Chapter Text
They’re sat on the sofa, Betsy wedged between Carla and Lisa, watching MAFS. Well, Carla and Betsy are watching it aptly, commenting on the drama, while Lisa looks at her girls.
Betsy’s curled towards Carla slightly, their shoulders pressed together. Carla’s laughing at some criticism Betsy’s made about the groom, falling into her hand grabbing her hand. It takes them a while to calm down, giddy after eating Ryan’s emergency stash of sweet. When they do, they remain holding hands, Carla giving Betsy’s hand a squeeze. Betsy flashes her a smile and squeezes it back before turning her head to the TV.
Lisa’s throat tightens at the exchange, her eyes stinging. She can’t believe how far they’ve come, all of them, that they’re sat here together curled up on Carla’s sofa watching crappy television. Aside from the Rob situation, Lisa couldn’t have asked for a better day.
After an hour or so, she notices Betsy flagging, her eyes dropping.
“You tired, Bets?”
“No,” she lies, forcing herself to perk up. “Not at all.”
“I’m beat,” Carla says, yawning and stretching. “Bedtime for me.”
She pats Betsy’s thigh and stands to head to the bedroom. She stops when she feels a slight tug on her hand. Betsy’s reached out to her to stop her from going.
“You okay, Bets?” Carla asks, frowning.
“Yeah, fine.”
“You gonna let Carla go to bed then, darling?” Lisa questions, gently prising Betsy’s hand off Carla’s.
“Of course. Just…”
“Yes, love?” Carla sits back next to her, takes her hand. Lisa sits forward and takes her other hand. “What is it? Come on, you can tell me,” she says, nudging Betsy lightly with her elbow.
“It’s stupid but- I want us all to stay together.”
“Doesn’t seem stupid to me,” Carla states. “It’s a good idea, actually. We should stick together. Come on, you can bunk in with us. Right, Lis?”
Lisa smiles gratefully at Carla, tightens her grip on Betsy’s hand.
“Course you can, Bets.”
Betsy lets out a sigh of relief and they both feel her relax against them.
“Come on then, you pair. Let’s head to bed,” Carla stands and reaches a hand out to each of them, pulling them up off the sofa. They part ways in the hallway, Betsy heading into her room to get ready and Lisa and Carla going into theirs. Lisa pulls Carla into a hug before pulling back to kiss her softly.
“What was that for? Not that I’m complaining,” Carla chuckles.
“You’re so good with Betsy. I love you so much. Thank you for being so amazing and letting her sleep in here with us.”
“Of course, Lis. I love both of you so much. I can’t bear the thought of her lying there alone in bed scared to go to sleep. She needs to be with us.”
Lisa kisses her again before pulling her along to get ready for bed. Lisa’s settling under the covers when a timid knock comes from behind the door. Carla heads over and fetches Betsy in, ushers her towards the bed before locking the bedroom door.
“There,” she says, placing her hands on her hips and turning to Lisa and Betsy. “Safe and sound. Front door’s locked, this one’s locked and you’ve got your own personal detective sergeant here to protect you,” she teases, winking at Lisa. “And a knicker factory owner, but I don’t know what good that is!”
“He is quite annoying to be fair, we could sew his mouth shut,” Betsy jokes.
“Very true. Don’t tempt me, your mum’ll have to arrest us,” she laughs. “Right, what’s the set up? Am I sleeping in a Swain sandwich or?”
“Could I sleep in between you two? Please? I’d just feel safer that way.”
Carla softens, the mirth in her eyes replaced with affection. While Betsy’s a big gob and behaves like a normal teenager, Carla knows that she’s hurting still after Becky and must be petrified at everything that’s going on around her. The idea of her tucked between her and Lisa, snuggled in with them, melts her heart.
“Course you can, love. I have to warn you, I am a cuddler. You might wake up to me spooning you.”
“It’s true,” Lisa confirms. “She’s like a koala.”
“Don’t worry, I know. I mean, Ryan literally calls you Auntie Koala. Anyway, might be nice, I s’pose.”
Carla smiles at her, encourages her to shift over towards Lisa so she can get in the bed. Lisa lies on her side, facing Betsy and Carla, starts stroking Betsy’s hair. Betsy closes her eyes and curls towards Lisa, exhausted after running from Rob and the emotions of the day. Lisa begins stroking up and down Betsy’s nose with her finger.
“I used to do this when she was younger. Ever since she was a baby, this always worked. Has her asleep in minutes,” Lisa mumbles, gazing down at Betsy tenderly. “I’d sit in the rocking chair with her and give her a bottle. Then, Becky would sing to her while I stroked her nose and rocked us in the chair. She’d be out like a light.”
