Chapter Text
One random Sunday afternoon, Nick Nelson was pottering about in his garden. Ever since turning fifty he had taken up gardening, much to everyone in his life’s amusement. His friend Darcy persisted in calling him an ‘old man’ and even his elderly Mum would make the odd jibe, her eyes twinkling behind her glasses.
Now, at 57, most of his free time was spent tending to the tomatoes in his greenhouse or making sure the hanging baskets looked resplendent, in colours of pinks, purples and blues.
As he bent down to lift a crisp packet out from under a rhododendron bush that had obviously blown in from the nearby school playground, he heard his phone ringing in his pocket.
You Are My Sunshine.
Only one person in Nick’s life had that ringtone. And, sure enough, he lifted it from his pocket to see the name he knew would be displayed on the screen. Pressing to connect the call, he heard his favourite voice in the world come through.
“Dad?”
“Hey, Allycat,” Nick replied, absentmindedly picking more weeds from the soil while he was down there. “What are you up to today?”
“Not much. Uhh, Dad?” she repeated.
This time, Nick picked up on her tone. “Is everything alright, sweetheart?” he asked, now feeling concerned.
“Yes … and no,” she said, pausing before letting out a long sigh. “Look, don’t panic, alright?”
“Yeah,” Nick exclaimed, “I’m afraid my seventeen year old daughter telling me not to panic kind of causes me to panic, Allie! What happened?”
“Well, see, I might have gotten into a, uhmmmm…” she paused again.
“A what? What have you got into?” Nick was worried, dreading the worst. He stood up and walked over to sit on the garden bench that he had painted bright blue just last week. “Alison Sarah Nelson, you tell me what’s happened right now!”
He could hear the eye roll down the phone when he used her full name.
“Honestly, Dad, calm the fuck down-”
“Language!”
Another eye roll; Nick was sure of it.
“It’s nothing really,” Allie said. “I just…might have gotten into a little bit of a car accident -”
“Oh my god!” Nick started to say.
“PLEASE, Dad, let me finish!”
“Sorry, sorry,” Nick said. “I’m just doing the Dad thing and worrying. What happened?”
“So, I was coming out at the bottom of that junction at Station Road, you know the bad one?”
“Yup, I do! Your Nana Sarah almost got into an accident there one time after she collected me from rugby.”
“Well, this girl collided into the side of me and before you ask, I’m absolutely fine and so is she but uhh…I don’t know about the car -”
Nick interrupted his daughter. “Your car is the least of my worries right now,” he said. “Cars can be fixed, as long as you’re safe and not injured, that’s all I care about. Are you sure you’re not hurt, though? Even at all? Do I need to take you to A and E to get checked over?”
“No, it was only a bump really, I promise I’m not hurt,” Allie insisted. “And you might not be worried about the car, but, well, Mum is going to freak out about it. You know that.”
Nick closed his eyes; she was right, his ex-wife would definitely panic more than was strictly necessary, especially when it sounded like it was a simple fix.
“Please don’t tell her,” Allie pleaded.
“Al, you know I can’t do that,” Nick said softly. “We don’t keep secrets. But, how about I see what the damage is first, do you want to send me a picture? Do you have the number for your insurance company handy? What about-”
“Dad!” she interrupted him. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do in this situation and Sophia - that’s the other girl - she doesn’t know either. So she’s called her Dad and I’ve called you and…could you talk to this girl's Dad for me? Please, both of us are a bit worried we’ll do something wrong.”
“I mean, I can if it would help. Do you need me to come down there?”
“No, I know you’re likely in your garden, wouldn’t want to take you away from it,” she giggled.
“Oi!” Nick admonished her, laughing. “I’ll hear no more cheek about my garden, you little whatsit.”
“I’m right though? You’re in your garden?”
“Of course I’m in my garden, it’s a sunny day. Where else would I be? Right, how am I going to speak to this girl, this Sophia’s, Dad?”
“Well she’s Facetiming her Dad right now, we were thinking if she adds us both in, you can talk to him that way?”
“Yeah, that works. Want to hang up then, add me to the call?”
“Please! Thanks Dad, I’ll tell Sophia your number!”
“What-” he started to say, but the call ended before he could finish his question; he’d been about to ask what Sophia’s Dad was called.
Nick sighed, closing his eyes in frustration. This was the last thing he wanted to do today, having to speak to some stranger over facetime. What if he was a complete knobhead, blaming Allie for the damage when it was clearly his daughter’s fault?
Yup, Nick thought, I bet he’s a knobhead. It would be just my luck.