Sophie & Paddy, Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Sophies’ house nestled quietly at the edge of the forest that curled past the small town of Idlesdown, that was hardly a big enough town to be called a town. One main street rose in an arc from the narrow stone bridge outside her gate, passed the green post office where she posted her letters and pictures to her nana. Passed the newsagents where her daddy would stand and read the front pages of the newspapers, while her mummy would pick milk out of the tall fridge and, occasionally, a chocolate bar for Sophie. At the top of the hill the road passes two pubs stood side by side, before dipping down to by the hairdressers where warm blast of heavy scented air blew across the pavement whenever the door opened and chimed a little bell. Beside the hairdressers a butchers shop displayed fresh red and white meats, shining fish and sausages curled like knotted balloons.

By the bottom of the hill, the road curved gently to the left to avoid the tall heavy trees as the forest swept back around the town, almost covering the small white cottage that lay in a small patch of land overhung by lush green branches.

This was the cottage where Sophie lay sleeping. It could only just be seen over the gardens high hedgerows from the road, it’s white walls visible only as cars passed over the humpback bridge that humpbacked the lazy road over a thin gurgling stream that bordered one side of the house, lifting them high enough to peek over. Behind the thick green hedgerows a small well kept lawn led up to the house, split in two by a narrow paved path which was bordered by powder blue lavender bushes and brightly coloured pansies and petunias. The path led up to a small blue door, between two sleepy eyes for windows, they’re curtains pulled against the early morning light.

The sun rose from behind the dark hills behind the bridge, waking another bright summers day. It shone against the hedgerows, colouring them in shining greens, before climbing over them to sweep the windows of the cottage, and a pointed a narrow beam of warm light through a gap in the curtain to brush against Sophies’ soft face as she lay sleeping. Her nose twitched as the light tickled her nose. The sun tried harder, climbing to the bridge of her nose to her closed eyelids, causing her to scrunch her brow and rub her eyes with the back of her hand. Opening her eyes she squinted at the orange glowing curtains and rolled onto her back with stretching arms, squeezing her brown bear Paddy beneath her shoulder. Paddy harrumphed and wriggled himself free.

“Do you mind?” he muttered grumpily

“Oooh, sorry. Good morning Paddy” Said Sophie, mid yawn.

“Is it indeed” mumbled Paddy, his pale snout stuffed into his pillow. He made a show of waving one stubby brown furred arm in the air

“I’m all numb in my right arm now, look” he said, flapping his paw in front of Sophies’ nose.

Paddy was always grumpy in the mornings. He just wasn’t a morning bear. As usual he was complaining that Sophie had rolled onto his arm in her sleep. She had offered to let him sleep in her old cot in the corner of the bedroom several times, but Paddy had looked instantly fearful, and had announced that he couldn’t possibly leave her side for fear she might fall out of bed during the night if he wasn’t there to save her.

“I won’t fall out of bed, silly” Sophie had said, laughing.

“You will!” said Paddy.

And that had been that.

Sophies’ Mother and Father slept in the bedroom at the back of the house, preferring sunsets to sunrises. Sunrises brought work, frosty mornings scraping windscreens, tired eyes squinting against rising sun. Sunsets promised sleep, curling up in bed and warm duvets, good books and soft pillows. This morning was a Saturday, and they were enjoying a lay in as the Sophie pushed open the door and stood at the side of their bed in her favourite pink pajamas, clutching a dozing Paddy by his “Numb” paw, his short legs dragging along the carpet. Daddy was awake, his thick brown hair, flecked with grey lay in tussles about his head as he poked his face out from beneath the duvet.

“Morning Sweetie. Morning Paddy”

“Hummm” groaned Paddy. He muttered something about ‘dams’ and ‘mornings’ that Sophie couldn’t quite make out.

“Mooorniing Daddy!” Cried Sophie, standing on her tippy toes to see over her Daddy to see her mother, who was still sleeping, bundled beneath the covers.

