#itsybitsypetey

 It was soft and warm under the sheets, and the huge bed didn’t feel quite as lonely with your boyfriend’s dog, Tessa, lying in a patch of sun nearby. You roll over, careful not to squish her, reaching idly for the phone tucked under your mountain of pillows. No new messages. You check the time. It was barely 8am, far too early for any new messages from Tom. This was normal; sometimes his ‘good morning sweetheart xo’ text message didn’t reach you until late in the afternoon. You read back through your conversation with him the night before, smiling despite yourself at his goodnight message.

With a sigh, you roll out of bed, the wooden floorboards of your apartment warm in the sun. As you leave the room, you pull the satin kimono Tom brought you back from a press tour in Japan over your pyjamas. When you reach the kitchen, you decide to give Tessa breakfast first, and no sooner than the first drops of food hit the bowl do you hear her little paws running across the floor. Even though it was easier to have her stay with his family when he’s away filming, considering how rare it is for you to have a day off, she lived with you anyway. While it was difficult to complain about dating a movie star and living in a penthouse apartment in New York City, you had to admit it would be lonely without Tessa for company.

You poured yourself a coffee, and sat down at the breakfast bar. You had just begun to scroll through your Instagram feed when your phone began to buzz, and a FaceTime request from Tom filled your screen. Your hands instinctively reach up to your hair, still tangled from the night’s sleep before. You hastily try to unknot it with your fingers, before giving up, to answer your phone. Tom’s face fills the screen, and you’re struck by how perfect he looks, as usual.

“Hello darling!” he says with a smile. “I just wanted to call quickly because I’m flying out to China for the press tour a day early,” you could see the airport lounge in the background behind him. “But I couldn’t bear to get on an eleven-hour flight without checking on my two favourite girls!”

Tom’s smile was infectious, and even Tessa had abandoned her food at the sound of his voice. Sliding off the stool, you bent down to pick her up, now holding the phone at arm’s length, so that you could fit both of you in the frame.

“Well,” you cuddle up to Tessa and plant a kiss on her head, “even though we both miss you very, very much, and you’re soon going to be very far away,” you pout at Tom, “we’re doing good, aren’t we Tess?”

“That’s what I like to hear! How’s work?” It was rare to have Tom all to yourself, even over the phone like this, and you knew to savour a moment like this. You let Tessa back down and lean on the kitchen counter, coffee back in hand.

“It’s good, I’ve finished a piece a few days before the deadline, so I’ve got a nice day to myself today. I’m thinking of taking Tessa to the park! How’s filming going?”

“It’s exhausting! I’ve never worked so hard in my life,” he looks exhausted, but he says it with a smile. Then he notices what you’re wearing. “Pretty kimono, I think I set the bar a little too high though, I’ll struggle to find something as nice to bring back for you this time.”

This time you pull a face.

“You don’t have to bring me back anything, baby. So long as I get to see you soon, properly, I don’t need any presents.”

“Whatever you say, love,” he says, as a voice calls out over the airport. You can’t make out the words, but you can tell from Tom’s change in expression that he needs to go. “I gotta go now, but I promise I’ll see you soon, maybe even sooner than you think,” he says with a wink.

“Tom?” but he cuts you off.

“Tell Tessa I love her, and I love you, have a lovely day darling!”

He ends the call, leaving you alone in the now quiet kitchen. You had barely finished your coffee, however, when your phones buzzed with a message.

I love you xo

Have a safe flight xxx

You quickly text Tom back before you put your phone on charge and jump in the shower. Once you’re out, and your hair is brushed and dried and semi-presentable again, you pull on some clothes. Summer was winding down, but New York was still warm, so a simple shirt and jeans were all you needed. When your relationship with Tom had first started, the paparazzi had gone mad trying to catch and glimpse of Spider-man and his totally normal, completely un-famous girlfriend. Some argued it was all an elaborate plot to hide his secret relationship with Zendaya, but after three and a half years, the attention had died down. But not completely. You grabbed a baseball cap as you searched the apartment for its other occupant.

“Tessa!” you called after searching the open plan kitchen living area and the bedroom you shared with Tom when he was home. “Where are you baby?”

Eventually you found her sleeping on a pile of Tom’s clothes on the bathroom floor, and after coaxing her into a collar and leash, you were ready to leave the apartment. You had to carry Tessa into the lift, but once you were down and out of the building, it was only a short walk to the park. You couldn’t deny that Tom liked his luxuries, not that you were complaining.

The park always livened up when Tessa was there. She played with the other dogs, chased pigeons, and let children come up and stroke her.  You were sure you heard ones of the kids excitedly telling the others that he was sure that was Spider-man’s dog as they walked away. They kept glancing back at you every few minutes until they left the park. After a couple of hours, you attached the leash back on Tessa’s collar and left the park. You stopped a small deli shop on the way home, grabbing a sandwich to go. Back at the apartment, you spent the rest of the afternoon curled up with Tessa in the wicker chain on the balcony, reading a book and watching the sky slowly turn orange and sink behind the skyscrapers.

