The rest of the Christmas break was rather standard. There were a few heated discussions between Robin's mum and his grandparents, the usual debates that seemed to flare up whenever they were all together under one roof. Presents were opened on Christmas morning, with the living room floor buried under a sea of wrapping paper and ribbons. The large Christmas dinner was a feast fit for a king, with Robin's family, grandparents, cousins, and aunt all gorging on Yorkshire puddings and pigs in blankets until they were all too full to move.

     Robin had managed to meet up with Ashley a couple more times during the week he was back in Coventry. They went on a couple of shopping sprees, their laughter echoing through the bustling stores as they tried on ridiculous hats and debated the merits of various snack foods. It felt like old times, like he had never even left. And during moments like that, his mind allowed him to forget the situation that he knew was awaiting him back in Bristol.

     He hadn't heard a peep from either Yohan or Lucy the whole time he was back in his home-city. The detachment from them seemed to make forgetting the whole ordeal a little easier. But occasionally, the smallest thing would remind him of what had happened. Walking past the alternative clothing shop Blue Banana, watching his grandma mop the kitchen floor, and the occasional Instagram post he encountered while doom scrolling.

     The second-to-last day before they were planning to return home, he was sitting at the kitchen table while his grandma was making some sort of apple pie. While playing a game on his phone, a notification popped up at the top of his screen.

     Lucy 15:38

     Cafe Kino, 3pm Saturday

♡.﹀﹀﹀﹀.♡

     The door of the café made a little ding noise as Robin walked into the bustling space. He had never been there before; it was one of those 'edgy' cafes where he felt nowhere near cool enough to be. Fun art was painted on the walls, with baristas busing themselves behind the counter, each sporting different dyed hair, piercings, and tattoos.

     Robin was initially confused by Lucy's message but assumed they wanted to meet him. He was terrified that they would shout at him or get angry, but even more worrisome was the possibility that he'd be ambushed by Lucy and Jemma together.

     However, he knew he had to speak with them, no matter the situation he walked into. He needed to set the record straight, and though it was uncomfortable, he knew he was lucky that it was Lucy who had walked in on the two of them. If it had been anyone else, the secret might have been outed to the whole school already.

     Robin gulped, scanning the café for Lucy. For a second, he thought maybe they hadn't arrived yet, but just as the thought crossed his mind, he spotted a familiar tuft of hair in the back left corner, the figure it belonged to slouched in a way only Lucy would. His gaze seemed to capture Lucy's attention as they turned their head around and looked Robin directly in the face. No smile, no frown—completely neutral and unreadable.

     Robin felt his heart rate quicken, and then signalled to the counter that he was going to get a drink before joining them. Lucy nodded, face still in stone, and returned their attention to their own mug of coffee.

     Joining the small queue of people waiting to be served by a barista, he felt his nose twitch at the delicious smells that wafted through the air. Freshly ground coffee beans and sweet pastries lined the counter, trying to entice customers for a bite, and a slightly earthy, musky smell seemed to be emanating from behind the treats.

     Directing his eyes from the flaky, buttery pastries, he was met with an equally delicious-looking man. His hair was a dark brown with a blonde streak running through it, pushed back in a messy but effortless look. He had deep, dark-set eyes that emanated warmth and were shielded by the shine on his thin-rimmed round glasses. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, which displayed an assortment of random tattoos, and he was wrapped in an apron with the cafe's name sprawled across it. Robin noticed on the name tag pinned to the man's shirt reading the words 'Adam.'.

     "I said, what can I get for you?" The man—well, Adam—said. Robin hadn't even noticed he had asked him a question.

      "Oh um. Sorry I... I'll have..." Robin's eyes flickered across the board above his head, feeling the heat rising in his cheeks at the embarrassment and panic of now having to pick a drink on the spot.

      "Can I make a recommendation?" Adam said, his lips upturned in a warm smile, placing a hand on his hip as he said it, shifting his body weight. He narrowed his eyes, and playfully looked Robin up and down.

     "Oh, sure, I don't really drink coffee; I don't really know what to get." Robin said, his voice trailing off, realising immediately how he sounded when he said it.

     Wow Robin, can't even pick a drink for yourself. Jesus Christ, I stand out like a sore thumb in a place like this. Especially with a hottie like him working here... Fuck, get it together Robin!

