madgal here is a bonus chapter because you asked so nicely, I hope you get to read it before you go to bed =0) and xtr thanks for you continuing reviews
Where Things Stand
Rated R
Chapter 36
Joey and Aden start walking back towards the Surf Club. Joey keeps nervously glancing sideways at Aden. He has not said much since she told him about what happened between her and Charlie. Charlie reliving painful memories and Storm helping her by walking her through it to get her to open up about what had happened all those years ago. She can take his silence no longer she blurts out in anguish, "you hate me don't you!"
"No I don't hate you Jo. I know how you and Charlie ended up having sex, believe me", Aden confesses with a tinge of self-disgust in his voice.
"What do you mean you know", Joey asks questioningly.
"Well you knew that I broke it off with Belle when she went to rehab", he says stopping and turning to face Joey, she nods. "Well not long after that I slept with Nicole. I did that because I was confused, hurt and angry. I'm not proud of myself for hurting Belle and Nic, but I know how easy our emotions can get us into trouble", Aden replies bitterly sad.
"But you didn't cheat on Belle with Nicole, you and Belle weren't together", Joey points out.
"But I felt like I was cheating on her, I told Nic that when she said the same thing", Aden explains.
Joey remains quiet for a bit, then she smile weakly, "I may have some hope then of salvaging my relationship with Storm, you and Belle got back together."
"Yeah, but you better be prepared to do some major grovelling", Aden lightly teases her.
"Aden, she is coming back, isn't she", Joey asks in panic.
"Calm down Jo, yeah I'm sure Storm will", Aden replies worried by her reaction.
"I wouldn't blame her if she didn't", Joey states miserably.
"Joey, if she wasn't coming back she would have told you that, Storm's not backwards in coming forward", he reassures her.
"Aden I cheated on her, and then I yelled at her for not telling me she knew Charlie 15 years ago to hide my own guilt. I haven't given her much cause to stick around", Joey remarks with disgust in herself.
"You made a mistake, granted a big one, but it was done in the heat of the moment. You didn't intentionally set out to cheat on her and I'd say Storm knows that. And in her profession she would have counselled people through the same thing, so she'll understand", he gently comforts.
"But it won't hurt any less, I betrayed her", she adamantly states. "Well now I know how Charlie felt, wanting for it to never have happened. Jade was right to say what she said, that I'm a low life cheater", Joey utters crushed.
"I didn't say it would hurt her any less, just that Storm can understand it better. And as for Jade, she is just being good protective friend. She gave me what for when I yelled at Storm", Aden replies solemnly.
"You yelled at Storm, why", Joey curiously inquires.
"She hit a nerve. Storm told me that I'm angry with Belle for leaving me all alone and she's right. But I wasn't going to admit it, so I told her she didn't know what the fuck she was talking about and that she didn't know how I feel", Aden confesses sadly.
"Sorry to say, she does Ade", Joey states unhappily.
"Yeah I know, Jade told me about her wife and kids, god I feel bad for her", Aden utters feeling genuine sorrow for Storm.
"Yeah, but as you can see she got through it, and so can you. Aden I know it hurts, so please let us, your friends, help you through it", Joey pleads with him and takes him in her arms.
"I just want her back Jo", Aden cries in a hoarse whisper holding her tight.
"I know you do", Joey replies softly, letting her tears flow.
After awhile they let each other go and wipe away their tears. Aden puts his arm around Joey and they continue to walk back in the direct of the Surf Club. "How about we go to Noah's and have a couple of drinks, plays some pool and put our messed up fucking lives on hold for awhile and have a bit of fun", Aden asks her, knowing they both need a distraction.
"Sounds good, but as I told you before, I left my wallet back at Storm's place", Joey informs him.
"Well you can pay me back", Aden offers.
"Okay, thanks", Joey answers smiling, glad that Storm asked Aden to stay with her.
The silence in Storm car is deafening, Jade awkwardly shifts in her seat wondering if Storm is ever going to speak to her. She had noticed that Storm had bruised and scraped knuckles, and when she asked her about it, Storm told her not to worry about them. Jade stares at Storm and out of frustration she moans, "why am I the one being punished, I'm not the one who cheated, you're not being fair!"
"I'm not punishing you Jade. Like I said, I don't want you and Joey at each other's throats. And before you say you wouldn't be, I know you Jade, you wouldn't be able to help yourself. I appreciate your loyalty, but Joey and I need to talk about what happened, alone", Storm firmly states.
