“Dont they have any family? Why on earth did you bring them here? Pity, is it? Pity for them, but what about us? We can barely fit in this house ourselves! Call social services tomorrow, I mean it! Let them sort it out!”
John glared at his wife. Shed just returned from her best friends funeralnot alone. Beside her stood two children: three-year-old Lily and thirteen-year-old Oliver, shuffling awkwardly by the doorway, unsure how to react to their less-than-welcoming host.
Emma gently nudged the children toward the kitchen and, without raising her voice, said, “Ollie, pour Lily some juice, and get yourself a drink too. Theres some in the fridge.”
Once the kids were out of earshot, she turned to her husband, furious. “Shame on you! Sophie was my closest friend! Did you really think Id abandon her children when theyve lost everything? Imagine how they feel! Youre thirty-eight, and at the first sign of trouble, you still ring your mum! Put yourself in their shoes!”
“Alright, I get it,” John said, softening slightly. “But youre not seriously planning to keep them here, are you?”
“I am! Im going to apply for guardianship! Theyve got no one else, John, understand? Their dads whereabouts are a mysteryhe didnt even show up to say goodbye. Sophie lost her parents young. Theres some distant aunt, but she refuses to take themtoo old. And its not like we have kids of our own.”
“Emma, Im your husbandremember? Dont I get a say?”
“John, honestly, whats got into you? Youre a good man. I know you are. I wouldnt have brought them without trusting youd come around. Scared of the extra expenses? Well manage! Besides, theyre hardly toddlers. Ollie will stay in school, and well enrol Lily in nursery. Our lives wont even change that much!”
“Yeah, but my mum Emma! Shell skin me alive if she finds out! She already nags me nonstop about not giving her grandkids!”
“I think your mum should keep her nose out of our family business. We always talked about adopting anyway. Why bring a stranger into our home when we already know Ollie and Lily? Itll be easier for everyone.”
“Maybe youre rightfine, Emma. But we talked about adopting *one* child. Emphasis on *one*. A baby! Lilys young, sure, but Ollie? Hes a teenager! Nothing but trouble!”
“You and I were teenagers once. We turned out alright, didnt we?”
“Fine, well figure it out. They can stay for now”
Emma kissed John loudly on the cheek and grinned. Shed never doubted him. He always grumbled and scowled first, then came around in the end.
She headed to the kitchen to start dinner, mentally planning the mountain of paperwork aheadsocial services, work references, bank statements
And so began the endless slog of red tape. In films, orphaned children find a family in a heartbeat. In reality, its a marathon of forms and interviews. At one point, social services nearly sent Ollie and Lily to temporary care. But Emma and John fought tooth and nail to keep them.
Truthfully, the kids were no trouble. Lily, still young, distracted herself with new toys and treats. Ollie struggled more. John noticed him fighting back tears and pulled him aside one day.
“Ollie, I know it hurts. Im nearly forty, and I cant imagine losing my mum. But youve got to be strong for Lily. If you need to scream or cry, tell me. Well go somewhere private. Dont bottle it upbut dont let Lily see. Shell get scared. Promise me?”
After that, Ollie looked at John differently. Emma often saw them walking together, returning as mates.
The family endured endless inspections. To prove they could provide, the couple even took out a loanredoing a bedroom, buying toys, clothes, and new furniture. They scraped together the fees for Lilys nursery and, when Ollie missed his football mates, paid for his club too.
Finally, the guardianship was approved. John picked up a second job to clear the debts, while Emma, a physics teacher, started tutoring for extra cash. They made it work.
A year later, the kids had settled in. Lily even called Emma “Mummy Em.” Even Johns sceptical mum, Margaret, warmed to them eventually.
As summer approached, John had an idea. “Lets go to the seaside! Not Brightontoo crowded. How about Cornwall? Just saw a last-minute deal. Ill book it now!”
Emma agreed. After the year theyd had, she needed a break.
Later, a colleague rang Emma just to chatclearly bored. When Emma mentioned Cornwall, the woman sighed. “Lucky you! Im stuck at my sisters all summer. Must be nice getting all that guardian money, eh?”
Emma froze. Was *that* how people saw her? Greedy? Exploiting the kids for cash?
She told John, who admitted a mate had recently ribbed him, “You could finally upgrade that old car of yourswhat with all that extra income!”
Johns mum had even snipped, “Now youve got the funds, maybe fix those teeth of yours before John runs off!”
Even Johns boss had scoffed, “No extra leave for youtheyre not even *your* kids!”
The final straw? Their neighbour spotting Emma with shopping bags: “Life must be easier now, with all that government help!”
Emma had just shrugged. “More mouths to feed! Ollies always hungrygrowing lad!”
John groaned. “So everyone thinks we took them for the money?”
Emma shrugged. “Let them.”
“Maybe we shouldnt go to Cornwall. People will assume were splashing their benefits!”
“And lets not forget,” John added bitterly, “half the streets probably waiting for us to steal the kids inheritance!”
In the end, they went anyway. The trip brought them even closer.
But back home, Emma fell illnauseous, exhausted. Rushed to hospital, tests revealed the shock of their lives.
“John, love were having a baby.”
“*What?!* But the doctors said”
“Turns out miracles happen,” Emma laughed. Then, serious: “But Ollie and Lily stay. No take-backs.”
John grinned. “As if wed let them go! Ollie! Lily! Come hereyoure getting a sibling!”
The cheers that followed were pure joy.
And so, against all odds, a family built on lovenot conveniencefound their happy ending.
