April

As maid of honour, it had fallen to Pepper to organise Maria's hen night, and it was definitely going to be a night to remember.

It wasn't being held the night before the wedding, as many hen-dos traditionally were, mainly because she wanted to make sure the bride and fellow party-goers were not sat through the ceremony hung-over as fuck.

A very wise move from Pepper, based on how the evening actually went.

She themed the night out to match the colours of the wedding, and all guests had to wear something with the colour of dark pink. Maria wore a short white dress, and Pepper presented her with a silk sash labelling her "bride to be".

After spending a few hours in various cocktail bars throughout the evening, several members of the party downing shots and mixers like they were going out of fashion, they ended up in a cabaret club downtown called The Hub, and the atmosphere inside screamed PARTY as soon as they walked through the doors.

The whole room was illuminated in shades of neon blue and purple, with disco lights above the dance floor, and spotlights on the bar. There were velvet seats surrounding black glittery tables, and their party was led to a couple that were reserved solely for their use across the night.

The dance-floor was filled with other parties, from fellow hen-dos to themed fancy dress birthday parties, and there were a couple of silver poles across from them that were open for use by any visitor. Melinda had a funny feeling at least half their group would end up dancing round them before the night was over – especially Maria and Natasha – and if that happened she was determined to gain photographic evidence to blackmail them with.

The cocktails at the bar were named after famous divas, and whilst Maria ordered a "Shirley Bassey Blend", Melinda, Izzy, and Izzy's girlfriend Victoria, all went for the "Tina Turner Twist". The whole group chinked glasses with a celebratory "cheers" before they began to truly party.

At some point, a tray of vodka jelly shots was brought to their tables, and everybody consumed a minimum of two each, some downing them one after the other. They were stronger than Melinda had realised, and after a while she found herself a lot drunker than she had been in a very long time.

Pepper revealed to Melinda and Bobbi that she had been through multiple discussions with herself over whether or not to hire a stripper for the evening, but in the end had decided not to, and she felt great relief that Maria was happy with her decision.

Every half hour throughout the night, a bell was rung in the club, and it signified everybody being required to take their seats. Once all revellers were at their tables, the next drag show would commence, and they ranged from the more diva-like Whitney Houston show, with the ballad of "I Will Always Love You" being a particular crowd favourite, to a full out Weather Girls routine to "It's Raining Men!", complete with sprinkler system rain across the stage.

They didn't leave until the club itself closed around four am, and several of them ended up heading back to Maria's house to continue the party.

The sash Maria had been wearing labelling her as the "bride to be", had somehow ended up tied around the tree in their front garden, and Steve had awoken to a party going on outside the house. He'd shaken his head bemusedly as he awoke to the sound of singing, and opened the front door for them, so that at least the neighbours didn't complain about the noise.

After hearing in drunken semi-rambling speech about their night, he organised taxi's for the few who were coherent enough to give him an address, and before she knew it Melinda was stood outside Phil's house, not entirely too sure why she'd asked the taxi driver to drop her there instead of her own flat.

It appeared however that Steve had called Phil to let him know she was on her way, as when she stumbled from the taxi he opened his front door, and wandered down the steps in his pyjamas, into the early hours of morning light to get her.

"I've never been so drunk in my life" she whispered loudly in greeting, looking around to see if people were listening as the taxi drove away. Phil chuckled despite the situation, and he looped an arm round her waist, guiding her into the house and towards the kitchen, where he proceeded to pour her a large glass of water; he'd never seen her like this, and he wasn't exactly sure what to do.

When he handed her the drink, she succeeded in splashing half of it back onto the work-surface as she put it down again, reaching out for him and pulling him against her.

"You smell nice," she muttered into his t-shirt, winding her arms up around his neck before talking to him in what he could only assume was Mandarin. In all fairness, the words coming from her lips sounded beautiful and poetic, but for all he knew she may have been whispering to him about a movie she saw the previous week.

"You smell of alcohol," he replied with a grin, kissing her hair and holding her against him. "It's almost five am, come to bed."

She let him take her hand and lead her upstairs, watching as the walls around her span in circles whilst she moved. Clearly the shots had been her undoing.

Never again.

By the time he managed to get her through the bedroom door, she had her hands under his shirt, and Phil had to hold onto her wrists whilst he looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Make love to me?" she asked with a lazy grin, nipping at his jaw with her teeth as she pulled him towards his bed.

