Third time lucky.

"Hey mum, what's up?"

"Nothing, just wanted to check how you were since Jean is away."

"I'm fine..."

"Are you sleeping OK?"

Jean was away in Birmingham for a work related training course. She'd been gone almost a week, in which time Dave had been lucky to get 6 hours sleep in a night. That his mum had guessed this straight off led him to believe he probably took after his mum, and that she herself had had a few sleepless nights whenever his dad had been away. Either that or he'd went on about it too much the last time he'd been away from Jean. Whichever.

Dave's sister was spring cleaning, better late than never, Dave's sister in law was almost a teacher and Dave's brother in law had quit smoking. Things were looking good. Dave's dad would be going into hospital for an operation, again, sometime early July. Hopefully, it'd be third time lucky.

"Jean's birthday is around then right?"

"Yup," said Dave

"She's going to be 25?"

"Yup."

"When I first met her she said she would have babies when she was 25."

"..."

"Dave?"