A Handful of Pixie Dust (Sequel to The Art of Survival), chapter 1

Bethan let a gentle sigh escape from her lips and looked lovingly up at Gerard. He caught her gaze and her blatant happiness was reflected in his eyes. He gently placed a finger under her chin and lifted her head a little higher to place a kiss on her lips. Bethan's eyes remained shut as a warm glow bathed over her. The glow became brighter as Gerard whispered, "I love you" his breath tracing goose bumps over her skin.

"I love you too." Bethan replied, breathlessly. Even though her eyes were shut, she could still see Gerard smiling down at her. She heard him take a deep breath and say...

"MUUUUUUM!"

Bethan's eyes shot open to see her five-year-old daughter, Nia, sat on the edge of her bed and leaning forward on her chest.

"MUUUUUM! WAKE UP!" Nia insisted, pumping on Bethan's chest energetically.

"Woah! Woah! Woah!" Bethan exclaimed, sitting up. "I'm up. I'm up." She rubbed her eyes vigorously and looked at her daughter, a slow smile spreading across her face. There was no denying that this hyperactive rascal was her child. She was her mother's reflection, just a younger, much sweeter looking version. She had a thick mass of black hair that caressed her shoulders gently and green eyes were set carefully like emeralds in her chubby face. At that moment, her whole features were lit up with excitement that stretched her lips into a wide smile.

Bethan smiled sleepily in return and reached over to run a hand over her baby's hair. She looked at the clock beside her bed. Half past nine. She groaned and lay back down. "What day is it?" she asked Nia groggily.

"It's Monday!" Nia replied, annoyed that her mum didn't even know. "Get up! We're supposed to be going over Uncle Mike's today!"

"Shoot! Yeah!" Bethan replied, sitting up suddenly. "I forgot about that."

"Obviously." Nia said, unimpressed. She jumped off the side of Bethan's bed and grabbed hold of her hand, pulling her with all her strength. "Come on! Get up!" As Bethan stumbled out of bed, Nia stood back, looking proud at her work. She turned and raced towards the bedroom door, pausing as she reached it and turned around. "Mum." Nia started.

"Yes, baby?" Bethan replied, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

"Who's Gerard?"

Bethan blushed feverishly. "No one, baby," she replied quickly. "No one." As she watched Nia shrug and run out of the room, she added, "He's gay anyway" before she went to join her.
***

"Nia, baby! Be careful!" Bethan called out as Nia dived out of the car and lunged at Mike's front door. As Bethan locked the car door behind her, she laughed at Nia's eagerness. She was already hammering impatiently on Mike's door and tapping her foot against the concrete.

To Nia's delight, the front door opened to reveal Mike in the doorway. Nia squealed happily and jumped into his arms. "Uncle Mike!" she exclaimed, clamping her around his neck and squeezing him tightly.

"Hello, Pixie Dust!" Mike greeted, his face stretched into a massive grin. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too." Nia replied, pulling back and planting a kiss on Mike's cheek.

Mike smiled at Bethan as she stepped up to the front door. "Hey, Pixie." he greeted gently. He shifted Nia to one side so he could hug Bethan.

"Hey, Mike." Bethan murmured into Mike's shoulder. Mike slowly released her and stepped aside to let her in. As he shut the door behind her, Nia asked, "Is Estelle here?"

"Estelle?" Mike asked, looking at Nia with a saddened expression. "Don't you want to see your Uncle Mike?"

"Yeah," Nia replied enthusiastically. "But you know. Estelle's a girl." she explained.

"Oh," Mike replied, nodding slowly. "In that case, she's in the kitchen."

"Yay!" Nia exclaimed as Mike put her down. She quickly squeezed his legs and ran away to find Estelle.

Bethan laughed at her daughter's retreating back and Mike slid an arm around her waist. She looked up at him as he asked, "Coffee?" Bethan rolled her eyes in response and Mike laughed as he walked in the direction Nia had run.

Bethan followed Mike slowly, her thoughts swarming inside her head. They drifted back about five years, before Nia was born, and she couldn't believe how far she had come. She had faded from lovesick teenager to independent mother in what seemed like one hazy move.

It hadn't been an easy transition for Bethan. Especially due to the traumatic cause for it happening. She shuddered to think of when Nia's father, Rhys, had raped her then moved away when he found out she was pregnant. If it wasn't for Green Day and Adrienne, Bethan knew she wouldn't have made it through the difficult time. They had nurtured her during her pregnancy and helped her raise Nia, being fathers and a second mother to her. They had practically accepted her as their own and love her like she was.

