An elderly client has a surprising tale and wise words about Valentine traditions…
BY LOUISE JENSEN
Stella has welcomed her pregnant half-sister Sophie into her life and her home – but that means she’s had little time for lovely, patient Don…
Dawn hasn’t yet ushered in the daylight when Stella stumbles out of bed on Valentine’s Day. She shivers as her bare feet leave the comfort of the duvet she had been snuggled under.
It’s 6am rather than her usual 7am. She’s opening the salon early today. Her appointment book is full of women either wanting to get their hair styled or their nails done, or both.
In the kitchen, Stella’s breath clouds in front of her. She switches the heating on low so the flat is warm by the time Sophie, her half-sister, wakes up.
Stella and Sophie only discovered that the other existed a few weeks ago, and Sophie has been staying with Stella while they get to know one another.
While the kettle boils, Stella scoops oats into a bowl and pops them into the microwave. Her grandmother made her a warming breakfast before school on the coldest of days. She’d stand at the stove, stirring the pot.
Two minutes later and the microwave tings. She dollops honey into the oats, sprinkles blueberries on the top and then hurries into the living room.
Dylan is curled up on the corner of the sofa. Ginger fur coats the fabric.
At first, she’d worried about Sophie being around a cat. She’d heard that pregnant women had to be careful. She wonders, not for the first time, what will happen when the twins are born – being a single mum, will Sophie want to stay so Stella can help with the babies?
She’s unsure how much help she will be – not having had kids herself.
Stella reads her horoscope, as she does every morning. Actions speak louder than words.
But words are all she has when her phone begins to ring, her boyfriend Don’s photo lighting up her screen.
“I wanted to catch you before you open up,” he says. “Happy Valentine’s.”
They chat briefly, but there are lulls in the conversation, the silence speaking
volumes. Sadness swirls around Stella’s stomach after the call has ended.
Is their relationship ruined? Is she the one ruining it? She thinks that she is.
Since she found out before Christmas that her dad had once had an affair and fathered another child, Stella had been feeling… She wasn’t quite sure, but her faith in love had been rocked. Her parents, although they weren�
