Sunday Dinner
Milton Keynes — January 2023
Leah didn't mean to tell her family about Elle.
That was the problem.
She'd planned on being casual about it. Cool. Normal.
Instead, less than three weeks after New York, she was sitting at her mum's kitchen table smiling at her phone like an idiot while her entire family watched her unravel in real time.
"You're doing it again," her brother said immediately.
Leah looked up. "Doing what?"
"The smiling thing."
"There's a smiling thing now?"
"There's absolutely a smiling thing," her mum agreed calmly from the stove.
Traitors.
Leah rolled her eyes and locked her phone instantly.
Too late.
Her mum turned around slowly with the expression only mothers possessed — the one that said I already know everything, I'm just waiting for you to admit it.
"Who is she?"
Leah nearly choked on her drink.
"No one."
"That's not a denial," her brother said.
Leah glared at him. "Whose side are you on?"
"Entertainment."
Her phone buzzed again against the table.
Every single person looked down at it immediately.
Leah grabbed it too quickly.
"Oh my God," her brother laughed. "You're gone."
"I'm literally sat right here."
"No," he pointed accusingly, "emotionally you're in New York."
Leah hated how accurate that was.
Because she was.
Constantly.
Everything kept reminding her of Elle now.
Books in shop windows. Certain songs. Coffee cups left on counters. Grey New York skies in Instagram posts.
It was honestly embarrassing.
Her mum sat opposite her finally, smiling softly now.
"Serious?"
The question landed differently.
Leah looked down at her phone screen lighting up again.
A smile slipped onto Leah's face before she could stop it.
And there it was.
Her answer.
"...Maybe."
Her family immediately reacted like she'd announced an engagement.
"Oh my God," her brother shouted.
"Relax," Leah groaned.
"You never talk about anyone like this."
"That's not true."
"Leah," her mum said gently, "you're glowing."
That shut her up entirely.
Because she didn't know how to explain it.
How somehow one late-night Instagram reply had turned into this huge thing living inside her chest now.
How Elle made everything quieter.
Easier.
How after months of injury and pressure and fear, this girl from New York had somehow made Leah feel like herself again.
"She lives in America?" her mum asked.
Leah nodded once.
"New York."
"That's very inconvenient."
"You're all being remarkably supportive about this."
Her brother grinned. "No, we're fascinated because you've been emotionally unavailable since birth."
Leah threw a napkin at him.
"Does she know football?" her mum asked.
"A bit."
"Does she support Arsenal?"
Leah paused.
Her family stared.
"Oh no," her brother whispered dramatically.
"She supports New York teams," Leah defended weakly.
"That's disgusting."
Leah laughed helplessly despite herself.
Then her phone buzzed again.
Without thinking, Leah smiled down at the message so softly her mum immediately noticed.
And suddenly the teasing around the table faded slightly.
Because now they all saw it too.
This wasn't just flirting anymore.
This mattered.
"You really like her," her mum said quietly.
Leah looked down briefly.
Then admitted the thing she'd been trying not to say aloud for weeks now.
"Yeah," she said softly. "I really do."
The room went still for half a second.
Not shocked.
Just gentle.
Understanding.
Her mum smiled first.
"Well," she said simply, "bring her here sometime then."
And for some reason that hit Leah harder than anything else had.
Because suddenly this stopped feeling temporary.
Stopped feeling like stolen moments between flights and FaceTimes.
Now she could picture it.
Elle here.
At this table.
Laughing with her family. Wearing one of Leah's hoodies. Existing inside her real life instead of only inside airports and hotel rooms and screens.
The thought terrified her.
And made her happier than she wanted to admit.
Her phone buzzed once more.
Leah smiled helplessly and typed back beneath the kitchen table.
Family interrogation.
Three dots appeared instantly.
Ooooh. Am I winning?
Leah looked up at her family still watching her knowingly from across the table.
Then back down at the screen.
And for the first time since all this started, she answered honestly without fear.
By a lot.