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Ted glanced through the door, his partner smoothing her fingertips across the coffin. It was a closed casket service, much to Beard and Jane’s disappointment.
‘Hey.’ He stroked her arm so as not to startle her. She smiled a hello back, and they sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes.
'What's going on in there, doodlecakes?’
‘Doodlecakes? That's a new one.’ Rebecca smiled. It was the day of her father's funeral, and she had been standing next to his casket in the back room for a while. He'd stand by her side as long as she wanted him to, but he couldn't help being curious about what she was thinking. She'd been quiet this week, not quite too quiet fo him to worry excessively, but not herself. He hadn't seen her as much around the house, and she certainly hadn't been to work, except to meet Keeley for lunch. She'd come to bed late, or fallen asleep in a pile of blankets before Ted had gotten back. He'd wait for her to cuddle into him, giving her space. He mostly knew what she'd been up to, she wasn't especially tidy at the moment, and and he texted her mother, Deborah, last Wednesday when she hadn't come home. Turns out she'd gone to Ola’s for ice cream, and curled up at Sam’s with Deborah and Simi to watch Gilmore Girls.
‘Do you like it? I can go back to honeybunch if you hate it.’
‘No, no. It's sweet. I feel like a kids’ cartoon character.’
‘What channel would you live on? Disney? Nickelodeon? Nick Junior?’
‘Milkshake, probably.’
Ted tilted his head.
'It's a British one. A woman with flowers in her long brunette hair used to host it, I'd watch it all the time when I was little. Sometimes I stick it on nowadays if I'm feeling down.’
'That's lovely. What's your favourite programme?’ She was opening up to him, and if her past relationship was anything to go by, it took a lot for her to trust Ted. He was glad she did.
‘Now, I think Fifi and the Flowertots, but when I was little, Andy Pandy.’
‘Oh, I think I had Andy Pandy too. The little blue pjama fella? Yeah, my mom would put it on before dinner.’
Rebecca let out a giggle, sniffing, wiping a tear away. ‘Only you would describe Andy Pandy as the blue pajama fella.’
She leaned against Ted’s side for support, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, letting his fingers nestle in her wavy hair.
‘Well, that's him. Stripy fella.’
She snuggled into him, closing her eyes for a moment, her head slotted into his neck. He smelled her freshly washed hair, perfume on her neck, stroked soothing circles into the small of her back.
‘I love you.’ She whispered.
‘I love you too, baby.’
Pulling away, she kept ahold of his hand.
‘Ready?’
She nodded, and led the way back into the chapel for the service.