Family Reunion

James Choke's brand new Maserati slowed to a crawl, as the road opened up into a quiet street lined with huge houses set 50 yards back from the road. He leaned away from the steering wheel and let his foot ease up from the accelerator until his car had come to a complete standstill.

"We're nearly there, James," his girlfriend Kerry Chang told him tiredly for what felt like the six millionth time that drive. "And you can hardly blow him off, now."

James shook his head slowly. "I can't do this. I just can't. I mean, he left my mum. What will I say to him? What if I don't like him?"

Kerry sighed quietly to herself. The whole way down to Cambridge, James had been like this. At one point he'd even turned around and driven for a while the opposite direction they were supposed to be going, before turning around at a roundabout and carrying on towards Cambridge! She knew it was just nerves that were getting him, but it seemed borderline unreasonable to her.

"James. Nobody said you have to like him. All we have to do is stay for half an hour, have a cup of coffee and some biscuits, and then leave. Plus, we're almost there! He lives just down this road!"

"But what if I don't like him?" There was an almost wild panic edging James' voice. In some ways it scared her, because she was supposed to be the one to calm him down. For half a second, she let herself be scared of her daunting task. And then she resumed the role of tough girlfriend.

"James. He just lives down here. Don't you want to get to know him?"

"Yes, but…"

"Well, let's go, then."

Slowly, James' car drove down the quiet, posh street, passing BMWs, Mercedes', Audis… super massive house after super massive house… before stopping at one with children's toys littered all over the front garden, and an imposing Harley-Davidson motorbike leaning on its kickstand in the driveway.

James parked on the kerb, and got out to examine the Harley.

…

"Who's he bringing with him, James?" Professor James Duncan's wife Gaynor asked.

"His girlfriend. I spoke with her on the phone. She sounded nice." Prof. Duncan answered calmly.

Gaynor glanced at the clock. "They're late." She snapped.

"Yes, well, don't be too hard on him. It's a big thing for him. Cut him some slack. Cut me some slack."

A shout came from the front room. "They're here!" Five-year-old Megan came racing into the spacious hall. "They're here, they're here, they're here!"

They waited for a good five more minutes for the door bell to ring, but nothing happened.

"I wonder what they're up to." Prof. Duncan muttered, before going into the front room to peek out the windows. What he saw pleasantly surprised him.

…

"It's an antique." James told Kerry, as he crouched down to get a better look at the motorbike.

Kerry let him admire the bike for a minute more, before opening her mouth to tell him to shift.

"You like my bike?" A deeper voice got in before her. Turning round, she caught an eyeful of an older man that looked very like James. He had the same blond hair, the same wide shoulders. Even the shape of the face and eyes were exact copies! She hadn't expected that.

"Yes," James said hesitantly. "I like bikes. I have a Kawasaki."

"A Kawasaki! They're good bikes. When did you get it?"

"About a year ago." Then, realising that none of them had been properly introduced, he said, "Um, this is my girlfriend, Kerry."

"It's nice to finally meet you." Kerry said politely, holding out her hand.

"And you, and you. I hadn't realised that none of us had been properly introduced. This is my wife, Gaynor, and my children, Megan and Albert. Guys, this is… my… son, James."

Megan marched over to James, and stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Hi." He said to her.

"Would you like to come and see my room?" her high voice reached his great height easily.

"Uh… sure?" She reached for his hand, and began dragging him into the house.

"Megan, maybe you could show him later?" Gaynor called to her.

"Oh, no, it's okay." James gave them a reassuring smile. He was starting to feel a lot more comfortable as the little girl pulled him along.

Then he stepped into the house.

"Bloody hell!"

Gaynor gave him a sharp look, but refrained from smacking him by remembering that he'd grown up on a council estate.

"You shouldn't swear." Megan told him seriously. "It's very naughty, and Mummy will make you be in a lot of trouble."

"Right. Sorry."

Shaking his head, he let Megan lead him up the wide sweeping staircase that was so unlike anything he'd ever seen in a normal house.

…

Kerry snickered when she saw James getting dragged along by a five-year-old.

"So," Prof. Duncan said, beckoning her into the house. "How long have you known James?"

"We first met when I was eleven. He was twelve, and we were friends almost straight away. He's an ignorant git at times, but… Nobody's perfect, I guess. But James comes pretty close." She smiled to herself.