He was thankful more than ever before that Lola was at his mother's house, because Melinda didn't exactly appear to be a quiet drunk, nor did she seem to have any concept for the fact others might've been able to hear what she was saying.

"Phillll" she grumbled when he didn't reply, climbing up onto the bed in her full part outfit, dragging him with her, laying her head down onto his pillow as the room continued to spin.

As much as he loved her, Phil really wasn't comfortable with having sex with her whilst she was as drunk as she was. But in the end the decision was made for him, as only a few moments later Melinda passed out with a sigh, her eyes rolling back slightly into her head as consciousness left her, and mumbling something incoherent in what he again could only guess to be Mandarin.

He was definitely going to have to see if she'd speak it once she was sober again. But he also had to wonder if she would remember any of this when she woke up the next day.

"Oh Mel, what're you like?" he murmured, brushing her hair away from her face and rolling her onto her side, before going to the bathroom and bringing the bin in – just in case she decided to throw up in the next few hours. He sat by her feet and removed her shoes, before leaning up to lay the covers down over the top of her. Switching off the lamp on his bedside table, he curled himself up on the side she normally slept on, and sighed, watching the sunrise begin to illuminate the room with a gentle glow.

He was going to kill Maria. Or Pepper.

Somebody.

Melinda peeled her eyes open, immediately closing them again when the light decided to burn her eyes. It took a few moments to realise that the pounding noise she could hear, was the blood in her head, and she groaned, knowing full well that she was going to spend the day nursing the hangover from hell.

She really should have said no to those jelly shots.

She took a deep breath to try and oxygenate her mind, before pausing, realising the pillow did not smell like it normally did; it smelled of Phil, which could only really mean…

She opened her eyes again and looked around, noticing for the first time she was in Phil's bedroom. She had no recollection of actually getting there, the last thing she actually recalled being heading to Maria's house after the club closed.

"Good morning."

The low tones of Phil's voice led her to roll over, wondering how he had known she was awake when she hadn't even moved. The look on her face clearly said the same thing, because Phil smiled softly at her before indicating to the mirror behind her.

"I saw your eyes open in the reflection."

"What am I doing here?"

Phil blinked before frowning slightly, brushing a strand of hair from her face. Melinda realised she must look an absolute state, with her previous evenings make-up accompanied by an ashen hung-over face.

"Do you not remember?"

She shook her head, regretting the motion immediately and wincing; it felt like her head had been locked in a vice. Phil immediately climbed out of bed and walked to the bathroom, and Melinda heard him rummaging through the cupboard above the sink before turning the tap on. He returned with a glass of water and a packet of ibuprofen, both of which she took gratefully.

"Thanks."

"So you… don't remember getting the taxi here?" he asked, lying himself back down next to her. "Or spilling water everywhere? Or," he smirked suddenly, and she began to dread hearing what else she had done. "You don't recall begging me to make love to you before passing out?"

Shit.

"Please tell me I didn't."

"But that would be a lie."

She groaned again, swallowing two tablets and gulping down the full glass he had given her, placing the empty glass onto the bedside table and hiding her face with her hands.

"I am so embarrassed."

"I've never seen you like that… thought you said you could handle your alcohol?"

"I can… normally."

"So, what do you remember?"

"I think there was pole dancing. I know there were vodka shots."

"Was it a good night though?"

"From what I remember? Yeah, it was really good."

"That's alright then," he smiled, before shuffling over to kiss her forehead. "Would you like me to make you breakfast?"

"Are you sure? I feel like I should just go back home and wallow in shame."

Phil laughed. "Stay here, I'll bring you something up." With that he climbed back out of bed, and headed out the room. Melinda listened to the sound of him wandering downstairs before clattering around the kitchen, and she wondered how on earth she had met somebody so perfect.

Because he really was.

As he cooked, she finally got out of bed, and headed into the bathroom, looking at her reflection with a small shake of the head. Her lipstick was gone, and her eyeliner was smudged under her eyes a little, but in fairness she didn't look anywhere near as bad as she had been worrying.

Melinda proceeded to turn the taps on, filling the sink with cold water and washing the last traces of the previous night off her face. The temperature of the water woke her up a little, and when she rummaged around in the cupboard under the sink, she managed to find an unopened toothbrush; she hoped Phil wouldn't mind, but she really needed to get the taste of vodka out of her mouth.

