“I do want to say that, I would rather they took the piss out of my age instead of out of us for having sex.” She grinned at me, before leaning over and gently kissing my lips. I smiled. Before taking the key and getting out of the car, as I locked the car she walked around and slipped her arm around me, it was her broke one and I felt her thump slip into my belt loop on my Levi’s I smiled and put my arm around her as we head into the Planet. I laugh when Mattie runs towards me the moment he sees me something that he has always done since he was able to walk. I picked him up.

            “Hey dude.” I smiled

            “Hey Mommy,” he looked at Bette and reached out for her. “Momma, you’ve got a boo boo.”

            “I have,” Bette smiled kissing him, but letting me keep hold of him.

            “Can I kiss it better, like Mommy kisses mine better,”

            “Sure,” Bette held her arm up too him and he kissed it before we walked over to the gang.

            “Hey you two!” Alice said, I looked at our friend, who had finally settled down with Tasha and had two children. Toby and Sam are great lads and thank God they are both turning out more and more like Tasha. They are were both at school at the moment, the reason Mattie wasn’t was because we were waiting for paperwork to send him.

            “Hey Al,” I said, as Bette sat herself down and I passed her Mattie, “Coffee baby!”

            “Sure,”

            “Milk please Mommy!” Mattie said smiling at me.

            “Okay son!” I grinned. Walking away. When I returned with the drinks I just caught the end of Alice’s sentence.        

            “…so you’re saying that late at night, you fell over and broke it?”

            “Yes Alice that is what I’m telling you,”

            “Why don’t I believe you!” Alice said at once looking at Shane who had married Molly ten years ago and now ran a number of hair dressers, Molly had finished law school and was now a civil rights lawyer. Helena grinned behind her tea, sitting beside her was her wife Emily, they had meet eight years ago when Helena had been visiting us in New York, Emily is an artist that Bette had been showing and they had fallen hopelessly in love. it always made me smile, Emily was the first woman that Helena had gone out with since Dylan, who she hadn’t been able to trust again thanks to Jenny. Then there is Max, who completes our group. He married his partner Rich nine years ago, Rich took on a lot. Max has an amazing little boy called Harrison or harry for Harry for short he looks a lot like Tom, who no one speaks about . on the whole we have all grown up a lot.

            “I fell.” Bette said. I looked at her as Mattie got down and sat at a children table to draw.

            “Fell my ass.” Alice said.

            “Leave them alone.” Emily said softly, she is a softly spoken lady, who manages to keep peace most of the time.

            “Why? I’ve had 12 years of not being able to do this.”

            “most people grow up Al,” I said.

            “You two haven’t.” Alice said. I drank some of my coffee. I looked around at my friends and grinned.

            “We have grown up Al,” Bette said, Shane grinned.

            “Yeh, into older children.” Shane smiled as she spoke.

            “Well what can I say!” Bette grinned. “I’m at that age where I can get away with it” everyone laughed, Alice looked at us and I knew she was trying to work out what really happened. I really didn’t want anyone to know that it was totally my fault that Bette broke her wrist. It was like Alice could see the guilty look in my eye. It was like she knew what had really happened. I didn’t want anyone to find out but at the same time I had this horrible feeling that Alice would find out and would take the piss out of us. I sat while the laughter and conversation went on around me thinking. I felt Bette’s arm around my shoulder, as she laughed at and joked with the gang we had just fallen into old times when Bette and I had returned to from New York, but I felt like Alice was looking at me. She was trying to work out what really happened, and I think she knows that I will break a lot sooner than Bette. Bette was relaxed and copying even with only one hand.

            “You didn’t fall you two were up to something!” Alice suddenly said.

            “I fell!” Bette replied softly, her voice showing that she wasn’t happy with Alice questioning her.

            “I don’t believe you!”

            “Then don’t!” Bette said pulling me into her, and I smiled as Mattie came back towards me.

            “Mommy, love you!”

            “I love you too son,” I picked up him and avoiding looking at Alice, I knew I would be the one to spill all.