
"That's fine."
"Right. Bye."

When Amanda arrived back with Teddy, it was obvious he had some kind of bug. He didn't stir when Amanda lifted him from his car seat, and I could tell by the fact he was wrapped in a blanket that he had obviously been complaining about being cold.

"Mummy." He cried as she placed him in my arms.
"Mummy's here, buddy." I cooed.

Amanda was a typical grandmother, with a guilt-ridden face about him getting sick when he was in her company.

"He's definitely not himself."
"I'm sure he's just picked something up at daycare; they're always infected there." I chuckled.
"Will you let me know how he is? Send me a text."
"Course. He'll be grand; don't you be stressing."
"Well, I will stress, but I'll pretend I won't." She chuckled.
"Enjoy the game." I smiled.

Once Amanda left, we curled up on the sofa, putting on one of his films and giving him all the attention I knew he was craving. He finally fell asleep just after 5pm, waking to be sick a few times but seemingly feeling a little better.

It was just fifteen minutes until the kickoff of Leah's match, matches I watched in secret, never letting her know I still cheered for her the loudest, when the unthinkable happened. It wasn't like anything I'd witnessed on TV; instead, he just went completely unresponsive. It lasted for what felt like hours but was probably only seconds.

"Teddy? Buddy? Teddy, can you hear Mummy?"

Nothing.

"Baby, can you hear me? Fuck!"

I was already calling for an ambulance when he started to come around, but there was no way I was risking it. The dispatcher agreed, letting me know there was an ambulance on the way and giving me advice to follow if it happened again before they arrived.

I knew the likelihood of Leah being anywhere near her phone so close to match time was slim, so I called Amanda instead, probably giving her the fright of her life. The start of the call was filled with nothing but pathetic sobs in between broken sentences that made it obvious something was wrong.

"Sophie, slow down for me. What has happened?"
"Teddy. There's an ambulance coming for Teddy."
"What's happened?"
"I don't know. He was completely out of it. You need to get Leah."