Five minutes later she was freshened up and sat cross-legged on his bed, practising a few tai-chi moves to help cleanse her mind, when she heard Phil return up the stairs. She opened the door for him, and he came in with two plates of freshly made waffles, and two steaming hot mugs – one filled with coffee, and the other green tea. She smiled at him in thanks as he handed her one of the portions, and they sat back down on his duvet.

Breakfast in bed. Quite the luxury.

They ate the waffles in the quiet, Melinda relishing both the sweet taste of cinnamon he had sprinkled over the top, and the fact her head no longer felt like it was about to explode.

"You're amazing, Phil, you know that?" she told him, once they had both finished their food, and placed the plates onto their respective tables.

"I know," he replied, a small smirk playing on his lips at her words.

Melinda just rolled her eyes at him, sighing as she sipped her tea. "I don't deserve you."

"Yes you do."

She laughed a little, shaking her head. "Why? Because from what I recall I just arrived in the middle of the night uninvited, woke you up completely wasted...

"I don't care," he looked at her with a small smile, and she could see surprising a trace of fear flash across his face as he took a deep breath; she wondered what was going through his mind. "I don't care about any of that," he continued. "Because I love you, Melinda."

She stared at him in shock, her mug halfway to her lips, having not expected anything even remotely like that confession to come up right now.

"I know it hasn't even been that long, and you don't have to say it back or anything," he rambled, a slight pink blush creeping into his cheeks as he spoke. "But I needed you to know. I love you. I've wanted to tell you for a while now and –"

"Phil?" she interrupted, placing her mug back onto the table and reaching out, taking hold of both his hands in her own.

"Yeah?"

Melinda smiled, wider than she had done for a very long time. "I love you too."

"Are you sure you're not still drunk?" Phil asked, but the matching smile on his own face told her he was only joking.

Melinda laughed. "I'm sure."

As a promise to Lola, Phil agreed that for her birthday he would take her to Build-A-Bear, and let her create a personalised teddy for her room. She was beyond excited, having seen a girl at playgroup with one of the customised products, and had begged him for one of her own as soon as she had returned home that day.

Melinda was unfortunately working, covering the evening classes that another staff member usually took; they were on holiday for two weeks, and she had been given the task of taking over for a while. She'd said it didn't bother her too much, and she was happy for the extra money, and she would be there for Lola's birthday party on the Saturday after next anyway. As much as Phil loved Melinda, it also meant that he and Lola could spend some time together just the two of them, like it used to be.

She wandered up and down the aisle, looking through the selection of creations she could choose from. There were over thirty different bears, from the traditional brown fluffy teddy, right up to a rainbow patterned panda bear. There were toys of animals from every corner of the earth, including spiders, owls, elephants and snakes. But the selection she seemed the most excitable about were those that Phil would class as fantasy – from dragons to mermaids, fairies to ghosts. After a great deal of deliberation, and several last minute choice alterations that meant Phil at one point was holding five toys at once, Lola decided upon a white unicorn, complete with a silver horn, and a pale green feather-like mane and tail. She held it out to Phil with a huge smile on her face, and he happily lead her over to the next stage.

"Would you like to choose a heart for your unicorn?" the assistant asked, smiling at Lola and offering a box full of multi-coloured metallic fabric hearts to her. Lola rummaged around the tub until she found a shiny two-coloured one, violet on one side and green on the other, and handed it back with a shy smile.

"Very nice," the guy said, before leading them over to the machine where Lola's toy was about to take shape. "Now, we'll put the heart into this slot here –" he placed the fabric into the machine, "and then if you press that green button, your unicorn will get filled with stuffing and brought to life."

Lola looked to Phil, who smiled in encouragement, before stepping forward, and pushing the button with one hand – the other held tightly onto Phil's. The two of them watched as the glittery machine whirred to life, air blowing into the unicorn to open it out, before a second bright green tube began to pump stuffing into the toy. Lola smiled as the heart she had selected shot down a third tube, before being picked up by a small grabbing crane, and being placed inside the toy. The final stage involved a pair of rainbow patterned needles, which proceeded to stitch up the back of the toy with speed and precision.

The assistant switched the machine off, before opening the glass door and taking out the finished product, handing it to Lola with a smile.

