Joe woke up on his birthday like any other day. Yawning, he pulled on his dressing gown and went downstairs, walking past his exercise equipment and into the kitchen. Graham was nowhere to be seen.
He hadn't planned anything for his birthday this year. He could hardly throw a party down the Woolpack after all that had happened. He hadn't even told Debbie what today was, she had enough on her mind. He flicked through his post, half-hoping to see a card. He thought there might at least be something from his godmother Kathy in Australia, but there was nothing. Come to think of it, he didn't know if Kathy knew he was back at Home Farm.
What was it Graham had said recently? "Nobody loves you..." It looked like it was true.
He made himself some coffee and sat at the kitchen table. For the first time in a while, he contemplated calling his aunt Zoe. For all he knew she had changed her number, but it would be easy enough to find her or Jean online.
He sat back and remembered the last time he had seen his nearest relatives...
...
Five years earlier
Zoe watched as Joseph strode out to the swimming pool wearing blue trunks. She could scarcely believe that her nephew was 18.
Looking at Joseph was like looking at Chris in his younger days, before the accident that had changed everything. He was as tall as his father had been. His hair had turned from blond to brown in his teen years, just like his dad. Sometimes Zoe could hear voices in the back of her head saying "just like his father" "nothing but trouble" "bad influence on Jean" but she ignored these. Even on her medication, she sometimes had difficulty telling her own thoughts from the other ones.
It was Joseph who had begged to go back to boarding school. "All my friends are there," he'd said. Zoe suspected that the real reason Joseph had wanted to keep going to school in England was because he felt closer to his father there. Emigrating had been a huge upheaval for a young boy who had already been through enough.
She'd felt terrible about making Graham Joseph's guardian, about signing Chris's son over to a virtual stranger, but Joseph's behaviour at school had left her with little choice and seeing Graham's calm demeanour and the way he was with Joseph had convinced her that she was doing the right thing. And it had all turned out for the best. Joseph had finished school and done well in his A Levels. He had no interest in going to university, wanting to start his own business instead. Zoe didn't know yet what this business would involve, but she suspected that Graham would be involved in some capacity.
Joseph and ten-year-old Jean were now splashing each other in the swimming pool. They were so sibling-like, seeing them together reminded Zoe painfully of her and Chris. She thought about Noah, the brother that Joseph would never know. Telling Joseph that Chris probably wasn't Noah's real dad had been the only way to stop Joseph demanding that Zoe take him to see Charity and his brother. How ironic that Joseph, who was born out of wedlock, should inherit his father's fortune, while Noah, the legitimate son, should get nothing.
"Handsome, isn't he?" murmured a voice at Zoe's side. Lara was lying on the lounger next to hers, keeping her fair skin and red hair out of the direct sun. They'd been dating for a few months now. Lara got on well with Jean and even Joseph had been courteous when they were introduced.
Joseph emerged from the pool, shaking the water from his hair. Zoe allowed a note of pride to creep into her voice. "Yes, he is."
A few days later she found Joseph and Lara in bed together, having returned early from a day out with Jean. Lara at least had the grace to look ashamed, insisting that she had just had a moment of weakness, that he had seduced her rather than the other way around.
Joseph, when Zoe confronted him, acted like it was no big deal. "It's better this way, isn't it? Better that you find out now that she's not a one-woman... woman."
There was an oddly triumphant note in Joseph's voice, which made Zoe ask "Did you do this just to hurt me?"
Joseph shook his head. "It would never have worked out, Zoe. As soon as you had another episode it would be over."
Zoe slapped him, hard, across the face. "Get out of my house."
...
When Joe arrived back from his morning run and let himself into the kitchen, there was a bottle of champagne on the table, tied with a ribbon, next to an envelope and some presents wrapped in silver paper. Smiling, Joe picked up the card.
"Didn't think I'd forgotten, did you?" said a voice behind him.
Joe looked over his shoulder at Graham. He shrugged, trying not to look too pleased. "Not like it's a big one."
"Nonsense. You're only 23 once." Graham started to open the champagne. Seeing Joe's look, he added, "Don't worry, I've got orange juice in the fridge."
Graham poured them both a drink while Joe opened his presents. Then Graham raised a toast: "Happy birthday, Joe."
Joe clinked his glass against his friend's. "Cheers, Graham."