Chapter Ten
"Why?" Joey screamed, invisible to Charlie as she made out with Hugo on the beach. "Why are you doing this? Why won't you stop?"
She kicked sand hard but it didn't land on them. Tears burned her eyes as she sank down beside them, longing for it to stop. She analysed how much Charlie might be enjoying herself and whether she had ever really measured up when Charlie apparently loved sleeping with men so much.
"Why don't you love me enough?" she asked, her voice and heart breaking.
Before she knew it, the scene changed.
Joey stepped back beside Shane as she watched Charlie slip out of bed where Hugo, spent from their sexual exploits, was snoring quietly, face down on the mattress.
"Why are you putting me through this?" Joey asked.
"I'm sorry," Shane replied.
"Not you," she said. "Her."
He was surprised by the venom in her voice as they followed Charlie into the bathroom. The police officer washed her face vigorously and put the seat down on the toilet in order to sit on it. She rested her elbows on her knees and her face in her palms. Joey glanced at Shane before peering at her girlfriend. She swallowed uncertainly as Charlie began to weep.
"What have I done?" she heard her sob.
Anger took over and Charlie leapt up and punched the wall. It wasn't hard enough to bleed or to break anything but it was hard enough to hurt. Joey remembered commenting on the bruise and she had claimed it must have happened at work.
Joey stood too, watching Charlie's every move. She watched her clutch her hand in pain and then kick the wall instead. She rubbed her face and pulled her hair before hitting herself hard on the head.
"Stop!" Joey begged, reaching for her but not making contact for she was essentially a ghost. "Stop!"
She was exhausted from the emotions charging through her and her heart was beating too fast.
"Charlie…"
She wondered how she could hate her so much one minute and love her so much the next.
"What the fuck did I do?" Charlie cursed, hitting her head again.
She sank onto the floor in a heap and sobbed. She knew she had ruined everything.
"Well, that was fun," Charlie remarked sourly when she found herself back in her car.
She too had watched her night with Hugo and every scene sickened her.
"It had to be done, I'm afraid," Jack replied evenly.
"And how exactly is making that poor girl relive what I did to her going to make her love me again?" Charlie snapped bitterly.
"She needed to see why you did it," Jack told her. "And she needed to see how much you regretted it."
Charlie shook her head and cried. Before she knew it, the scene had changed.
It was still the night that Charlie and Joey hadn't been allowed to see each other. Joey let herself into the caravan that police had put her up in. They had offered a motel but the most local one was the one that Robbo had nearly killed her in so she hadn't fancied it much. And even thought she didn't really know Miles and Kirsty and their family all that well, she'd felt safe being near them and Alf on a long night away from the woman she loved.
Charlie watched her as she sighed heavily and sank down on the bed. She pulled her phone out and smiled as she flicked through photographs of Charlie. They comforted her and she made a mental note to get them printed. Maybe even the nicest one could go in a frame. That's what girlfriends did, wasn't it?
She sighed again and lay down, studying the ceiling. She picked up her phone but put it down again, knowing that Charlie could get into big trouble she tried to make contact.
"I miss you," she said. "I can't wait for this night to be over. I can't wait to be with you again."
Charlie leant against Jack as she cried. She so wished that night had gone a different way.
"You stupid fucking arsehole," Charlie muttered as she watched Hugo invite Joey further into the house in order to promote his business.
Her heart sank as she watched Joey find the earring on the desk. She hated herself and she hated Hugo too. Jack remained silent as he stood beside her.
"Why can't he tell that she's devastated?" Charlie wondered.
To her, it was plainly obvious that Joey had figured out the truth and was hurt and trying to hold herself together as she manipulated Hugo into confirming her fears. She hated him for falling for it, for dropping her in in and for helping her break Joey's heart.
The scene switched to the home they shared. Charlie watched herself hang up the phone before Joey arrived home. She shuddered even now at the level of anger in Joey's voice as she refused to listen to Charlie's excuses.
"Don't touch me," Joey hissed, when Charlie tried to touch her arm and get her to talk.
But both in the scene and observing it, Charlie and Joey both feared it was too late.
Next time… Charlie and Joey learn of Charlie's future relationship with Angelo…