"Congratulations, it's a unicorn."

Phil thanked the guy from both of them, before leading Lola over to the certification booth.

"Hello," the lady behind the desk greeted. "I'm going to fill out the certificate for your unicorn, okay?"

Lola nodded.

"Right, first things first, is it a boy unicorn, or a girl unicorn?"

Lola didn't even look at the toy in her arms before considering her decision. "Boy."

"Okay," she said, ticking the relevant box on the paper in front of her. "What would you like to name him?"

"Bruce."

"Bruce, are you sure?"

She nodded determinedly, and the lady signed his name along the top of the certificate.

Phil wondered vaguely why Lola had picked the name she had, but shrugged it off – this was her present, and she had her reasons.

"There you go," the assistant said, handing the page over to them, which Phil took to prevent it getting creased.

"Thank you."

"If you would like to choose some clothes or accessories for him," the lady added with a smile as she watched Lola hugging the unicorn. "They are just over there." She indicated across the store, and Phil thanked her once more, before taking Lola's hand and getting her attention.

"Would you like to choose anything else?"

She shook her head. "No, he's perfect as he is."

Phil smiled and nodded, before leading her over to the tills, where Phil explained to them it was a gift. The staff member then wrapped Bruce up in tissue paper, before placing him into a large box with ribbon handles, and handed him back with a jokey warning. "No opening until your birthday, okay?"

Lola nodded vehemently in understanding, and Phil stroked the top of her head as he handed over his credit card.

"Hey Nat," Melinda mouthed, as she walked in from work to find her friend leaning against the kitchen counter, chatting away on the phone in Russian to who Melinda guessed was her sister.

Natasha waved in greeting, and Melinda headed back into the lounge to wait for her to finish, sitting down onto the sofa with a sigh. Covering extra shifts was tiring her out physically and mentally, and she honestly looked forward to spending the night in front of the TV with Nat, before going to bed as early as she could reasonably get away with.

When Nat joined her around ten minutes later, Melinda was already falling asleep, and it was only the knowledge that she needed to talk to her that was keeping her conscious.

"Mel, you look exhausted," she said in greeting, throwing herself down onto the sofa next to her with a sympathetic smile. "You're working too hard."

"It's only for two weeks" she pointed out; she'd worked long hours before, and she could do them now.

"Yeah," Natasha argued. "But you're working full time, plus extra shifts, and you're seeing Phil most nights, and you're somehow finding time to meet your mother next weekend as well."

"I'm… wait, what?" Melinda asked, the end of her sentence catching her attention. "I've not seen my mother in ages."

"Oh, well she rang yesterday when you were at work, and said she'd see me next Saturday when she came down." Natasha shrugged her shoulders. "I assumed you knew?"

"No." It was just like her mother, turning up practically unannounced for visits, giving Melinda little time to prepare. She thought that a person should always be ready to accept company, and it was a way she had tested her daughter ever since she had moved out aged nineteen. "Did she say she was staying over?" she asked, a frown forming on her face.

"I'm not sure; sorry… why?"

Melinda rolled her head back onto the couch, and closed her eyes with a sigh. "It's Lola's birthday, and Phil's throwing her a party that weekend."

"Ah."

"I told her that the other week."

"You think she's coming on purpose?"

"Yep." Melinda knew full well why her mother had chosen that particular weekend to come down to visit her, out of any she could pick. "She's going to insist on meeting him."

"Good luck with that one," Natasha smirked, rising back up from the sofa as the oven timer in the kitchen began to beep. "I made pizza, do you want some?"

She nodded weakly, and Natasha walked off to grab them the food.

"Right," Melinda said, once the two had split the large vegetable pizza between two plates. "You were saying the other night you wanted to meet someone?"

"I think my exact words were I'm tired of being alone."

"Same thing" she shrugged, taking a bite of the slice she had hold of, tasting the richness of tomato sauce that could only mean Natasha had bought a more expensive brand than the value range for once.

"Why?"

"Would you consider a blind date?"

"With who?" Natasha frowned, watching her friend warily and grabbing a second slice for herself.

"Phil's friend, Clint."

"What's he like?"

Melinda shrugged slightly, not sure how to describe him. "What is this, fifty questions? He's a bit jokey, sarcastic, Phil said he's quite active; he teaches PE, does archery in his free time..."

"Have you met him?"

