It was a whirlwind romance. He'd had girlfriends before but none like her. He knew she was the one. They'd been planning a trip to Europe that would take in Paris.
He couldn’t have her pausing on every street corner, wondering if this would be the moment when he’d ask his question.
So he asked it before they went.
He took her to Park Rd, Milton, where La Dolce Vita Ristorante sits under its own faux Eiffel Tower. It was there, among the diners and coffee drinkers, that he got down on his knee and asked Allison to marry him.
She wasn’t so sure her ambitious baby-faced boyfriend was the one.
She wasn’t sure if she was ready for marriage, ready for children, ready for such a drastic change.
She asked for a week to think about it.
If Allison had a fault, it was that she always said yes, even when she meant no. So she accepted his ring and they began planning a life together.
They were married at St Mary’s Anglican Church at Kangaroo Point on August 23, 1997, the bride glowing in a long, white, off-shoulder gown with an embroidered bodice and sweetheart neckline.
Long, white gloves. Long white veil secured with a tiara. She smiled with Gerard as they were photographed signing the wedding register.
The union of two committed Christians was a non-alcoholic affair. Their Flight Centre co-workers struggled to contain their thirst.
Some of the guests had already pegged Gerard for a pompous self-promoter.
Others discovered it while sitting through his long-winded speech thanking his "mummy and daddy".
It seemed to take hours for Gerard to express his gratitude to the relevant people. Some would sneak off to find booze and return to find him still talking.
After the wedding they left behind their old lives and headed overseas.
She hadn’t wanted to pack up but Gerard had talked her into it. She’d wanted to change her career. Open up her own dance school and rekindle her passion for ballet.
Again she said yes when she meant no, nodding her head as Gerard made plans for their time overseas.
They travelled the world, ending up in London. They flew home for a wedding and picked up some anti-malarial medication from a travel doctor before heading off overseas again.
The depression she’d struggled with in London had her in its grip ... she’d wage a constant battle with her weight.
Severe reactions to the medication are rare, but Allison was one of those rare cases. She developed depression, hallucinations and psychotic episodes. She spent a lot of time in London on the couch, near catatonic.
Gerard didn’t believe in depression. He wanted her to snap out of it.
They spent some time in Switzerland where Gerard, with his famed Scouting heritage, offered his services as a volunteer at the Kandersteg International Scouts Centre.
They came home for a "break" in 1999. Flight Centre lost one of its favourites when Allison left and they threw work at her the moment she returned.
Gerard applied for a job there too. He missed out the first time. Got his foot back in the door on his second try.
They offered him a contract developing their internet strategy. He lasted six months before the team was made redundant. The "strategy" hadn’t worked. He took them to court, tried suing for breach of contract, but got nowhere.
With Allison now pregnant, Gerard needed to find a new career. He took on a job with his parents at Raine & Horne’s Kenmore office to try his hand at real estate.
Their first daughter was born in 2001. Allison was pregnant again two years later.
The depression she’d struggled with in London had her in its grip by then.
Her sister-in-law would later claim they were driving to playgroup when a panic attack engulfed her.
Olivia watched in alarm as Allison lunged from the car and vomited in the gutter.
She booked an appointment with a psychiatrist. He prescribed her antidepressants and within weeks she was doing well.
But the medication had a downside.
Gerard complained it affected her libido and made her put on weight. She was not a big woman but Allison had grown up in the ballet world, where fine-boned girls were encouraged to keep a slim physique.
She always seemed to be on one diet or another. She was a reluctant exerciser, but walked and went to the gym. In their fridge was a row of tiny vials. They were Allison’s. She was injecting a substance to help her lose weight.
Allison had a third daughter in 2006. She loved her girls. She was a devoted mother who dreamed of her beautiful daughters making it big in the ballet world.
By then they’d taken on a lease at 593 Brookfield Rd, Brookfield, a three-bedroom elevated Queenslander with a large garden right on the main road.
Brookfield. Where Brisbane’s elite bought up when they wanted space for a pony and a few acres of garden close to the city. A picturesque hamlet of rolling hills. A pony club on one side of the main road in. The local showgrounds on the other. The hairdressing salon nestled in alongside a general store cum cafe where locals gathered to sip lattes on the wooden deck.
The perfect place for the perfect family.
Gerard and Allison threw themselves into the local community. Gerard would take up a position on the Brookfield State School Parents and Citizens' committee, he’d chair the Real Estate Institute of Queensland’s western suburbs zone and get himself elected president of the Kenmore and District Chamber of Commerce.
Allison was the doting school mum who taught ballet and a resilience course for kids.
On the surface, they had everything.
Here’s what you can expect with tomorrow’s Parramatta weather
As summer moves towards autumn what can locals expect tomorrow? We have the latest word from the Weather Bureau.
Here’s what you can expect with tomorrow’s Parramatta weather
As summer moves towards autumn what can locals expect tomorrow? We have the latest word from the Weather Bureau.