The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 3181 by Angharad Copyright© 2017 Angharad

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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.
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At bedtime I sat and talked with the younger element before kissing each one goodnight, then did an hour’s work on an article on dormice I promised the local paper—they left a request with Diane, it wasn’t Mr Jackson so I agreed to do one with a couple of photos. They promised to pay my fee to the local mammal group as a donation. They hadn’t been aware there was a local group so I told them to speak to the Hants & IOW Wildlife Trust and they’d be able to tell them how many wildlife groups there were. I could have told them but then they’d want another article and I’ve got better things to do than fill their pages.

It had taken me an hour to write and I went to speak with Danielle and found she’d already gone up to bed. I went to check on her and find out how she felt now, although she’s become quite mature for her age, teenagers are vulnerable to all sorts of pressures that didn’t happen in my day because social media didn’t exist and mobile phones did calls and texts, that was about all. How times have changed in twenty years.

The other thing of course, was that fourteen, I was still pretending to the world that I was a boy, though on reflection quite a few saw through it. I can imagine now that the cyber bullies would have a wonderful time picking on me from a distance or even anonymously, showing that they are simply cowards with very little sense of morality.

Tapping on Danni’s bedroom door I poked my head round the corner of it and saw she was busy on her phone. “Come on, you come to bed to sleep not play with your phone.”

She sighed and put it down having removed any evidence of to who she’d been talking or texting. “How d’you feel now?”

“I’ll be okay. He’s not worth the aggro.”

“Well as they say in the fairy tales, a princess like you has to kiss a few frogs before she finds her prince.”

It’s an old joke but she thought it funny adding, “Kissing him was like kissing a frog, cold and slimy.”

“They’re not usually slimy, just cold and moist.”

“Okay, cold and moist—whatever.”

“Good, I’m glad you’re feeling better about things. It will sound as if I’m stating the obvious, but adolescent relationships are usually intense and usually end in tears, until the next one happens, which is then the best thing since sliced bread.” Who thinks up these expressions?

Danni rolled her eyes and said she wanted to sleep. I picked up the phone and placed it near the door on her dressing table.

“Hey, that’s mine.”

“I pay for it. So unless you’d like me to confiscate it for the night, leave it there until the morning.” I switched it off so it wouldn’t ring or beep and disturb her. I was surprised she didn’t make more fuss as I closed the door, then i remembered her iPad and took that off her too. That did get some extra protests but I stayed firm and she huffed and turned over away from me and I switched off the light and wished her a good night. It was half past ten and a school night.

The rest of the week went by too quickly. Danni watched the FA cup with Simon—on the telly, while Hannah and I went shopping for some new curtains for the girls’ bedroom—she got delegated the job as the others seemed mostly uninterested, Trish even spoke of going to watch the soccer with the others.

Shopping was tedious but we eventually agreed on something that wasn’t too hideous and I asked them to make up curtains to the measurements I gave them. As we left John Lewis store Hannah said, “I thought you’d make them for us.”

“I haven’t got time, sweetheart, and it isn’t as if I can’t afford to have them made up, is it?”

“I s’pose not,” she said and I let her talk me into buying her some new jeans. The others got a pack of knickers each. As long as they get something, they don’t mind. I really ought to stop that as well but I did notice that some of the old ones were looking a bit worn.

Hannah also mentioned that her best friend in school, a girl called, Hettie, went riding every week. I told her she already had a bike and she pouted, “I meant on horses, Mummy.”

“Bikes are easier to muck out.”

“She says that’s good fun.”

Strange little girl, “Glad she enjoys it, personally I always found shovelling poo a bit of hard work.”

“No, not that, she meant the riding, she says it’s great fun.”

I’m a Sagittarius and I can’t stand large quadrupeds unless they’re in a can of cat food. “Large stupid animals,” I said not meaning to say it out loud.

“They’re not stupid, Hettie says hers is very clever—does tricks and things.”

“On average horses are about ten times the weight of the rider, so about ten times our size and many times our strength but we sit on the back of them and you don’t think they’re stupid?”

“Hettie says they enjoy being with their owners.”

“Would you run round a field with someone on your back because they gave you and apple or a carrot?”

“No, Mummy, but I’m not a horse.”

“Glad to hear it—oh and neither your father nor I will buy you one. If you want to learn to ride, you can sign up for a course of lessons at the local stables, but that’s as far as it goes—okay.”

She punched the air when she thought I wasn’t looking and then pouted again saying it would have to be, wouldn’t it? I’m surprised the others haven’t tried it on before.

David had the night off so I was making the dinner when I overheard the girls talking, “So it worked then?” said Trish’s voice.

“Yeah, she said I can have riding lessons.”

“Told you it would, ask for a pony and she’ll let you ride someone else’s at the stables. You got my fee there?”

“You don’t deserve this, Trish.”

“Look, I’d have preferred to choose my own curtains but I passed up on that and stopped the others coming as well just so you got to ride a stupid horse, hand it over.” I went out and saw her pocketing a bar of chocolate.

I wasn’t exactly pleased with her scheming so I made her come and help me in the kitchen for the next half an hour which I reckoned was long enough for the chocolate to melt in her pocket. I don’t believe anyone should prosper from crime, even my own daughters. She went off muttering something rude when I let her go—there’s more than one way to stop her gallop, to use a pertinent phrase.