"What's there to talk about, she cheated on you, piss her off", Jade harshly comments.
"Jade, unlike your ex cheating boyfriends, Joey didn't intentionally decide to cheat on me", Storm quietly shoots back. "So therefore I'm going to see if we can work things out."
"What's to work out, she cheated on you with Charlie, she'll do it again", Jade remarks stubbornly.
"And you wonder why I stopped talking to you. You still have your black and white glasses on. So until you take them off we have nothing to talk about", Storm states flatly, while intensely concentrating on the road.
"Storm I don't want to see you hurt anymore then you are now. Look I like Joey, she's lovely, but she isn't over Charlie! And all I can see coming from this mess is you getting your heart broken. Storm I don't want you to end up like you were when you came back from the States", Jade implores running her hand through her hair.
"That's not going to happen", Storm confidently tells her.
"Really, take a look at your hands", Jade sarcastically remarks.
"I punched a tree not because I wanted to hit anyone, but to stop the emotional pain I was feeling", Storm tiredly explains.
"Did it help", Jade asks curiously.
"Yeah it did", Storm plainly answers.
There is once again silence in the car, each deep in their own thoughts. "Storm, what will you do if Joey wants to get back with Charlie", Jade softly asks.
After a bit of thought, Storm replies honestly, "what can I do, if that is her decision, I'll have to let her go."
"And you could do that, just let her go", Jade asks in amazement.
"I'm not saying it would be easy. But you can't make someone want to be with you as much as you want them to stay. If you did, that's called imprisonment or deprivation of liberty and that is against the law, punishable by incarceration for 5-15 years", Storm answers, the last she adds to try and lighten the mood.
"So what you're telling me is if Joey leaves you, you won't go nuts", Jade asks tongue in cheek.
"Well not to the point of holding her captive, no. But I might become the old crazy lady with a house full of dogs though", Storm quips.
"Isn't that suppose to be a house full of cats", Jade jokes back.
"Sorry not a cat person, so it would have to be dogs", Storm sighs feigning mournful regret. They both laugh.
"Well sweetie, I hope you and Jo can get your relationship back on track. That is if she makes you happy and truly regrets what happened", Jade begrudgingly comments.
"Thanks, I think", Storm chuckles. Storm thinks, 'so how will I handle it if Joey wants to get back with Charlie?'
Charlie's skin stings from the bites and scratch marks as the warm water flows over it. The pain is not that bad but after looking at some of the marks, she realises that she will need to put some betadine on them. After drying herself and looking in the mirror, Charlie comes to another realisation, that she will need some help with a couple of the marks. If she asks Ruby for help she will cop another of her daughter's tongue lashing. If she asks Leah she will have to put up with the embarrassment of her friend seeing her semi-naked. She ops for the embarrassment, so she calls out to Leah.
Leah wonders what Charlie wants, so she makes her way to the bathroom. When she gets there, she softly knocks on the door and curiously asks, "Charlie?"
Charlie opens the door a bit, pokes her head around it, and nervously asks, "hey can you put some betadine on me please?"
Leah gives her a bemused look, "sure", she answer tentatively and waits. "Charlie if you want me to help, you need to let me in", Leah comments patiently.
"Oh, sorry", Charlie replies slightly embarrassed as she opens the door wider.
Once in the bathroom, Leah watches Charlie nervously fidgeting with the betadine bottle. Shaking her head, Leah gently takes the bottle from her. Leah then opens the cottonwool packet and removes some of the cottonwool. She turns to a slightly embarrassed Charlie who has a bath sheet wrapped around her and lightly asks, "so what am I swabbing?"
Charlie sees Leah's lips twitching trying to hide her amusement at Charlie's embarrassment, "not where you might be thinking", Charlie snorts.
"Why Charlie, shame on you, I was thinking your back", Leah answers giving Charlie her innocent look.
"Yeah right, I bet you were thinking lower down", Charlie replies sarcastically.
"Please, you really think I would want to touch your bum, never know where it has been. Wait, yes we do, Joey's hands", Leah quips.
