Chapter Text
She can hear a soft voice murmuring; her eyelids feel heavy as she tries to open them. She wonders if she has ever felt this tired in her life, she shifts her legs beneath her and shuffles in the bed. Her eyes flicker, once, twice and then open. She adjusts to the lighting of the hospital and seeks out the familiar figure standing at the window.
She can only see his back, he is wearing a pale blue coloured shirt and he is shuffling from side to side, she cannot make out anything of what he is saying, his voice is too quiet. But she knows who he is speaking to, their baby daughter.
She hears a slight cry, before she hears David whisper “you’re okay, it’s okay, don’t wake your Mama.” She thinks about making her presence known to him but in the end decides not to. She simply sits and listens to him, she already knew he was an amazing father, she has after all seen him many times with Ella and Charlie but there was something new and even more captivating about seeing him with their child.
She watches, mesmerised by the pair of them, she sees him move towards the alcove in the window ledge, he gently sits himself down and she closes her eyes again, not wanting him to stop his father and daughter time. She hears him begin to speak again and she opens her eyes, his long fingers brush across the top of their daughter’s forehead, before he leans down and places a soft kiss on the top of her head.
His head then raises and his bright blue eyes meet Julia’s, “I know you’ve been watching us.” He tells her with a large smirk and a single raise of one of his eyebrows.
Julia meets his stare and trades him back a single eyebrow raise, “how?” she questions with a yawn.
“You’d stopped snoring.” David says with a laugh.
“I do not snore.” Julia replies indignantly, she is quite offended by the insinuation. “I am the Prime Minister.”
“I know what you are love,” David replies as he stands from the window and begins to make his way over to her bedside, still cradling their daughter carefully. “But that still doesn’t mean you don’t snore.” He adds as he stops beside her and leans down to kiss her lips softly. She kisses him back before she then begins to shuffles to the side of the bed as best as she is able, making room for David to sit next to her and as she does so she holds out her arms towards him. David smiles and presses one last kiss to the forehead of the now sleeping infant and then places her gently in her mother’s arms.
“Hello baby girl.” Julia whispers as she leans down and breathes in the top of her daughter’s head. The little girl opens her eyes for just a second, blinking and then closes her eyes again.
David watches her, another smile on his face as he slowly sits down beside her. He leans into the side of his wife’s body as she presses herself up against him. “Baby Spot,” he says with a smile as she turns to look at him, “she’s here.”
Julia laughs and shakes her head, “that cannot be her name now.”
David pouts, “according to you, it’s never been her name.”
“I might have called her Spot once or twice.” Julia confesses.
“I knew you did!” David exclaimed. “That night in your office, I knew I heard it.”
Julia laughs, “that could have been one of the times.”
“There was more than one?” David questions.
“There may have been a few,” Julia admits, “but either way,” she says softly, “she cannot be called Spot now.”
David smiles as the baby wriggles in her sleep, she stretches out one of her long legs; clearly inherited from her mother and the pushes out her opposite fist towards him. He leans down and kisses her clenched fingers, “Tilly,” He says quietly. “Baby Tilly.”
Julia manages to reach for the back of her husband’s head, poking him with one of her fingers, “Mr Budd?” she questions as he turns his head to look at her. “I believe we agreed on Matilda Victoria Montague-Budd.”
“Aye,” David begins, “we did. But that is a very long name for such a tiny little girl.”
“David,” Julia protested, “we are not calling her Tilly."
Matilda stretches again, “I think she likes it,” David explains as he leans into Julia’s shoulder.
“She’s five hours old,” Julia retorts, “she doesn’t know what she likes.”
“Well,” David begins, “she didn’t seem to like your snoring.” He tells his wife with a laugh.
“You’d better not tell anyone about that.” Julia exclaims as David turns his head up to meet hers.
“We won’t tell anyone,” David begins as he tilts his lips up to meet Julia’s, kissing her softly once again. “Will we Tilly?” he questions with a smile.
“Matilda.” Julia replies back at him. “I will not be calling our daughter Tilly.”
David shakes his head, “that’s what you said about Spot.”
Julia rolls her eyes, “I’m still the Prime Minister.”
David nods, “I hadn’t forgotten. But you are the Prime Minister who snores.”
She wakes before her alarm; a usual occurrence. Her eyes open and she turns her head to the side. Her eyes focus on the face lying beside her, she can just see him in the dim bedroom light. One lone curl dangles over one of his still closed eyes. She would reach out and tuck it back with the rest, but she doesn’t want to wake him. She lays there for a moment, watching him sleep. This has become part of her morning routine, she watches him as he breathes in and out, he seems to be most asleep earliest in the morning. It doesn’t mean that he doesn’t still have nightmares from years before and all the things he has seen, but as time passes, his ability to sleep has improved and hers has too. Both of them talking about their feelings, about their experiences and the love they have for each other has helped.
