Piling into the kitchen as midday brought with it a hungry stampede, they slumped at the table while Paul opened the cupboards and began rummaging through. Morning had started off like yesterdays, yet with no work in the prospect of the daily routine, things were a little more relaxed. Warm but with a chill added to the clean, simple kitchen, Louise stayed close to Mark as they chatted vigorously about the mornings demo recordings.

"God I am so hungry and there’s nothing to eat!" Paul moaned, slamming the cupboard door. "There’s not even enough here to feed a mouse and I’m about that small!"

"Oh come on Paul. Quit you’re whining! You just exaggerating…" Ben told, joining him at the cupboards and scouring through quickly. "Oh my god we’re gonna starve! There’s nothing here!"

"Who’s exaggerating now then?" Christian smirked.

"Well when you take a little look in these cupboards, there’s no need for exaggeration! It is bare! As bare as Mark’s chest!" Ben proclaimed.

"My chest is not that bare!" Mark protested.

"Yeah I agree with you! Your chest is not bare! It’s lovely!" Louise grinned, bringing her hand up to snuggle into him closer.

"Oh you would say that…" Paul chuckled.

"Ok, can we stop debating Mark’s chest hair!" Ben intervened.

"Well if you ask me, Chris’s is better anyway!" Paul added.

"Why thank you." Christian smiled, a little shyly in Louise’s company.

"I don’t care!" Ben exclaimed.

"Just because I didn’t say yours was the best." Paul said childishly.

"No it’s not!" Ben told, seemingly looking wrong. "But that doesn’t matter. What are we gonna do? We can’t just stay here all day and not eat…"

"No, correction Ben. You can’t stay here all day and not eat." Mark smiled.

"Someone’s gonna have to go out." Ben notified, ignoring Mark’s comment.

"I’m not! Have you seen that weather out there!" Paul informed.

"Well someone has to go…"

"I say we do a vote or something." Christian suggested.

"Yeah, good idea! We can draw straws or whatever!" Mark elaborated.

"OK, I say that you should do that though Chris. Paul cheats when he does it!" Ben laughed.

Grabbing a few straws from the kitchen side, Christian cut them into various different lengths before bundling them all up and holding them tightly in his hand.

"Ok, you all have to pick one and which ever two get the shortest, has to go out and do the food shopping." Christian explained.

Stepping forward, one by one, selecting a straw and pulling away, Christian was left with the last straw and after opening his hand, they all observed the lengths of their own.

"Oh great! How did I know it was going to be me?" Paul complained, throwing his straw into the bin.

"That’ll teach you for picking Chris’s chest over mine! He isn’t open to bribes y’know, but if you would have said me…" Ben grinned, before whistling.

"Well who else has the shortest one?" Christian asked.

"I do." Louise smiled, holding up her straw. "Looks like it’s me and you Paul!"

"Ooo maybe this does get better! I get to have my wicked way with Louise in the supermarket!" He beamed while his menacing glint twinkled.

"Oh yeah, cos frozen chickens are such a turn on Paul." Louise added flatly.

"Whatever floats your boat." Paul grinned.

"Will you be alright?" Mark asked, taking Louise’s hand.

"Mark, it’s the supermarket, just down the road. I’ll be fine, and Paul will be with me. Nothings gonna happen." She assured.

"That’s until we reach the supermarket of course Lou." Paul winked.

"Yeah Paul. Quick, we best hurry up, I think I want you too much now." Louise said sarcastically.

"Aww, you’re no fun you are." Paul sulked.

"Oh come on!" Louise laughed, slipping on her jacket and linking arms with Paul. "We won’t be long." She smiled, kissing Mark briefly goodbye.

"Ooo and Paul! Pick up some of those jaffa cakes! I have a craving for them." Ben called as they headed into the rain.

"You don’t think Paul will seriously have his way with Lou in the supermarket will you?" Mark asked as Ben closed the door behind him.

