‘Well, my mouth is watering, so can we hurry up and go,’ I insist.
‘I will say that Queen Patty is the best burger you’ll find in London. Maybe in the country,’ Luc says.
A group of girls walk past and look into the car window. Dennis pulls down his cap a little further on his head, and I stifle a laugh.
‘Did you know?’ I start. ‘There are people on TikTok who thirst after Dennis? That’s why he’s started wearing a hat.’
Luc splutters, playfully hitting Dennis on the shoulder over the seats. ‘Go on, man.’
Dennis shrugs. ‘Made my wife fall in love with me all over again, knowing that the young ones want me.’
‘It will never not be weird. Like someone being obsessed with your brother.’ I pause for a few seconds. ‘Which, to be fair, I have experienced too.’
‘I bet Rory is a catch.’
Kareem reaches into the bag beside him and pulls out a chip, smirking at us both in the back when he puts it on his tongue. I take that as my invitation.
Luc turns to me. ‘I got you a cheese and bacon burger with small fries. The burger is well done. You seem like the sort of person who prefers well done but is always too scared to ask.’
Dennis’s laugh fills the air. ‘You’ve hit the nail on the head.’
‘I got you a medium, and Kareem, yours is veggie.’ He pauses. ‘I think it’s Beyond, if that’s okay.’
‘You’re a good man, Luc Nicholls,’ Kareem says.
I tear open the bag and my face breaks into a smile when I see a full-sized burger and the biggest pile of chips I’ve ever seen.
‘This is asmall?’ I gasp and Luc nods. ‘I don’t need thesefancy restaurants who will give me three chips and one mouthful of burger. I need this.’
‘The grease and saltiness are all I ever need,’ Luc grins.
I groan, grease running out the corner of my mouth. In the decade I’ve loved Luc, I’ve never loved him more than I have right at this moment. Maybe he is actually one of my best friends.
‘I’ve never seen her so content,’ Dennis says.
‘On our first date this side of our story…’ Luc swallows a huge mouthful. ‘She looked disappointed in how small the portions were.’ Luc reaches out and wipes the grease from the corner of my mouth. ‘And when she told me that she wanted to be able to act like a normal person, it all clicked.’
‘She was tired,’ Dennis says.
‘She was tired,’ Luc repeats.
‘Iamtired,’ I protest through a mouthful of burger.
Kareem pulls over into a side street so we can all focus on our meal. I swallow against a soreness in the back of my throat, a solid lump that feels like razor blades when I swallow after singing one song.
‘What would you guys say if I told you I was thinking about taking a break from music?’ My voice echoes in the silence.
Dennis doesn’t hesitate. ‘I’d say that is well-deserved and probably well-needed.’
‘You wouldn’t be annoyed?’
Dennis shakes his head. ‘Of course not, Sienna. Why would I?’
Luc takes a huge bite of his burger. I put a chip on the end of my tongue and suck off the salt.
‘I don’t want to take a break if it means bad things for you both, for Mimi or Jess.’
‘Sienna, you taking a break from music is not going to put me out of a job. I don’t only have to be with you on music stuff.’ Dennis looks me directly in the eye, making sure Iunderstand. ‘Taking a break from music won’t mean you’re not Sienna Martin anymore.’