Charlie closes her eyes and sighs with deep remorse over her actions earlier in the morning. However, her remorse cannot cover up the fact that the sex was incredible. She so misses being able to touch Joey and have Joey touch her. The only real regret Charlie feels is that because of her lack of control Joey has cheated on Storm. Storm, the woman who she is jealous of, and who put her feelings aside to help her again. "Yeah, what a fucking mess that one act of loss of control has caused", Charlie comments ruthful.
"Charlie, you didn't mean for it to happen, but hey, it did. So stop beating yourself up about it. Remember Joey didn't tell you to stop, so she is just as responsible as you", Leah pointedly states.
"Leah when she answered the door, she looked tired and unsure. I should have just asked her if we could have met later. I'm cop for god sake, I'm trained to observe and assess situations like this and not push", Charlie exclaims in disgust.
"Give yourself a break Charlie! You were tired, stressed and desperate to talk with the woman you're deeply in love with. You weren't thinking straight and it sounds like Joey wasn't either. All you can do now is see where things stand between you two", Leah utters in a calm sympathetic voice.
"And Storm, she has a part in things as well. God I told Joey that Storm used her position to seduce her, the same bloody accusation Brett levelled against me", Charlie remarks miserably.
"What was Joey's reaction when you said that about Storm", Leah curiously asks.
"She asked me did I think she was so weak minded to be taken advantage of. Then she said was that what I did. That made me stop and think and before I could answer, she told me she seduced Storm", Charlie responds unhappily, still smarting over Joey's comments.
"I can understand where Joey was coming from. People have a habit of thinking if you are nice all the time we can't stand up for yourself", Leah remarks with distain, people underestimate her as well.
"I know very well she can stand up for herself, you both hide steel fists in your velvet gloves", Charlie chuckles.
"And you hide your sensitive soul behind that ice bitch facade`", Leah teases back. "And yes I now know why you do that, self protection", she gently finishes off saying.
"So how am I going to make this right", Charlie asks forlorn.
"At the moment give them some space. And when you do talk with them, be honest and open", Leah suggests.
"You are a wise woman. Where would I be without you", Charlie genuinely asks.
"Drowning in your own self-pity, making everybody's life a living nightmare", Leah jokingly responds.
"Thanks, I'm not that bad", Charlie replies in slight disbelief.
"Yeah right Charlz, you just keep telling yourself that", Leah jibes.
"I will", she giggles. "So can you please put some betadine on a couple of scratches on my back", Charlie asks turning her back and exposing her back to Leah.
"I suppose so", Leah huff with good humour.
Leah gets to work putting some betadine on the cottonwool and dabbing it on the scratches. "If Joey has scratches that are like these on her, you girls certainly got enthusiastic", Leah giggles.
"Yes we were very feral. Something I've never experienced before and I must admit I didn't mind it", Charlie softly chuckles.
"Yes releasing your inhibition once in a while can be very liberating", Leah murmurs reflectively.
"Are you speaking from experience", Charlie jokingly asks.
"Yes", Leah says smugly.
"With who", Charlie asks in astonishment.
"That would be telling", Leah replies evasively.
"Leah", Charlie exclaims wanting to know.
"Sorry Charlie, but my lips are sealed", she answers enjoying frustrating Charlie. "Now if those are the only scratches you want me to put betadine on, I'll leave you to get dressed", Leah states putting the lid back on the bottle and the cottonwool in the wastebasket.
"Thanks Leah", Charlie gratefully says.
"No problem", Leah answers smiling and heading to the door.
"Oh Leah, I will get it out of you, who you got feral with", Charlie smilingly remarks.
"Good luck, cause I've got the right to remain silent", Leah laughs as she leaves the bathroom.
Charlie puts the betadine on the rest of the bite and scratch marks and wonders what she is going to say to Joey and Storm to try to fix things. Because she is deeply in love with Joey and she wants her back.
Ruby finds herself near the Diner after having to leave Leah's to think about what Charlie had told Storm about what she went through with the rape and her birth. All she can think about is how could Ross do that to Charlie. Practically disowning her and forcing her to give up being her mother, she is totally disgusted and furious at him. Out of the corner of her eye, she spies Nicole sitting on the pier. So Ruby decides to go and see how she is, since Roman is now in a military gaol, up on a manslaughter charge, awaiting his trial. As she gets closer she can see that Nicole is crying, rushing the rest of the way, Ruby sits beside her and gently asks, "hey Nic, what's wrong?"
