Three days after her birthday, Jody's passport had finally arrived and she and Tyler went to the cinemas at the first opportunity. After much fuss over requiring photo ID, Tyler hadn't been asked to provide it anyway when it came to collecting their tickets, likely because he already appeared to be sixteen or seventeen, though Jody had, just as she'd expected.
As always, the pair of them took their time buying popcorn and whatnot to avoid sitting through thirty minutes of trailers and advertisements. Suddenly feeling the urge to go to the toilets, Jody handed her bag of popcorn to Tyler before running off to the ladies'. After quickly using the loo and washing her hands, she pulled her phone out of her pocket to check if she'd received any new messages. She hadn't.
She stood next to the dryer, questioning her decision to text Luke while full well knowing that Millie could see the text and misunderstand it. Sometimes, she thought she subconsciously thrived on trouble; she could've easily made it clear in the text that she was Luke's sister, but had chosen not to. Given that no one had replied, she could only assume that Millie had seen the text first and confronted Luke about it, and that Luke no longer wanted to talk to her because of it.
Turning her phone off and shoving it back into her pocket, she walked back out into the lobby to see Tyler chatting with a vaguely familiar girl. As she drew closer to the pair, she recognised the other girl as a Year Nine (or rather Year Ten) pupil.
"Oh, Jody," Tyler started as if he'd just noticed her presence. "This is Hannah. Hannah, Jody."
Jody narrowed her eyes at him as he passed her popcorn to her. "Thanks," she muttered, her eyes darting between him and 'Hannah'. "How many Hannahs do you know?"
"Err, just the one," he answered, and Hannah raised an eyebrow. "You know, Bill's sister?"
"Oh, you're Bill's sister?" Jody asked, trying not to let her sense of shock seep into her tone of voice.
This was not the leggy and tall dark-haired beauty she'd seen walking through the quad with her friends when she'd first found out that Tyler was dating someone. In fact, this was probably one of the girls she'd assumed to be Hannah's friends: one of the skinny, short-to-medium height brunettes.
"Yes," Hannah replied cheerfully, not seeming to be even the slightest bit jealous that her boyfriend (?) was at the movies with his ex-girlfriend (according to school gossip). "He's mentioned you from time to time. You sit next to him in...?"
"Maths, yeah," Jody supplied, feeling awkward. What had Bill said about her? He was a mate, but the sort of annoying one she'd only made friends with because they shared a few classes and mutual friends. "What's the idiot said? Nothing bad, I hope."
Hannah laughed, and Jody suddenly saw why Brad had spoken so 'highly' of her. Despite looking average at first glance, she was incredibly pretty in the girl-next-door kind of way. "No, of course not," she assured, before glancing at her phone. "Oh, I've got to go: my date's waiting inside for me. It was nice catching up with you, Tyler, and nice meeting you, Jody."
"See ya!" Tyler called after her as she scurried towards one of the entrances to a block of screening rooms.
Looking at Tyler and suggesting that they finally go to their own allocated screening room, Jody silently processed what had just taken place. Firstly, Hannah wasn't who she'd thought she was, and secondly, said girl was definitely not Tyler's girlfriend. As the staff checked their tickets and let them in, Jody wanted so badly to ask Tyler what exactly was going on between him and Hannah—if they were casually dating or had stopped seeing each other altogether—but the words got stuck in her throat. It wasn't really her place, was it? After all, he had told her that he and Hannah were none of his business, just as she and Brandon were none of his.
Still, as she followed him into Screen Four, she couldn't squash the wave of relief brought on by the knowledge that Tyler wasn't currently taken, even though she was well aware that she had no right to feel that way. She was still taken, even if he wasn't.
.:. QK .:.
"You know," Tyler began, pushing the front door open, "that idiot Bill spoilt the film for me weeks ago."
"What?!" she exclaimed as she followed him into the lobby, outraged. No wonder he hadn't been as shocked as she had by some of the plot twists. "When I see him again, I'm gonna kill him!"
"Still, it was fun watching you react to the twists. You were funnier than the actual movie," he commented, playfully winking at her. She responded to his cheek by swatting him on the arm and as they shared a quiet smile, eyes sparkling (at least his were), it was almost as if they'd gone back to before their explosive argument, before Hannah, and most importantly, before Brandon. Almost.
She tore her gaze away from him, returning to reality. Their friendship was so fragile these days; she couldn't afford to complicate things further by responding positively to his borderline flirtatious behaviour. Time had not reversed, no matter how much it felt like it had, and she had a duty to herself and to Brandon.
"They're back!" she heard Taz yell, and was grateful for the welcome distraction.
Joseph came bounding around the corner, or rather the bookshelf next to the sofa, and stopped short of actually colliding into Tyler. "Jody, your brother's here! In the Quiet Room!"
