The Dursley's adopted son

Chapter 29

The smell of good 'ol American burgers and fries hit my nose the moment the doors swung open, and I felt my mouth water immediately. Mr. Dursley must have seen my face because he chuckled and said,

"Yes, I thought we ought to get some American food for our American friend."

I thought about pointing out that I was a UK citizen, and the only thing American about me was my accent, and that I truly didn't even remember the states, but I decided not to. He had brought us here as a gesture of good will, I wasn't about to anger him. Instead, I just smiled and said,

"Wow, it smells so good! I can't remember the last time I had proper American food!"

And proper American food this was indeed. We were led to a table by a hostess with an American accent, and she told us this restaurant had been founded by an American who had moved to the UK and had been proper appalled at the way they made burgers here. As she handed us our menu, she promised that we were about to have the greasiest, most delicious, authentic American meal offered in the UK. Mrs. Dursley looked a bit put-off by the idea of a greasy, fatty, meal, but Mr. Dursley, Dudley and Piers all looked as thrilled as I did.

The rest of the day honestly passed in a bit of a blur. I think I might have been in a bit of a burger-induced haze. Or maybe I was just overwhelmed at the domestic-ness and friendliness of everything. Malcolm, Gordon, and the rest of the gang all had really freaked me out over the meeting with the Dursleys. And sure, I had caught Mrs. Dursley giving my hair the stink eye a few too many times to be entirely comfortable, but overall it seemed like they were trying their best to make me feel welcome. I vaguely wondered what Dudley had said to them to get their attitude to change, but it wasn't my business so I didn't linger on it.

I had assumed that after the meal, the Dursley's would take off and I'd get a taxi or something to head back to the orphanage. Part of me wondered if they'd offer to drive me, or if I could convince them to give me a lift. I figured that that idea was probably bust. I recalled Piers saying that he and Dudley both lived close enough to walk, and while the drive back to the orphanage wasn't too long, but it would bring them into London, and therefore be significantly out of their way. What I hadn't been prepared for, was for Dudley to turn to his parents as the waitress handed the bill back over, and to say,

"Mum, Dad, can Percy come to our house tonight?"

Their heads both snapped over to look at me with expressions that indicated they likely just experienced that same stomach-drop that I did. I made a bit of a choked noise that had Piers giggling. Mrs. Dursley's gaze slowly drifted back to her son, almost as if she was trying to keep me in her direct line of sight while also looking at Dudley.

"Poppykins, you know you're friends are always welcome. But," her gaze drifted back to me for a split second, and I gave her a small pursed-lip smile. I had to fight the urge to give a thumbs up as well. The smile itself was enough to have Piers fighting tears from falling down his face. Well, I'm glad that someone at this table finds my suffering amusing. Mrs. Dursley continued, "but Dudley, darling, surely you don't mean he spends the night?"

Dudley pouted a bit and nodded,

"Why not? Piers sleeps over all the time."

Mr. Dursley, whos eyes were still glued to me, narrowed his gaze, and Mrs. Dursley blinked slowly as she turned back to me. I sighed. I could tell that the Dursley's had a hard time saying no to Dudley (especially when he pouted, which I was definitely going to tease him about later), so I decided to answer Dudley myself.

"Big D, man, I would love to spend the night at your place at some point, but I don't think tonight would work. First of all, I have responsibilities in the orphanage that I can't just ditch without giving Madame Wool a heads up, and secondly, I didn't bring a toothbrush or anything I'd need to spend the night." While I was talking, I avoided looking at Mr. and Mrs. Dursley. I'm sure that they resented the reminder that I was a poor little orphan who had chores and expectations, and didn't want to see their disgust. Looking at Dudley, however, didn't prove to be much better, because his face crumpled as I spoke, and his lip started wobbling. From my left, I felt Piers lean closer to me and whisper,