"Come on Mark, that’s like saying Paul will actually bring back Ben his jaffa cakes…"

Down at the supermarket, Louise pushed the small trolley while Paul tossed various items into it. Paul hated shopping and the fact that he was also walking around the aisle dripping wet due to the rain, didn’t make him feel any better. Crowds didn’t help better that feeling, and as they reached a small stack of bright red apples, Paul picked one and bit into it.

"Paul! You can’t do that! You have to pay for the food." Louise whispered.

"Ahh, I will at the end… that’s if I have to." He laughed.

"I can’t believe you." Louise chuckled.

"I can’t quite believe you either." Paul said, putting a few apples in a bag before dumping them into the trolley.

"How do you mean?" Louise asked, as she weaved the trolley around a crowd of people before meeting up with Paul again.

"Well, no offence when I say this here, but who would have believed you’d be staying with us."

"I don’t follow," Louise said a little uneasily.

"Oh, don’t doubt anything I feel about you. I think you’re a great person and I love you hanging around with us. What I’m saying, its just a little unexpected. I didn’t really know you felt that strongly about Mark." Paul revealed, picking up a few loaves of bread.

"Well I do, I do Paul." Louise said sternly as Paul looked directly at her.

"Do you love him?" He asked.

"What?" Louise giggled.

"Love. Do you love him?" He repeated, throwing in some chocolate.

"I… I dunno." Louise said honestly. "Something’s there though, that’s for sure."

"So if Anton came to take you back, you wouldn’t go with him?"

"I… I doubt it. If I’ve got that something keeping me here, then why go back. I was only with Anton because I didn’t have anything or anyone else." Louise exposed.

"What?! So you didn’t love him?" Paul questioned, utterly surprised.

"Yes… No… I mean, I did, I still might do but that wasn’t why I was mainly with him. I don’t think it was true love."

"But it’s true love with Mark?" Paul persisted, grinning.

"Paul!" Louise laughed. "I dunno!"

"Alright, alright, I just wanna make sure y’know, just so I know I’m not fully cheating on Mark when I have my wicked way with you! Where shall we go?"

"You’re not serious?" She giggled, a little worried in what Paul was really thinking.

"I am baby! Now how about by the freezers? I’ve gone and done something like this there before and it was quite…"

"Paul!" Louise exclaimed, laughing. "You are not gonna have you wicked way with me!" She told, slapping his chest playfully as she headed down another aisle.

"Well you’re the one going down the freezer aisle right now!" He made apparent, trailing after her.

Running off their faces as crystals shattered outside, they both clambered through the door with bags in their hands. Slamming it shut, locking out the puddles no one wanted to go through in the first place, Louise took off her jacket, shaking the rain from her hair. Doing the same, Paul then left the bags in the hallway, picking up the tube on his way as he walked into the lounge.

"We’re back!" He beamed, throwing Ben the tube of jaffa cakes.

"Thanks Paul!" Ben gleamed, opening them up instantly.

"You don’t really think…" Mark began as he gave Christian an alarming stare.

"No… no…" Christian chuckled.

Leaving his seat and heading through the hallway, he reached the kitchen where Louise sat, putting away the items they had brought.

"Aww you’re all wet." Mark cooed.

"And now you are too…" Louise smiled, giving Mark a hug before he kissed her softly.

"Where’s Paul?"

"Oh, he’s gone upstairs to get changed or something." Louise informed before being interrupted by a loud knock at the door.

"Get that will you Mark!" Ben shouted through, causing Mark to sigh.

"I won’t be a minute," he smiled, kissing her forehead lightly, as he got up and left to answer the door.

Leaving Louise, she watched him slowly wander out while he thought quietly to himself, wondering who would be calling on a wet, dismal Saturday afternoon. No one ever called round at theirs but as Mark opened it carefully and the brisk breeze forced its way in, he knew it was a special occasion because there stood Anton.

There stood Anton Aphex Campbell, Louise’s fiancé.