The private residence is silent, she knows however a few floors down the rest of the house is a hubbub of early morning activity. Papers and documents will be being brought to her office for her perusal, financial markets will be being scrutinised and schedules will be being finalised.
She stares at David again as his nose wrinkles in his sleep, she is about to lean over to kiss him, when she hears the distinct gurgle of the other resident of the private residence. She carefully slips from their bed, wraps her gown around herself and then switches off her alarm clock. Sometimes she wonders why she still bothers with setting it anymore, she has a new one now anyway and like today sometimes she still wakes up before it.
Her new alarm clock is laying in her little bassinette, her room tucked off to one side of hers and David’s. It used to be a part of the wardrobe, but with some clever ingenuity it became the place their precious daughter sleeps.
“Shush shush little one, you’ll wake your Daddy,” Julia says with a whisper as she approaches the bassinette, looking down at the gurgling six-month-old. She leans down and kisses her on the top of her nose, “Good morning Matilda,” the little girl smiles and blinks her blue eyes at her mother. Julia slides her hands down and underneath her daughter, lifting her from the mattress and then tucking her into her arms.
They stop briefly to sneak a peek at David, but he still remains snoring softly. “Food?” Julia questions the infant in her arms and Matilda babbles, a nonsensical pattern of sounds, but to her mother it sounds like agreement.
The two of them quietly make their way from the bedroom; Julia’s bare feet tread the plush carpet carefully until they reach the kitchen. She smiles to herself, she may not have heard him, but Oliver has already visited once this morning, a new report lays waiting for her. It sits propped up beside her coffee mug and the rice cereal that she has been trying to encourage Matilda to eat, so far without success.
She places Matilda down into the high chair, fastening the straps around the little girls’ stomach before turning to the kitchen counter. A banana, a knife and a plastic plate remain where she left them last night, having prepared for her and Matilda’s early morning rendezvous before she’d gone to bed. She cuts the banana into tiny pieces as Matilda continues to babble, before she places the pieces onto the plate, sets the kettle to boil and then sets the plate down in front of her daughter.
Matilda stares at the food and then back up at her mother, Julia raises an eyebrow, “you ate banana yesterday,” she says as she prepares her coffee and two slices of toast and then sits down in the chair beside her, “you don’t like banana today?” Julia questions as Matilda continues to stare. Julia sighs, she has stared down some of the most powerful people in the world, without flinching, without backing down. But somehow this tiny girl, she can make her mother, who is not only her mother but the Prime Minister flinch.
Julia shrugs her shoulders and reaches out for the paper Oliver has left for her, she flips to the first page and then takes a sip of her coffee. Out of the corner of her eye Julia can see Matilda reach for a piece of banana, she half places it into her mouth and then squishes the rest between her fingers, Matilda then reaches out for her mother’s hair and before she can move fast enough Julia has a large glob of banana firmly entrenched near her ear.
Matilda holds out her banana covered hands towards her mother and babbles loudly, seemingly also interested in her mother’s breakfast. Julia sighs, “come on then,” she says as she lifts Matilda from the chair and places her in her lap. She shuffles the report away from the banana, but still close enough so she can read and she then hands another piece to Matilda who this time places the banana in her mouth and begins to chew as best as she can. Julia kisses the fine chestnut hair on the top of her daughter’s head as Matilda holds her hand out for more food. Julia smiles as she hands her another piece, the little girl had just wanted a hug as well as her breakfast. “So, Miss Matilda,” Julia begins as she flips to the next page of the report, “should we see what is new in the world while we were sleeping?” Matilda reaches out to hold the collar of Julia’s gown as Julia begins to read out loud. One day she will have to stop reading confidential documents to her daughter, but for now, these moments like this, well they are quite often the best part of her day.
Julia continues to read and Matilda continues to eat until she falls back to sleep in her mother’s arms. Julia holds her close to her chest and rocks her back and forth as she finishes her toast, the remaining banana and her coffee. Once her reading is done, Julia carefully rises from the table; and the sleeping infant and her mother return to the bedroom. Julia tucks her back into her bassinette and then watches her to make sure she falls back to sleep again.
