Whenever Val came round to see Ginny, she would quite literally grow silly before your very eyes. That’s what happiness does to a person.

Whenever Arthur came over to see Sophie, she practically lost her head with excitement right before his eyes. It was pure happiness, really. Shed flit around the flat, sprucing herself up, shoving clothes shed tried on for his arrival under the sofa cushions, and untangling hair rollers from her hair. Then she’d dash to the bathroom, run a brush through her hair, and put on her lipstick. Only then, fully done up and simply irresistible, would she finally join him.

And honestlywho could blame her for being so happy? Just think about it.

Sophie is a single mother, whos never really been properly married. She had a brief flingjust a couple of monthswith her Mark, and then he up and left their town for somewhere back in the North, the name of which Sophie never did catch. Maybe he was originally from Yorkshire, maybe Lancashire, she was never quite sure. Hed worked here at the local marketdoing what, Sophie didnt really know either.

So off he went, the apple of Sophies eye, leaving her just a bit pregnant. Only justa couple of weeks along, so she hadnt even realised it herself. When Mark stayed away and didnt call round for more than a month, Sophie finally understood that she was, well, on her own.

When the time came, she had a beautiful baby boy. And no wonder! Sophie herself looks like something out of a fairy-tale, and her Markhe could have passed for a prince.

And really, Sophie was lucky with her little one. He was as calm as anythingslept all day, and when he woke up, hed latch on for a feed without a fuss. Thank goodness, Sophie had more than enough milkshe couldve easily nursed another baby if shed needed to.

Charlie, thats what she named him, hardly ever caught the usual illnesses babies get. She chose his name after watching an old film, Great Expectations, while she was pregnant. The lead, Charles, reminded her of Mark in a certain light. There was no other choice for her, really. And so he became Charles MarkfordSophie must have repeated it inside her head a hundred times. It had a certain ring to ita melody all its own.

Charlie was full of sunshine. When Sophie needed to make lunch or tidy up, shed lay a blanket out on the floor, barricade him in with the dining chairs to make a makeshift playpen, and sit him there with her old handbag, some rollers, and a few scraps of cloth. Charlie would play quietly, never complainingno nagging, no fussing at all. Even when, once, Sophie peeped in and found her son with his head stuck between two chairs, clearly trying to escape, he just grunted and struggled silently, pushing at the chairs with his little chubby hands.

As Charlie grew older, he stayed no trouble at all. Sophie would let him go out and play in the courtyard, only asking that he run back and shout up to her window every ten minutes or soher flat was on the ground floor, after allMum! Im here! Problem was, Charlie didnt have a watch, so hed run up every three minutes and shout until Sophie stuck her head out and replied, Alright, love! But even then, hed hang about under the window. Sophie would ask, What is it, darling? Go and play! And hed answer, You havent smiled at me yet So shed give him a proper, genuine smilenot just because hed asked for itand only then would he dash off back to the other children.

One day, as usual, he called out his mumimherrrre! and when Sophie looked out the window, she saw her son clutching a kitten to his chest.

Mum, that lady from upstairs gave him to me. She said his names Alfie, and she said youll be happy, and that you and I should look after him.

Charlie looked so honest and hopeful that Sophie couldnt help but smile right back. Then she said, Alfies probably hungry by now. Both of you, come insideIll pour him some milk.

So Charlie and the kitten ran in, Charlie beaming from ear to ear. Alfie seemed a bit wary, not quite sharing the joy just yet.

And so it went onthree of them, making a little familyuntil Sophie met Arthur.

Arthur was about the same age as Sophie, never married before. Sensible, steady sort of chap, and, though not old, had an air of respectability about him. He worked at the local furniture factory and earned a decent living. Soon enough, he started coming round to Sophies on Saturday nights. He never said much, ate well, drank a little but never too much. Sophie would always get a bottle of chilled gin from the freezer and pour Arthur a measure into the special old glass she kept asidehe particularly liked those.

On this evening, it was business as usual. Arthur arrived, shook hands with Charlie in the hallway, and sat down in the lounge while Sophie finished her routine. The four of themwell, five, counting Alfie, whom Charlie kept on his lapwatched telly for a bit and headed in for dinner.

Afterwards, as had become their habit, they all lay down for a rest, planning on a wander round the park later in the evening.

When Sophie had shut Charlies door and settled next to Arthur with her head on his arm, he, for the first time, brought up marriage.

I think well live at yours for now, Sophie, he said. Later, maybe we could move somewhere larger, or rent out my place for a bit of extra money What do you think? But Sophie, theres something Im not a fan of cats. Well have to give your Alfie away.

Its Alfie, corrected Sophie, suddenly tense.

Yes, Alfie, right Arthur went quiet for a moment, then, sounding ever so matter-of-fact, added, And well send Charlie to my mums in the countryside. Lots of fresh air there, and a school too. Were still young, Sophiewell have plenty of children of our own.

Sophie lay still, her head on his shoulder going stone-cold. They stayed that way, in silence, for several long minutes. Then she got up, all shy suddenly, as if hed never seen her in her dressing gown, knotted the sash, and went over to the chair where his things were. She picked up his trousers, handed them to him, and said:

Right then, here are your unwashed trousers Put them on, and off you go.

Go where?

To your mums, out in the country. Enjoy the fresh air As for us three, we get just enough fresh air right here in our parkArthur stared at her, trousers dangling from his hand. For a heartbeat, he looked very much like Charlie had, years agostuck between two chairs, chubby hands pushing, puzzled as to where hed gone wrong.

But Sophie? She was calm now. She brushed a stray curl from her forehead and smilednot the polite, practiced kind she wore for Arthur, but the wide, real grin she reserved for Charlie. Go on, Arthur, she repeated, her voice gentle but final.

He opened his mouth, then closed it again, realizing there was nothing left to say. With one last, wounded glance at Sophie, he gathered his things, nodded a stiff goodbye, and let himself out into the dusky blue of early evening.

For a long moment, Sophie stood very still, listening to the silence hed left behind. Then, from Charlies room, came a whisper of giggles and the faint thump of kitten paws. She went to them, and Charlie looked up, eyes searching her face.

Is Arthur not staying for pudding?

Sophie knelt down and held him tight, burying her face in his shoulder. No, love, she said softly, But well have plenty all the same.

Alfie mewed, winding between their legs, and Sophie laughed, tears sparkling but not quite falling. She rose, took Charlies hand and the kitten under her arm, and steered them to the kitchen.

That night, with pudding bowls scraped clean and laughter echoing against the kitchen tiles, Sophie realized that everything she needed was right herea son with a shining heart, a bold little cat, and a life that, no matter how ordinary, felt just a bit magical. She pressed a kiss into Charlies hair, and he beamed up at her, the kind of smile that made everythingnot just the room, but the whole worldbright.

The three of themSophie, Charlie, and Alfiecurled up on the sofa as the telly flickered quietly, the evening settling softly around them, and Sophie knew, as surely as her own name, that some fairy-tale endings are made, not met. And sometimes, they look just like this.