Bygones be Bygones (flat 109)

[Straw Buckett]

Juvenile. Arse. Stupid. Immature.

Yup that was Kelly Evans… no I’m just kidding, that was Straw. Hurt was the first words he’d felt, shame was the next. Straw loved only a small group of people. He cherished only 6 people really. If you discounted his children then the number was 3. His wife no doubt was and would always be number one so technically that brings us down to two. Two people in his life, they weren’t blood related or pets. Simply friends he’s made at school and held considerately high and deep in his heart. If anything ever happened to them Straw would truly be lost. They were his best friends in the entire world and so it was with great regret that he found himself not talking to one in particular. And that was one’s birthday was today.

Normally Straw would be covered in glitter and surrounding her apartment in balloons and streamers because no matter how old you were balloons and streams never got old and boring. The tables would be covered in magical foods with sparkling puddings and butterbeers all round. There may possibly be a theme and he may have been the most over dressed but hey that’s how he rolled. Perhaps the party was to take place in a magical cupboard where on arrival the guests would have to crawl through small space covered in figs (long story) to find the party address. Not this time.

Tail between his legs, Straw took deep steadied breaths before proceeding toward flat 109. He had fort with Kelly … a stupid immature fight over stupid immature things. And despite believing Kelly was keeping secrets from him and Straw refusing to pull his long pointed nose out of it… the two had not spoken for a good month. Avoiding eye contact in the stairs and mail box, pretending they didn’t see each other in the supermarket and using Kat as go between when they realised they needed something off the other yet both stubbornly refusing to break the now gigantic cone of silence. It didn’t help that both were extremely competitive. The tricky thing is that they were simply as bad as the others. Each believing the other had done worse. Straw certainly would not see reason, feeling rejected and unimportant to Kelly. ‘Why would she need me anymore when she has Jacques!’ was one of his most intelligent rebuts when Kat tried to talk to him. ‘No, clearly I’m not worth much to her as I thought so I can’t be bothered with someone who can’t be bothered with me’ was always the convocation killer topped with a princess hissy fit walk out.

However as stubborn and immature as Straw could be, deep down he was actually a big old softy. The past week he’d been meaning to say something. He knew her birthday was coming and didn’t want things to be this sour between them during what was supposed to be a special time. Straw was always a big believer in making a big deal out of anyone birthday. But again Straw had let things slip and before he knew it it was too late. Armed with flowers and her favourite bottle of wine, Straw took those guilty steps toward Flat 109. Taking a dried gulp, he scruffed up his hair and knocked twice on the door.

[Kelly Evans]

Kelly opened her front door at the knock, a silver spoon in her mouth and a jar of chocolate spread in one hand. Clearly, she'd been spending her birthday the only way she knew how - with chocolate. Her brow furrowed slightly as she looked up at Straw, and pulled the spoon out of her mouth.

"Did you forget that your apartment is upstairs?" Kelly said, though there wasn't a lot of bite to her words. She knew they'd been fighting for too long over almost nothing, and Kelly was as sick of it as Straw was. She opened the door a little wider and then turned away, walking back into the living room and sitting down on the lounge.

She waited until Straw had followed her into the room before she set aside her jar of chocolate and the spoon, and curled her legs under her body. Kelly smiled at Straw, then looked away again, biting her lip. "Let's not do the awkward apology thing, okay?" she said. "I'm too tired and it's my birthday so I'm calling all the shots."

"I missed you, Buckett."

[Straw Buckett]

Straw stuggled not to roll his eyes at Kelly. She was being smart with him but he could tell she knew he came in peace. They looked at each other, Straw unable to find the words and frankly feeling he really didn't need too many words to express himself. She went first though.

"That's far," shrugged Straw as he followed her to the couch and took a place on the opposite chair facing her. "I'm missed you too," sighed Straw happy that she was content to skip the awkward sorries and move on. He took a big sigh and despite her request Straw felt he had to say it. "Look Kel just let me say it once ok then we can move on and forget. I'm sorry, I was stupid and..." he paused to locked eyes, "Well.. I'm just sorry. I hope you're feeling better now," He gave her the tiniest smile and when he saw her face couldn't help but chuckle a little.

Remembering what he was holding Straw quickly changed the topic. "Anyway, Happy Birthday," and leaned forward off his chair to hand her the presents. "Have you had a good day yet?" he felt bad asking that as he knew the answer before she could speak it.

[Kelly Evans]

Kelly smiled and looked down, her dark eyelashes brushing cheeks that were paler than usual. She let Straw say what he obviously needed to say before she looked back up at him. She was feeling better, and yet she wasn't. She loved Straw, and she was glad that they weren't fighting anymore, but she still wasn't ready to tell him the truth just yet.

Chuckling a little again, Kelly leaned forward and took the proffered gifts, putting the wine down on the table in front of her before burying her nose in the flowers. Gardenias, her favourite. "Thank you, Straw," she said warmly. She stood up from the lounge and padded across the room, picking up her wand from the table beside the front door. She waved her wand and a vase appeared, which Kelly dropped the bouquet into. "My day has been simply wonderful so far," she called to him as she walked around.

She rejoined Straw in the living room, placing the vase of flowers on the coffee table on the way. Kelly sat back down and gestured to the jar of chocolate spread and the spoon sticking out of it, cocking one eyebrow. "I've been celebrating the only way I know how. With chocolate that I haven't had to prepare or cook." Kelly rolled her eyes and drew her legs up underneath her body once again, wincing slightly at the pull in her abdoment as she did.

"Jacques is off on some Ministry mission so I'm living on left overs at the moment. He sent me an owl this morning, it sung and everything."

[Straw Buckett]

"I remembered," he called back as she stepped away to put them in a vace. Straw may be a male but he always prided himself in his attention to detail when it came to the woman in his life. His mother had raised him well and if Straw had learnt anything about woman, they loved flowers, loved them even more when you remembered they favourite flowers. Straw nodded along, his guilt slightly lifted as she retold her day to him.

"Oh that's good, don't suppose you have any more chocolate left?" he grinned cheekily but knowing too well that it was all gone by now, "A singing owl?" Straw raised an eyebrow to this, he'd never seen that before. 'Well that’s cool, did he teach it himself?" and chuckled at the idea of Jacques spending countless secret hours away from Kelly to teach it to sing, from what he assumed was, ‘Happy Birthday’.

"Well now that only leaves afternoon tea and dinner unsolved for you. Why don't I make you something?" Straw cook? Yes he could and often did for Kat when she arrived home after a long day at work. He enjoyed it actually, there were times when Straw would be baking away, sleeves rolled up, wrapped in Kat’s pink apron and would think to himself. 'I could do this, I couldn't totally just quit my job and become a house husband.' He loved it. The children did drain his energy but Straw had learnt to multitask. He did not want the fact that he had three small children ruin the fact that he was still young and very much in love with the girl of his dreams. He refused to become one of those couples who fell into a boring routine and lost their spark. Straw was and always would be the gentle romantic soul, never taking for granted the fact that he had a smoken wife who loved him very much and three beautiful babies. Life could not be any better.

One could say he's become more adult in his rip old age. No longer the silly scruffy haired boy who with ripped messy clothes but a man who could feed and provide for his family, especially his wife. Straw would often have the children fed and bathed and asleep by the time Kat returned from the hospital. He even had time to cook a roast, light candles and have enough energy to seduce and entice his wife afterwards. He loved them more then anything in the entire world. “So what do you think?”