"Alright Titch."
"Eurgh, Christian, how are you so cheerful this morning?" Katy demanded, flinging a hand over her eyes and kicking out at him as he passed.
She and Isaac had crashed out at Ronnie and Roxy's after the Pride celebrations, not wanting to risk waking the children and Glenda by going back to Number 28. The sofa was just as uncomfortable as she remembered and her head was pounding. There was no sign of her boyfriend anywhere and a quick glance at her phone confirmed Katy's suspicions that he'd had to head home to deal with something.
"Because some of us know how to pace themselves. Besides, I cut myself off at eleven."
"Considering I didn't start drinking until gone then…"
"I'm impressed, baby Mitchell." He told her, dropping onto the sofa and taking a long gulp from his water bottle. He draped his arm around her shoulders. "Last night was fantastic."
Katy wrinkled her nose as she realised he must have been for a run. "Couldn't you have gone for a shower before you came over here and hugged me?"
"I compliment your bar and your event and you complain that I smell?"
"No, I'm complaining that you're sweaty." She corrected him, giving him a slight shove. "Did Sy have a good night?"
"Yeah, thanks." Christian nodded. "He's still asleep as far as I know."
"What time is it?"
"Half eight."
Groaning, Katy pulled a cushion over her face. "God's sake…"
"So… was that Tyler I saw you and Isaac chatting to?"
"Yes." Katy agreed with a sigh. "He decided to bring his girlfriend to the bar to introduce us. Seems like a strange way to spend your thirtieth birthday, but whatever…"
Christian chuckled and leant his head against the back of the sofa. "So, your Isaac seems like a nice guy. He's pretty easy on the eyes, too."
"Oi, don't you go getting any ideas." She teased.
"As if I would!"
Katy laughed. "Yeah, he's not bad at all. Plus he listens to the twins reading and helps Rubes with her homework, so that's a bonus."
"So you're settled with Mr Perfect, Ronnie's got her mystery man… we just need to sort our Roxanne out, now."
Shooting him a look, wondering what he knew about her parents' affair, she opened her mouth to question him. Just as she was about to speak, Ronnie's bedroom door opened and she appeared, bleary-eyed and tousle-hair, smiling between them tiredly. Offering to make coffee, glaring at Katy as she told him she'd prefer it if he went for a shower, Christian ruffled her hair and headed away into the bathroom.
Ronnie dropped into the spot recently vacated by their friend, resting her head against her daughter's as Katy curled into her side. She smiled, running a hand through the messy blonde hair under her fingertips and exhaled deeply.
"I love you, Mum." Katy murmured, turning her head and burying her face in the crook of the older woman's neck.
Pulling back, slightly surprised by the admission, Ronnie studied her carefully for a minute. "What's happened?"
"Nothing's happened." Her daughter muttered, pouting at her. "I just… I was thinking about how things used to be and I realised that I never really… I know I'm a brat sometimes and I'm selfish and self-centred, but I…"
"You don't need to tell me you love me for me to know you do."
"No, I know, I just… I've given you so much grief about Dad and I… I did exactly the same."
"You… what?" Ronnie glanced towards the three closed doors, hoping that neither Roxy, Christian nor Syed would choose to emerge. She guessed that Katy would clam up if they did and she'd never get to the bottom of the situation.
"I slept with Tyler." Katy confided, exhaling sharply and burying her face in her mother's neck once more. "It was a stupid mistake and I just… I'm so fed up of talking about him and having to think about him. Everybody keeps bringing him up and it's doing my head in."
"So you had sex with him?"
"It was a mistake." Her daughter stressed. "We both agreed. It shouldn't have happened and it will never happen again."
"When?"
"Thursday."
"Bloody hell, Katy!" Ronnie scowled at her.
"You can't make me feel any worse about it than I already do."
The older blonde sighed, resuming combing her fingers through Katy's hair. "Maybe it's a good thing? Maybe you've got it out of your system, now. Having everyone asking you about him and spending so much time thinking about him and the custody battle must have confused matters. But if it really was a mistake–"
"It was. There is nothing between us any more."
"Well then you need to forget about it." Ronnie told her firmly, resting her chin on the top of her daughter's head. "Concentrate on Isaac and making things work with him."
"I am!"
"Mmm…"
"I've admitted that he's my boyfriend, haven't I?" Katy muttered petulantly. "What else d'you want me to do? Propose?"
"Don't be ridiculous."
"Why do we always do this?" The younger Mitchell sighed. "Why can't we ever have a conversation that doesn't turn into an argument?"
"We don't always argue!" Ronnie disputed, causing her daughter to arch an eyebrow at her.
"We weren't always like this, were we? I don't think we were, anyway?"
"No… I don't think we were."
"D'you remember that Christmas we spent with the Beales round Phil's?" Katy asked suddenly, smirking a little. "Your first Christmas out of the nick. It was Lola and Peter's grand scheme to make everyone get on when they were together, weren't it?"
Ronnie chuckled softly, arching an eyebrow. "What's made you think of that?"
"Just… Sharon and Ian in the Vic. I was just wondering whether we'll ever have another Christmas over there."
"I don't know, baby…" The older blonde rested her forehead against her daughter's for a moment. "I'm not sure I'd want to. I don't think it would be the same without Aunty Peggy."
"I know… I agree, to be honest."
They sat in contemplative silence for a while, before Roxy appeared and dropped heavily onto the sofa, partially draping herself across her sister and groaning dramatically. Ronnie and Katy exchanged a look, before the older woman wrapped an arm around Roxy's shoulders and tucked her into her side.
"Maybe you're getting a little old for heavy drinking sessions." Ronnie teased.
Roxy glared at her. "Oi! You're older than I am, Grandma."
Katy laughed, holding up her hands when her mother shot her an offended look. "Hey, she's not wrong. You are older than her and you are a grandma; a cool grandma, but a grandma none the less."
"The pair of you wanna watch yourselves."
"What've they done now?" Syed asked, grinning between the three Mitchells, seconds before his partner appeared from the bathroom wrapped in a towel.
"Nothing!" Roxy and Katy chorused immediately, near identical petulant pouts on their faces as the others laughed.
"So… our train isn't until this afternoon. How about lunch, on us, before we leave?" Christian suggested, looking between the women.
"I've gotta get back for the kids." Katy apologised, pulling a face. "Oh… I didn't tell you, did I? Ruby has started developing the Mitchell attitude."
"Started?"
Rolling her eyes the young woman huffed. "Alright, she's started giving me attitude. That's new. She was a gobby little mare before, but–"
"It's in the blood." Christian pointed out, earning himself a trio of complaints.
"What did she say?" Ronnie asked, amused.
"She said I looked fucking weird when I picked her up from school the other day." When everyone else burst out laughing, she pouted again. "I had to warn her not to cheek Gran and all."
Roxy grinned at her. "Welcome to the club."
"Yeah, but Amy's practically a teenager. Ruby's just a baby."
Her aunt laughed. "She's not a baby! She's gonna be nine in two months."
"Eurgh… they're all getting so old." Ronnie sighed. "Even Matthew and the twins are nearly six. We have no babies anymore."
"Yeah, well… just stick to the ones you've got, for now, eh?" Christian winked at her. "I mean, Isaac is a hunk, but–"
"That's not going to be a problem." Katy informed him lightly, wriggling out from under her mother's arm and standing up abruptly.
"Chemo." Roxy muttered, looking at him meaningfully.
"Right, I really am going." The youngest Mitchell informed them, ignoring the sudden plummet in mood and blowing kisses over her shoulder as she headed for the door.