“Shhhsssh” Her father said, clamping his eyes shut as he reached for his glasses on the night stand “Mummy’s still sleeping”

Sophie widened her blue eyes and raised her forefinger against her mouth in a show of hush.

“Shall we make mummy some breakfast?” her Daddy said quietly.

Paddy jiggled.

“Yeahy!” whispered Sophie.

“Smashed eggs and toast!” Said Paddy, wriggling Sophies’ arm. “Egg-shell-en t!”

“Can we make smashed eggs on toast? They’re Paddy’s faaavourite!”

“Okay. But Mummy might want some grapefruit too”. Her Daddy made a face, dragging his lips back over his teeth and sticking his tongue out playfully. Sophie giggled and copied his face.

“Yuck!” Said Paddy.

Downstairs in the kitchen, Sophie stood on a high backed chair pushed against the counter top and helped her Daddy make breakfast. Paddy sat on the kitchen table, slumped against the cold tea pot, snoring loudly. Daddy stood in his shorts and tee shirt, yawning and scratching his head as he watched Sophie take a second egg and crack it solidly against the saucepans lip, letting the gloppy insides cling to her fingers and fall reluctantly into the bowl, along with little triangles of shell that her Daddy would have to pick out later. Next, she leaned forward and reached for the bread and placed two soft slices into the toaster, pushing the lever down with both hands, before springing back up with her hands above her head and wiggling a little dance.

“Breakfaaaast” she sang

“Brown bread for me” sighed Paddy, as if it was a terrible discomfort for him to have to stay awake..

“I know!” said Sophie, looking over her shoulder.

“Hmmm?” her father said, squeezing each eye shut in turn, trying to shake the sleep from his vision.

“Brown bread for Paddy”

“Of course” daddy said wearily, eyeing the bear that now lay sprawled across the table.

“Brown bread for a Brown Bear”

“S’actly” said Paddy, before dozing off to sleep again.

Mummy was awake by the time they arrived back upstairs, Daddy carrying a tray with fresh coffee, yellow grapefruit sliced in two and placed in two white bowls, smashed eggs on hot buttered toast. Sophie carried a glass of orange juice which she presented to her mother cupped in both hands as her mother leaned down and kissed her good morning. Placing the glass on the sideboard her mother lifted her into the bed beside her and gave her a little tickle that made Sophie wriggle in giggles and curl up in a ball clutching her mummy’s fingers in hers.

“Good morning Sophie. Where’s Paddy?!”

“Oh he’s downstairs having his breakfast” said Sophie, jiggling free of her mothers hands and sprawling herself back onto the pillow, hands outstretched forming a bridge between her parents.

Her mummy and Daddy exchanged conspiratorial winks

“He loves his smashed eggs, doesn’t he?”

“Yeah” said Sophie, matter-of-factly, lifting her legs and thumping them down again as she rolled to grasp the TV remote that poked out from beneath her mothers pillow.

“He says they’re good for his com-plex-tion”, she said absently, as she squeezed the red button and gazed at the TV as it woke in the corner.

Her Daddy snorted into his tea, splashing little brown drops onto the duvet.

Sophie loved Saturday mornings. She always got to climb into bed between her mummy and daddy and watch her cartoons while her parents read the morning papers that were delivered to their front door, until 11 o’clock when her daddy would become restless and decide that they had to get up and “do something”. Saturday afternoons were, after all, for visiting the shops in town and sitting in cafes with large bowls of coffee. Paddy hated shopping. This morning he sulked in his seat in the trolley for ages until Sophie poked him in the arm and teased him for being a gloomy bear.

“I’m a fruit tree bear. I’m used to lying about in fruit trees. Not wheeling about in supermarkets. Oh, the thrill of the open air. I miss it so” he mused, his chin in his paw and a far away look in his brown eyes.

Sophie grinned, swinging her arm around for fun. “is that where you got the “Hamleys” label from then? Hanging about in trees?”