Carla feels a pang in her chest, reminded of her own baby momentarily, everything that could’ve been. Her eyes water and her lips wobble as she smiles, overcome with emotion at the idea of a tiny Betsy in Lisa’s arms.
“Still got it, look,” Lisa says, nodding her head towards Betsy, who’s fallen fast asleep.
A tear trails down Carla’s face and she tries to surreptitiously wipe it away. Lisa notices, reaches the hand that was stroking Betsy’s nose over to grab Carla’s hand.
“What’s wrong, darling?”
“Nothing. I just got all emotional thinking about you and baby Betsy cuddled up while Becky sang to you both. What would she sing?”
“Coat of Many Colours by Dolly Parton. Her mum used to sing it to her when she was growing up. They were quite poor so I think the song resonated. Anyway, she’d sing it to Betsy and it’d put her right to sleep. When she got older, she’d put it on the CD player and dance around the kitchen to it with Bets. They loved that song,” Lisa sighs fondly, looking down at her sleeping daughter.
“I love that so much,” Carla says, squeezing Lisa’s hand. “We could listen to it tomorrow. If that’s not overstepping, of course,” Carla backtracks slightly, nervous about treading on Becky’s toes.
“I think she’d love that. I haven’t heard her listening to it for ages. I haven’t listened to it for ages, to be honest. It’d be good for us, though.”
Carla smiles softly at her and nods, making a note to herself in her head to play it when she gets up to make her morning coffee.
Betsy stirs slightly and curls tighter into Lisa, seeking her out even while asleep. Carla feels another pang in her chest at the sight, can’t stop herself from welling up again.
“Look at you two,” she says, voice wobbling slightly. “So flamin’ cute. My girls.”
Lisa wipes a tear away from Carla’s face, encourages her to move closer so she can lay an arm over both her and Betsy.
“I was pregnant, once,” she starts, taking a heaving sigh before carrying on, almost bracing herself to tell the story. “She was a girl. I- I lost her. Miscarried.”
Lisa’s arm tightens around her. Betsy turns over, presses herself into Carla, not actually asleep. Carla wraps her arms around Betsy, pulls her tight, reaches out to Lisa to encourage her to snuggle closer.
“I loved her so much, you know. I’d talk to her all the time, tell her about the factory and the outfit I’d picked for the day, told her which vegetable she was from this book I’d found in the precinct. I was gonna call her Hayley, after Roy’s wife. God, I would’ve spoiled her rotten. She’d be worse than you,” Carla teases, squeezing Betsy slightly.
“You’re a great mum, Carla,” Betsy says to her.
Carla looks puzzled. “I’m not a mum, love. I never had a baby.”
“That’s not true. You didn’t give birth to a baby but you had one. She’ll always be your baby, for as long as you love and remember her, which is always.”
Carla lets out a couple of sobs, grips on to Betsy tighter. They hold each other for a moment, Lisa cuddling both of them and stroking Carla’s arm, until Carla’s calmed down enough to talk.
“Betsy, you have no idea what that means to me. Thank you.”
“Well, you’re kinda like my mum too, I suppose. In a way. Slightly. I mean, you nag me like a mum.”
“Hey!” Carla protests. “Only cause I care.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Betsy rolls her eyes. “I know. You are, though. You look after me and care about me.”
“Course I do. I love you, Bets.”
“Yeah, well, I love you too, don’t I?” Betsy replies, attempting to be nonchalant, but Carla can tell she means it from how her cheeks burn and she can’t make eye contact.
Carla glances at Lisa, who’s watching and listening to them with her jaw clenched, fighting back tears. She’s smiling, though, loving how Carla and Betsy’s relationship has developed since the start.
“Right, you soppy pair, let’s get some sleep.” Lisa says, turning to switch off her lamp. She gives Carla a look that tells her they’re going to talk more about baby Hayley when they’re alone, that Carla’s going to have the biggest cuddles and kisses from Lisa. But for now, she turns her lamp off and snuggles into the bed.
“Night mum. Night Carla. Love you both.”
“Night, Bets. I love you,” Lisa presses a kiss to the back of Betsy’s head before leaning over her to kiss Carla on the lips. “G’night, darling. I love you.”
“It’s like the flamin’ Waltons in here!”
“The who?” Betsy questions.
“Never mind, you’re too young to know that reference.”
“So, you admit you’re old?”
“You’d better go to sleep quick time before we have a fight, young lady.”
“Alright, alright. Love you really, Carla.”
“Yeah, I love you too, Bets.”
They all drift off, Betsy first, then Lisa and finally Carla, comforted in the knowledge that they’re all together.