If it was anyone other than Joseph telling her this, she would have thought it was a joke, because Luke had to know better than to show up unannounced by now. What game was he playing? He hadn't bothered to text her back or arrange another meeting via Simon, making her agonise over how she'd messed things up for good for three whole days, but now he was here, just like that? She wasn't impressed, not least because his showing up randomly meant that the reparation of their relationship was no longer happening on her terms. She'd known she was giving up some sort of control over the whole situation when she'd texted him and thus revealed her number to him but she'd hoped he'd continue to respect her wishes by only visiting Ashdene Ridge when she wanted him to. Apparently not.
Thanking Joseph, she quickly headed for the room she often lurked around in these days when the hustle and bustle of sharing a house with several bored kids all day got to her. For his part, her sneaky brother at least had the decency to appear sheepish upon seeing her. She merely glanced his way as she closed the door behind her before sitting down on the sofa opposite him. He didn't say anything the first few seconds so she decided to cut to the chase herself.
"Any reason you didn't text back?" she asked, doing nothing to keep the bitterness out of her voice. He seemed to be taken aback by her straightforwardness but she took no notice. "Or at least arrange a meeting through Simon like you were meant to?"
"Hold on, Jody," he started, his features hardening. He looked shockingly like Kingsley somewhere around the eyes, giving her some pause. She'd never actually seen him angry before. Upset, yes, but never angry. "You texted me at risk of Millie finding out. If anything, I should be the one getting annoyed!"
"Why, because I let your precious girlfriend find out that you have a little sister?!" she spat, her voice rising. Why the hell was he so scared of his own girlfriend, especially one he was planning to live with? It was disconcerting, to say the least.
He scoffed. "I deleted it before she could see it."
The implication was not lost on her: once again, he'd voluntarily given up the chance to contact her for that woman. "So you basically deleted my number again?! That's great! Thanks for that!"
"Yes, I did, but I realised something," he said, clasping his hands together. "You're probably going to text me again and again until she eventually does find out about you."
She blinked, a heavy crushing sensation taking root in her chest. Was that what he thought of her? Honestly, if she'd known of his low opinion of her sooner, she would've found a way to tell Millie the truth ages ago. She pressed her lips together as the horrible truth slowly dawned on her: her brother didn't know her at all. He couldn't, could he, not if he thought she was the type to go around ruining lives for the sake of it? Then again, she'd been a different person at nine-years-old and perhaps that Jody was the one he saw when he looked at her—a venomous vindictive little brat. There was no doubt she would've turned out to be exactly that if not for her carers and friends. "Why didn't you just block my number then?"
"I could've," he answered, nodding slowly, "but I honestly don't think it would've been enough to stop you."
Any other time, she would've taken such a statement as a compliment but she knew it wasn't one coming from her disgruntled brother. To quote Kingsley, he was too p****-whipped to see her as anything other than a threat to his relationship, just like their father had been. Or Luke and Kingsley's father, anyway; she hadn't forgotten her incomplete birth certificate just yet.
"So?" she prompted, already tired of the conversation. He obviously had a point, so why wouldn't he get to it already? It wasn't like he was even a tiny bit bothered about potentially hurting her feelings.
"So I've decided it's time you meet her," he responded, sighing as if he was proposing a last resort. It was difficult not to feel offended.
"Why?" she questioned, crossing her arms in a show of unhappiness. "I don't want to meet her."
"You've got to," he insisted weakly, a pleading edge to his voice. "Otherwise, she'll never believe me."
She almost snorted. Honestly, why was he even with that bitch? What good was a girlfriend who constantly required proof of everything in her man's life? Granted, he hadn't said 'constantly' but if Millie needed to see a little sister to believe in her existence, it was all too easy to imagine what else she demanded evidence for.
"You could just show her a photo of us."
He paled. "I couldn't."
"Why not? It's not as if—" Oh, of course... If Luke couldn't keep her number on his phone because Millie would think it was another woman's, how could he dare to keep a photo of her on it? It seemed like Millie wasn't above viewing Luke as a nonce. "Yeah, alright," she relented, resisting the urge to roll her eyes as his eyes literally shone.
He could think what he wanted (as he already did regarding her character) but she hadn't agreed for his sake. Given his opinion of her, she wasn't so sure she wanted him in her life, anyway. No, she was going to do this for her own peace of mind; if seeing Millie was what she had to do to finally put an end to the months-long nonsense caused by Luke's lies, she'd gladly do it.
.:. QK .:.
An entire week passed before Luke arranged for Jody to meet the supposed love of his life because he'd been busy working his new graduate job all week. She'd nearly forgotten that while pupils got a six- to seven-week break during the summer, adults enjoyed no such luxuries unless they booked annual leave which was only a few weeks in its entirety as opposed to collective months of school holidays. Apparently, Christmas wasn't even an automatic holiday! She wrinkled her nose. This atrocious lack of time off was one aspect of adulthood she was happy to wait for.
Whether by chance or design, Luke had picked the park near Gray's house for their meeting, and that was how she found herself sitting there on a bench, feeling totally juvenile as little kids and their parents played together around her. A little girl being pushed by her father on one of the baby swings caught her attention in particular, and she couldn't help but imagine Gray and his daughter—other daughter, of course—doing something similar together shortly after he'd walked out. Perhaps even the day after; Gray's daughter hadn't appeared to be significantly younger than her, meaning he'd started bed-hopping far earlier than she'd initially thought. Maybe she wasn't his only accidental daughter...
