‘Hi, you two. Sorry, Declan, things took longer than I thought.’
‘Banned the use of phones, have they?’
‘Mom, look what I did.’ Charlie held up an A3 sheet covered in black paint.
‘Let me see, sweetheart.’
‘Dad said I could draw any superhero I wanted, so I picked Batman.’
‘He looks amazing.’
‘Batman is amazing, Mom. He fights baddies and he has a special car that can fly.’
‘I wouldn’t mind one of those.’ She attempted a laugh, looking over at Declan. His face remained set in a hard stare.
‘Charlie and I are heading out to the park,’ he said, more like a statement than a request for her to join them.
‘But I’ve only just got back.’ Kate was dismayed by his coldness. All she wanted was to be near Charlie for a while.
‘Maybe next time you’ll phone and we’ll know when to expect you. Charlie, off you go, wash your face and hands.’
‘Your painting is brilliant, Charlie. You go clean up like Dad says, and I’ll put your paints away.’
‘Mom?’
‘Yes, honey.’
‘Do you know what else is special about Batman?’
‘Go on, tell me.’
‘No one knows who he is because he wears a mask and a cloak when he’s helping people.’
‘He sounds really great.’
‘Charlie, hurry up, you do want to go to the park, don’t you?’
‘Dad, can Mom come, too? Please, please.’
‘That’s up to her.’
Kate looked at Declan and for a brief second she felt a surge of hate that took her by surprise. He was challenging her – challenging her to be a good mother. She knew he’d probably enjoy the moment when she failed. ‘Next time, Charlie. Mom has some work she needs to get out of the way. Here, come on. I’ll race you to the bathroom.’
She purposely avoided looking at Declan as she bounced Charlie down to the floor and the two of them ran out of the room. She couldn’t cope with Declan’s righteousness.
In the bathroom, she stood Charlie on a low stool and they watched the white sink become a black mess within seconds.
‘Are you like Batman, Mom, helping good people?’ His hands flapped in the blackened sink.
‘Who told you that?’
‘Dad told me.’ At least Declan was seeing her in a positive light, she thought, even if she couldn’t remember the last time he had given her a direct compliment.
‘Well, yeah, I suppose I do in a way. But I don’t get to wear a cool costume like he does.’ She flicked some water into Charlie’s face.
‘Ah, Mom, stop it. You’re not like Batman, he needs his disguise. When he’s not dressed up, he’s just ordinary, like everybody else.’
Leaning down, Kate kissed him on the forehead. ‘You’re my superhero, Charlie.’
‘Cool. What superhero do you think I am?’
‘Oh I don’t know. Mr Super.’
‘Mr Super?’ He gave her a doubtful look.
‘Yeah, sort of a mix between Superman and Batman, but you’re extra special.’
‘Why am I extra special?’ he asked, his eyes widening.
‘Well, at first people think you’re just a regular superhero, but you’re not, because even though you’re a very young superhero, you have lots of different powers.’
‘Like what?’ He jumped down from the stool, as Kate handed him a towel.
‘Like the way you think about others, making sure they are okay.’
‘So what do I have to do? What’s my mission?’
‘It’s simple. You just have to be yourself.’
‘That doesn’t sound like much of a mission.’ Wrapping the towel around his shoulders like a superhero cape, he puffed his lips out.
‘Oh, but it is. Like the other week when we were in the park, and you ran and caught the ball for the little boy who fell over.’
‘Yeah.’
‘Well you were his superhero then.’
‘I was?’ She watched the beginning of a smile on his face.
‘Yes, of course you were. Do you not remember how he stopped crying when you gave him back the ball?’
‘Yeah, but I didn’t do anything special.’
‘To him, you did.’
‘Mom?’
‘Hmmm?’
‘I missed you today.’
Kate wanted to scream inside. ‘I missed you, too.’
‘Mom?’
‘Yeah?’
‘Will you be here tomorrow?’
Maybe Declan was right. Maybe she was an awful mother. Not that he used those words exactly, but she knew he thought them, and the irksome bit was that the more she thought about it, the more convinced she was that he was right.
‘I’ll have to see, honey. Hopefully, I’ll get through my work in a jiffy and we can do lots together really soon.’
‘Mrs Evans says a jiffy is a hundredth of a second.’
‘Your teacher is very clever. Now come on, Dad will be wondering if I ate you.’ Kate made a face like a scary monster, then scooped him up before chasing him back out to the living room, where Declan was waiting, holding Charlie’s coat and hat.
‘Enjoy yourselves. Bash some leaves for me, Charlie,’ she said, giving him a final hug.
‘I will, Mom.’