“Hummph. I was lord of my manor there, I was. King of my tree. You wouldn’t understand, being a silly little girl” he said grumpily, stroking a paw down his furry arm and puffing his chest out. “Oh yes,” he sighed dramatically, “I was quite the Bear there. Quite the Bear”

“I’m not silly, I Sophie” said Sophie, somewhat aggrieved, her head to one side and bottom lip protruding.

“Silly Sophie”, said Paddy, with a mischievous wink.

Sophie giggled and pinched his arm

“Yeow! Geerroff”

“Big brave Paddy” teased Sophie, skipping off to catch up with her Daddy who was busy squeezing tomatoes at the vegetable counter.

Sophies’ daddy didn’t like supermarkets much. There were no buttons to press or gadgets to play with, so he kept himself amused by poking vegetables and comparing fruits to make sure he got the freshest, ripest from amongst the stacked piles on offer. In the toiletries section he would read the labels of the deodorants’ and razors studiously, making his decision based on ingredients rather than their colourful wrappers. Her mummy hurried herself with picking out her favourite items, cursory glances at the labels, and waited impatiently for Daddy to work out his purchases.

Sophies’ mummy had the same sunlit brown hair that swept across her brow as she bent to pick soaps from the bottom shelf. She had the same smile and same silly sense of humour as Sophie, flicking from shelf to shelf, ooo-ing and aah-ing at the latest new products while Sophie marched up and down and spun on her heel beside her, hands dug into her pockets, and gazing up at the bright neon lights above, her light hair curling in bangs about her ears. She loved to copy her mummys funny positions as she practiced her yoga in the front room at home, pressing her bottom against a wall and peering between her legs, trying to tie herself in a knot. Quite why her mother wanted to tie herself in a knot she didn’t know, but it was fun to watch her twist and bend upside down as Sophie rested the crown of her head on the floor, grabbing her ankles and watching her mother twist herself into yet another knot.

“Hmmm. Look at the price of these Excels versus the Soft touch blade. Four in one packet and five in the other. Same price, but the Excels last longer. God, why would you buy the other one? Tsk.” Daddy dropped a blue packet of razor heads Sophie recognized as the ones he liked to clean away the sharp hairs from his chin every morning, into the trolley while Sophie swung a free leg and arm in arcs, one arm gripping onto the trolleys’ metal rim. That was another thing she liked about Saturdays, she thought, as she stretched out a leg like her mummy does in her yoga. Daddy’s rough, sandy chin. He never shaved until late on Saturday mornings.

“Can we have Co-Co pops Daddy?”

“No Sophie. Nobody ever eats them”

“But they’re Paddy’s faaaavourite”

“Then Paddy will have to do without. Anyway. I thought Paddy’s favourite was scrambled eggs?”

“Yah. But sometimes he likes to have Co-Co pops. He’s on a Diet”

Daddy smirked at the phrase his daughter had picked up from her mother.

“Mmm yes, he’s getting to be a bit of a porky bear, isn’t he?” he said, examining two competing brands of shaving foam, weighing them up in his hands.

Paddy stirred in his seat, one paw hanging limply over the side of the trolley.

“Cheek! I’m big boned bear, that’s all. Have to keep my strength up, don’t I?” he said, licking his lips and opening one sleepy eye and digging a wriggling paw into his ear.

“hee hee hee. Porky Paddy!” sang Sophie

“Silly Sophie” yawned Paddy, rubbing his eyes and pointing his dangling paw in her direction.

At the check out counter Paddy was in full voice, woken by the scent of chocolate that lay in neat rows before the counter.

“Bachelors Peas, Beetroot red,
Broccoli, Sprouts all shoved in the shed,
I want chocolate not cauliflower heads,
Give me a twix, mars bars instead,
melt them in pot and DRINK THEM IN BED!
OOOOH, Bachelors Peas, Beetroot………."

“Shush Paddy!”

“..Red, Broccoli, Sprouts all shoved in the shed…..”

“Paaaaddy” Whispered Sophie with a giggle.

