Ollie and Will filter into the kitchen, alongside Ella, Ethan and Jordan. ‘Happy Birthday!’ they all shout.
Once their greetings are out of the way, Ava slips into her room to get changed. ‘Knock knock, are you decent?’ calls Nick from behind the door. They are long past the days where he can fling open the door to his daughter’s room. He can still remember clearly the day they decided on her name. Paige had been brushing her teeth in the bathroom, her pants on backwards. It was the day she’d told him about the toys she was making for Ava. He is holding the last one – the eighteenth one – in his very hands now.
‘Yep! Come in,’ calls Ava, rolling a T-shirt over her head. ‘Oops, put this on backwards,’ she says, wriggling out of it. She turns her body away and tries again.
‘You did great,’ says Nick, turning to face the other side of the room to give her some privacy. ‘Of course we always knew you had a good chance of winning. You’re amazing. Just like your mum. Speaking of which…’ He holds up the package, high above his head.
Ava jumps up to grab it from him.
He turns around as she gazes down at the package pensively.
‘It’s the last one. She asked me to give it to you. She wishes she could have been here.’
‘Another one? Aren’t I getting too old for these knitted toys now?’
‘They’re crocheted,’ Nick corrects. ‘Not knitted. Knitting’s what you do with the two metal sticks.’
‘Needles,’ she corrects. ‘Anyway, close enough.’ Ava’s fingers are already tearing the package open. Despite her age, she looks forward to these packages and her letters. She keeps the toys lined up on a shelf above her bed, and nobody except her is ever allowed to touch them. They are, of course, the most precious things she owns. She’d been particularly attached to Tabitha the whale when she was six, and Mrs Go Slow the turtle from the age of seven to twelve.
‘A squirrel,’ she says, letting the brown paper drop to the floor. ‘I love it.’
Nick casts his mind back to the day Paige had finished making it. She was sitting on the sofa, her tongue poking out the side of her mouth while she tried to sew the eyes on straight.
Ava is now concentrating on opening the little pouch that contains a handwritten note from Paige.
‘Should I leave you to it?’ asks Nick, turning towards the door. He still finds it emotional, watching Ava read these letters.
‘No,’ she says, shaking her head. ‘Stay.’ She pats the bed.
Nick sits down beside her. ‘Will you read it for me, Dad? Please? Since it’s the last one?’
He clears his throat. ‘Uh, yeah, sure.’ He unfolds the letter, unsure of what it might contain.
Dear Aveline,
By now you’re no doubt used to how these letters go, right? This is where I’m supposed to tell you all about my hopes and dreams for you and what to look out for in the year to come. Well, this letter is different. Writing these letters to you has been one of the sweetest parts of loving you. Through them, I’ve been able to dream for you – the Peter Rabbit cake for your first birthday, the pony party for your fifth, the sleepover for your sixteenth. Did you manage to read all the wonderful books I’ve told you about over the years? And in those times you were feeling a bit down, did my list of tips and tricks work? If they didn’t, you can always go to Hope. Or Aunty Caitlin, or Uncle Ryan (depending on the problem). Anyway, now that you’re an adult, you get to dream for yourself.
I want you to remember always that you are a gift. Your life is a gift, Aveline. Make the most of every minute. Enjoy all the wonderful things life has to offer.
Happy eighteenth birthday. I love you.
With all my heart,
Mum xo
P.S. Go give Dad a big kiss from me and remind him how much I love him. You got a good one, didn’t you?
Nick swallows past the lump that has caught in his throat. ‘You okay?’ he asks, slipping his arm around Ava’s shoulders as he plants a kiss on her head.
‘Yep,’ she says. ‘Are you?’ She screws up her freckled nose at him and reaches a finger over the moisture around the corner of his eye. ‘You’re such a softie, Dad.’ She tilts her head. ‘Hey, is that the doorbell?’
Nick shrugs and his eyes dart to and fro as if he’s trying to listen. ‘Are we expecting anyone else?’
‘Don’t think so.’
By now someone has opened the front door, and he can make out the exchange of greetings. Seconds later, someone knocks on Ava’s door.
‘Can I come in?’ calls a female voice. The door flings open.
‘Mum! You made it? I thought your flight was delayed!’ Ava stands up and throws herself into her mother’s arms.
‘Ugh, it was. I had to get on a different flight. I can’t believe I missed the presentation. Nick, we are going to have a heck of a Visa bill next month. But I’m home now, and here with you both.’
Paige has been away on a trip to Africa as part of Hope’s charity organisation. She travels over once a year, sometimes together with Nick, who provides medical assistance to children in need, but this year their schedules meant they’d needed to travel separately. Over the years, Paige, alongside Hope, has been instrumental in coordinating fundraising efforts from the sale of ethically produced crocheted dolls. Together, they’ve managed to raise enough funds to give millions of meals to children and families in need.
Paige guides Ava into another embrace. ‘Happy birthday, cricket. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there.’ She pauses. ‘Did you…?’
Ava nods excitedly. ‘Yes! Yes, I won!’
Paige turns to face Nick and beams a smile his way. ‘Oh my God, Nick. She won!’ She throws her arms around Nick. He can smell her perfume and the mint on her breath. ‘I am so proud of her!’
‘So, you opened your gift?’
Ava nods. ‘Thanks, Mum.’
‘No, my darling. Thank you.’ She envelops Ava in a hug and then tugs Nick’s shirt. Their arms lock around Ava, and in that moment, Nick feels like the luckiest man in the world.
‘Mum?’ Ava says as they’re about to step through the door.
‘Yes, honey?’
‘You’re the most brilliant, beautiful, loving woman in the world. One day I want to be just like you.’
Paige laughs and runs her fingers across her daughter’s cheek. ‘Oh, sweet pea. You already are.’