Chapter 25

As instructed by Max, Joey hadn't made any contact with Lauren in weeks, he sent the text telling her he understood but didn't want anymore to do with her. He'd come to the conclusion that, despite being madly in love with her, maybe a baby wasn't the best thing for them. Okay, who was he kidding?! He was a mess. His Mum had noticed, Alice had noticed, and even Derek had an inkling something wasn't right.

Joey laid on his bed for the third day in a row, thanking God it was the end of term and he had two weeks off. Since breaking up with Lauren he'd ignored her for a week, just powering through as normal sending her just one text. He was more than concerned about her, knowing how unstable she probably was and being pregnant on top of it all was something that was playing on his mind.

After that week, he'd gone downhill, gradually letting things get on top of him. His room was a complete mess, just like he was. There were clothes strewn across the floor, plates, glasses and cups piled high on his desk, the surface of it unseen due to the copious amounts of scrap paper and revision notes. The curtains were drawn too, blocking any natural light from entering the room.

Sara knocked gently on his door, knowing all too well she wouldn't receive an answer. She opened the door and walked in, her heart sinking as she saw her son fast asleep on his bed, covers piled to the side as he lay starfished across the mattress. She felt so sorry for him. Never had she seen him be so protective of someone, even with Alice he had his limits but Lauren he'd gone above and beyond . He loved Lauren very much and would have been proud to have her as the mother of his child. But that wasn't an option anymore and not by choice either. When faced with the decision of "break her heart and leave her or stay with her and have your Dad find out", Joey didn't see there was much of a choice. He'd choose to protect Lauren every single time.

He had concluded over the weeks that the text from Lauren probably was sent when she wasn't in the best state of mind. It didn't matter anymore though, if she had realised what she was sending or she hadn't, she obviously wasn't bothered. There'd been no attempt for her to get him back, not even a call or a passed on message via Abi. Joey had given up. He was done, with everything and everyone.

Taking a deep breath, Sara picked up the clothes from the floor and piled them into the laundry basket she was holding. Setting the basket in the hallway, she began to clear up the plates, cups and glasses, before moving to stack his papers. The room looked more like a bedroom again once she was finished. You could see the floor for one, and all it needed was a quick dust and a vacuum.

All the time she'd been cleaning in there, Joey hadn't stirred. He was and always had been a heavy sleeper, but over the last week his sleep seemed to deepen and it was proving difficult to wake him as the days went by.

"Joey, son, come on, you need to get up" Sara sighed. There was a mumbled response of refusal before he shifted and turned in the bed. "Joey, you need to get up. You need to collect your exam results"

Sitting up, he wiped his eyes and glanced around the room… "You cleaned?"

"Just now" she informed him "it was a mess and so are you. I know you're hurting but you need to try and get some normality back. There's only so long your Dad will believe you're sick"

Joey watched his Mum, Sara turning her head in the direction of the door as she knew Joey had noticed.

"Has he hit you?" he questioned "Mum?"

Turning back to him, she took his hand "Leave it, Joey, it's fine"

"It's not fine, Mum" he proclaimed "he's hit you"

She nodded "He found out you were planning on going to your Grandma's. He doesn't know why don't worry"

"You need to get it looked at Mum..."

"Honestly, Joey, leave it, please" she begged "if you stand up to him he'll just hurt you and I don't want that. Please, for me?"

Joey nodded his head eventually and smiled at her weakly.

"Thank you" she whispered, kissing his cheek softly "now go and have a shower"

Doing as he was asked, he left the room and made his way across the landing to the bathroom. Hearing the door shut and the shower start to run, Sara composed herself and stood up, making Joey's bed and opening the curtains and the window before leaving the room, laundry basket and collected plates, cups and glasses preciously in hand.

*JL*JL*JL*

Things at number 5 weren't fairing much better. Lauren was sulking around the house, moving from room to room with a miserable look on her face as she went. Pregnancy was making her uncomfortable as she progressed further along. The baby seemed to have had a growth spurt over the last week which meant Lauren's bump had become more prominent. She stood from the sofa and plodded her way into the kitchen, flicking her phone in her hand aimlessly as she went. She'd received a text message from Joey reiterating what Max had ordered him to do and that was it for her. Lauren made herself read the text over and over, wondering what she'd done in the space of a few hours that could have caused things to go so drastically wrong. Maybe Joey had been humouring her all along and realised he didn't want to be a part of it after all? Maybe it was just him trying to stop her from hurting herself. She just didn't know.

"Lauren, are you okay?" Tanya asked as she walked into the kitchen, having watched her daughter leave the living room. The tired looking teen sat staring into her mug of now cold tea, her eyes glassy with tears "Lauren?"

"Hmm?" she questioned

"Are you okay, darling?" Tanya inquired

"if you mean am I about to go and slit my wrists then… no I'm not"

"now you know I didn't mean that… you can talk to me you know"

"Joey... he changed his mind, he doesn't love me mum" she sobbed "he won't answer my calls, he's ignoring my texts. I thought he was in this with me"

"I'm sorry, Lauren" she replied, smiling weakly at her eldest daughter "maybe it's for the best?"

"What do you mean?" she questioned, pulling her cardigan tighter around her bump

"Maybe this is a blessing in disguise?" she asked "there's lots of people out there who would kill for a baby, you could give them that"

"You want me to give it up for adoption?" Lauren inquired

"I'm just saying you should consider your options carefully" Tanya informed her "do you really think you're ready for a baby, Lauren? You're only 17. Adoption can be really quick these days, especially if you plan it before you give birth. They even let you have a say in the parents"

Lauren nodded her head "I'll think about it. Maybe it would be for the best. That way me and Joey could both move on"

"Why don't you have a week to think about it and then I can make some calls if it's what you want?" Tanya suggested

"Okay, I'm going to go upstairs" she replied, pushing herself from the chair "Mum?"

"Yes, love?" Tanya inquired

"Would you support me if I decided to keep the baby?" she questioned

Tanya forced a smile onto her face… "Of course I would, and so would your Dad" Lauren nodded and disappeared upstairs.

"What did she say?" Max asked his wife as he walked through from the living room

"I think she'll do it. The adoption I mean" she informed him "I'll call the woman at social services tomorrow. We are doing the right thing, aren't we, Max?"

"Of course we are" he replied as he massaged Tanya's shoulders "she keeps that baby and there's a world of humiliation, for us and for her"

:( so Lauren's pretty much distraught, Joeys become a little hermit and things just seem to be going on a downward spiral! One more to post tonight so keep those reviews coming ! Xxx