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It was the day before his appearance on Jonathan Ross when he got a call from a producer. They wanted to know if they had David and Georgia’s consent to announce the arrival of their new baby girl on the show, to which David and Georgia happily obliged. Although they were a private family this would get out some time soon, and it was better to be done so in a way that David could somewhat control the situation.
David was sat awkwardly at a tiny table in Olive’s room. His chin was practically resting on his knees as he hunched over, pretending to drink tea from an empty plastic cup.
“Is it nice, daddy?” Olive asked, smiling up at him.
“Oh, lovely! You and mummy always make the best cups of tea.” David smiled brightly at his little girl.
Olive had been finding it hard adjusting to the newest member of the family, so David and Georgia were trying to spend as much time with her as possible lately.
Their tea party was soon interrupted by an unexpected knock at the front door.
“Why don’t Mr Teddy finish daddy’s cup of tea while I go and see who’s at the door, yeah?”
Olive nodded and placed her favourite teddy bear in David’s seat once he stood. He stretched, not realising until then how sitting all bent over had effected his muscles. I’m getting old , he thought to himself with a slight grimace, before heading down the stairs. Myrtle began to bark excitedly at the door.
“Myrtle, sit!” David commanded. She didn't obey.
“Of course not, why bother?” David mumbled to himself before flinging the door open.
He was greeted by the smiling face and open arms of his father-in-law.
“Pete!” David exclaimed, giving Peter a quick hug and a pat on the back, welcoming him inside.
Myrtle too, welcomed him inside. Her welcome was a little less pleasant though, Peter had to admit.
“Oh, no!” David shrieked. “Myrtle!”
Georgia stood by the sink, scrubbing the urine out of her father’s shoes.
“Sorry, dad,” she apologised. “We thought she had grown out of this, but apparently not.”
“She just gets overexcited,” Ty stated from the fridge. The teenage boy grabbed a snack and promptly left, to hide away in his room with all of his video games.
“Daddy,” Olive said.
David was sat in a wooden chair at the kitchen table. His baby girl was in her car seat next to him and he stroked at her cheeks with one hand. He held Wilfred on his knee with the other, and every few minutes he’d give the boy a piece of orange. Olive sat on the floor in front of him. (She rarely left his side whenever he came home from a particularly lengthy on-location shoot.)
“When you talk about baby on tv tonight,” Olive continued. “Will you tell them about Myrtle, too?”
“Why would I tell them about Myrtle?”
“Because she’s family too, and it’s funny when she wee’s on people!”
Olive breaks into hysterical giggles.
“Oh, thanks!” Peter cries from the other side of the table. “That’s it young lady, time for a tickle!”
Peter held his hands up and wiggled his fingers, causing Olive to shriek as she ran away, out of the room.
That night when Georgia and David were finally getting ready for bed he looked in the bathroom mirror. He remembered his thought from earlier and turned to his wife as she brushed her teeth.
“Geor, love, do you think I could still get parts for character’s in their early twenties? I think I could…”
After a few minutes of Georgia staring at her husband’s reflection, with toothpaste around her mouth, and an expression painted on her face that clearly depicted she was struggling how to break the news to him lightly, she finally replied.
“I think you look very handsome as you’re getting older, babe. Defined. Even if you are going a little grey.”
“I’m not going grey!” David shrieked as pure terror shot across his face, like a bullet.
Not the hair, he thought to himself. Not my hair!
Before falling asleep Georgia heard David whisper into the darkness.
“Geor?”
“Yeah?”
“Am I really going grey?”
“No, love.”
A few moments of silence passed before David broke it again.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Shut up and go to sleep, you wally brains.”
It was nearly time to leave for the show. Ty was cuddling his new sister on the sofa as David was bustling about, trying to get ready.
“Mum, the baby just smiled!” Ty exclaimed, excitedly.
“No, she isn’t old enough to smile yet, love. It’s probably just wind,” Georgia explained.
David walked over, ruffled Ty’s hair and looked down affectionately at his new baby daughter.
“She might not be smiling yet, but I tell you what Georgia, we did an excellent job. She’s bloody gorgeous! Just like her mum,” David turned to smile sweetly at his wonderful wife.
David kissed each member of his family good bye in turn. Although he didn’t want to leave without proper good byes he did rush them a little, so that he wouldn’t be late. David walked out of the door and wished he could stay at home with his family. However, with the knowledge that he’d be crawling into bed, next to his wife (and a maybe-smiley-maybe-windy baby in a cot next to them), when he got home; he simply smiled. A thought occurred to him. This might just be the happiest he has ever been, in his whole life. It’s at least one of his favourite moments of the year… At least.