Corianne had finally gone down for a nap after nearly an hour and a half of crying. Rosaleen had been staying with Reilly and Siobhan for the last nine weeks, helping them to slowly adjust to being new parents. Siobhan had managed a few baths — supervised — throughout the week, and sometimes Reilly would see her sneaking into Corianne's room and watching her sleep. But he could still see the desperation behind her eyes every time Corianne would cry or reach out to her.
On the seventh of August the four of them went to Redmond Park for a picnic. Corianne was sitting on Siobhan's lap playing with the dead leaves that had fallen from the trees while Reilly and Rosaleen set up the blanket. They had pulled Corianne's curls into a tiny fountain that bubbled out on the top of her head. Siobhan was holding her legs, moving them in a running motion. Corianne looked back at her, leaf in mouth.
'Hi sweetheart! Is that yummy, huh? Reilly, you may want to hurry up, 'cause the next thing on the menu over here is bark!'
Reilly chuckled, strolling over to the two of them and lifting Corianne off of Siobhan's lap. He pulled the leaf out of Corianne's mouth, a pool of baby drool dripping off of it.
'I appreciate ya trying to help feed yourself, but leaves aren't the most nutritionally sound.'
He dropped the leaf, extending his arm out to Siobhan and helping her up. He lay a small kiss on her forehead then stuck out his tongue. She giggled, returning the gesture and following him over to the blanket. It was already five thirty, so most of the families had already gone home. The only ones left were a father and his son running around and passing a rugby ball between them, and a young couple cuddling on a park bench, with who Reilly hoped was the girl's father watching them from behind a tree. Reilly placed Corianne on Rosaleen's lap, and Siobhan sat between his legs, leaning her back against his chest. They ate then moved over to the playground. Corianne wasn't old enough to use any of the equipment herself, so Reilly used this as an excuse for him to play. He sat her on his lap, swinging softly. Siobhan stood in front of them smiling and saying 'weeeeeeee' in a sickly sweet tone. Suddenly her expression dropped. Reilly stopped swinging.
'What? What's wrong?'
'Nothing, I — I just — I think that Corianne might have just smiled for the first time.'
Reilly and Rosaleen began cooing over Corianne, fishing for another smile. She looked up at them, confused. She had no idea what she had done, or why she was suddenly swamped with attention. Rosaleen grabbed at Corianne's cheeks and blew raspberries, but nothing seemed to be working.
'Hey babe, can you get out the camera? I want to get a ph-'
Reilly looked up to where Siobhan had been standing, but she had gone. He looked around, expecting to see her on the slide or on one of the park benches, but she was gone.
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