Present day #3
‘I also wanted to say, not only that I’m leaving’ – Lilly took her time, speaking softly and calmly – ‘but that someone once told me that life never does quite work out how we think it will, and that’s okay.
’ She swallowed, remembering when Norman had whispered this wisdom, at a time when she had truly needed to hear it.
‘Things for us might be changed from now on, and that’s okay too.
Because life goes on. It has to. And so I go from here, taking all the memories with me, and I am looking forward to my next adventure!
Because I am not and never am going to be old! ’
Clodagh grabbed Lilly and wrapped her in the tightest hug. ‘Our adventure, Lilly, our adventure!’
Lilly smiled at the sweet girl, understanding that she and Apollo were not going anywhere, and this alone filled her with joy, knowing that to be Apollo’s nan meant never having to walk through that gateway that led to loneliness.
It was, she knew, her greatest privilege, the chance to mother these two most glorious humans.
‘I should also say,’ Alfie piped up, ‘that while I wasn’t successful in saving Waide House, I did manage to secure a handsome price for the flat, more than handsome.
And the board has agreed that one of the new retail units on the ground floor is yours, Lilly, with a gallery, a studio, whatever you wish. ’
‘I don’t know what to say!’ It meant that wherever she ended up, her spot on the towpath was secure.
It meant her advice to Apollo stood – he would always be able to follow the river and find her.
A studio! A place for her easel, paints, Apollo’s stick collection, and her trusty Thermos!
It was the most glorious gift, a little spot at the bottom of the stack of Polo mints, The Waide Gallery .
. . Her mind raced ahead, thinking of all the people who liked to stop and chat as she painted; she was thinking maybe art classes, so they, too, could experience the magic of trying to capture Old Mother Thames . . .
‘So where will you move, Lilly? Somewhere close by?’ Alfie asked.
‘Probably . . .’ She smiled at him.
Lilly instinctively knew what the moment needed.
Making her way to the racks of vinyl that sat along the wall, she carefully selected an LP and blew on it before placing it on the turntable.
With the record player switched on, she very gently lowered the stylus and smiled as the sound of Bill Haley he would have adored everything about the man.
It was still impossible to think about Bertie without a flash of sadness at the loss of him.
But if he had taught her one thing, it was to be bold!
Clodagh and Joshua jumped forward and, doing their best, which was poor by anyone’s standards, the two youngsters hopelessly bumped into each other as they chuckled and spun.
The four of them jived and danced across the parquet flooring, dancing to the echo of others who had done the same a long, long time ago.
As the music played, the whole flat and the people in it were transformed, no longer living under the shadow of redevelopment in Vauxhall, instead somewhere warm and sunny, living in a world of possibilities and laughter with nothing but good times ahead!
Alfie twirled her towards the magnificent view, and as the two moved with abandon, lost to the music and all it represented, Lilly felt her skin shiver as she got the distinct feeling that someone was watching her from the other side of the river.
Staring out of the window, she closed her eyes slowly, capturing the moment like a photograph at the sight of her mum and dad, arm in arm, his hair falling over his head, burgundy braces hanging down over his skinny hips.
Her in a pinny, young, wearing red, red lipstick and with her hair intact, both smiling at her, their little girl, as she stood in the window of their home that was a pearl.
A hidden something right there in plain sight . . .