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Brax stood with his arms crossed staring at his mother, for once be could see she was sober and she actually looked well. It was different, refreshing from the last time he saw her.
"How did you hear about Charlie?" Brax asked and Cheryl smiled.
"I keep in contact with Jade, she didn't want you to know. Email is wonderful." Cheryl said with a smile as she looked around the house. "I see you're moving, would you like a hand?"
"Uh Kyle, go next door and explain to Charlie why I hung up on her." Brax said and Kyle nodded as he headed out of the house.
"What's going on mum? Why are you here?" Brax asked suspiciously.
"I want to be apart of the family."
^..^
Kyle walked through the front door of Charlie's house seeing it was wide open. Charlie sat in the middle of the lounge, packing Mia's toys into a box.
"Hey Kyle." Charlie smiled warmly as she looked up to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
"Hey Charls, Brax wanted me to tell you why he hung up on you."
"Yeah?" Charlie asked. "Why's that?"
"Mum showed up."
"Your mum?" Charlie asked. "I thought she wasn't around."
"Well, apparently she had kept contact with Jade and she told her about you," Kyle said as he joined Charlie in packing up the toys. "And technically she's not my mum, she's their mum. But apparently she's changing." Kyle said with a roll of his eyes.
"You don't believe her?" Charlie asked and Kyle shrugged.
"I was 12 when I came to live with Brax, he was already living away from home. Case and Heath were living with him," Kyle explained and Charlie nodded. "I don't know much about her cause I've only met her a couple of times."
"Does she have another reason to be here?"
"I dunno, I just hope its a good one." Kyle said as Tamara came strolling into the house plonking down beside Charlie.
"Cheryl's back." Tamara said amused as she laid across the floor and picked up a ball rolling it in her hands.
"How long have you known Cheryl?" Charlie asked curiously, she didn't know a lot about how Tamara fit into the family.
"Oh I've only met her once but last time she was around it was horrible." Tamara said and Kyle chuckled.
"That's an understatement." Kyle said and Tamara nodded.
"How long have you been living with Brax?" Charlie asked and Tamara looked at her.
"Since I was 15, my mum's a douche bag. Brax is a lot like the father I never had" Tamara said and Kyle raised an eyebrow.
"Is the father you never had." Kyle interrupted and Charlie shushed him.
"She's talking."
"Brax is just that type of guy. Mum never cared if I went to school, if I ate or anything like that. Then I met Kyle which means I met Brax and man did my life change."
"He is a really caring person." Charlie murmured.
"He is, you picked a good one." Tamara smiled.
"I did," Charlie smiled back. "So how did you meet the Braxtons?"
"I came to Summer Bay when I was fifteen, I got sick of Mum never giving a shit about me," Tamara answered. "I started looking for a job and met Brax, he hired me on the spot and offered me a place to live and the rest is history."
"We started dating around six months after she started working at Angelos, we had mostly the same shifts."
"Brax didn't exactly approve at first." Tamara said and Kyle chuckled.
"That's an understatement, he grounded us both and banned us from being in the same room as each other." Kyle said and Charlie laughed.
"Really?"
"Really, he only let up when he realised we were sneaking around anyway. I had to promise to keep my grades up and Kyle had to promise he would still go to uni when he finished school. Other then that Brax was great." Tamara said with a smile.
"Kyle!"
Kyle grinned as Mia ran up to him and gave him a huge hug. "Hey Munchkin."
"Where's my hi?" Tamara asked in a teasing voice.
"Hi Tammy."
"Hi sweetheart" Tamara said with a smile.
"Kyle come look at this!" Mia begged and Kyle nodded.
"Alrighty, show me the way." Kyle said as he stood up and Mia tugged him from the room in a hurry causing Charlie and Tam to chuckle.
"My kids are gonna get a wake up call living with Brax aren't they? I'm so lenient." Charlie said with a sigh and Tamara shrugged.
"Nah Brax is pretty lenient, well I mean theres boundaries and if we do cross them well lets just say you don't want to do that. But he's great just don't expect any of your daughters to be allowed to date until they're like 40."
Brax sighed as he walked into Charlie's house and sat down on the couch pushing some of the toys aside.
"How's cruella?" Tamara asked and Brax raised an eyebrow at the nickname she adopted for his mother.
"What have I told you?" Brax asked and Tamara rolled her eyes.
"Not to call her that around the children."
"Tamara," Brax warned. "Sorry, how's Cheryl?" Tamara asked as she turned to Charlie with a knowing look, Charlie giggled her kids were in for a wake up call.
"Apparently changed, you and Kyle head home. She wants to speak to you both." Brax said and Tamara groaned.
"Brrraaaxx!" Tamara complained but Brax gave her a stern look.
"Now."
"This is ridiculous." Tamara whined as she stood up and walked out of the house slamming the door, she really didn't like Cheryl.
"Is she okay?" Charlie asked and Brax sighed.
"I'll talk to her later." Brax promised Charlie as he helped her up from the floor and onto his lap.
"You look exhausted." Charlie commented and Brax sighed.
"I know."
"Are you okay with your mother being here?"
"I don't know to be honest," Brax said. "She said she's here to be apart of the family."
"Do you believe her?" Charlie asked and Brax sighed.
"She never seemed to care about us as kids, she was always off boozing and gambling. She left me to look after Casey and Heath. It was like I was being their parent," Brax paused, pushing some hair out of his face. "I don't know whether to believe her now. Do you believe that people can change?"
"I think they can if you give them the chance," Charlie answered. "It depends on how much they want to change though."
