‘Alex, because they haven’t included a picture of their cat doesn’t mean they don’t have one. We can ask Gwen and Gareth this evening, but I expect the cat was out when they took the photographs. Cats often roam.’ But this wasn’t really about an absent cat. Alex was trying to catch Gwen and Gareth out and prove them liars, as he now deemed Rosemary and Edward to be. And who could blame him?
‘Let’s just wait and see what Gwen and Gareth say,’ I said. ‘We’ll put away the album now as it’s time for you to get washed and dressed ready for school.’ I gently eased the album from him, closed it and placed it on the bed. I didn’t want him going to school agitated and in a bad mood.
‘I bet they are liars,’ he mumbled under his breath as he climbed out of bed.
‘We’ll see,’ I said, and left him to get ready. However, I knew that regardless of what lovely people I now believed Gwen and Gareth to be, there was going to be an uphill struggle before Alex began to trust and accept them.
I made notes in my fostering log of Alex’s reactions and comments to the introduction so that I could update Debbie and Jill. It would also allow me to monitor Alex’s acceptance (or not) of Gwen and Gareth. If I thought there was a case for prolonging the introductions then I would have written evidence in these notes – incidents and comments – which I might otherwise have forgotten. It’s so important for carers to keep good log notes.
That afternoon, when I collected Alex from school, Miss Cork made a point of telling me that Alex had worked very well in Science. We both praised him and then as he stood to one side with Paula I quietly asked Miss Cork if Alex had mentioned Gwen and Gareth at all. She was aware that we’d started the introductions.
‘Not a word,’ she said. ‘But I guess that’s probably to be expected after the disappointment of last time. I won’t mention it to him unless he does, and I’ll keep you posted.’
‘Thank you.’
Gwen and Gareth were due to arrive at our house at six o’clock and to stay for an hour, so I made an early dinner, which we’d finished well before six. Adrian and Paula knew they were coming and why, but appreciated that Alex didn’t want to talk about it. When the doorbell rang we were all in the living room. I was helping Alex learn his spellings while Adrian, having done his homework, was helping Paula fit together a large-pieced puzzle of a zoo. Alex closed his spelling book and looked at me.
‘Do you want to come with me to answer the door?’ I asked him.
‘No,’ he said bluntly and, folding his arms across his chest, put his head down. His body language said it all.
The days were growing longer now and it was still light at 6 p.m. so when I opened the front door it was to a still pleasantly warm evening and the cheerful smiles of Gwen and Gareth. ‘Welcome,’ I said. ‘Good to see you again. Come in.’ We greeted each other with cheek kisses and hugs as one would old friends, which they were very quickly becoming. ‘We’re in the living room. This way.’
I led the way down the hall and into the living room, where Alex was still sitting on the sofa with his arms tightly folded and his face like thunder.
‘Hello,’ Gwen said lightly. She sat on the sofa a little way from him, setting the shopping bag she was carrying at her feet.
‘Alex, this is Gwen and Gareth,’ I said.
‘Hi, Alex,’ they both said.
‘And this is Adrian and Paula.’
‘Good to meet you,’ Gareth said. ‘You look busy.’ He sat in one of the easy chairs close to them. ‘Fine jigsaw, that,’ he said, smiling at Paula.
‘It is indeed,’ Gwen said.
Unfazed by Alex’s hostility, Gwen and Gareth continued chatting, including Alex in the conversation but not saying anything directly to him that required an answer, which could have made him feel uncomfortable. He kept his head firmly down as we talked, but after a while I saw his arms start to relax. That he had even stayed in the room I viewed as positive; I’d half expected him to flee to his room when the doorbell rang.
‘So you’ve got a cat too!’ Gwen exclaimed as Toscha sauntered in. Sensing new friends, she went to Gwen and began rubbing around her legs, purring as Gwen stroked her.
‘Alex was wondering about your cat,’ I said, seizing the opportunity. ‘We couldn’t see him in the photographs.’
‘No. He’s a bit of a wanderer. He likes a nice warm fire in winter, but come the spring and summer he’s off hunting. Sometimes he brings things home that he’s caught. I don’t like it, but that’s cats for you.’
