"So, how's your dad coping?" Levi's questioning of such sensitive subjects makes for the saddest of small talk between himself and his partner. "Is he doing okay?"

"Mel said he's struggling," George informs him, holding his half-empty tea mug between his two hands. "Which is understandable. They were together for almost sixty years."

"And how's Melanie doing? Yioda?"

"The same," George responds shortly; though, feeling the need to elaborate, he continues to talk, "Everyone is just trying to come to terms with it. It was so sudden. Nobody expected it."

"It's just so unfair," Levi frowns. "She was so fit and well, for a woman of her age."

George nods, knowing that he must change the subject temporarily if he's going to maintain his composure. "Kieran's looking forward to going back to school tomorrow."

"He seems to have taken all this very well, doesn't he?" Levi asks rhetorically. "Then again — he's only seven. He'll probably feel it more when he's older."

"But for now, he's really looking forward to going back to school," George repeats. "He showed me his Summer Holidays homework the other day. It was the usual 'What I Did Over Summer' essay nonsense they make kids do these days. He was really proud of it." His self-distraction appears to work, as he carries on discussing, "He drew a picture of himself, me, you and Gemma. When we went to the beach in Devon for that day trip."

"It was a beautiful day." Levi nods in agreement with his own words, as he recalls the memory from only a few weeks ago. "Did he also draw the crab that pinched Daddy's toes while he was sunbathing?"

"I didn't even know crabs came that far out of the sea. I thought the sand was the safe zone," George defends. "Those little tossers normally live in the rock pools. Gemma wanted to go hunting for more of the buggers once that one got me."

"I view it as instant karma for not helping Kieran to build his sandcastle," Levi chuckles. The conversation is interrupted by the living room door slowly creeping open; a pair of moss green eyes peep through the tiny gap. "Hello, Gem. Are you okay?"

"I finished writing the letter for Grandma," she explains, widening the space in the door so she can slip into the room. "Daddy asked if he could see it after I finished writing it." She jumps onto the sofa between the men; proudly presenting the paper to George. "Here."

"Excellent. Thank you, darling." George gently grasps the heartfelt note, holding it in both hands. "Should I read it to myself, or out loud?"

"Read it in your head. I want to wait until night time so that I can read it to the brightest star in the sky like you said," Gemma informs him. "Am I allowed to do that?"

"Of course you're allowed to," Levi assures her. "How about, all four of us go into the garden when it's dark; and we all say some words for Grandma?" He glances to George, seeking some form of approval. "What do you think, Daddy?"

"I think that's a wonderful idea," George responds quietly. "Anyway — I'll read this now." His eyes move down to the letter, as he starts to read it.

To grandma,

Today daddy told me that you have gone to see the angles in heaven, so I hope your having fun their. I hope that you enjoy the cake and the music that is up there, I hope they are playing all of your favrite songs. Daddy said that I won't get to see you again now, but he said your still every were around us, in the sky and the grass and the pretty statue in the garden. I will miss you for ever and ever, but I hope you can see me and I hope I will make you proud and happy. And maybe you can make the sun shine every day because both my daddys like the sun, it makes them happy. And daddy has bin crying a lot today because he misses you, so I will give him a big hug for you ok? I will miss you grandma, and I love you for ever!!

Love from Gemma xxx

George smiles as he concludes the end of the letter; he ignores the numerous spelling errors scattered through her writing, for it doesn't really matter to him. The sentiment behind her words holds far greater importance, in his eyes. He turns to look at his daughter, nodding in approval. "This is a stunning letter, Gem. I love it. I know Grandma will love it too, when you read it tonight."

"Did you read the bit about the hug?" she asks him sweetly.

"Yes, I did read the bit about the hug," George tells her; he opens his arms, inviting her in for said hug. "Come here."

She obliges, granting herself permission to enter his embrace; she wraps her petite arms around his neck, and squeezes as tightly as she can muster the energy for. The adoration is welcomed by George; he playfully squeezes her in return, being cautious not to hurt her in the process. Eventually, the pair withdraw from one another; and before too long, Kieran pops his head around the doorframe sheepishly.

"Kieran?" Levi calls quietly, as not to startle him. "Are you okay, mate?" With no answer, Levi presses again, "Kieran? What's wrong?"

"Please don't be angry with me," Kieran pleads nervously; he dares to venture further into the room, with his hands behind his back. "Please don't be mad."

"What have you done, little dude?" Levi encourages kindly. "You can tell us; it's okay."

