My new story for Joey & Lauren. Make sure you review and tell me what you think! Enjoy! x
Chapter 1.
-x-x-x-
"Lauren, Lauren! Get up now! LAUREN!"
She groaned. That was all she could hear for the last half hour. Snuggling back into her duvet, she hid herself under her fort of cushions, trying to block out the sound.
"Lauren, we'll be late!" her Mum screeched in annoyance, barging into her bedroom and taking in its state. "Lauren, this room is an absolute pigsty! Come on, get up! Tidy up and pack the rest of your things and get dressed, have a shower whilst you're at it!" Lauren rolled onto her back before dragging her eyes open, throwing off the covers.
"Fine, I'm up!" she grumbled, kicking her Mum out of her bedroom before settling on getting ready for her big day ahead...
-x-x-x-
A good 45 minutes later, she padded into the kitchen, her hair tied up and her make-up perfected. Today was a special day for her. She was going back to Walford...
"Looks like you won then, here I am." Lauren mumbled, pulling out a chair and sitting down, greeted by a small smile from her Mum who placed a cup of coffee and plate of toast in front of her.
"I aim to win you over, darling," she started, Lauren raising her eyebrows in amusement in response. "Right, better go and make sure Oscar's brushed his teeth, make sure you eat up, yeah? We'll be setting off in under an hour and I want to make sure everything goes to plan."
"Yes, Ma'am." Lauren teased, watching her Mum get up from the table and leave the room, looking slightly flustered. She sighed, what would come of today exactly?...
-x-x-x-
Over In Walford...
"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!" Alice squealed in excitement, her eyes flickering from the clock sitting comfortably on top of the mantelpiece and the window besides her. "Joey, can you believe it? She's finally coming back!" she went on, whipping her head round to look at her exhausted-looking brother who had just shuffled into the room, his eyebrows slightly furrowed in confusion.
"What?" he muttered quietly, rubbing the side of his face tiredly. He lazily flopped down onto the sofa next to his younger sister and gently took a hold of both her shoulders, "What the hell's wrong with you, eh?" he asked, a teasing smirk forming on his lips.
She sighed softly, realization finally hitting her, and shot him a small, sympathetic smile, "Lauren," she whispered, desperately searching his face to test his reaction. She watched as his eyes widened slightly and heard him draw in a sharp breath, not daring to drop his gaze even for a second. She took a hard swallow before speaking again, "Did you not know, Joe?" she asked, softening her tone.
He simply shook his head and licked his dry lips, feeling Alice's arm wrap around his shoulder and pull him into a side hug in a weak attempt to comfort him.
"She'll want to see you," she whispered again, a smidgen of sadness creeping it's way onto her brother's face. She chewed gently onto her bottom lip, wondering what the hell she could say to reassure him. They hadn't talked about Lauren for quite a while and now that they'd had the news that she was back she could tell that it was like harsh a slap in the face for him. The pain that he'd had to go through once Lauren had left was enough for her to see how much hurt it had caused him. She didn't want that to happen again.
He nodded once and closed his eyes, exhaling a long breath he didn't know he was holding, "I think I'll want to see her too," he murmured incredulously, shooting a brief look at his sister before abruptly getting up and making his way out of the room in silence. He quickly jogged up the stairs and into his bedroom, slamming the door shut behind him and leaning against it, staring blankly at the plain, white wall in front of him.
He really didn't know what was going on here.
It was far too much for him.
Would he even manage to get through it again?
-x-x-x-
"Great, more transport," Lauren muttered, Oscar squeezing her hand. She looked down at him and saw a large grin on his face, her suddenly finding herself smiling back at him. Ever since she'd moved away from Walford with Mum, Oscar and Abi her life had significantly brightened, being away from all the worries and dramas. But there was always a part of her that knew something was missing...
"Why do you always whinge about the trains?" Abi questioned, folding her arms over her chest and shivering slightly in the cold.
"I just hate sitting still," Lauren replied, rolling her eyes. Her Mum smiled at her daughters as their train stopped at the station.
"Walford, here we come..." Lauren whispered, looking out the window, squeezing Oscar's hand in hers...
-x-x-x-
"Lauren!" Max greeted his older daughter cheerfully, throwing his arms around her waist and pulling her into a hug. "We missed you, darling," he went on, releasing his grip on her and flashing her a grin.
Lauren rolled her eyes and gave him a smile, folding her arms over her chest, "Yeah, I missed you too, Dad," she got out through a giggle, her expression almost dropping completely at the arms that were now wrapped around her Dad's shoulders.
"It's great to have you back, sweetheart," Kirsty's voice came from behind him, pressing a kiss to his cheek making Lauren wrinkle her forehead up in disgust. "Anyway, seeing as this is such a special occasion the drinks are all on the house, right, Alfie?" she continued, Alfie nodding his head as he polished a few glasses.
"Oh, thanks," Lauren managed to get out before being interrupted by the approving shouts around her and the thumping of music in her ears.
She guessed she was just going to have to get used to this...
-x-x-x-
Throughout the evening, Lauren had desperately been trying to see if Joey had snuck his way in. She made her way over to Alice who smiled at her in greeting, "It's great to have you back, Lo,"
"Thanks, Alice," she replied, returning the hug she'd engulfed her in. "Hey, uh... do you know if Joey's coming?" she asked almost inaudibly, moving her aside from the nosey gossipers of the square.
Alice shrugged momentarily and raised her eyebrows, "He didn't even know you were coming today, Lo," she whispered, taking in the frown on her cousins forehead. "He'd like to talk to you though." she went on quietly, putting a hand on her shoulder and smiling small.
-x-x-x-
The rest of the night had ran smoothly and a few of the family had left by now. Lauren was left in a booth with Alice, Whitney and Tyler, Lucy and her sister currently. She was about to excuse herself to the ladies, standing up, when she made out the behind of someone stood at the bar she immediately recognized.
Her eyes slowly trailed up the defined arms covered tightly with his usual crisp, white, quarter-length shirt sleeves and over his perfectly styled, short, brown hair. This could be nobody other than...
She quickly ran over and tapped his shoulder, "Hello, Joey."