The two girls walked towards Whitney's house, laughing and chatting. It was almost as though they had known each other for a lot longer than ten minutes or so. They had already found out that Katy was only two days older than Whitney and that they had a lot in common. They stopped at the gate.

"Is there anywhere cheap to stay around here? I haven't really got much cash." Katy said, almost looking ashamed to admit it.

"There's the B&B," Whitney said, pointing to the red-brick building. Then she put her hand on Katy's arm, looking excited. "But… hey! Why don't you stay with us? You can share with me and Tiff."

"Oh! No. I wasn't hinting or anything." The older girl said, putting her hands up and backing away slightly. The one thing she hated, and had had to deal with lately, more than sympathy was charity.

"I know you weren't. Come on. It'll be fine. Bianca won't mind."

"Seriously, I really don't want to intrude." Katy wasn't sure that staying with Whitney and her family was such a good idea. From what little she knew about big families, from her friends and theirs, parents liked a lot of notice when their children were going to ask someone to stay. Especially if that someone was a complete stranger.

"You're not." Whitney said, grabbing Katy by the arm and pulling her up the path. She opened the front door and went inside, shouting to her stepmother as she went. "Bianca? B?"

Katy followed, warily. She glanced around as she closed the door softly behind her. It was a much bigger house than the one she had shared with her mother but, she supposed there were a lot more people living here. Katy stood awkwardly at the bottom of the stairs as Whitney made her way towards the kitchen where the shout in reply to her own had come from. Senseing her new friend hesitating, Whitney had retraced her steps and dragged Katy with her. Two women, one red-headed and, Katy guessed, in her thirties, and the other, an older woman with spectacular earrings, were sitting at the table, drinking tea and gossiping. While Whitney and the women were talking, Katy tried to make herself as invisible as possible, feeling acutely awkward.

"B, this is my friend Katy." Whitney said, stealing a biscuit off the plate on the table and moving to lean against the worktop by the fridge. "Can she stay with us for a few days? Just 'til she gets herself sorted."

"Uhhh… well… where is she going to stay Whit?" The red-head, who Katy assumed was Bianca, asked. She raised her hands as though showing her daughter that they didn't exactly live in a mansion.

"She can sleep in mine and Tiff's room." Whitney suggested with a shrug, picking at her biscuit. "She's not from around here and she doesn't have much money."

Bianca glanced at Katy and then shrugged. "I suppose it's ok... Nana Pat?" She glanced at the older woman for a second opinion. Katy could feel herself blushing as they considered her.

"Why not." The older woman said shrugging, which made her earrings jangle, in a tone that said she didn't feel she had the authority or energy to argue.

"Really, I don't want to intrude. If you just show me where the B&B is, Whit, I'll go…" Katy said, moving towards the door. She felt really awkward.

"Don't be silly, it's settled now." Whitney said with a smile.

"If you're honestly sure you don't mind?" She glanced at the two women who smiled in response. "Well, thank you so much. I'll obviously give you some money…"

Pat shook her head and smiled, but didn't comment on the teenager's offer. "So, Katy, where are you from? What brings you to Walford?"

"I'm from Mid-Wales, but my mum died about four months ago and I heard that I may have some family around here. My dad left my mum before I was born. It was a bit of a fling, really. Apparently he moved away with his daughters. They didn't want anything to do with either of us and now she's gone… well, I guess I just wanted to find someone." Katy said. She couldn't believe that she was telling these people she had just met so much about herself. Most of the time people had to prise the most basic personal information out of her.

"Oh, I'm sorry, love." Pat said, looking genuinely sorry for her. Bianca was also looking rather sympathetic. Katy tried to ignore their faces. "What's your surname? Maybe we can help you find your relatives? We know most people around here!"

"Mitchell. My name's Katy Mitchell."