Once it got too dark to read outside, you retreated to the sofa, eyeing the pizza menu on the coffee table. You knew Tom stressed about how much you ate while he was away, it was just so busy to get carried away writing for work, or reading that sometimes meal times completely passed you by. It wasn’t your fault your boyfriend had the appetite of an elephant, as skinny as he was. You sent Tom a quick text to let him know you missed him, even though you knew he wouldn’t receive it until he got to the hotel in China, which wouldn’t be for hours.

You knew that you could stay up as late as you wanted, not having to go to work in the morning, but even so, you were curled up in bed with your laptop by 10pm, and asleep next to Tessa by 11pm. Your headphones were still in and connected to your laptop, so when your eyes snapped open a few hours later, you weren’t sure what had woken you up at first. It wasn’t until you pulled them out and put the laptop away that you noticed Tessa was no longer curled up beside you. You reached over to the lamp on your bedside table and flicked it on, eyes scrunching at the sudden change in light. She was sat by the bedroom door, gently scratching at it and whimpering. Assuming that she just needed the toilet, and that it was her scratching that had woken you, you opened the door and let her out. You pulled your phone out to check the time. 3am. Sighing, you flicked off the lamp and climbed back under the covers. You unlocked your phone and subconsciously noted that the text you sent to Tom had be read two hours ago. Paying it no mind, you locked your phone and within minutes you were asleep again, dreaming of Tom coming home.

Sunlight streamed in through the open blinds. You could hear the quiet hum of the city streets below. Engines running idly, the occasional beep of a car horn, the sounds of people going about their daily lives. Arms were wrapped around you in a soft embrace and… Arms? Your eyes snapped open. Shifting as carefully as you could to not wake the person cuddling you, you turned to look at them. You heart swelled when you realised you were too inches from your sleeping boyfriend’s face. Barely able to contain yourself, you pressed your lips against his warm soft cheek. His eyes fluttered open and he smiled that perfect smile.

“Good morning darling,” he said, his voice deep and rough with sleep. You wrapped your arms around his as he pulled you into a kiss, so sweet and soft you thought your heart would burst.

“What are you doing here?” you whispered when you broke apart, putting a hand on each of his cheeks so you could take in his face properly.

“I thought I’d surprise you. You see when I said I was flying out to China early I was actually flying here because I couldn’t bear the thought of not seeing you before and-‘’ You cut him off with another kiss, trying to hide the tears that were starting to well up in your eyes. “What’s wrong, love? Have I upset you?”

“I just missed you so much,” you managed to say, embarrassed that your tears were ruining the moment. Tom pulls you into another tight hug, and you sit there for a while, breathing in his comforting scent. When you finally break apart, you realise there are still some unanswered questions.

“When did you get home?” Tom looks down awkwardly.

“Around 3am, I was trying really hard to sneak in and not wake you up. Obviously, the doorman knew I was here, but I woke Tessa up,” he looked up, “and you. I had to hide under the breakfast bar trying to calm Tess down for a while until I was sure you were asleep again, and then I snuck into bed and went to sleep.” He smiled and pecked you on the cheek. “I admit it was hard not to wake you up there and then, especially,” he said, “when I realised you were sleeping in my old t-shirt.”

You blushed and self-consciously pulled the sheets over your bare legs. He laughed then, a soft, warm laugh that made your heart melt.  You hit him gently in the chest, and he flopped dramatically back against the pillows, pulling your arm with him so you ended up straddled on him as he laid back. The smile was gone, but his brown eyes were still soft and you could just make out your face reflected in them.

“I love you,” he said, with a sudden intensity that wasn’t there before.

“I know,” you said, pulling the bed sheets up so they covered your shoulders, and then leant forward to nestle your face in his warm neck.”

“I love you too, Tom.”

"Remember, if she drops her dummy, you have to disinfect it with hot water. If she cries, try putting her down for a nap, if that doesn't work she might stop if you cuddle her. Remember to check her nappy, and if it does need changing, please put it in the bin outside, they can get pretty smelly..."

"I’ve got it under control, babe! And anyway, worst comes to worst, I’ll call Harrison to help me out."

You can't help but laugh. "Harrison? Has he ever even held a baby? He'll be useless!"

Tom looked down at the baby in his arms and smiled. You had to admit it was cute. He planted a kiss on your cheek before you left. "We'll be fine, love. I promise."

***

"Harrison, mate, you've got to help me!" Tom juggled the phone in one hand while trying to hold the screaming baby still. His voice was desperate.

"What's up?" came Harrison's nonchalant reply, as if the crying in the background wasn't a clue.

"The baby's been crying solidly for 20 minutes, she threw her dummy and her bottle on the floor, and Cbeebies has got to be the worst thing on the telly! I’ve just sat through three episodes of a program about talking vegetables! Vegetables!"

"I’m coming over!" Haz said before hanging up the phone.

