“Pass the plates.” Peggy demands, glancing at where her half-brother Kai is texting at the counter. The kitchen air is thick with the smell of bolognese sauce and Peggy grabbed a tea towel and threw it at Kai’s mop of curls. “Idiot, get off your phone and help me.” 

“Don’t be so dramatic.” 

Yanking the tea towel off his face, Kai glares at her with coal eyes. But Kai’s eyes are like Peggy’s. Too soft to be threatening and he looks more like a pouting puppy as he sets his phone aside.  

“I’m not being dramatic now grab the plates before I dump this bolognese in your hair. And then get Mack so we can eat.” Sighing, Peggy returned to stirring the sauce. The evenings both her parents worked were always stressful. 

Kai dumped the plates next to her. 

“Your majesty.” He dances out of the way of the second tea towel she throws. It thumps against the window startling yapps out of the family terriers Muffins and Britney.

“Go get Mack, tea is almost ready.” 

Kai leant out of the terrace kitchen door and hollered “Mack!” 

A loud thump came from upstairs. They both paused. No swearing or shouting followed, so they both shrugged it away. 

 “I heard a rumour that you were paired with Vivienne Stock and Attis Jones for the fashion show.”

“You gonna tell mum and dad?” She begins dumping spaghetti onto the plates. 

“No, Stephanie is not my mum. She’s yours.” Kai’s phone buzzes. Kai ignores it. “I just thought a fashion show was your sort of thing.” 

“What does that mean?” 

Kai fished a piece of spaghetti off the plates dangling it over his mouth before dropping it in. “You spent all summer designing outfits for the dogs. I don’t think Muffins will ever recover from that tutu you put her in.” 

“Is there a point to this?”

“The fashion show is your dream school project and I don't think you should let people like Vivienne and Attis ruin that for you. You’ll end up having to do all the work and it won’t be fun for you.”

 Kai’s phone rattled against the counter, illuminating a picture of him kissing his boyfriend Mikey. Scowling, Kai leant across the counter and muted it. 

“You're working with the Tank and Vivienne?” Mack stalked into the kitchen. Mack was the tallest and oldest of the three Stirling siblings, with straight black hair and even straighter posture. “I don’t like that. They are trouble.”

He sits at the counter and gives her his characteristic disapproving look. Peggy stuck her tongue out at him. 

“Mature.” Mack orders. “Change groups. I’m not having those two troublemakers sabotage you.”