     "Hmmm. You look like... a Vanilla Matcha iced latte guy, with oat milk, of course." Adam said, lifting his finger in the air as he said it. "Was I right?"

     "Oh... Um, I've never had it before." Robin replied, "But, I'm happy to try it."

     "Well, trust me, you'll love it; it's one of my favourites." Adam said with a wink. "That'll be three pounds seventy, please."

♡.﹀﹀﹀﹀.♡

     Robin made his way over to Lucy with his strange green-looking drink, topped with a little pink straw. He took care not to spill it as he wandered over, the ice cubes of the drink bobbing at the surface.

     Reaching Lucy, he sat himself down in the armchair opposite her and placed his drink carefully on the small table situated between them. His body sank down into the vintage and ruggedly looking chair, clearly almost at the end of its life in terms of lumbar support.

     "Hi Lucy, thanks for coming to, yanno, speak with me and stuff," Robin said sheepishly, unsure where to direct his eye contact with fear of being met with a deadly glare.

     "It's alright; we definitely need to talk." Lucy said, Robin braved to meet eyes with theirs as they were taking another sip of their mug of frothy coffee. The armchair they were sat on was significantly taller than Robin's own, which caused him to hunch as he sank deeper into the seat, and they were sat above him, almost looking down on him with their unmoving demeanour.

     "Yeah... Can I please explain?" Robin said this before taking a sip of his own drink. It was surprisingly sweet, which contrasted great with the grassy taste of the matcha. He liked it.

     "I think you should." Lucy replied, crossing their arms and waiting expectantly.

     Robin took a deep breath and prepared himself to explain to yet another person the situation with Yohan that he had been hiding from them. He retold the story similarly as he did to Ashley—missing out a few of the slightly explicit details—and waited for Lucy to have some sort of reaction as he explained. But their face just stayed the same, occasionally nodding in recognition of their listening, but other than that, they didn't react in any way.

     "So yeah, I think that's about it. But, as I said, it's over. I finished with him for good this time. Oh, and I'm gay, but I feel like you already knew that." Robin trailed off as he finished his monologue, waiting for Lucy's response.

     A small smile twitched at the corner of Lucy's lips as soon as he said the last sentence.

     But it quickly solidified itself into a straight line within a second. They picked up their mug, drank the last gulp of their coffee, and then placed the empty mug down with a sigh.

     "Thank you for telling me, Robin," Lucy finally responded. "Sounds like Yohan's been a bit of a shit to you, as well as Jemma."

    "Yeah," Robin replied with a nervous chuckle.

     "But I'm still not happy with you about the situation." They let out another deep sign before finally seeming to drop the tough act, dropping their head into their hands and rubbing the side of their face. "Do you know how fucking hard this has been to not tell Amber what I saw?" They lifted their head again. "But although I love the girl, she is awful at keeping secrets and would have told Jemma instantly."

     "Thank you so much for not telling," Robin said with a sense of gratitude. "I was so scared you would tell people; I haven't even come out to my parents yet."

    "Precisely why I didn't say anything," Lucy sighed. "Just be glad it's me who found you and not someone else. However, pissed off at you I am, I'm not going to let anyone have to go through what I went through when I came out, not even to that prick Yohan."

     "Honestly, I can't thank you enou—"

     "Don't grovel." Lucy cut him off. "Like I said, I'm still pissed at you, more so at Yohan with your explanation, but you're not totally in the right in this situation; you fucked up too, Robin."

     "I know..."

      "And it's going to take a lot more than breaking up with—might I add—one of your friends' boyfriends to get yourself back in my good books. I get that you started seeing Yohan before they were even together, but you should have broken it off as soon as it became a thing! Would you have even broken it off if you weren't caught?"

     "I..." Robin could feel his emotions failing him again, as they always seemed to, tears pricking at his eyes. "I don't know."

     "Exactly. Look, I don't think telling Jemma is a good idea, especially with the big gig the band has coming up at the end of January, but I do think you should come out to her at some point. I will talk to her about Yohan."

     "But–"

      "I won't tell her about the two of you, I promise," Lucy said, holding up a hand to stop Robin's interjection. "But I am going to talk to him at some point. He's a part of this whole mess too, it shouldn't be all on your shoulders, Robin."