Melinda nodded,resisting the urge to roll her eyes as Natasha asked yet another question on purpose.

"Okay then," she agreed, "but under one condition."

"What?"

"You both come too, so if it's a total disaster, I can talk to you, and he can talk to Phil."

That sounded fair enough. Melinda picked up another slice with a smile; she'd never played matchmaker before, but she was kind of hopeful this would be a success.

"Natasha told you I was coming to visit, yes?"

Her mother's greeting as soon as she picked up the phone almost made Melinda laugh. Tian May got straight down to the point of things, no question about that.

"Hello Mama." Melinda wandered around her bedroom, staring out of the window towards the distant city. "Yes, she did."

"Good. I'll stay one night. The sofa is fine."

"If you wish." She had offered her mother her own bed on many a previous occasion, but she always said no.

"Yes. And I wish to discuss Phillip with you."

Great, Melinda thought.

"You are in a relationship with him now?"

"Yes." Melinda sighed, looking away from the window, and sitting down on the edge of her bed, the mattress sinking slightly as she pulled her legs up to cross beneath her. "I am."

"A proper one?"

"No, a fake one." She rolled her eyes. What did she think Melinda did with her life?

"Less of the sarcasm, Lian, it does nothing to appeal you. Now, you are sleeping with him, no?"

"Mama!" She widened her eyes and shook her head; Melinda really did not want to have this conversation, but it was just like her mother to completely pry into the details in order to get a picture of what her daughter's life was like.

Tian went quiet for a moment, but Melinda could picture her nodding, not needing her confirmation because she would know the answer already. Her mother saw sex as something between two people who truly cared for one another, so in her opinion, it meant the two were definitely serious about one another if they were sleeping together.

"In that case, I wish to meet him… don't roll your eyes like that."

Melinda stared at the phone, wondering how her mother knew what she was doing, before shaking her head. She had known full well the request was coming. Her mother had previously only met two of her old partners; the first one she apparently scared off by asking him if he had plans to wed her daughter in the spring, and the second she deemed completely unacceptable and hinted multiple times to Melinda that it would not work out.

Since then, she hadn't let her meet anybody else, but she had to admit, looking back, her mother had been right on both counts, and despite her conflicted feelings about her meeting Phil, she did want to see what her impression would be of him. She wanted her to like him, so much.

"Okay," Melinda relented, absently picking up the snow-globe Phil had bought that rested on her bedside table, and turning it upside down, watching the flakes cover the park scene in front of her. "I'll speak to him."

"And if I don't think he is good enough for you –"

"- Then I won't care."

They were both as stubborn as each other, but Tian May knew based on her response that she must genuinely care for Phillip; her daughter would more than likely stay with him regardless of what she thought of him. She hmmm-ed in response.

"I will see you on Saturday, Qiao Lian."

"Goodbye Mama."

"My mother is coming down this weekend, " Melinda revealed quietly, purposely looking anywhere but Phil's eyes as she spoke. "She said she wants to meet you."

Phil leaned his right hip against the kitchen counter, and frowned slightly at her words; he vividly recalled Maria telling him at Christmas that Melinda's mother was a little strict, and that she would dislike him on sight.

They were both in Melinda's kitchen, and Lola was currently watching whatever Natasha had deemed appropriate for her on the television - which was more than likely going to be a big mistake. In honesty, Phil and Lola had only come to the girls' flat so that they could drop Melinda off, but then Lola had wanted to see where she lived and Natasha had lured his daughter in with the promise of chocolate and half an hour later they were still there.

"Meet as in, hello it's nice to get to know you?" he asked her cautiously. "Or meet as in, I'm now going to assess whether you are good enough for my daughter?"

Melinda punched him gently on the arm, but she knew his second suggestion was much more realistic. Her lack of response seemed to inform him of that fact as well.

"She's just a bit... protective" she sighed,

"I get that" he replied softly.

Melinda knew he understood; he was protective of his own daughter, and she could just imagine how much more so he would be when Lola was old enough to start dating. The difference was however, Melinda was twenty-eight years old, but her mother was still assessing her potential partners as though she were a teenager.

"It'll be fine," Phil smiled lightly. "Next weekend… so does she want to come to Lola's birthday?"

"I…" Melinda could just imagine her mother sitting in the corner of the party on her own, shrewdly observing every minute detail about the way her daughter acted and spoke to people.