Kieran brings his hands from behind his back, to reveal George's iPad; he keeps it to his chest, as he starts to explain. "I-I was playing on a game, and I clicked a button by accident and it told me that I bought something with real money. A-And I know I shouldn't do that, so I wanted to come and ask Daddy to cancel it so that he doesn't have to pay real money. But then I dropped the iPad and—" He pulls the tablet away from his torso, exposing the cracked glass screen to his fathers. "—And it was an accident, and—"

"How could you be so silly, Kieran?" George snaps, rising from his seat on the sofa; he snatches the device from his son, examining the damage close-up. "You know this is a very expensive tablet. Why couldn't you be more careful?"

Kieran's tiny doe eyes fill with tears; his father never raises his voice ever, so it is shocking for him to witness. "I'm sorry, Daddy. I'm sorry; I just wanted you to stop it from buying things with real money." A couple of little water droplets spill over his dark Greek lashes — inherited from George — and run down his face in slight panic. "I'm sorry Daddy."

"You need to be more careful!" George scolds him, in frustration. "Because now I have to pay real money to get the screen fixed, don't I?"

"George." Levi presses a soft hand to his husband's arm, in an attempt to calm him down. "Don't get upset with him. It was an accident. Accidents happen."

George's anger quickly mellows out; he realises that the grief from his mother's passing is the catalyst which has fuelled his sudden rage towards his son. He turns his head to apologise to Kieran; but alas, the little boy has already run to his bedroom from the overwhelming emotions he is feeling.

George's face falls into his hand, as guilt creeps in. "Brilliant. Nice one, Georgios."

"Daddy, you upset Kieran," Gemma points out innocently. "Are you going to say sorry to him?"

"Yes, darling. That's exactly what I'm going to do." George walks towards the hallway; climbing the stairs as quick as he can, to catch up with him. He knocks against the door once, before granting himself permission to enter the bedroom. "Kieran? I'm sorry for raising my voice at you." When he receives no reply, he heads over to the bed, pulling back the blanket to find Kieran huddled into a ball on the mattress. "Mate, I'm sorry for scaring you. Can we have a conversation, like grown-ups? I promise I won't shout."

Kieran slowly looks up, finding his beloved father sitting at the foot of the bed; he lets his guard down a little, although he is still a little antsy. "I just wanted your help, Daddy."

"I know. You were just trying to do the right thing, and I reacted very badly. And I'm sorry." George shuffles closer to his son, placing a protective arm around his tiny shoulders. "I want to tell you the truth about how Daddy's feeling; so that you understand why I shouted. Is that okay?" With a nod of the head as Kieran's sign of encouragement, George goes on to explain, "You see, since Grandma went to the party in Heaven, I've been feeling quite sad about it."

"Why? I thought she got cake and music." Kieran's confusion only serves to make the topic even more poignant to discuss.

"She does," George assures him. "And she's very happy there. But Daddy is just feeling a bit sad, because it means I can't see Grandma anymore. And I just miss her a bit. Do you understand?"

"But why did you shout at me if that was a bad thing to do?"

"Because ... " He expels air from his nostrils gently, as a substitute for a sigh, "Because when somebody you love goes to the party in Heaven, the family that are still on earth miss them a lot. And when you miss somebody a lot, sometimes it makes your head go all silly. And unfortunately, Kieran, Daddy's silly head made him shout; and it was wrong, and I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Kieran accepts sweetly, giving George a smile. "My head went all silly when I made the iPad go wrong, didn't it?"

"Yeah, that's right." Satisfied with the outcome of the conversation, George forces a smile too. "So, listen. Gem has written a letter for Grandma to read in Heaven. Did you want to do that too? We're going to go into the garden when it's dark, so that we can look for the brightest star in the sky, and talk to her."

"I'll write a letter," he responds. "Do you think she will answer it?"

"I don't know, mate." Despite knowing the answer is simply no, George doesn't wish to shatter the boy's hopes so soon. "Maybe if she does answer, we won't be able to hear her. Heaven is very far away."

"Well, I'll try to talk to her anyway." Kieran leaps up off the bed, making a beeline for the living room where the paper and pens are.

• • •

Later in the evening, George unlocks the back door; the chilling September air hits the sweet faces of the family, as they venture out into the night. Gemma and Kieran are wearing their coats to protect them from the breeze; George is simply wearing a mid-grey zip-up hoodie, with the hood over his silver, buzz cut head of hair. Levi dons a knee-length black double-breasted jacket, deeming that it'll be enough to keep him warm. Once their feet touch the grass in their grand garden, George clears his throat; he can already feel the stinging sensation of his overwhelming emotions in the back of his oesophagus. His eyes avert upwards, scanning across the infinite anatomy of the navy blue sky; in search of the brightest fleck of light, which he can call his mother. To his right, he spots it; in reflex, his arm reaches up, and his forefinger points.