Matilda does not stir and Julia leaves the room, headed for the bathroom. She removes her banana covered pyjamas and steps into the shower, making sure to double rinse her hair and when she emerges from the bathroom just over half an hour later, mother Julia Montague has disappeared for the time being and the Right Honourable Prime Minister Julia Montague has appeared instead, but not before she has one last peek at her still sleeping husband and their sleeping daughter who has now decided to sleep both upside down and sideways in her bassinette.
She closes the bedroom door and begins to move towards the exit of the private residence, she stops quickly in the kitchen, drops her and Matilda’s dishes into the dishwasher and then leaves a note next to the kettle for David. She takes one last look around the private residence, listening out for Matilda, but there is still silence. She retrieves her report she had been reading to Matilda earlier and then strides towards where the private residence finishes and the rest of Number 10 begins. She runs a hand through the bottom of her hair and then pushes the door open, the guard beside the door smiles at her, “good morning Prime Minister,” he greets as she begins to step down the stairs.
“Morning William,” Julia replies as she meets Oliver’s eyes, he is waiting for her as always.
“Ma’am,” he begins with a smile, “we have two calls first thing this morning, before you are expected in chamber and then there are the matters to do with the budget. I also expect you’ll need to see the paperwork the Chancellor has been preparing?”
Julia nods, “good morning Oliver,” she replies as she moves towards her office, “yes, I will require all of the previously mentioned. I will also need to see the latest polling results, we cannot afford to become complacent.”
Oliver nods and follows, “how is the little one this morning?” he questions quietly with a smile on his face. This is part of their early morning routine now; he reminds her of all the tasks she has to complete for the day and then he asks her about Matilda. She turns to Oliver with a bright smile, her principal private secretary is more than just her colleague now, going into labour in front of someone would certainly change the way a relationship functioned.
“Ma’am?” Oliver questions from his desk as he notices his ‘meant to be resting’ boss enter the office. “What are you doing down here? Shouldn’t you be in bed? With your feet up?”
Julia takes a deep breath as she shuffles from side to side, pressing one hand to the back of her now overdue to be born baby bump. She holds out one finger, “do not mention my feet.” She says menacingly, “I haven’t seen them for weeks.”
Oliver nods quickly, “okay, no speaking of feet. But shouldn’t you be upstairs?”
Julia shakes her head, “I want to know what he thinks he is doing.” She explains holding out a report with large black lines through half of the words. “Has he forgotten that his tenure in this office is temporary?”
“No ma’am, I am sure he hasn’t.” Oliver reports as he watches Julia cautiously, “you do know he isn’t here at the moment.”
Julia smirks, “that’s why I am,” she says a with a smile. “But if you see my husband, I was never here.”
Oliver nods, “where is he?” he questions, knowing that David has not left her side for the last two weeks straight.
“I sent him and PS Baxter to the gym.” Julia says firmly and Oliver does not press, he is clever enough to realise by the tone of his boss’ voice that there must be more to that story. “I just needed a bit of breathing space.” Oliver nods as he watches Julia wince, “however, I am not sure if that was a good idea now.”
“Ma’am?” Oliver questions worriedly as he notices Julia wrap two arms around her stomach. “Are you okay?”
Julia attempts to nod, but her nod turns to a shake of her head. “I think …” she begins as her voice trails off, “I think the baby is coming.”
“Banana this morning,” Julia explains to Oliver as they continue to walk down the long hallway. “You should sneak a visit to her today,” she adds, “While I am in chamber, she’d love to see her Uncle Oliver.” Oliver smiles again, Julia knows he loves being called uncle and after his calmness when her water had unexpectantly broken in front of him, it had seemed the least she could’ve done.
She had never known he’d been internally panicking, he’d been so calm. He’d helped her to sit, held her hand while he’d called for both the car and for David and then he had sat next to her as the car sped them to the hospital which they had reached in ten minutes flat.
David had been there as soon as she’d arrived, he had later revealed that PS Baxter may have broken a few speed records to get him there. At the time, Julia couldn’t have cared less, as long as he was there and not telling her that he knew as soon as he left her for just a moment something would happen.
She hadn’t seen Oliver again until the day after Matilda had been born and he still hadn’t revealed his panic until she’d returned from maternity leave and they’d been back in the same office. She had thanked him for his help, thanked him for his calmness and his face had paled and he had revealed his true feelings of the situation.
Yes, she’d always liked Oliver, but it was then that he’d become her friend as well as her employee.
“I’d love to see her.” Oliver mentions as the two of them reach the office. Julia nods and smiles, “your first call is in one hour.” Oliver adds, his demeanour changing from friend to private secretary.
Julia nods once more as she turns from Oliver and closes the office door behind her, she heads for her desk and sits down, the house is now a hive of activity, a new day of leading the country has commenced.