Chapter Ten

The following morning, over breakfast, Ruby was curious as to why Joey hadn't spent the night at the house.

"Joey?" VJ squeaked, looking up sharply from his breakfast cereal. "Is Joey back? Your Joey, Charlie?"

Ruby watched to see if her mother would cringe or panic but she just smiled.

"Yes, VJ, Joey's back," Charlie told him. "And she says she's really looking forward to playing some cards with you."

"I've got really good at them!" VJ announced. "I can show her loads of games."

Leah chuckled and ruffled his hair.

"That's great, Veej," she said.

She turned her attention to her housemate.

"So, she's back?" she asked Charlie.

"Yep!" Charlie grinned happily.

"What does that mean for… you know?" Leah asked worriedly, although she was pleased that Joey had returned.

She had always really liked her and had missed her when she'd left town.

"Well, Angelo and I broke up," Charlie admitted. "And… well, Joey and I are spending time together."

She looked a little nervously at VJ, not sure how much Leah would want explained to him.

"I do know you love each other, you know," he said. "Honestly, I'm nearly in high school! I do know about grown up stuff now!"

Charlie, Leah and Ruby all chuckled.

"So?" Leah prompted. "Now that everybody knows about grown up stuff, are you… back together?"

"We haven't exactly put a label on it," Charlie admitted. "She only showed up the day before yesterday. But yes, we're spending a lot of time together and all that time is pretty wonderful."

She smiled happily and it lit up her whole face.

"Do you know that that's the first time we've seen you smile like that since Joey left?" Ruby remarked.

Charlie looked at her thoughtfully.

"Yeah," she said. "I guess I haven't."

"Look, I have to go!" Joey barked at her phone, well aware that she was meant to be meeting Charlie on the beach over lunch.

Unfortunately, the police officer couldn't fail to show up to work every day so they had to take every moment that they could. Therefore, she did not want to be late.

"Yes, of course I know it's important!" Joey snapped to her caller. "And I know you want answers and blah, blah, blah but honestly, Chris, I have nothing to give you."

She listened to the reply and grimaced.

"I didn't mean it like that," she said.

She tried to speak again but Chris interrupted. She hung up, put her phone on silent, shoved it in her pocket and headed out into the sunshine. Nothing was going to ruin her mood.

"Hey!" Charlie greeted happily when she spotted Joey.

She jogged up to meet her, hugging her and kissing her softly on the mouth. Joey felt a joyful shiver run through her, not only because she was thrilled to kiss her, but thrilled that the woman who had once been so ashamed, was more than happy to kiss her in public. She opted not to comment, just to politely note it to herself. Every moment she spent with Charlie made her very glad that she had made the decision to return to Summer Bay.

"I um… I bought us some lunch," Charlie said, waving a little bag she'd brought from the Diner. "I guessed what you'd want. I hope that's okay."

"That's lovely," Joey said sincerely. "Thank you."

They were just about to sit down together when they spotted someone approaching them. Charlie's heart sank as she realised it was Angelo.

"I thought I might run into you," he said bitterly, as soon as they could hear him.

Charlie felt for Joey's hand. Angelo's look became angrier.

"So, this is the infamous Joey, I take it," he snarled.

Keeping her cool, Joey extended her right hand as a sign of courtesy.

"Pleased to meet you," she said. "I assume you're the infamous Angelo."

"Yeah, the guy whose girlfriend you just stole!" he said, ignoring her offer of a handshake.

She withdrew her own and put it in her pocket. She already disliked him and that had nothing to do with Charlie having dated him on and off for nearly a year.

"Charlie," Angelo said, turning to his ex-girlfriend. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"It's not about you," Charlie replied, very aware of his self absorbed nature being critical in their breakup. "It's about me and what I need and what I want."

"I'll give you whatever you want!" Angelo insisted desperately.

"I want Joey," Charlie replied.

He glared at the woman who had stolen Charlie back when he thought they were finally settled in their relationship. He turned back to Charlie and tried to take her hands but she wouldn't let him.

"Please?" he begged. "I know I haven't been a great boyfriend but I can change. Really, I can. You don't have to hook up with some girl and pretend to be a lesbian just to teach me a lesson."

Joey laughed and shook her head. Angelo hated her.

"Angelo, you know how I've always felt about Joey," Charlie reminded him as gently as possible.

She wasn't even angry with him anymore. He just had her sympathy.

"Yeah, when I eventually found out about her," Angelo snapped. "You would have kept her as your dirty, little secret if you'd been able to."

He turned back to Joey.

"Do you know how ashamed she's always been of you?" he asked.

"I wouldn't call it shame," Joey replied easily. "It can be a big adjustment when you're battling your own sexuality. Everyone has a different journey to take."

Charlie smiled at her, feeling reassured.

"Oh, is that why you think she cheated on you?" Angelo asked. "Because she was on a journey? Well, no, she wasn't. After having only been with you for thirty seconds, she was already craving what she was giving up on. She likes men and none of your tiny, little fingers could match up to what a guy can provide."

Joey looked a little disgusted but mostly amused. Charlie went back to being angry.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Joey replied.

Angelo turned back to Charlie, looking flustered.

"Please can we work this out?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," Charlie said. "It's over."

"Give me one more chance," he begged. "Just… just one date! And I'll prove myself to be better than anything she can give you. I will."

"I can't," Charlie said. "I'm sorry."

"Go on a date with me and go on a date with her and then make a choice," Angelo said.

He really was clutching at straws.

"No!" Charlie protested.

"That might be kind of fun," Joey remarked.

Next time… Joey and Angelo set some ground rules for their competition…