"There she is," he announces, no louder than a murmur. "There's Grandma."

Gemma and Kieran delight in this knowledge; just the notion that they can see their beloved grandmother in some form is comfort to them both. Levi glances across to his husband silently, just to ensure that George's emotions don't get the better of him too soon. He slips his hand into George's, keeping this loving action subtly down to the sides of their bodies as a nonverbal communication of support to one another.

"Can I read my letter?" Kieran asks. "I spent a long time making it perfect."

"Of course you can," Levi answers; he adoringly ruffles the boy's gorgeous wavy hair between his fingers. "Whenever you're ready."

Kieran raises his letter up to eye level, before beginning his heartfelt monologue. "To Grandma — I hope that you are having fun at the party in Heaven. Daddy said that you get to dance to whatever music you like, and he said that you are having a great time. But my other daddy misses you a lot because you can't come back from the party. And I will miss you a lot, too. But it's okay, because I can't wait to get my invite for the party, too. Please dance to Daddy's favourite songs to make him happy. He likes the pretty young thing song by Michael Jackson. I love you Grandma. Love from Kieran." Once he has concluded his innocent tribute, he turns his head to look up at George. "Did I do good?"

"That was beautiful, mate." George beams with pride at his son; this is, in part, to mask the tears that have clustered in his eyes already. He quickly swipes them away when nobody's watching, as he doesn't want to upset his children too much. "Gemma, did you want to read yours now?"

"Okay." She brings her letter out from her coat pocket; unfolding it to expose the tiny scrawl that adorns the page. "To grandma — today Daddy told me that you have gone to see the angels in Heaven, so I hope you're having fun there. I hope that you enjoy the cake and the music that is up there; I hope they are playing all of your favourite songs. Daddy said that I won't get to see you again now, but he said you're still everywhere around us — in the sky and the grass and the pretty statue in the garden. I will miss you forever and ever, but I hope you can see me; and I hope I will make you proud, and happy. And maybe you can make the sun shine every day, because both my daddies like the sun; it makes them happy. And daddy has been crying a lot today because he misses you, so I will give him a big hug for you, okay? I will miss you Grandma, and I love you forever. Love from Gemma."

"Lovely, sweetheart," Levi praises her warmly; he then flickers his vision to george, in search of approval. "Do you want to go next, George? Or should I?"

"You first," George decides, swallowing harshly after he's spoken, to try and force some of the lump which has formed, out his throat.

Levi nods, blinking once slowly as his emerald irises meet the single speck of white light in the sky. "Alright. Well, what an honour it was to have known you for almost three decades, hey, Mama L?" He pauses a moment, experiencing the familiar sensation of grief overcoming him unexpectedly. "I'm thankful for those three decades. You taught me a lot in that time; you were a second mother to me. There's not many people who are lucky enough to have two mothers — but I was one of them."

Having heard these words, George cannot hold back from bringing Levi into his arms; the loss, of course, is much worse for George — but it's clear to see the impact it has had on his darling Levi, too. Levi's eyes glisten as he tries to hold back from crying; he takes his lower lip into his mouth, biting the suppleness to try and prevent his voice from breaking. After a moment, he is able to continue.

"I know you're in a much better place, now. You're happy, and you're at peace. I'll keep that with me. Thank you, so much, for bringing the love of my life into this world. In that sense, I really wouldn't be where I am today, without you." He nods once, feeling that his words are simple, yet extremely telling of how he truly feels. "Keep being absolutely stunning, wherever you are. Thank you for everything. We love you, so much."

George expels a shaky breath; from a combination of awe at Levi's words, and at the nerve-racking concept that it's now his turn to say his piece about his dear mother. "Well, where do I start?" He laughs a little, feeling very limited amusement at all in what's going on. "There's fifty-one years of memories I could go through. But I guess, for tonight, I'll keep it short and sweet. Levi hit the nail on the head with what he said. Without you, neither of us would be stood here in this moment. You brought me into this world, which allowed us both to fall in love. But now, in return, I've had to watch you leave this world." He attempts to inhale, but it hitches in his throat as he starts to choke up. "I just hold out hope that you're safe and happy, now, wherever you are. You were far too wonderful for this earth. It won't ... be the same anymore." A solitary tear falls down his cheek, as he concludes. "I love you, Mum. I love you so much. It hurts."

Sensing the anguish George is feeling, Levi, Kieran and Gemma flock around him; they all work to bring him into their arms, as the family share in a poignant embrace and look at the stars together.

• • •

Can't lie, my heart hurt writing the end! Hope you're still enjoying. xx