"It'll be fine," Phil said softly, watching as she bit her lower lip slightly in concern. "She'll like me… you like me, right?"

"Not really" she teased. He raised an eyebrow at her in response.

"Is that so?" he asked quietly, taking a step forwards and trailing his fingers down her side. "Because that's not the opinion I got last night."

"You and I have a slightly different arrangement" she replied with a smirk, tangling her fingers through his own when they reached her hip.

"Only slightly?"

"I hope it's more than slightly" Natasha said suddenly, walking into the room with a grin. She turned to the two of them with a smirk. "Phil, your daughter just said she's hungry, so unless you let go of your girlfriend and take the poor child to get some dinner, I'm going to ply her with a ton of crisps and fizzy drinks okay?"

"Please don't."

"Okay," Natasha mock frowned, pausing halfway towards the fridge as though deep in thought. "Vodka then?"

"You'd better take Lola and run before she ends up getting her first hangover" Melinda whispered to him.

"I hope she handles it better than you."

Melinda tsked, punching him once more, and Phil grinned at her. "Okay, right I'm going."

He unlinked their fingers and cupped her face in his hands, kissing her deeply as Natasha left the room again with a groan.

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah," she replied, looking up at him with a smile. "See you tomorrow."

"Phil," Melinda said, taking a deep breath that she hoped she'd been subtle about hiding. "This is my mother, Tian May… Mama, this is Phil."

"Hello Phillip" Tian said with a nod, making a very obvious visual assessment as she looked him up and down. Melinda glared at her from next to Phil, and she brushed her daughter's expression away with a wave of her hand.

"Lovely to meet you," Phil replied, to his credit, not seeming fazed at all by the situation. "Would you like me to get you a drink? We have tea, wine, fruit juice..."

"Water will suffice, thank you."

Phil nodded, and with a small smile to Melinda, he headed off indoors to get a glass of water for Tian.

"He is very polite" she said simply, before turning away from Melinda and heading over to sit on an empty bench at the side of the garden. Melinda shook her head exasperatedly - what sort of assessment was 'polite'? - and was going to follow, when she was attacked by a small pair of arms around her legs.

"Melinda!"

"Hey Lola," she replied, spinning round to find the girl grinning up at her with what looked like chocolate all over her face. "Happy Birthday!"

"Thank youuuu… do you want to meet my friends?"

She dragged Melinda over to where there was a group of about eight other children, all around the same age as Lola, and began to introduce them all individually. She lost track of the names, but quickly gathered all the kids went to playgroup together.

She could feel her mother watching her the entire time.

"Happy Birthday kid!"

"Auntie Maria!"

Lola ran full speed across the garden and into the arms of her favourite – and only – aunt. Phil watched from a distance with a smile as she then hugged Steve, and his smile turned into a full blown grin when he saw the gift from them that Lola was currently unwrapping on the grass.

A stuffed dragon toy, almost the same size as herself. It was bright red, with sparkling wings and a stream of metallic fabric flowing from its mouth as fire.

He had no idea where it was going to live – the collection of soft toys she owned was growing larger every year – but the look of pure joy on Lola's face was priceless.

"You really spoil her" Phil said to his sister in greeting, once Lola had picked up the dragon – no easy feat – and carried it off across the garden to show to her grandmother.

"Yeah, well" Maria replied, giving Phil a shoulder bump, and turning to watch her niece parading the toy around all the rest of the guests. "She's worth it."

"That she is," he murmured, smiling as Melinda became the recipient of said dragon. He could see her enthusiasm for the toy from the other side of the garden, and Maria had to punch him in the arm to get him to stop watching them.

"Seriously Phil, you could do something other than stare at you girlfriend all day."

"I'm watching Lola."

"Bullshit, you have that soppy I'm-totally-in-love look on your face."

He shrugged a little, and continued watching them. "Your point?"

Maria turned to face him properly, and frowned a little at his response. "Not denying it then?"

"Nope."

"Wait." She looked at the way he was staring at her friend, eyebrows rising as she realised what he was saying. "You're in love with her?"

Phil finally turned away from where Melinda and Lola were sat on the grass, Melinda pretending to attack Lola with the giant toy dragon. He looked his sister straight in the eye.

"Yes."

