Charlie had been recovering at home for a week and it was her first day back at work. Joey was staying with Miles and Kirsty where they had a spare room available. At first Charlie had been upset, wanting her to stay with her but Joey knew that that couldn't happen while they were friends, nothing more but nothing less.
Charlie walked out into the kitchen; she missed not seeing Joey every morning, not being able to eat breakfast with her. She missed Joey her lover, her girlfriends, her confidant. Although Joey was her best friend and had seen her almost daily Charlie still hoped one day they would be so much more again.
Joey sat down in the diner and ordered her breakfast. She didn't notice a petite blonde enter but she did hear the shriek of joy directed at her. "Oh my god! Joey! It's been to long." Joey stood up and hugged her. "Ohh, Indiana. It is so good to see you again."
Joey gestured for Indiana to sit down with her. "Joey, I had know idea you were back in town. Brett told me you left for a long haul, I can safely say he was not happy to see me looking for you." "Yeah, I told him, I told him I was gay." Indiana sympathized with her. "How, how did it go?" Indiana asked being Brett's ex-girlfriend, she of all people knew that he was extremely homophobic. She was also the woman who Joey had fallen in love with. Joey had helped her realize that she liked woman and that was how she and Joey wound up falling in love only for Indiana to pack up and leave to London on a modeling contract. She was one of the latest models to hit the catwalks and was quickly becoming well known.
"Well, he kicked me out." Indiana looked shocked. "he what? Where did you go? What did you do?" Joey visible tensed at this question. Charlie. "I, I moved in with my girlfriend." Indiana spoke with a hint of sadness in her voice. "ohh, so you have a girlfriend." "had." "had?" Joey's voice filled with emotion. "yeah. She, she cheated on me." A single tear fell down her cheek as she spoke of her former lover and now best friend. "ohh, I'm sorry, Jo." "It's okay. We're still friends."
Indiana and Joey sat for another hour getting reacquainted finding out what had happened in one another's lives since they went there separate ways. "so this ex-girlfriend does she have a name?" Joey smiled, "yeah Charlie." "what's she like?" "She's the local senior constable. She has a younger sister, Ruby. She is sweet, kind, loving, caring and she saved me. She picked up the pieces when I was falling apart. She saved me and destroyed me in a matter of weeks but I forgave her and now we are just friends." Indiana noticed how Joey's eyes lit up when she spoke of Charlie. "you still love her don't you?" Joey immediately clammed up and refused to look Indiana in the eye. "I, I, it doesn't matter. We're friends now and that's all that we will ever be. I can't trust her and that's what it comes down to." Indiana smiled. "okay. Would you like to go out to dinner with me tonight." "umm, I would but…" "Come on. It won't be a date, just two friends wining and dining." "okay. Say 7." "okay, I'll meet you here then."
Indiana exited as Charlie entered the diner. She came over. "hey, Jo." "hi Charlie." Charlie smiled, Joey looked so radiating in her cargo pants and black beanie. "I just wanted to invite you over for dinner tonight. It'll be me, Leah, Vj and Ruby." "Sorry Charlie but I can't." Charlie looked disappointed. "please I promise it won't be weird or anything." "Sorry but I have plans tonight." "Plans?" Joey recognized the sadness in her voice. "yeah, Indiana one of my old friends is back in town and I agreed to go out to dinner with her tonight." Charlie felt a pang of jealousy but quickly covered it with a smile. "Indiana, your ex?" Joey suddenly felt guilty like she was doing something wrong by going out with Indiana. "Umm yeah." Charlie's face immediately fell. "Well, I better be going." Charlie rushed out the door forgetting the coffees that she had meant to be getting for the guys at work and sat on the beach. She didn't care that she was suppose to be back at the station or that she could feel the sand slowly creeping into her work boots. She sat there as the tears overcome her.