Not only that, the band had looked after Bethan as well, continuing to insist she did the artwork for their albums. They had guided her through motherhood and eased the pressure from her when she was beginning to stumble. Over the last few years, Bethan had come to love them with a passion that rooted itself deep in her soul.

As Bethan reached the kitchen, her eyes fell on Estelle and she stopped in the doorway to admire her unnoticed. In those passing five years, she had watched Estelle grow from a sweet, young girl to a bold, young lady. She was now thirteen and every inch Mike's child. She had inherited his rapid height but not his thin figure to match it. Instead, she carried around with her a little bit of her puppy fat but somehow managed to carry it off. Just like her father, Estelle had developed a deep passion for punk and displayed a confident sense of individuality. This was displayed in her bright blue hair that she had tied in two pigtails down her back.

Bethan smiled as Estelle turned around with Nia in her arms. "Hey, Beth!" Estelle greeted cheerfully.

"Hey you," Bethan replied, a gentle smile resting on her lips. "How's things?"

"Great. Just great." Estelle answered with a massive grin. "We've got another gig coming up."

"Wow. You're gonna have to tell me when so I can come and see it." Bethan told her.

"Me too." Nia insisted.

Estelle laughed. "I'd love for you to come, little lady, but you're too young."

Nia pouted. "Not fair." she complained.

Seeing Nia's distress, Estelle softened. "Tell you what, how about I play you a song?"

Nia immediately lit up. "Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" she exploded happily.

"Come on then," Estelle said. "You can help me pick an outfit for the show too."

Mike smiled proudly at his daughter's exit and Bethan smiled warmly at his reaction. "You're really proud of her, aren't you?" she asked, walking over to the counter.

"Yeah," Mike answered, tearing his eyes away from where his daughter had been. "I just can't believe how talented she is. I mean, lead singer and guitarist in a punk band. How fucking cool is that?" he asked as he put the kettle on to boil.

"Pretty damn cool." Bethan replied. She raised her eyes and looked at Mike teasingly. "I wonder where she gets it from?"

Mike grinned back. "I wonder."

"How'd the tour go?"

"Great!" Mike replied, pouring the water into two mugs. "It was fucking great! We had so much fun." He paused to hand Bethan her mug. "I'm glad to be home though. I mean, I love touring and that but there's nothing like being in your own home, you know?"

"Yeah." Bethan agreed, sipping her coffee.

Mike tilted his head to one side to look at Bethan. "You know what? I miss having you around here."

"I miss being around here," Bethan told Mike, looking around longingly at her surroundings. "But things are different now."

The last bit came out as a slight whisper that made Mike place his coffee down and lean over to take one of Bethan's hand. "How you coping?"

Bethan looked up into Mike's concerned eyes and smiled so faintly it seemed like a memory rather than a real one. Knowing there was no point in lying to him, Bethan took a deep breath. "All right, I guess. Mum has Nia now I'm in college and on the weekends while I work. It's just sometimes it's hard to manage, you know. I get so tired but I want to be a good mum to Nia... "

"Hey," Mike interrupted. "You are a good mum to Nia. She hasn't fallen off track yet and she thinks the world of you."

"That's with your help," Bethan explained. "I never could have done this by myself."

"Course you could have," Mike insisted. "It's not brain surgery."

"No. It's a lot harder." Bethan said, raising her downcast eyes. "I don't know," she continued desperately. "What do I do when she starts asking questions? She's already realised that her life is so much different to the other kids. How do I tell her what happened? How do you explain that to a five-year-old child?"

Mike walked round the counter, took Bethan's mug and put it on the counter. He took hold of her hands and looked her in the eye. "You'll do it. And you'll do a fucking great job of it. Don't worry." he told her.

"I guess." Bethan sighed, pulling her eyes away.

"Come here." Mike said, holding out his arms. Bethan looked at him with a faint smile on her lips. A playful light dominated her eye and she shook her head. "Come here." Mike demanded but still Bethan shook her head. "I said, come here." Mike said, grasping Bethan's wrist and pulling her to him.

Bethan rested her head against Mike's shoulder and relaxed in his arms. She let out a whisper of a sigh, envisioning all her troubles being released in it. Squeezing Mike gently, she said, "I love you, Dirnt."

"I love you too, Pixie." Mike said before kissing Bethan on the top of the head.