A Beautiful Forever - By Anderson, Lilliana Page 0,101

flat, this is the flat he used to let me live in. I moved out when he stopped supporting me. I thought he’d sold it.”

I look up at the white brick building. It looks like it was built in the seventies, it’s very close to the beach. I can hear the ocean from where we’re standing.

“Does your dad live here now?”

“I don’t think so…”

“We ready?” Robert asks, opening the entry door from the inside for us. They must have entered from the car park. Erica is standing behind him, a massive smile on her face as she gestures wildly for us to come in.

Walking up the stairs, my heart is thumping in my ears, Elliot seems a little tense, and I don’t know what’s going on. So I blindly follow behind Robert, stopping when they stand in front of a brown door.

“This is it!” Erica exclaims.

“We’re at the flat,” Elliot points out, a question hanging in the air when he finishes.

“Your flat,” corrects Robert, holding out a key and taking my hand before placing it on my palm.

“What?” we say in unison.

“The flat – it’s your wedding gift!" squeals Erica “Open it!”

“Dad, I –”

“It’s done, son. It’s yours. The paperwork is inside.”

“I don’t know what to say,” I stammer out.

“Just open it!” Erica insists.

My hand is shaking as I reach out and put the key in the lock. As the door swings open I’m faced with a long narrow hallway. A faint smell of paint invades my nostrils as I step inside, closely followed by Elliot.

As I walk down the hallway, I first come to a formal dining room with a square, chestnut-coloured table, surrounded by eight leather chairs and a high chair in the corner, there’s a mantle off to one side and on it are some photos of Elliot, Grace and I. I look back at Elliot, utterly surprised.

“Do you like it?” Erica asks coming to my side. “We renovated and I decorated it for you, but if there’s anything you don’t like, just tell me, and we will fix it up lickety split!”

Tears start to fill my eyes and threaten to spill, as I look around the room. “No, it’s perfect, thank you,” I tell her.

“Can I show you around?” she asks, reaching for my hand. I’m speechless and simply nod my head and let her pull me along as she chats about what she did with each room.

In the lounge room, she has put in a massive leather cream coloured couch in front of a large round foot rest that is covered in a beautiful burgundy, grey and white fabric. On the floor is a burgundy rug that covers all but about ten centimetres worth of floor. On the wall is a mounted flat screen television with a low line cabinet underneath it holding the DVD player and there’s two matching book cases either side, artfully decorated with books, vases, candles and photographs.

The kitchen has been done with all stainless steel appliances and a dark granite bench top that has a small drop when it becomes a breakfast bar that looks out the window.

The first bedroom is for Grace, with a beautiful white sleigh cot, with a matching chest of drawers and change table. It has been decorated almost entirely with butterflies, the most exquisite butterfly mobile hanging above the cot, and there is every toy a baby girl could ever hope for.

Next up is the main bathroom, it has a sleek bath tub with spa jets inside and a glass partition to turn it into a shower. The large mirror has vanity lights around it, and the sink is shaped like a bowl and rises out of the counter top.

I gasp when I see the main bedroom, it almost looks like the bed and breakfast we went to. Above the bed is a blown-up photo of Elliot and I, kissing on our wedding day. I look over at Erica, trying so hard not to cry, “This is so beautiful, Erica,” I breathe.

“Wait, you haven’t seen all of it yet,” she says pulling me towards a door that I assume leads to an en-suite. I’m surprised with it opens to a walk in wardrobe before it becomes an en-suite, she has even put a chair in the middle of it. It is quite simply amazing.

The en-suite itself is also gorgeous with a his and hers basin and a corner mini spa bath and shower combined.

I look around with my mouth open, never in my wildest dreams