Intrigued, Alex glanced up at Gwen and then down again.
‘In your bag, love,’ Gareth now reminded Gwen.
‘Oh yes,’ she said. ‘We’ve brought one of our family albums with us. I’m sure there’s a picture of our cat, Tom, in there.’ She dipped her hand into her shopping bag and brought out the album, then flipped through until she came to a photograph that included their cat. ‘There he is,’ she said, tapping the page and tilting the album towards Alex. He still had his head down, but the album was in his line of vision. She set it on the sofa between them.
‘I’ve also brought you a few cupcakes,’ Gwen said, delving into her shopping basket again. ‘Kaylee and Mark made them. Do you like cake?’
‘Does a duck like water?’ I said, laughing.
Gwen unclipped the lid of the airtight container and showed us its contents. A dozen mouth-watering cupcakes iced in blue, yellow, pink and green, and decorated with different-coloured sugar strands, sprinkles and mini marshmallows, were arranged in neat rows.
‘Yummy,’ Adrian said, his eyes rounding.
‘Yes, very yummy,’ I said.
‘You can have one now if your mum says it’s OK,’ Gwen said to Adrian. ‘We made them for you all.’
‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘I’ll fetch some plates and some drinks. Would you like a tea or coffee?’
They both said they’d like tea, so I went into the kitchen where I set a tray with plates, juice for the children and then the tea I made for us. Returning to the living room, I placed the tray on the coffee table and handed out the plates and drinks. Alex still had his head down, so I slipped a plate onto his lap and put a glass of juice within his reach. Gwen offered around the box of cakes. When she came to Alex he raised his head enough to quietly take a cake with blue icing.
‘Good choice,’ Gwen said. ‘Those are Gareth’s favourites too.’
The next few minutes was given over to eating and sighs of delight as we enjoyed the delicious, light cakes. I asked Gwen to pass on my thanks to Kaylee and Mark who’d made them. We continued chatting and Gwen told us more about their family, as Adrian and Paula played and Alex sat on the sofa. I asked Alex a couple of times if he would like to play a game or join Adrian and Paula, but he shook his head. The hour passed quickly, and although Alex hadn’t contributed anything he had been listening, and simply being in the same room as Gwen and Gareth meant that they were becoming familiar to him and were no longer complete strangers. With ten minutes to go and their family album still open on the sofa, Gwen said quietly to Alex, ‘Would you like to see the photo of our cat now before we have to leave?’
Alex gave a small, almost imperceptible nod. ‘Good,’ Gwen said. She picked up the album and, moving a little closer to him, pointed to the photograph of Tom. She said he was five years old and got on well with their dog, Rupert, most of the time. Then she returned to the front of the album and began going through it, saying a few words about each picture, while Adrian and Paula continued playing and I talked quietly with Gareth. Alex was looking at the photographs, although he didn’t say anything or nod. Once Gwen came to the end of the album she said, ‘You can look at that again another day, but it’s time for us to go now.’ She returned the album to her bag and she and Gareth stood. They admired the puzzles Adrian and Paula had completed and then began saying goodbye. Without actually looking at them, Alex managed a small ‘bye’. It was the first word he’d said to them all evening and I saw Gwen and Gareth exchange a smile.
/> As I saw them to the front door I said, ‘I hope you weren’t disappointed. It is difficult for him.’
‘Of course not,’ Gwen said, and Gareth nodded. ‘He did very well. You should have seen our Mark when he first arrived. The only words he ever said to us for a month were, “I hate you,” and, “I wish you were dead,” and worse. We’ll see you tomorrow then, around the same time.’
‘Yes.’
We hugged goodbye, and I thanked them again for the cakes and then opened the front door. The sun was beginning its descent now, casting a mystical pink glow across the skyline and over the rooftops of the houses opposite. It was quite magical and seemed to augur well for what was to come. Once they were in the car I returned to the living room, where Alex had left the sofa and was playing with Adrian and Paula. ‘They’re nice,’ Adrian said.
‘Yes, very nice,’ I agreed. I began collecting together the cups, saucers and plates.