"Interesting. So you grew up in East London, as well?"

"No. We met in the care home." Kerry said amiably.

"Care home?" Prof. Duncan stopped and stared at her on the way to Megan's room.

"Yes."

"Was Gwen unfit to look after James and his sister, or what?"

"James' mother died when he was eleven. We thought you knew." Kerry said, puzzled.

"No, I… I had no idea."

Professor Duncan climbed the rest of the stairs in a daze. He had just assumed that she had moved! Over the years he had tried phoning her to hear news of his son, and when he'd heard the phone line had been disconnected, he'd just thought she'd moved in with her new husband, Ron…

How wrong he'd been. He could have been a proper father to the boy before now, but maybe James hadn't wanted to meet him. Maybe he was being forced to, now…

Reaching Megan's room, they found James currently ooh-ing and aah-ing over Megan's newly refurbished room.

Kerry snickered again, and called into the room, "You look cute together. Especially you, James. A pink room really brings out your eyes."

Gaynor snorted. James turned around and gave Kerry a death glare. "Shut up."

"Megan, how about we go downstairs and have some tea and biscuits?" Gaynor interrupted.

"Biccies! Come on, James!" And with that, she raced out the room, and down the stairs.

"Crazy kid." James commented as they followed at a more leisurely pace.

"Why didn't social services contact me when your mother died?" Professor Duncan asked James quietly.

"They couldn't find you." James shrugged.

So it most likely wasn't that James didn't want to see him. Professor Duncan decided to trust his son. "I didn't even know."

"Serious?" He exchanged a look with Kerry, and said, "We thought you knew."

"So I hear. So, tell us what you've been up to these past few years. How's your sister…. Lauren, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. She's fine. She's just started her last year at secondary, and she has a boyfriend who's a complete idiot."

"I thought you liked Rat." Kerry said.

"Well. I did. Before. But not so much now, now that he's got his tongue down my sister's throat."

"Overprotective, much?"

"I don't think so."

"So, what else have you been up to?" Gaynor asked, sensing that a row might break out.

"Well, we've been going to the University of California, as you know…"

…

For the next four hours James and Kerry talked with Prof. Duncan and Gaynor, indulging Megan in some of her games, and just catching up. They had a lot to talk about, and when it was time to leave, James found that he was sad to go.

"You have to come back soon." Prof. Duncan told the couple. "And you need to bring Lauren with you. She sounds like a lovely girl."

James rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Sure. We'll definitely come back, maybe in the next holidays?"

"Sooner than that!" Megan cried. "You have to come back tomorrow to play with me. You spent too long talking with Mummy and Daddy today."

"I'm sorry, Megs. Me and Kerry have to fly back to America tomorrow, but next time we see you, we'll plan a whole day just to spend with you. Does that sound like a good deal?"

The little girl thought for a second, and then nodded. "I'm going to miss you, Jay-Jay!" she said, throwing her little arms around his legs as tears started spilling from her eyes.

"I'll miss you, too, Megs. But we'll see each other again, soon. I promise."

"Maybe we could go on holiday to America, and then we could get to see Kerry and James even sooner." Gaynor suggested.

"Yes! That sounds like a fantastic idea. We'll call and let you know what our plans are when we get back." Kerry said. She could see that Megan was in absolutely no mood to let James go.

"Come on, Megan." Prof. Duncan said sternly, pulling her away from James. "They need to get back to London so they're in time for their flight tomorrow." He hesitantly leaned forwards, and James and his dad shared a slightly awkward hug. "Goodbye. Have a safe journey. And let me know if you ever need any help."

"I will. Thank you for everything." James replied sincerely.

"Goodbye!" Kerry called as they got in the car. They waved as they reversed out and sped off down the road.

There was a moment of silence, then, "I love how absorbed you are when playing with dolls, Jay-Jay."

"Don't start! I was humouring her. She was really sweet."

"You know what I think?"

"No."

"I think I may have some competition."

They're laughter ended their visit on a high note.

...

A/N Please review. I will be really sad if you don't. I may just stop writing. And then everyone would be sad. Even my mad English teacher. Go on. Just press the little button down there that says 'review'. Even if you just type a smiley. Reviews are much appreciated.