“You’ll get nothing if you keep singing like that, you greedy bear”

“But my tummy needs chocolate, look” he said plaintively, lying back , pushing out his belly and rubbing his furry tummy, trying to look helpless.

Sophies’ mummy was passing the contents of the trolley, one by one, over Paddy’s lolling head onto the conveyer belt to the sleepy looking lady in green who sat chewing gum, presenting each item to a window in the counter with a beep.

“Mummy?”

“Yes Sophie”, her mummy answered with an elongated ‘yeees’ that Sophie recognized as a warning not to ask for anything.

“Can, em. Can we have some chocolate?” Sophie said plaintively, her head dipped slightly making her eyes look up from beneath her eyebrows in an attempt at soft pleading.

“No Sophie, not today. You had loads of chocolate at your cousin Cians’ already this week. You can have some of those raisons if you want, but no sweeties yet. Maybe later” she said, not taking her eyes from her task.

Sophie threw a “told you so” look to Paddy.

“Seeee? Told you to stop singing!” she said grumpily.

Her mummy glanced at her with an amused smile as she packed the groceries into bags as her Daddy stood contemplating the bill.

Sophie sat waiting by the trolley as she remembered all the sweeties her and her cousin Cian had eaten at her Auntie Helen and Uncle Marcs’ house last Monday. Her cousin Cian was much younger than her, but loved to play at dancing just like Sophie. They had gone to a swimming pool where Sophie was put in charge of teaching baby Cian to swim. She had taken her job very seriously, splashing about in her water wings in the warm smooth water, kicking her legs and thrashing her arms as fast as she could, showing Cian, who watched on with a wide smile in her Auntie Helen’s arms. Later, as her mummy and daddy sat and ate dinner with Uncle Marc and Auntie Helen, Sophie and Cian had sat on the floor playing with Cians toys and watching television. Cian was banging his toy train off the floor with great gusto, watching the wheels spin, when Sophie had turned her head to one side, her gaze still fixed on the piece of lego in her hand.

“So when do you think you’ll start walking?” she asked her cousin.

Cian banged his train once more, then let it fly over his shoulder onto the couch behind him where it tumbled down the cushions and hid behind his daddys’ jacket, before turning to Sophie with a big toothy grin.

Sophie laughed, and gave him a big cuddle.

When the time came for washing up, her Uncle Marc had sneaked back out of the kitchen, and sat down between them, pulling a chocolate bar out of his pocket.

“Don’t tell auntie Helen” he had whispered, as he broke the soft warm bar into three and gave one each to Sophie and Cian, before stuffing the remainder into his own mouth and chewed at it with a big broad grin. Sophie had copied him and placed the silky sweet chocolate into her mouth in one go, holding a finger to her mouth as she chewed, smiling cheekily at her Uncle. Cian licked at the chocolate before covering his mouth with chocolaty smears and played with the melting bar with his fingers. That was another thing I’m going to have to teach him, Sophie had thought. How to eat a yummy bar of chocolate.


On the way home from the supernmarket, Sophie sat strapped in her car seat singing along with Paddy’s song:

“Bachelors peeesh, beetwoot wed,
Broccoli, Spwouts all shoved in the shed...."

“Sweetie, can you sing any other songs?” her daddy said exasperatedly from behind the steering wheel, grinding the gears after her fifth rendition.

“Ok Daddy” said Sophie happily.

“Twinkle twinkle little star Daddy drives a rusty car..."

“Not that one!” said Daddy, hurriedly, as her mummy laughed.

Sophie watched the trees flash past as the car swept through the end of the town and curved through bend before her house, bobbling over potholes that made her jump and bounced Paddy from his seat onto his back, leaving him hanging over the footwell. Her mummy looked over her shoulder at her as Sophie grinned with delight as another pothole bounced her against her harness.

“You having fun Sweetie?” smiled her mummy

“Yah! Again!” cried Sophie, kicking her legs and waving her arms about her head. Just out of her reach, Paddy was chuckling as he teetered on the edge of the back seat, waiting for the next bump to knock him over into the space behind her daddy’s seat.

