The Photograph

"Look what I've found. Now why did I pick this up?" A huge grin split my face. Charlotte looked up expectantly, not daring to make a suggestion. "I think I'll take this one too, if I can find someone to carry it for me." She looked around slyly.

"I'll do it mommy!" Lottie couldn't get the words out quickly enough.

"Will that be all right? I mean, you can't borrow daddy's camera if you've already got one can you?" It was too much. I burst out laughing. Jess did too. Charlotte looked at us perplexed. "Sorry both of you." Jessie managed to say. "But I knew that was what Lottie was angling for all the time, so I thought I'd tease her a little bit. I didn't expect you to offer her yours though."

"You didn't see the look on her face."

"I've seen all the looks she can give Dave, and you're so gullible when it comes to Charlotte."

"Mommy." Lottie piped up; she'd been following the conversation whilst looking at the camera intently. "Does this mean I can take some pictures?"

"Yes dear. The camera is yours for the day. If you can take care of it, you might get it for longer." Charlotte positively beamed with joy.

-----

"Daddy, can you put my pictures on your computer now, so that I can see them?"

"You should be getting ready for bed sweetheart, it's getting late." She looked downcast. "I'll tell you what; I'll put them on now, and if it doesn't take too long, you can have a quick look before you go to bed, how's that?" She nodded and scurried off to wash and change into her night things. I plugged the memory card in and began to download her pictures. Jessica came up behind me and leant on my shoulders.

"You are such a sucker for her; she's got you wrapped around her finger."

"I don't mind. Anyway, don't you want to see how she did?"

"Actually yes. She was so serious about the settings, trying to remember the things she's seen at the studio. Not like you, Mister point-and-click." She laughed.

"I get some good pictures!" I retorted.

"You get lucky sometimes."

"You're teasing aren't you?"

"Of course I am. You're pretty good for an amateur. If you took a bit more care you could be very good." She leant forward and kissed me on the forehead.

The download completed. I hovered the mouse over the new folder marked 'Lottie's Pix'.

"Ready?"

"Go on, let's see."

I clicked and the two hundred or so pictures came onto the screen. We scrolled through them, marvelling at our daughter's aptitude. There were quite a few that were as good as mine, even some as good as Jessie's. Suddenly we both stopped and stared at one in particular.

"Open it to full size." Jess said hoarsely. I did so. It was a picture of the two of us in a familiar pose, the pose from all those years ago. "I don't remember doing that." She said.

"Nor me."

"You do it all the time." A little voice said from behind us. "I just waited and clicked. I thought daddy could add it to that file with all the others the same."

"How did you know about that?"

"I've seen you looking at it daddy, mommy has one too."

"She does?"

"I do." Jess sighed. She knelt next to Charlotte. "Thank you sweetie. Just for that picture, you can keep the camera; I think you've earned it."

"Oh, thank you mommy." They hugged, a tear forming in the corner of Jessica's eye. I knelt beside them.

"Charlotte, thank you. That was a beautiful thought. You've made us both very happy." Charlotte beamed. "But I think you better go to bed. We can look at all your pictures tomorrow."

"Okay daddy, goodnight." She kissed us both and picked up her camera and went upstairs.

Jessica and I looked at each other for a while.

"It looks like we did something right with her Jess."

"It does." She looked thoughtful. "There's something else too."

"What?"

"I think it's about time we had a new picture pose."

"Not just the two of us you mean?"

"Yes. We've both got loads of pictures of Charlotte with one or other of us, but very few with all three of us. So, tomorrow morning, we'll take a new photograph."