"Nothing...everything. My life is shit! My mother doesn't want me, my dad is in gaol, Aden thinks I'm a skank, my best friend is dead! And today is my birthday and no one remembered", Nicole cries, mournfully staring out over the water.
"Nic, I didn't know today is your birthday, happy birthday. So you're 18, that makes you legal", Ruby replies feeling a bit guilty, she puts her arm around Nicole's shoulders.
"Thanks Ruby. Yeah I might go and get drunk, at least for a while then I won't feel the pain", Nicole states sinking deeper into her self-pity.
"Well that is a stupid way to spend your birthday! How about we do something fun, like go for a swim, get some munchies, drinks and watch some dvds. I know, we'll have a party", Ruby excitingly replies.
"Hold on Rubes, before you get carried away. I don't feel like going for a swim or having a party, but munchies, drinks and dvds sounds good", Nicole giggles.
"We could invite Annie, Jai, Xavier and Geoff", Ruby offers.
"That sounds like a party Ruby and I'm not really in a socialising mood. I was thinking just the two of us. That is, if you don't have any other plans", Nicole wearily asks.
"No I don't have any plans. So when do you want to do this", Ruby asks happy to try to make Nicole's 18th birthday a bit better.
"How about now", Nicole smiles.
"Ok, let's go", Ruby replies enthusiastically pulling Nicole to her feet with her.
After they hire some dvds and purchasing some munchies and Bacardi Breezes, they arrive at Miles' house. As Ruby puts the popcorn in the microwave, she turns to Nicole and asks, "so what's it like living here with Miles, Kirsty, Alf, Jai and Ollie?"
"Ok, a bit crowded, but I'd prefer to be back home", she answers quietly. "I went over to see Aden today to find out if we could be housemates again. You see I got a letter from dad's solicitor, he gave me the house", Nicole explains tightly.
"Wow Nic, that's good isn't it", Ruby asks tentatively.
"I thought so. But when I was telling Aden about it, he took it the wrong way. He thought I wanted him to leave and that is when her called me a skank", Nicole replies feeling like shit.
"Hey", Ruby says kindly, walking over to Nicole and she gives her a hug. "I don't think Aden meant it. He's a mess at the moment, he's angry and he doesn't know what to do with it", Ruby utters insightful after what Storm had said to him.
"Well it sounded like he meant it", Nicole weeps holding tight to Ruby.
"He's angry at Belle for dying and because he can't yell at her, he yells at everyone else", Ruby tells her.
"And how do you know this", Nicole asks gently pulling out of the hug.
"Storm told him that", Ruby reveals.
"Who's Storm", Nicole curiously asks.
"A psychologist and Joey's girlfriend", Ruby tells her.
"Joey's back and she has a girlfriend, how's Charlie", Nicole asks sympathetically.
"She's devastated and then things go downhill from there. Look can I tell you later about that fucked up saga. I just want to forget the dramas and have a fun time with you watching some movies", Ruby responds sounding a bit stressed.
"Sure, the popcorn's done. Let's go to my room and watch them there so we won't be disturbed", Nicole offers.
"Cool, let's do it", Ruby smiles.
Halfway through the first movie, a sad bit happens and this triggers Nicole's loneliness and sadness and she starts to quietly sob. Ruby notices and she moves across Nicole's bed and takes her into her arms and lightly rubs Nicole's back, "let it out Nic", Ruby whispers.
Nicole clings to Ruby and cries her hurt out, feeling safe to do so, trusting Ruby. Ruby's heart goes out to her wounded friend, who has been forced to endure misfortune after misfortune, some of her own making. Ruby feels some kinship with her, both experiencing some kind of abandonment, drawing them together. Nicole lifts her head and gives Ruby a weak smile, "Thanks Rubes", she is grateful for Ruby's closeness.
Impulsively Ruby leans forward and kisses Nicole on the forehead, "you're welcome", Ruby smiles back.
Overwhelmed by Ruby's tenderness and comforting presents, it seems so natural to Nicole to feel the melting softness of Ruby's lips on hers. Alarmed they both pull away, Nicole starts to apologise, "Ruby I'm sorry, I..."
Ruby interrupts her by placing a finger on Nicole's lips, "Sshh". Ruby leans forward to meet Nicole's lips again and again with tender brief kisses that become deep, unhurried and sensual. The both of them have the song 'I Kissed a Girl' running through their minds and thinking they definitely like it.