"Wow" Maria murmured, clearly having not thought the two of them were so serious about each other; when they had first starting seeing one another, she and Natasha had placed bets on how long it would last; she'd voted for them just casually dating for a while before ending things. Looked like she owed Nat $50.

It was good to see them so happy though, no matter how much she tended to jibe them about it.

"You sound surprised."

"No, it's just… I didn't think you were both so serious about this." She held her hands up a little in apology. "Okay," she smiled at him, resting a hand on his arm. "I guess I'll try to stop winding you both up about it from now on."

"Good," Phil grinned, knowing full well that was bullshit and she would keep going, but appreciating the offer all the same.

"So…" she said after a moments silence. "When's the wedding?"

She'd proved him right within ten seconds.

The rest of the party passed almost in a blur.

Melinda had tried speaking to her mother, not wanting her to be sat alone amongst people she did not know, but each time Tian ushered her away, telling her to be sociable and mingle, and that she was perfectly content to just watch.

They had lit the candles on Lola's birthday cake earlier on, and everybody had stood around in the spring sunshine singing to her, before she tightly closed her eyes and made a wish. Phil sliced the cake up into pieces, and Melinda handed it out on paper plates, passing pink patterned napkins out alongside each slice.

When she glanced over for what felt like the tenth time that afternoon, she found that her mother was currently sat talking to Anne - Melinda had a horrible feeling they were discussing her and Phil. Anne was looking fondly at her son, who was currently stood across the garden, talking to one of the parents who had come to pick their child up, and Tian was nodding to whatever she was saying. When her mother sensed her watching, and turned to look at her, Melinda walked off to get herself another drink.

When she poured a glass of whatever the fruit juice was in a tall glass jug, she glanced in the opposite direction, and found Steve and Maria deep in conversation about something, the two of them standing slightly away from the rest of the party. Steve kept smiling and gesturing to where Lola was playing, but Maria seemed to be panicking, pointing to herself, to him, and then to her dress. Melinda frowned, wondering what was up, and watched surreptitiously as Steve pulled his fiancé into a hug, kissing her forehead gently as he held her. She decided to leave them to it; it was probably wedding related, although she couldn't work out what.

"Qiao Lian." Her mothers voice startled her, and she turned around to find her standing right in front of her.

"Yes, Mama."

"I am going to leave now, I have called a taxi."

Melinda frowned slightly, placing her drink back onto the table in front of her. "Are you not staying at ours?" Her mother did not change plans spontaneously.

Tian shook her head and patted her daughter's arm. "No child, I shall return to my own house tonight, thank you."

At that moment, Phil arrived at the table, standing next to Melinda and sliding his arm loosely around her waist.

"Goodbye Phillip." Tian said, nodding at him with a tiny smile. "Thank you for the party. It was enlightening."

Melinda wasn't sure what to make of that, and apparently, neither was Phil, because it took him several seconds to come up with a reasonable response.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was lovely to meet you."

Tian May nodded at him once more, before turning, and heading into the house, making her way towards the front door, picking up her coat from the bannister on the way. Melinda followed, shrugging at Phil as he silently questioned her mother leaving, and walked behind her until they got into the hallway.

"Why are you not staying, Mama?"

Tian stepped from the house, and walked down the drive, before turning to her daughter. "I feel you shall be staying here instead, and I should not wish to burden Natasha."

Melinda tried not to blush, she honestly did.

"I was planning to come home tonight."

"No. You have your own life. You should stay here, with them."

"Do you like him then, Mama?" Melinda asked, as a silver taxi pulled up in front of the house, nodding at them in greeting as he mounted the kerb.

Tian observed her daughter carefully, taking note of the way she was wringing her hands behind her back in an attempt to keep herself seeming relaxed. "Yes Qiao Lian," she said simply, with a small nod. "I like him."

Melinda breathed a sigh of relief. "And Lola?"

"Is a lovely child, and you are very natural with her" she replied quietly, before looking into her daughter's eyes seriously. "I have never seen you being maternal Lian; it suits you."

With that she patted her daughter on the arm, and turned away, climbing into the taxi that was waiting for her.

It was the first time Tian had approved of somebody Melinda was in a relationship with, but it was also the first time it had genuinely and truly mattered to Melinda. She had never felt so relieved, and couldn't help the smile that grew across her lips at her mother's words.

Although she wasn't sure about the maternal part...

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