Crush Culture {{Harry Lewis - W2S}}

✮ FIFTY ONE ✮

Mila's pov

"Well bloody hell, you could of let us know" Janine chastised her daughter, lightly nudging her arm, "I would of put some clothes on, washed me hair" her accent coming through on every word, if only Mila had realised how much she missed the northern accents, being so tired of the south.

"So you don't wash for us, Mam?" Louis laughed, shaking his head.

"I can't get rid of yous lot, up here every weekend," she turned back to Mila, "they don't think I can handle meself, Mel, like I never raised yous lot on me tod" she shook her head, leading Mila to the couch and pulling her down, throwing the blanket over them, "forget that your uncle lives three houses down"

"Uncle Alan still lives there?" She smiles lightly, happy to see the rest of her family.

"Course he does, only way he's getting out of there is when he dies, he's got our Sha in the back garden" Her mother replied, nodding her head in the direction of the back garden, referring to her sister, Shannon or Auntie Sha as they'd all called her, ashes being spread in the pond Alan had built himself.

"Have the kids moved out, like?" Mila quizzed, desperate to know more.

"Luke hasn't, wants to be there for his dad," Mila nodded, Alans youngest son Luke had always been there to care for him, "but Alex's been back and forth, lived with his bairns for a bit, you remember Kye" Mila nodded, smiling as she remembered Kye's birth, "he's got a sister now, baby Emily"

Mila let out a light breath.

She had missed so much, even within one family, not to mention the rest of her aunties and uncles and endless amount of cousins.

They'd always been close, and to know that she'd been gone for three years was enough to nearly set her off crying again.

"Jules still lives down the bottom," Louis pointed, "still got a shit ton of kids"

"Oi" Lisa pushed his shoulder, pointing to April, "she's repeating words, best not to swear round her," she explained to Mila, "Kye taught her the 'F word' last week could have killed the little bugger" she laughed.

Mila smiled, she had known the brown-haired women since she was young, after all, Louis and Lisa had been together since he was fifteen. They had the type of love people only read about.

"It's only fair, Lou was the one that taught him" Mila smiled, her brother scoffing.

"I know, Al nearly took me 'ead off" He flickered a look at Mila before looking back to the baby that played with his fingers. Mila had to laugh, remembering watching Alex chase her brother down the road from her bedroom window, a slight hesitation in her grin as she remembered that Lucy had been stood right next to her, laughing just as hard.

"Oh, Mel, this is Willow and Elliot" she pointed to each, the babies looking up at the mention of their names, not being able to reply just yet, "they're only fourteen months"

Mila sat forward on the couch, catching Elliot's eyes as he rolled towards her, bumping her knees with this walker, a large gummy smile on his face.

"Hello, little man" she smiled, his cheesy hands gripping her finger, "look at you" he giggled, scrunching up his face.

"Want a cuppa, Mel?" her mother asked, raising an eyebrow at her youngest.

"Yeah, please"

"Lou, pop the kettle on," she looked to Louis, his mouth falling.

"What, but you offered-"

"Mel's home, now put the blummin' kettle on" she spoke with a stricter voice, still able to scare her son despite him being near twenty-six.

Louis rolled his eyes as he plodded to the kitchen, the kettle being heard by the three girls.

"Right, what's brought you home then?" Mila raised an eyebrow in confusion, "You've been left three year, somethin' must have brought you back" her mother explained, knowing Mila better than she knew herself.

"...Lucy" Mila finally said, not surprised by her mother scoff.

"You're still mates with that cow?"

"Mam!"

Janine had never been too fond of Lucy, always warning Mila about her. She wasn't fond of how Lucy treated Mila, or how she spoke to her, and she definitely wasn't fond of how much of an influence Lucy was on her little girl.

Mila had many memories of coming home at all hours of the night, her mother sat up waiting on her return, usually tucking the teenager into bed like she was still a child, leaving water and tablets on her side table.

Janine, rightly, blamed Lucy for Mila's slight addiction to drugs in her late teens. In fact, she had stayed up most night in the last three years worried that her daughter would relapse without having her there to help.

"You can't say that!" Mila spoke, laughing as she did, knowing that it was very much true.

"What?" Janine spoke her mind, "just like her mam, both cows" she shrugged.

"What's she done now?" Mila had to laugh at the slight rivalry her mam had with Lucy's mam.

"What hasn't she done, " Janine shook her head, ignoring Lisa and Mila as they laughed at her, "anyways, I always told you that Lucy was nout but trouble"

She had.

Janine had a way of spotting bad people in her children's lives.

"She may be a bonny lass on the outside, but inside she's as ugly as they come"

Her mother had never been wrong.

——————
Written: 28th February 2021
Published: 9th March 2021
Long time no see
Lil key in case you're not British
Bairn: kid, Bonny: pretty, on my tod: on my own