Talk Of The Town | ongoing

9

Rushing inside the house with two packs of soda, Anya yelled, "Bring everything quick. I'm already late."

"Yes," Tom shouted, grabbing the grocery bags and shutting the door with his foot.

As expected, you cannot trust the weather here. The steady drizzle of rain had transformed into a crazy pelting on the ground, obscuring the view. It delayed the duo almost twenty minutes, excluding the half-hour they lost in a usual traffic jam.

Anya dropped everything on the kitchen aisle, panting. She shrugged her raincoat and boots off. Slipping on comfy sandals, she tied her hair in a messy bun. Taylor arrived with a large, hot plate of chicken barbecues from the kitchen's back door.

"Hey, girl, chicken skewers are almost done."

Heart hammering, Anya asked, "Is that for all of us?"

"This is plate number two. Your mum has already arranged plate number one on the dining table. Why were you late? Oh, hey, Tom."

"Hi Taylor, here are your bags, Anya."

"Thank you, Tom. You can go now."

"Okay, good night, everyone."

"Here, take this," Taylor offered, giving him a takeaway box full of small lemon cakes.

"Are you sure?"

"Madiha Ma'am ordered more than enough. Everybody will go home with a generous batch of lemon cakes tonight."

"Okay, thank you."

After he left, Anya asked, "Where did Mum order this cake?"

"From the bakery where Mona's mother worked, by the way, Mona is coming too."

"What"

"Kiara is already here. She is helping your dad with the barbecue."

"Mum said it would just be the three of us, you, Noah and Sean. It's going to be a small party."

"This is what being a Noah fan does. I mean, it's about time we invite Mona, too. Kiara is here for an obvious reason. More of your cousins wanted to be here-"

Before Taylor could finish that sentence, Tamir strolled into the kitchen.

"It smells good in here. Can I have one?"

"The chicken is for dinner," Taylor answered.

He specified, "I'm talking about the lemon cake."

"Sure," Anya stated, putting two pieces on the nearest saucer she laid her hand.

After he went outside, Taylor continued, "He is friends with Noah. It makes sense that your mother will invite him."

Huffing, Anya asked, "How many more people are here without my knowledge?"

"I've already mentioned everyone. I swear."

Oh God – following Taylor into the dining room, Anya recalled the specific words she used to invite Noah over. 'It's a small family dinner. My parents would like to meet and thank you personally.' Now, it's a whole party.

They spent the hour turning the house cosy and festive: lighting the fireplace and candles, setting all the food in the middle of the long rectangular table, stacking all the desserts with their specific cutleries in a corner, putting on some soft jazz music and last-minute touch-up on outfit or makeup.