The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2695 by Angharad Copyright© 2015 Angharad

---

This is a work of fiction any mention of real people, places or institutions is purely coincidental and does not imply that they are as suggested in the story.
@@@@@
Sunday arrived and Lizzie decided any thought of a lie-in was quickly dismissed and as I was closest to her by virtue of the geography of the house, I went to sort her out. She wasn’t going to go back to sleep and as soon as I appeared she squealed, “Ma Ma,” so I couldn’t pretend to be anyone else and had to give her her breakfast. While engaged in this Danni came into the kitchen, “Any chance of another ride, Mummy?”

“I need to wash and change her, put the kettle on and make me a cuppa and once I’ve had some toast, I’ll see how I feel.” Good girl that she is, especially when she wants something, she made me some breakfast while I bathed and dressed Lizzie. I was astonished to see it was only half past seven but it was a bright morning and the threats of rain in the weather forecast seemed to have passed us by. Danielle could be a typical teenager and lay in bed half the day but she seemed to prefer to do things, especially sports. So it was we found ourselves clipping into our cleats again.

Despite the aching muscles we’d experienced yesterday, today the legs seemed to loosen up more quickly and in a relatively short time we were headed out towards the downs and Portsdown hill. It was quite interesting as Danni nearly stayed with me on the climb. As an adult I’m obviously stronger but she’s quite a bit lighter and that assisted her in staying on my wheel until we were two thirds the way up when I seemed to get a second wind and upped the pace a little. “See you at the top,” she called and for the time it took us to ascend we rode by ourselves.

At the top, I waited for her to catch me up the sound of my heart still pounding in my ears and I knew I’d be as red faced as she was as she drew in alongside me and dismounted. “I didn’t know we were going mountaineering,” she joked before taking a long drink from her bottle. I took another gulp of mine and asked if she was ready to continue, to which she nodded and after another drink, remounted her bike.

I felt I needed some miles in my legs and she tagged along behind without any protest as I took her up and down the hills for the next hour finishing in a little cafe which provided tea and toasted teacakes for our second breakfast. It was nearly half past ten when we returned. I had left a note telling whoever read it that we were out on the bikes and I’d fed and changed Lizzie.

Simon shrugged more concerned that he hadn’t noticed I was missing until the girls invaded his bed, including Hannah which caused him a little concern. They all giggled so loudly he couldn’t sleep any longer so after tickling them all into submission, he got up and came down expecting to find me but instead found my note on the fridge door.

Trish was doubly miffed that she’d missed out again on a ride but in all fairness she’d have held us back. In the end I agreed to go out again with the younger girls, so instead of a shower, I had a group of youngsters cycling with me with Danni riding at the rear to make sure we didn’t lose anyone.

Trish was riding a road bike I’d got for her so Hannah borrowed her mountain bike on which I’d put road tyres to make things a bit easier. I’d actually done it for Trish, as much to stop her going off road as to make her riding easier on the bike path. It was the first time Hannah had really had a proper bike ride and she loved it. On the return leg, after some protest Trish allowed Hannah to ride the road bike and she took to it like a duck to water, racing Danni back towards the house. Trish rode with me on the mountain bike protesting.

Back at the house, I asked Hannah what she’d thought of the different bikes and she said she loved the racer. I went online while David finished the lunch, a roast turkey, and found a reasonably priced children’s road bike. It was a shop so they were happy to deliver for another fifteen pounds, and a couple of clicks later I’d bought it.

Sometimes I wonder about myself. None of the older girls were the least interested in doing any sport, even something as leisurely as cycling up Portsdown hill, yet Danni, Trish and now Hannah seemed interested in cycling. As I’d just spent three hundred pounds, I was quite pleased to hear it.

After cleaning up the postprandial debris in the kitchen, I assembled my junior cycling club members and asked them if they’d be interested in riding regularly during the holidays. They said they would until Hannah said ‘especially on the racer,’ to which Trish took exception and I had to step between them to stop name calling becoming hair pulling and more.

“’S not fair,” complained Trish, “she’s not your daughter.” At this Hannah burst into tears and I told Trish to go to her room. She stamped off slamming doors while I consoled Hannah.

“Nobody loves me,” she sobbed.

Calming her down I reassured her we did love her and Trish was jealous because she thought I was going to let Hannah ride the small road bike. I told her that if she wanted to ride a road bike she could.

“What about Trish, what’s she going to ride?”

“If she carries on like she did just now, she won’t be riding anything.” I told Hannah that allocating the bikes was my responsibility and not for her to worry. I also reassured her that she had as much right to be with us as any of the girls. She dried her eyes and went off with Livvie to play on the Wii while I went in search of my dissenting daughter.

“But it’s my bike,” protested Trish, “not yours. Let her ride yours and see how you feel.”

“She is a member of this family and every bit as much a member as you are. If you ever throw in her face that she isn’t, like you did today, I shall take all of your electronic toys away and you won’t get them back for a very long time. I’ll also confiscate the bike and you won’t get to ride it with Danni and I.”

“But I want to, I love to ride with you, Mummy. You always give in to Danni, she’s your favourite.”

“Danielle is nearly four years older than you, she is quite a bit bigger and able to keep up with me better than you can...”

“But if I came out more often, I’d be able to as well.”

“We’ll see. A repeat of today’s performance and I promise you, you won’t ride with me for a very long time. Got it?”

“Yes, Mummy.”

“Right, now go and apologise to Hannah and tell her if she wants she can borrow the road bike and you won’t mind.” I followed behind and it nearly killed Trish to say it but she did, whereupon Hannah said she’d ride the mountain bike if Trish wanted to ride the racer. That gesture ensured she’d get the new bike, until then I hadn’t decided, now I had. It won’t be here until Tuesday at the earliest and I might have to assemble it, but weather permitting we’d ride on Wednesday or Thursday depending upon its arrival. Oh well, only another seven weeks of this—perhaps I needed to check if they had a spare room at the clinic.