Lovely, Stay Lovely

A knock at the door startled me. I shushed the small sleeping child before placing her back in her blankets and walking over to the door. I looked through the peep hole and frowned. A tall, lanky man with brown hair stood at the door. “Who is it?” I whispered.

“It’s Olleh. I’m Jona’s friend.”

I opened the door a crack and peered at the man. “How do I know you’re not going to kill me?”

He chuckled and pushed the door open, stepping inside. “Love, if I was coming to kill yeh, I wouldn’t have knocked on the front door and asked to come inside.”

“Well that’s true. I’m Dani, by the way.”

“’Ello love.” He grinned, shaking my hand. “Where is the lad, by the way?”

I shrugged before plopping on the couch. “I have no idea. He just said he’d be back in a bit.”

“Huh,” Oli noted, pulling out his phone. He shot a quick text down before sitting next to me. “So, where’s the baby?”

“How do you know about Abi?”

Oli smiled lightly, “I saw yeh on the streets that day wiff the baby. Jona talks about yeh too. Of course the little one came up.”

I smiled, looking down at my lap. “Jona told you of me?”

“Yea, some stuff I guess.” Oli looked down at me and smirked, rolling his eyes. “Jona’s clothes?”

I nodded and played with the hem of my shirt. “Yea, I mean, I didn’t want them but he insisted and-“

“Of course he insisted,” Oli chuckled to himself.

I titled my head confused about the inside joke that he was clearly laughing at. I got up and walked over to the corner where Abi was napping. I picked her up carefully out of the bundle before walking back over to Oliver. “This is Abi. She’s sleeping though, so you have to be quiet.”

He smiled, peaking into the little bundle. “She’s absoluteleh precious. May I hold her?”

I nodded and carefully placed Abi into his arms. “Okay, make sure to support her head and- yea, just like that.”

Oliver’s smile grew as he gently rocked her back and forth. “She’s absoluteleh superb, Dani.”

The door opened and I looked over to Jona to see him with a few bags. “Aye bloke,” he nodded towards Oli before shuffling past us and into his bedroom. He appeared a few moments later empty handed. “What are-“

“Sh!” I warned as Abi started shifting in Oli’s hands. Before long, her eyes opened and she started wailing. “Rock her. Maybe she’ll come down.”

Oli frowned, rocking her in his lanky arms. “There there, little one.”

Jona looked from me to Oli and back again. “Sorreh Dani. I didn’t mean to wake her.”

I nodded before reaching my arms out and gently taking her from Oli. I leaned her against my chest and patted her back softly. Abi’s cries soothed out and soon disappeared as she faded back into a dream state.

“Amazin’,” Oli commented looking bewildered.

“Mums touch,” I smiled.

Oli nodded before standing up. “Well I guess I’ll get goin’ yea?”

“Yeh stopped by and yeh not even stayin’?” Jona joked keeping his voice down.

Oli shrugged before looking at me. “I came. I observed. I’m leaving. I’ll call yeh later, yea?”

Jona frowned and nodded as Oli left the house. Jona sighed and sat down next to me. I watched him carefully as he closed his eyes, drowning in deep thought.

“You look exhausted,” I commented.

“I am,” he mumbled before opening his eyes. “Yeh do too. Maybe yeh should go nap o’ somefing?”

“I’m a kind of tired that sleep doesn’t fix,” I mumbled softly.

Jona frowned looking over at the sleeping baby. “Yeh realleh are amazin’ wiff her.”

“Thanks,” I smiled before getting up and placing her back in her blanket bundle in the corner. “Practice I suppose.”

“Why don’t…” Jona trailed off before sighing. “Go sleep, Dani. Yeh need it.”

I looked over at the exhausted man and sighed. He was right. I was worn out. I went back over to where Abi was sleeping and sat down, leaning against the wall. I pulled my knees to my chest and leaned my head on them before closing my eyes.

“Dani,” Jona whispered softly.

I jumped at the closeness of his voice and opened my eyes to see him kneeling down right in front of me. “Y-yes,” I spoke shakily, staring into the depths of his endlessly blue eyes. He looked just as tired as I was, as if he was fighting a battle inside his head.

Jona simply shook his head before reaching down and wrapping his arms around me. He lifted me up and I clutched tiredly to his neck as he walked down the hall. Jona placed me on his bed before sighing and falling onto the bed next to me.

“You did-“

“I wasn’t going to watch you sleep on my floor another night,” he said simply.

I wasn’t going to argue. This was my first time laying in a bed in God knows how long. I closed my eyes and fell asleep soon after.