Thanks again for the reviews! I'm not really sure where to go with this fic, but I'm gonna try and keep-it going. So sorry for the cheesy family stuff in this chapter. – I'm hoping it'll spark another idea off! :).
That evening, Peter took Simon round to Leanne's and offered to let him perhaps stay the stay if she was alright with that. It was Carla's persuasion that got him to agree to it, and as-usual, in the end, Peter had accepted that Carla was right…..AGAIN. And that this would be good for Carla and Simon's relationship in the long-term if they weren't constantly in each-other's pockets ready to tear pieces out of each-other 24/7.
When Leanne had settled Simon-in, she went out to the bar, where he was stood with Carla, to thank-him for letting Si stay for the night.
"Peter. Listen. Thanks for letting-him stay, you know how much it means to be." Leanne told him gratefully.
"Yeah well don't thank-me, thank Carla." Peter said, trying to re-build the two girls' trust in one-another. "It was Carla's Idea." Peter said happily.
"Oh…..Right…..Well…..Thanks. I Guess." Leanne thanked Carla, a little-awkwardly from where the two of them weren't exactly the best of friends.
"That's Alright." Carla replied, trying to be civil for the sake of Peter if nothing-else.
"Anyway Lea, I hope Simon behaves himself, tell him I said night and that I love him will ya?" Peter asked Leanne as he took a hold of Carla's hand, ready to head-home with her.
"Okay I Will. And I'm sure he'll be fine." Leanne replied.
"Yeah I'm sure he will-be." Added Carla. "Oh and tell-him I said goodnight aswell ey?" Carla said, trying to make an effort with Simon.
"Alright….." Leanne trailed-off before she then headed-into the back to see Simon.
Peter and Carla popped-into Ken and Deirdre's on the way-home. After everything that had happened, Peter hoped that his Father and Step-Mother would begin to accept Carla as part of the family now.
"Hiya it's only us!" Peter called as the pair-of-them shuffled through the front-door together, still hand-in-hand.
"Ah Brother! Long time no see!" Tracy said happily, greeting her older-brother with a hug. They weren't biologically brother and sister, but they considered each-other as siblings, and Carla admired that. She couldn't even get-along with her real brothers.
"Alright Carla?" Tracy added, staying civil for Peter's sake, and Carla smiled and nodded in reply, unsure of how to take Tracy now that she was essentially her Sister-in-Law, just without the Marriage to Peter.
"Heya Sis." Peter said as he hugged his Sister back, before the three of them walked-into the living-room to see Ken, Deirdre, and little Amy.
"Uncle Peter!" Amy said excitedly as she ran up to him and gave-him a hug.
"Well Hello There Amy." Peter said, speaking in his children's voice as he picked-Amy up into his arms.
"Who's ya new girlfriend?" Amy asked bluntly, she meant it innocently, but it just came-out in the wrong-way, but Peter and Carla knew that she wasn't intending for it to be a harsh-question, she was just inquisitive…..About absolutely everything…..
"Ah. Well this is Carla." Peter introduced-her.
"Carla. I like that name." Amy said and Carla smiled at the statement.
"Aww thank-you Amy, well I happen to think that Amy is a beautiful name too." Carla replied.
"Mummy, does that mean that I can call her Aunty Carla?" Amy asked her Mother, but Tracy just laughed.
"Oh well I dunno sweetheart, I guess that's upto Peter and Carla isn't it?" Tracy replied, giggling slightly at the thought of it, she could see that Carla struggled with children, and Tracy was finding-it quite-amusing.
"Where's Simon?" Ken asked, out of the blue.
"He's with Leanne." Carla replied.
"Oh. Palmed-him off on her have ya?" Deirdre replied disapprovingly.
"No actually, Simon asked if could see her, and Leanne was alright with it, so I let-him stay the night there if that's alright with you Deirdre?" Peter said, slightly irritated by Deirdre's question.
"I suppose so….." Deirdre trailed-off as Peter lowered Amy back-down to the ground, giving her a sweet-kiss on the cheek before allowing her to go-back to playing with her toys.
"Anyway….." Carla said, trying to move-on from that awkward subject, and to lighten the mood a little. "Amy can call-me whatever she likes…..Within reason that is." Carla said with a small, but quiet-laugh.
"Great." Tracy replied. "So Peter, seeing-as you never managed to have a baby with Leanne, dya recon you'll manage-it with Carla?" Tracy asked teasingly.
"Hey just one-step at a time ey Sis?" Peter replied with a chuckle.
"Yeah I suppose so…..Anyway, if Simon despises her…..Then I guess he'd influence the baby wouldn't he?" Tracy said, appearing to be sensitive about-it, but Peter knew his Sister well-enough to know that Tracy was trying to create friction between herself and Carla.
"Alright, let's not even go there ey Trace?….." Peter said, warning her off the subject of Simon.
"Yeah, I mean…..We've only officially been a couple for few-months. Give-us a chance." Carla added, calmly. – She was keeping-it polite with the knowledge inside of her that she had to try and impress the Barlow Family. – So she couldn't be getting-into anymore petty-cat-fights with any of the family…..Especially Tracy, who was known for stirring-up trouble.
"Oh I'm Sorry, I didn't realise that baby-talk was banned from this family." Tracy back-chatted, annoyed that her trouble-stirring wasn't working with Carla this-evening, and it was obvious that Carla wasn't even going to risk saying anything controversial tonight.
"Hey come-on Tracy, you know how difficult life has been for both Peter and Carla over the past-year…..I'm sure Carla will make a great Mother…..One-Day." Ken said to Tracy, and both Carla and Peter were pleased that his Father had just defended Carla against Tracy.
"Hmmm, I suppose…..Sorry Carla….." Tracy trailed-off, making-it fully-well-obvious that she didn't really mean her apology.
"Nooo Worries….." Carla replied, gritting her teeth so that she couldn't say anything to Tracy that she would later-regret.
"Anyway, I suppose we best be getting-home. Night Dad…..Deirdre." Peter said before he walked-over to Tracy and hugged her before giving-her a kiss on the cheek. "Night Sis."
"Night." Tracy replied, also kissing his cheek before shooting an obviously false-smile at Carla, and Carla did the same in return.
"Amy, does your Uncle Peter get a goodnight kiss then?" Peter asked as he crouched-down next to where Amy was playing with her toys on the floor.
"Yeah." Amy replied as she walked towards her Uncle and then placed a child's kiss onto his cheek.
"Thank-You. Does Carla get one too?" Peter asked happily.
"Uh No. No she doesn't." Tracy intervened.
Amy frowned. "But Mummy I like Carla."
"Yes Mummy. Amy likes Carla." Peter said, hinting at her to drop the trouble-stirring before he did something about-it himself.
"Oh. Fine Then." Tracy said stroppily like a little-kid would if they didn't get their-own-way.
And with that Amy ran-over to Carla and hugged-her as Carla crouched-down to her-level and allowed Amy to give-her a kiss on the cheek.
How do you think Tracy and Carla's relationship should develop, ultimate hatred of one-another? Or should it improve over-time? :).
:). Please-Review. :).