     "Thank you, Lucy."

      "Don't thank me; just be grateful I have morals and—" They halted for a moment, their eyes glazing over for a second. Suddenly, Lucy's features softened, and they leaned forward in their chair. "Look, Robin, let's forget about the situation with Yohan for a moment. Thank you for coming out to me, even in these shitty circumstances. I know it's not easy." Their lips formed a small smile.

     The tears that Robin was withholding finally sprung free, like a leak that had a bad patch-up job. Slightly more dignified than his usual crying, only a few tears trickled down his cheeks and landed in his lap.

     "I know I keep saying it, but seriously, thank you, Lucy. And I'm so fucking sorry."

      "Not me; you should be apologising to. But I get it." They said, still with a light-hearted tone of voice, "I'll be honest, I wasn't totally shocked when I found the two of you."

     "You weren't!?" Robin said in a high-pitched voice, feeling a surge of panic bubbling in his stomach once more.

     Fuck, if Lucy wasn't surprised, then who else might think something is going on? Fuck. Maybe we haven't been so subtle after all. What if someone else saw us? What about when we were at the harbour together? What if...

     "I mean, I was surprised about the two of you; don't get me wrong," Lucy said, halting Robin's thoughts. "But you know, I do have excellent gaydar."

    "You don't say," Robin said with a nervous chuckle.

    "Oh, I'm not talking about you." They smiled. "Robin, you literally emanate queer energy, why do you think Jemma invited you to our group? I mean, apart from the fact that she's a sweetheart who cares about everyone."

     Robin almost choked on his drink as they said it, placing it back down on the table. "I don't get it. My sister wasn't surprised either. I don't look... gay, do I?"

      Lucy directed their finger to the half-drunk green concoction on the table in front of them. "Robin, and iced matcha latte, with, let me guess, oat milk? Is literally the gayest drink you could order."

     "I didn't order it! It was recommended to me by the barista!"

     "If anything, Robin, that proves my point even more." They giggled. "I'm sorry that my teasing is going too far. But seriously, Robin, thank you for telling me, regardless of whether I already knew or not. It's a hard thing to do either way."

     "So, if you already knew with me... about the gay thing and all, what about Yohan?" Robin said, his curiosity peaked.

     Lucy leaned back in the chair, directing their eyes up at the ceiling, as if they were reminiscing. "Well, I've always had my suspicions that there was a little something about him in the queer department, but I was never 100% sure. We've known each other since nursery; I would even say we were friends. He was such a sweetie as a kid, but also a massive troublemaker. But in secondary school, rather than opting to stay friends with me, he befriended the lads and distanced himself. And then the whole thing with his mum, and then his grandma..."

     "What about his mum?" Robin leapt on the statement, desperate for more information.

     "It's not my place to say." Lucy said with a wry smile. "But Yohan hasn't had it easy; that doesn't excuse him for being a wanker though."

     "Yeah, I suppose not," Robin said, trying to hide his frustration over Lucy not giving him the full story. Although it did show they were good at keeping secrets.

     They sat together in the awkward silence for a moment, Robin's very distinctly noticing the rise and fall of his chest with each breath as he saw Lucy's face shift back to their original serious tone.

     "So, in terms of going forward," Lucy said, "I think maybe you should just keep some space from our group for a while, I'm not saying forever, but it's not fair on me to keep this secret while you're around until things are sorted out between Yohan and Jemma."

     "Yeah, I get that."

      "So I don't think you should go to Jemma's New Year party."

     "I wasn't going to anyway," Robin replied. He had already been thinking about it, and he would much rather be spending New Year's alone than deal with the anxiety-inducing situation of being in the same room as Yohan and Jemma. "With everything that's happened, I didn't think it would be a good idea."

      "Good, I'm glad we're on the same page." Lucy said, their face softening once more. "Look, Robin, just because I'm mad doesn't mean we're not still friends, but just give it some time, okay?"

    "Okay," Robin exhaled.

     "And find yourself a more secure and emotionally available man than Yohan; that boy needs therapy before he enters any kind of relationship," Lucy said with a half-smile.

     "Okay, Lucy, I'll try."