"Well she doesn't seem drunk today, so thats a start," Brax said as he pulled her closer to him. "If I give her a chance, then the kids will be fine they'll love it. I can't say she doesn't love her grandchildren because she adores them. Casey will adapt but Kyle and Tamara, it's going to be like world war three." Brax said exasperated and Charlie laughed.
"It won't be that bad, from the discussion we were just having they respect you. They'll respect your decision" Charlie assured him but Brax chuckled.
"You clearly don't know them, you can sit with me when I tell them. Then you'll see." Brax said and Charlie smiled.
"I bet you $10 they are fine." Charlie said and Brax raised an eyebrow.
"Really?"
"Yes really." Charlie said and Brax shook his head.
"Okay, deal." Brax said as he leaned in to kiss her, seeking comfort in her embrace.
"I love you Brax."
"I love you too Charlie, I can't wait to wake up to you every morning."
^..^
"Grandma, why are you here?" Taylah asked with a smile.
"I wanted to see how you all were doing." Cheryl said with a smile on her face.
"We're doing great!" Chase said excitedly as he crawled into her lap. "Hey grandma!"
"Look how big you are!" Cheryl exclaimed as she ran a hand through Chase's hair, just as Charlie and Brax walked through the door. "You must be Brax's new love, I'm Cheryl."
Charlie looked at Brax. "It's nice to meet you." Charlie said as she extended her hand out for Cheryl to shake. Instead, Cheryl put Chase down and gave Charlie a hug.
"It's nice to meet you too, Jade has told me a lot about you."
"She has now?" Charlie asked. "I hope they were all good things."
"Of course they were Charlie." Jade exclaimed and Charlie smiled.
"Now come sit, tell me about yourself. You're a mother I heard."
"Mother of 9." Charlie admitted and Cheryl smiled.
"Wow, lots of work but all joys I assume. I hope you will bring them across for me to meet them, after all they are my new grandchildren." Cheryl said as she looked up at Brax who was studying her unsurely.
"Of course I will, they are busy packing at the moment." Charlie said and Cheryl nodded.
"I understand, plus I have six here to catch up with. I've spoken to Casey," Cheryl said and Brax raised an eyebrow. "He's fine, grown into a fine young man. He went to let Heath know I was here," Cheryl said as she looked at Charlie again. "You will have coffee with me once you are settled in your new home."
"Uh of course."
"Good, I told Darcy and Taylah I would help them pack away the kitchen. Brax you will send Tamara and Kyle to talk to me won't you." Cheryl asked and Brax frowned.
"Kyle is next door with my daughter you'll be lucky to get her to let him go." Charlie said with a chuckle.
"I sent Tam over, didn't she make it?" Brax asked and Cheryl shook her head.
"No, I didn't see her arrive."
"Cas, is Tam in her room?" Brax called down the hallway.
"No!"
"She's in so much trouble. I'll find her." Brax fumed as he stalked out into the backyard.
"She's a teenager." Cheryl shrugged as she got up to head to the kitchen.
"Here let me help." Charlie said as she shook her head to clear her thoughts from Brax.
"Now tell me about those 9 children of yours." Cheryl asked as she opened a box.
^..^
Brax walked up the stairs to Angelo's and into the restaurant, his eyes immediately found Tamara who was picking at a piece of pizza.
"Tam, you are in so much trouble." Brax told her as he dropped in a chair.
"Why?" Tamara asked. "You know I don't like Cruella!"
"Don't call her that Tamara," Brax said. "You need to talk to Mum."
"She doesn't like me!" Tamara exclaimed as she picked up her waterglass and refilled it. "I don't want to hear her nitpicking about everything."
"You're going home to talk to her, she wants to apologise." Brax explained and Tamara shrugged.
"I don't care."
"Fine if you wanna play it this way, you're grounded."
"I'm 18!"
"You live under my roof," Brax told her. "And my house, my rules."
"Brax!" Tamara complained.
"Don't Brax! me. Tamara, either you talk to her or you don't. It's up to you."
"I can't believe we've finally moved in," Charlie told Brax the next day as they snuggled on a lawn chair, watching the kids play in the pool, cooling down after a long day of unpacking. "It feels so surreal. We've got our own place."
"I know baby." Brax said, pressing a kiss on Charlie's hair.
"So have you managed to get Tam to talk to your mother?" Charlie asked.
"Nup," Brax shook his head. "She's being really difficult about it all."
"Do you blame her though?" Charlie asked. "It seems like Cheryl has given her and Kyle a lot of crap."
"I know but we can't start fresh until Tam has spoken to her. Kyle gave it a go, and look at him and my mum now they are talking." Brax said as he pointed across the yard were Cheryl was sitting with Kyle and Mia.
"So your solution is grounding her?" Charlie asked and Brax sighed.
"I know what your thinking but don't, I'll let her off the hook when she apologizes to me for talking back like she did. Then its her choice to talk to mum. I can't force but she'll come round I guess."
"Oh look talk about her and she appears" Brax teased as Tamara dropped down next to him.
"Talking about me?"
"We were, since Charlie is a permanent part of our lives I'll talk to her about you lot since you're a troublemaker" Brax joked and Tamara managed a small smile.
"I'll speak to her, its what you want right?" Tamara asked and Brax shrugged.
"Only if you want to" Brax said and Tamara nodded.
"I will, and I'm sorry for yelling at you" Tamara muttered and Brax nodded.
"You're grounded for tomorrow and then your free" Brax said and Tam nodded.
"I guess that's fair," Tamara said as she got up and leaned down to kiss his cheek. "I'll go get this over with."
Tamara stood in front of Cheryl who was watching Kyle attempt to teach Mia how to swim, looking up she gave a timid smile noticing Tamara.
"Lets talk."
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