When he arrived at the flat, it looked as though a bomb had hit it. There were toys scattered across the floor, cushions from the sofa lay overturned, DVDs from the shelf were in a pile on the floor below, and Tom looked like he was at his wits end.

"Have you tried changing her nappy?" Harrison asked, putting his hand over his nose in disgust.

"Uhhhh... is that what that smell was?"

"No wonder she's screaming, she's been sitting in her own shi-"

"Haz!" Tom cut him off. "You can't swear in front of the baby!" he looked around desperately. "There should be a changing mat somewhere..." he dug through the baby bag, throwing out onesies and spare dummies before he found a nappy and baby wipes. He looked back at the baby, still screaming on the sofa, face full of apprehension about what would happen next.

"I think you have to lie it on the floor," Haz said. Tom shot him a quizzical look. "I watched my cousins change her baby’s nappy once..."

Tom picked up the baby, holding her at arm’s length when he smelled her. Getting her to lie still proved a challenge, as every time he turned his back to get the nappies, the baby got up and crawled away. Sighing in exasperation, he turned to Harrison.

"A little help please?"

"No way!" Haz said pulling a face. "You volunteered for this, I didn't. There's no way I’m going anywhere near baby poop."

Finally, after several minutes of struggle, Tom finally got the baby to lie still for long enough to get her nappy off. He immediately shouted in disgust. The smell, which had been bad enough before he took the nappy off, only got worse.

"The windows!" he gasped to Harrison, one hand holding the baby down while the other covered his nose and mouth. "Open the windows!!"

His eyes were burning as he reached for the baby wipes. When the baby was finally clean, and wearing a fresh nappy, Tom looked up at his useless friend, just in time to see Harrison pointing his phone at him.

"This," he said, "is going on Instagram!" Tom made a dash for the phone, but it was too late. Fans everywhere would now be able to watch the 10-second-long video of Tom, hands covered in something he didn't even want to think about, and soaked in sweat, looking up at the camera.

"I hate you." he said, walking to the bathroom to scrub his hands. "Stay with the baby!"

Thankfully, the nappy change seemed to do the trick, as the baby was now sitting on the floor, babbling away happily as she played with a set of different coloured cups. Tom sat down on the sofa next to Harrison with a sigh, thankful for the peace and quiet. Opening twitter, he saw an influx in tweets from people asking why he was with a baby.

Checking that the baby was still happily entertained, he switched to Instagram, where his finger hovered over the icon for a second before he tapped it and started a live video.

"Hello everyone! Hello! I just thought I’d do a quick video to explain why I’m with a baby and why I was covered in... y’know." he sighed. The chat was overflowing with people saying his name and questions about the baby. "I’m babysitting! I know, what a surprise. Just doing your standard nappy change," he shifted his phone so Harrison was in view in the background. "With zero help, whatsoever, I might add... I know, he's useless" he laughed. He glanced down at the chat. " 'Show us the baby!' You want to see her? Okay, here she is- Haz! Where's the baby?!"

He ended the video abruptly as he leapt up from the sofa. Aside from the two of them, the room was empty, where only seconds before a child had been sat on the floor. A clatter came from down the hall.

Tom hurtled out of the room and into the kitchen, where, lo and behold, the baby was entertaining herself by emptying the bottom drawer. Cake cases and utensils covered the floor, and the baby was giggling at a particularly sharp looking skewer.

"Argh!" Tom shouted, pulling the skewer from the baby's hands. "Where did you get that?"

At Tom’s shout, she began to scream again immediately, her face screwing up, bright red and snotty.

Haz entered the kitchen, following the noise to its source, as Tom bent to pick her up, shushing her quietly as he cuddled her into his chest, but it did nothing except muffle the sound of her crying. Haz pulled out his phone again, and shot a quick video of Tom and the baby with the caption ‘help’.

***

2pm

You slumped down in a chair in the staffroom, thankful for a break. As you pulled out your phone, you noted that there were no new messages from Tom. ‘No news is good news’ you suppose, as you open Instagram. Seeing that Harrison had updated his story, you click on it, wondering if he’s with Tom. It takes a few seconds to load, but finally, there's the unmistakable face of your boyfriend, looking up at the camera in horror. The video ends and jumps to the next. This time, Tom is cuddling your niece in the kitchen as she screams. You see the caption and close the app, fingers speedily dialling his number.

"Hello darling!" he says when he finally picks up, his voice heavy with exhaustion. "Everything okay?"

"I might ask you the same!" you snap, barely containing your anxiety. "I saw Haz’s story!"

"Oh yes! Nothing to worry about, everything is fine, my love."

"Are you sure? Do you need me to come home?"

"No! No. Everything’s under control. After all, I’m great with babies!" You can practically hear his smile through the phone.

You hang up, praying that Tom is right.

The rest of your shift goes by painfully slow; you can't help but check the time every thirty seconds. When it's finally time to clock out, you practically run to your car, desperate to get home and go into damage containment mode. The traffic taunts you, dragging out for miles, so when you finally get home, you're close to tearing your hair out.