Her mummy and daddy exchanged amused glances they rounded the next corner as Sophie laughed at Paddy as he tumbled to the floor with a loud “Wahey!”

Paddy was fighting back little brown bear tears of laughter as Sophie pointed at him lying on his back on the floor with arms and legs kicking above him.

“Your Silly Paddy!” she laughed.



That evening Sophie sat at the kitchen table eating dinner with her parents as mummy carved up slender slivers of ham and covered them in white sauce. Two baby potatoes for Sophie and one split baked potato for her daddy, dripping melted butter and cheese. Sophies’ seat was the one with it’s back to the kitchen wall ever since her Daddy had decided to place her there one morning to stop her swinging so far on the chairs legs as would it topple over. Paddy wasn’t allowed at the dinner table and sat happily watching cartoons in the front room, a plate of biscuits on the arm of the couch beside him.

“Why can’t Paddy have dinner with us?” Sophie had asked of her mother one morning.

“Because bears don’t have dinner, you know that silly” said her mother as she passed mounds of cream potato’s onto Daddys’ plate as he sat engrossed in his Paper.

“Why?”

“Because they don’t have dinner tables in the forest”

“Why?”

“Because they’re too busy, or can’t be bothered going along with Mammy to the table shop to buy one”

Daddy’s head sunk lower in behind the paper as Sophie played with the potatoes on her plate, deep in thought.

“But they have breakfast at a table, don’t they? Paddy has breakfast at the table”

A pause. Daddys’ eyes appearing over the top of the newspaper again, their corners wrinkled in a smile as he looks at mummy.

“Yes, but. But that’s because that’s a breakfast table Sophie. You can’t have dinner off a breakfast table” she replied at length. Daddys’ eyes swung in Sophies’ direction, clearly enjoying the battle that he was steering well clear of.

Sophie held a fork of potato to her mouth and paused. Looking around her for a moment, and scrunching her eyebrows together, she finally turned back to her mother with a look of confusion.

“Where’s our breakfast table then Mum?” she enquired innocently.

“Eat your Dinner Sophie” her mother replied impatiently as Daddys’ head disappeared behind his quivering paper with a muffled snort.

The half light outside the cottage faded eventually into a deep amber dusk over the hills in the distance, tracing an uneven black outline against the setting sun. It was long passed Sophie’s bedtime, but it was such a warm night Sophie was allowed to stay up a little later to play in the back garden as her parents relaxed on reclined chairs on the patio drinking wine. The little stream that ran along one side of the cottage was the only sound to be heard as it tickled over the rocks and peebles of it’s shallow bed. Sophie sat at the edge of the patio looking up at the stars in a cloudless sky above. It was the deep blue colour of her favourite Wellington boots, she had decided. She was trying to count the stars. She started with the bright twinkling one that hung just over the apple tree in the corner of the garden. It was the north star, her daddy had told her once, and she let her eyes drift to its left and down to follow the line of the Great Bears’ smaller pinprinks of light. Sophie thought it looked more like a giant frying pan than a bear, like the one her mother used to sizzle sausages on in the mornings. She imagined a giant, made of little dots like spots on her exo scetch holding the frying pan as the sound of the trickling stream became the sizzling, popping, fizzling sound of the sausages cooking on the giant pan.

“What are you thinking about Sweetie?” Her Daddy’s voice asked quietly from behind her.

“Sausages” Said Sophie.

Soon it was time for bed, the sky a deep soft black now, like a velvet sequined duvet thrown over her house. Sophie was lifted into her fathers arms, leaned out to kiss her mother good night as her mother stroked Sophies’ hair back over her ears, before being brought to bed. Paddy was already fast asleep, his back to her facing the wall, brown snout pressed into the pillow. Daddy tucked her beneath her pink duvet and sat on the floor by the bed and opened the story book that lay on the sideboard, a bright red balloon on it’s cover. Within minutes, Sophie was fast asleep and dreaming of balloons lifting her quietly to the great frying pan in the sky.