‘Are they coming again tomorrow?’ Alex asked.
‘Yes, just for an hour again.’
‘I’m not going to call them Mum and Dad,’ he said emphatically.
‘No, they don’t expect you to. Their names are Gwen and Gareth.’
And that was all Alex said about them for the rest of the evening.
Chapter Twenty-One
The Family
Gwen and Gareth visited us again the following evening as arranged and Alex began talking to them a little. Not with the unconditional enthusiasm and affection he’d shown Rosemary and Edward at the start of their introductions, but with a reserved distance. His defences were up. He was protecting himself from being hurt again, which all the adults understood. However, when Debbie telephoned for an update I was able to say that the evening had gone well and Alex was coping. The next evening when Gareth and Gwen visited, it had been agreed that they would take Alex out for a short walk. As they left the house I heard Gareth telling Alex that one of their family usually took their dog for a walk around this time. When they returned Alex seemed more relaxed and Gwen said he’d been asking questions about their dog, Rupert, and also what they did in their spare time. Although going out alone with Gwen and Gareth and talking to them was obviously a big step forward, none of the adults harboured any doubts that before long there could be a backlash – probably quite a few.
It was my turn first, and that evening, after they’d gone, Alex came to find me in the kitchen. ‘How come they want me and you don’t?’ he asked, his face set.
I stopped what I was doing to talk to him. ‘I do want you,’ I said. ‘But Debbie and the other social workers think you would be happier long term with Gwen and Gareth and their family. I’m hoping we will still be able to see you after you move.’
‘She’s fat,’ Alex said, trying to think of something horrible to say about Gwen, which to be honest was difficult.
‘No, she’s not,’ I said. ‘She’s cuddly, like my mother.’
‘I’m not going on bike rides with them or learning the violin or having a tutor,’ Alex said, becoming increasingly angry.
‘Did they say you would do those things?’ I asked, surprised.
‘No. I’m just telling you, because Rosemary and Edward wanted me to do those things.’
I lifted Alex onto the breakfast stool, so that I was at eye level, and looked at him carefully. ‘Alex, Gwen and Gareth and their family are completely different to Rosemary and Edward. They’re different people, their routines will be different, and they’ll do different things. We don’t know that much about them yet, but what I do know is that they won’t put you under pressure to do activities you don’t want to do. We will learn more when we see them tomorrow. Once we’ve been to their house and you’ve met Mark, Taylor and Kaylee I’m sure you will feel much better.’
‘Have you met them?’ he asked.
‘No, not yet, but Debbie has.’
‘She met Rosemary, Edward and James lots of times,’ he said pointedly.
‘I know, and it didn’t work out. I understand your worries, but we must give Gwen and Gareth a chance. I like what I’ve seen so far. Let’s try to be positive. Can you tell me something you like about them?’
He thought for a moment and then said, ‘They have a dog.’
‘Good. Anything else?’
‘They didn’t lie about having a cat.’
‘That’s true. Good. What else?’
He thought again. ‘Their kids have been with them a long time and can stay forever.’
‘Fantastic,’ I said. So he had been listening. ‘One last thing?’
‘They make great cupcakes!’ he said, finally smiling.
‘Yes, they do,’ I agreed, pleased.
‘Can I have another one?’
‘Go on then.’
I asked my parents to babysit again the following evening while I took Alex to Gwen and Gareth’s house for the first time. I invited them to dinner and we ate early so that Alex and I could set off at 5.30. Because Adrian and Paula loved being looked after (and spoiled) by their nana and grandpa, they didn’t feel they were being left out or left behind. But it was important I could give Alex my full attention when he saw his new home for the first time and met his new siblings. He was nervous, understandably, and asked me twice before we left the house if I would stay with him for the whole hour. Then in the car he was silent, apart from clicking his fingers while staring agitatedly out of the side window. I reassured him that there was nothing to worry about.
I found the house easily from the directions Gareth and Gwen had given me and from my knowledge of the area. It was a Victorian semi-detached house in a row of similar houses, with a compact front garden and street parking only; very different from Rosemary and Edward’s house, which didn’t escape Alex’s notice.