"Hello."
Tearing her gaze away from the tiny girl and her daddy, Jody turned her head to see Luke standing next to the bench, alone.
"Hi," she replied, craning her neck to see if there was anyone hovering around him, just in case Millie was petite like her. Alas, it was just him.
"I'm sorry; she refused to leave the house," he explained, digging his hands into his pockets like he used to. Like old Luke used to. "I told you she was difficult."
Her ears perked up at the mention of the house, and she almost didn't hear what he said after that. Their last talk had been so short and fraught with tension that she'd neglected to ask him if he'd moved into his new place yet. She hoped to God that Millie was pulling her own weight around the house.
"You found a place? You didn't tell me." He opened his mouth to respond but she continued, "Oh yeah, you couldn't because you deleted my number again."
"Jody..." he trailed off, looking uncomfortable. Apparently, he had no intention of sitting down next to her. "Come on, this isn't like you."
"Isn't it?!" she snapped, raising her eyebrows in mock confusion. "I thought I was the type to do anything in order to expose you in front of Millie!"
"That's not what I said at all," he protested tiredly. Oh, so now she was exhausting to deal with: a right nuisance of a younger sister.
She leant back against the bench, donning the fakest smile she could muster. "What did you mean then? Because it sure sounded like you were dissing me..."
"Only that us Jacksons can do anything if we put our minds to it." She laughed under her breath. She didn't know about Luke but Denise and Kingsley had only ever used their brains to commit crimes and make immoral money.
"I'm not a Jackson," she pointed out, wondering if he even knew about her name change. "Not anymore."
"Yes, I know," he answered, before hesitating a little. "But you're not a Gray either."
"Hmm... My passport says I am." He didn't react. "So does my birth certificate, even though Kingsley Gray isn't on it." She fixed him with a look, silently asking him if he was legally fatherless as well, and he shifted almost imperceptibly but didn't say anything. She sighed. This conversation was pointless, and she'd wasted a journey coming here. "Why are you here, Luke?"
He regarded her in perplexity. "I couldn't just leave you out here waiting for me and Millie."
"No," she said exasperatedly, lazily resting her head against the back of the bench. "I mean why are you really here? You could've just called Mike or May-Li to let me know that you couldn't make it because of your girlfriend."
"But I did make it," he stated, squaring his shoulders. She just stared at him, not saying a word, and his pathetic attempt at a smile quickly turned into a frown. "Wait, you think I only wanted to see you to introduce you to Millie?"
She blinked at him. "Didn't you?"
"Of course not!" he exclaimed, finally sitting down next to her. "I wanted to catch up."
Not knowing what to make of that apparently truthful answer, she turned away from him and stared straight ahead. The baby girl and her father were no longer there, having been replaced by a male toddler and his mother.
"Did Mum ever take me to the park?" she asked, nodding at the boy to indicate what age she was referring to. "I can't remember."
"She might've," he responded after a beat, though she was sure he was lying to make her feel better. "I was pretty young myself."
"You would've been eight or nine." She remembered nearly every family meeting/event that'd happened after she'd turned eight. It was hard not to. "It's not that young." She swallowed deeply, recalling the rare good times she and Denise had had before the social services took her. "I'd hoped that she at least liked me when I was small but she didn't, did she?"
She caught him squirming out of the corner of her eye. It was all the answer she needed. "If it's any... consolation, she didn't like me very much either. She just gradually stopped caring after Dad left and Kingsley joined the gang."
"But she still tried to make you feel bad for not being good to her," she muttered, the time Denise guilt-tripped her to help trick Grant coming to mind.
Luke made a noise of agreement, and for the first time since Millie happened, Jody felt like she shared a real connection with her brother, even if it was mostly due to mutual commiseration over their mother. Now that Millie knew, could they finally resume a normal brother and sister relationship? Before she could even start 'catching up', she got her answer in the form of Luke's phone ringing.
By the time he turned to her with an apologetic expression on his face, she knew what was up: Millie clearly didn't intend for her boyfriend to put another woman before her, even if it was just a little sister.
A/N: I know I was gone for AGES but other Muslims out there will know what I mean when I say that the end of Ramadan and Eid is basically a whirlwind that doesn't allow for free time. To top that all off, I had exams last week leading up to Eid so it was a damn stressful time. I'm back now though!
Charlie—What pissed me off about Rick was that he just vanished and was never mentioned again. I mean, Faith also left around then but she came back in S3 and was mentioned occasionally. But Rick? I know that his leaving wasn't shocking because his dad did say in S2 that he and Rick's mum would be out of prison in six months but a mention, even a tiny one from Tyler, would've been nice.
OMG, yes, Floss totally would've eaten at least half of them. Oh yeah, maybe her friends do suggest a holiday to Brandon; I always thought that came out of nowhere.