One More Try

An Absolutely Perfect Birthday

Jean soon fell asleep in Reg's arms but he was restless. He couldn't quite believe how lucky he was. He held her and just watched her sleep. Jean was absolutely beautiful, no question but her face wasn't relaxed and she was clingy that night, terribly clingy, but he didn't mind. He was happy to have her back and this time he'd make sure she had no reason to stray, this was certain. Reg liked how she was acting towards him now, not that he hadn't liked her before or anything. It was just that back then, it had been more like she accepted his admiration while not caring too much whether it was him or somebody else adoring her. Now, Jean wanted him, he suddenly wasn't replaceable anymore and that was a pretty good feeling. He didn't feel like his love was a nuisance to her, these days, she welcomed it, no, she almost seemed to depend on it, like flowers depended on the sun.
Jean was dreaming, and even in her dreams she was anxious about losing him. She didn't sleep soundly but tossed and turned, despite Reg holding her and trying his best to soothe her. He had no idea what was bothering her and how jealous she was of every woman who even looked at him. Jean was absolutely convinced he would judge her, he had every reason to, and so she'd banished all these thoughts to her subconscious where they tormented her on a nightly basis. That's why she didn't sleep well that night, or at all. Underneath her tough exterior, the great Jean Horton was vulnerable and insecure.
In the morning, Jean woke early and smiled when she saw Reg dozing next to her. How handsome he was. He looked so relaxed and smiled in his sleep. Watching his chest rise and fall at a slow but steady pace relaxed her and she finally recovered from the horrors of the night, so she decided to watch just a little longer. But it was definitely time to get ready for the big day, Ophelia's seventh birthday, and so she got up, but not without kissing him a few times. This woke Reg but Jean didn't notice and continued to get ready for the day, brushing her hair and picking an outfit before disappearing into the bathroom. He watched her through half closed lids, not realising he wasn't dreaming until she returned, looking absolutely radiant and wearing his favourite perfume. She approached him, thinking he was still asleep and gently nudged him.
"Good morning, Love. Time to get up, it's Ophelia's birthday." His face lit up and he opened his eyes properly, pursing his lips ever so slightly in expectation of a morning kiss which he promptly received.
"I'll be there in five minutes." Reg promised, yawning and stretching before sitting up in bed.
"Good. I want you to be sitting with the gifts when you go and get her." Jean was pacing around the room, sounding very businesslike and almost stressed now. She was nervous about Ophelia's first encounter with her father, nervous that something could go wrong and spoil not only her birthday but her relationship with her father.
"Wonderful. I'll do exactly what you tell me, you're the boss." He knew exactly how to handle his ex- and soon-to-be wife when she was nervous. "Oh, and Jean?"
"Yes, Reggie?" She tried to relax a little, the fact that he let her set the rules for this very important morning meant a lot for her and calmed her down. She even managed to smile at him.
"I love you even more than I did yesterday." That just had to be said and it did exactly what it was supposed to do. It put a genuinely happy smile on Jean's face which, at least in Reg's book, was worth more than all the money in the world.
"I love you too." Was all she could say. He was a littler silly but she actually appreciated this silliness a lot. Jean went downstairs to prepare the birthday breakfast, with all of Ophelias favourite things and setting the kitchen table for three instead of two made her heart dance a little. She was still nervous but felt a little and as soon as Reg sat in the living room, she went to wake Ophelia. She entered her daughter's room, thinking back to the day seven years ago and how much had changed since then but this was not the time to be emotional.
"Good morning, birthday girl!" she said in her upbeat voice that was reserved especially for her daughter. Ophelia wasn't asleep anymore, she'd been awake for a while, waiting for her special birthday morning ritual.
"Mummy, it's my birthday!" she jumped out of bed, wearing the new dress she'd picked out the night before. It was sunshine yellow with white polka dots and looked absolutely lovely on her. Yellow was Reg's favourite colour.
"It is, oh look at you, you're dressed already." Jean gave her a big hug and a kiss. She had to blink away a tear, seeing her baby so big already and then put the birthday crown on Ophelia's head.  "Are you ready for your birthday parade my darling?" she asked. That was part of their special birthday ritual, when Ophelia had turned three, Jean had made up a little birthday parade song and they had held their own parade for two in Ophelia's honour ever since. Jean hoped that her daughter would never feel too old and serious for this.
"Yes... But Mummy, can I tell you a secret before we start?" She looked awfully serious for a little girl who was turning seven that day.
Jean knelt down to be at her level and looked her in the eye. "Of course, what's the matter?"
"Last year when I blew out my candles, I wished for my dad but this year, I don't know what to wish for." Ophelia looked at her mother. She'd been thinking about this predicament a lot, she was convinced that her birthday wishes were magic and the pressure of finding something worthwhile to wish for was a little overwhelming.
"You'll find something. Whatever makes you happy is the perfect wish." Ophelia nodded and Jean covered her eyes with a colourful cloth and put her hands on Pheli's shoulders. Then they marched downstairs and into the living room, singing the birthday parade song, stomping and doing a silly dance. When Jean uncovered her eyes, Ophelia stopped in her tracks and just stared. There was a man, sitting on the couch. He had brown hair and a kind, open face. His eyes were green, just like hers. He looked just like the Rigoletto man from the record. Then it clicked. It was in fact the Rigoletto man and that meant the man on the couch was...
"Dad... That's my dad! My Daddy! My Papa!" She almost fell flat on her face as she stumbled to hug him but Reg leapt up and effortlessly caught her. "It came true, it came true, my Papa is here!" Reg hugged her tightly and Ophelia hugged him back. He was overwhelmed. Nothing could have prepared him for meeting his daughter, she was even more perfect than he'd expected. This perfect tiny human was his child? Tears were streaming down his face while Jean also cried, standing a little on the side as to not spoil what was supposed to be their moment. Finally, she'd done the right thing. Better late than never. Reg looked up and gestured for her to join them, they were all one family after all and so she came over and sat down with them. She was still a little insecure, especially as Ophelia had only eyes for Reg now, however seeing the two of them together made her heart ache but in a good way. He seemed to notice how moved she was and wiped away her tears.
Ophelia insisted on sitting on Reg's lap for unwrapping her presents but all the gifts paled in comparison to Reg being there. Meeting her father was great and so were all the gifts she had received, but having her parents back together and realising that her father was a good person and loved her dearly on top of everything else was priceless. They had breakfast, and then they walked Ophelia to school together. It didn't seem like a lot and to the outside world they must have looked like a normal family but it was so much more than that. Ophelia's seventh birthday was also the day their new and improved family was born, even though they wouldn't fully realise that until much later.
After introducing Reg to Ophelia's teacher, him and Jean made a quick detour to the school office to add his name to Ophelia's papers and fill in a few forms. At least at school he was now officially her father, that was a big step. At home, Reg insisted on cleaning up in the kitchen by himself, he'd noticed that Jean needed some alone time and so she went upstairs, curled up in her bed and cried. It wasn't that she was particularly sad, she just needed to release all the emotions she had kept bottled up for way too long. When Reg was done in the kitchen he went to look for her and joined her in bed, cuddling and holding her until her tears were dry.
Because of this, they were a little late when they started to make their way to rehearsal but that was okay, Reg knew a shortcut and they did make it just in time.