Fresh Starts//Cheradine

Dinner Time Revelations

Kimberley watched from the kitchen counter as Cheryl let out yet another sigh, not that she was keeping count but it was easily  at least the fifth one in the last ten minutes. 

"Why don't I phone her and see where she is? No doubt stuck in the traffic." Kimberley started to scroll down her contacts on her phone, ready to phone Nadine until Cheryl came running over grabbing the phone out of her hand. 

"No! No leave it." Cheryl placed Kimberley's phone back down, the Bradford women's eyes watching her with interest as the younger women moved around the kitchen to turn the oven off. 

"Why are you acting so strange? It would literally take two seconds to phone her Cheryl." Kimberley could see Cheryl was avoiding looking at her, not sure exactly what was going on with the Geordie women her eyebrows knotted together in confusion. 

When Kimberley had arrived an hour ago with Bobby and Cole, she had entered the house to find Cheryl dressed up more than she usually would for a run of the mill midweek dinner and there was no denying that Cheryl had cleaned the house to within an inch of its life. 

'Nadine and Anaiya are coming over at five for dinner.' Was the only explanation she had been given, the women going back to preparing dinner before Kimberley could ask anything more. 

It was now fifteen minutes after Nadine was supposed to arrive, Kimberley knew Nadine wasn't particularly very punctual which she had explained to Cheryl but the Geordie women seemed to have lost hope that Nadine was going to appear. 

"I don't want to look really clingy." Cheryl mumbled into her glass of wine, watching over at the kids in the open plan living room giggling their heads off at a film she had put on for them all while she prepared dinner and gossiped with Kimberley. 

The sound of the doorbell ringing stopped Kimberley before she could reply to Cheryl's statement, the Geordie women's face lit up as she rushed to the front door. Kimberley couldn't quite figure out what was going on with Cheryl but she would figure it out soon enough. It never did take long to get the truth out of Cheryl, especially with the help of a bottle of wine on hand. 

Brushing the front of her dress down, Cheryl took a deep breath before opening the door. 

"Hey! Sorry the traffic was mad out there, we set off ages ago but clearly I've forgotten how bad it can get." Nadine took her coat off before helping Anaiya to take her own off handing them over as Cheryl held her hand out to hang them up. 

"No worries babe, dinners only just ready now anyway so perfect timing." Flashing Nadine her signature dimpled grin, Cheryl lead the pair through to the kitchen dining area. 

Nadine couldn't remember ever actually being inside Cheryl's London home, only ever waiting outside in a car with the other girls for the women to get picked up for an event but the Irish women couldn't help but appreciate the interior design. Clearly Cheryl had taste, her fashion sense told everyone that but her house was just as classy as the women who owned it. 

Pictures of Bear lined the walls, paired with photos of Cheryl with various people. Nadine faltered in her step as she passed a photo that showed both herself and Cheryl hung up on the wall. Anaiya tugged on Nadine's arm prompting the Irish women to lift her daughter up to be able to see the photographs. 

It was an old polaroid photo in a small frame, Cheryl clinging to Nadine's back as the two of them grinned at the camera. Nadine had never seen the photo, couldn't ever remember it being taken but there was no denying it was the two of them despite the photo being at least 17 years old. Anyone else would think they were the best of friends judging by the photo.