‘At least it’s not in the country,’ he said, with a small sigh of relief, as I cut the engine.
‘No. It’s on the edge of the town, like my house is.’
‘So they don’t go for bike rides?’ he asked. The episode at Rosemary and Edward’s when Alex had failed to keep up on their first bike ride together had really left its mark.
‘As far as I know they don’t,’ I said. ‘Although I’m sure you’ll be able to ride your bike if you want to. We’ll ask them.’
‘You can ask them,’ he said, and we got out.
He slipped his hand into mine and we walked up their front path. I rang the bell. ‘That’s nice,’ I remarked, pointing to the hanging basket of flowers in the porch as we waited for the bell to be answered.
Alex squeezed my hand tightly as the door opened. ‘Hi, I’m Mark,’ the teenage lad said. Gwen appeared just behind him, taking off her apron as she came to the front door.
‘This is Alex,’ I said to Mark as Gwen welcomed us in. Although I knew Mark to be fourteen, he looked a couple of years younger.
‘Lovely to see you both again,’ Gwen said. ‘Come through.’
The house smelt deliciously of cake baking. We followed Gwen through a door to our right where two rooms had been knocked into one, creating a large open-plan room running from the bay window at the front of the house to the patio doors at the rear.
‘This is a lovely room,’ I said. All the wood had been stripped, revealing the original pine doors, surrounds and floorboards. The end of the room we were now in was the lounge area, which had two sofas, an armchair, beanbag and television arranged around a large stone fireplace. At the other end was the dining area with a pine table and six chairs. Although it was a townhouse, it had a rustic country feel about it, but no one was in the room except us and Gwen, and Mark had disappeared.
‘Make yourselves comfortable,’ Gwen said. ‘I’ll go and find out where everyone is. Trust them to vanish when they’re needed.’
‘Don’t worry, we’ll be fine,’ I said. Indeed, not having to meet everyone at once had made it a bit easier for Alex.
Alex and I sat on one of the sofas and gazed around the room. There was a lot to see. On our right was a long wooden boo
kcase overflowing with books, DVDs, small photos in frames, ornaments and anything else that had needed a place. There were more framed photographs on the walls (mainly of the family), some African wall art and some older, possibly Victorian framed pictures of the countryside. A coffee table stood beside each of the sofas and held a haphazard arrangement of magazines and newspapers, a bunch of keys, a packet of sweets and a fruit bowl. A lad’s jersey was draped over the back of the armchair and a pair of moccasin slippers was on the floor close by. There was other paraphernalia dotted around the room, which created the ambience of a well-lived-in, comfortable family home.
The door opened and Gareth came in, closely followed by their dog Rupert, a medium-size crossbreed who, at twelve years old, found walking a bit of a struggle. ‘Sorry, I’ve just been trying to fix one of the showers. There’s always something to mend around here,’ Gareth said genially.
‘I know the feeling,’ I agreed. Rupert flopped down by the armchair.
‘Is someone making you a drink?’ Gareth asked.
‘No, I’m OK for now, thank you.’ I looked at Alex, who shook his head.
Gareth removed the jersey from the armchair with a small good-humoured tut and, laying it to one side, sat down. ‘Gwen is rounding up the rest of the clan,’ he said, absently patting the dog. ‘You met Mark – he’ll be back in soon.’
The door opened and Gwen returned, now with Kaylee carrying a large picture book. She had distinctive Down’s features, with a round face, small mouth and nose, and almond-shaped eyes, which gave her a vulnerable, child-like appearance even though she was nineteen.
‘This is Cathy and Alex,’ Gwen said, introducing us.
‘Hello, love,’ I said. ‘Nice to meet you. We spoke on the telephone.’
She looked at her mother uncertainly. ‘You talked to Cathy on the phone,’ Gwen confirmed.
Kaylee smiled, her whole face crinkling with delight. I guessed she smiled often and easily, like her parents. ‘Talked on the phone,’ she said to me.
‘Yes, that’s right. We had a good chat. I enjoyed talking to you.’