Kane turned back to face Kirsty and Flynn, having slightly surprised himself by the outburst. He thought he had managed to rid himself of his past life. His rough background. He smiles faintly at Kirsty, who takes his arm. They walk away from Dani and Josh. Flynn holds out a hand to Josh, who takes it and hauls himself up, flustered and maddened by his defeat and nursing an aching jaw. Josh turns and storms off in the direction of the surf club. Dani stares after him, upset and confused. Why was everything going wrong?
Flynn shook his head, exasperated and fed up by the repercussions of Kane and Kirsty's decisions. Something had to be done. He knew as well as anyone else that this could not be sorted through fights and arguments. And he was stuck in the middle. Kane's counsellor, Shelley's colleague, friend of Kirsty, Dani and Josh. He might be the only person who could bring them together. Josh wasn't badly injured in the fight. It was his pride wounded more than anything else. But a repeat was inevitable if the situation was left as it was.
He made the decision to have a word with Shelley. To see if she and Rhys could agree to a mediation session. He wasn't convinced it would work but it was the only solution that Flynn could think of.
...........................
WHARF
Kane and Kirsty stroll up the wharf, arm in arm. Kane is already running late for work.
"I'll meet you back here at the end of my shift"
"Can't you just phone in and say you're ill today. We could take a boat out again"
Kane smiles at her. Only a few months ago no one would have wanted to spend any time with him. He had no one he could call a friend. He had colleagues, and his aunt, but no one he felt he could open up to. Now his life was unreal. He had love. He thought he had felt love before, with Shauna and then Dani but it wasn't until now that he realised that that was obsession and infatuation rather than true love. His life had changed for the better since he met Kirsty and he was determined to make a life for himself. A life for Kirsty. So she could be proud of him.
"I wish I could... but it's best that I don't let the boss down"
He pauses and looks away, not liking to let her down.
"I'll take you out somewhere tonight instead"
"Where?"
She knew she would have to sneak out again. But she was used to it now. She had got into the habit of not telling her parents where she was going. It was easier that way. She didn't get the third degree. They would only try and stop her leaving the house.
"Wherever you want"
He had visions of them in the future. Candlelit dinners. Proper dates. A proper couple.
"So long as it's not an evening cruise then I'm happy."
............................
CARAVAN PARK
Late morning
Flynn has arrived to talk to Shelley. He isn't sure of the best way to handle it. Shelley was protective of her family, Dani in particular after all that she had been through.
"This situation with Kane has got out of control"
Flynn was angry at himself for starting the conversation so formally.
Shelley was at the end of her tether. Kirsty had left the house before she had spoken to her that morning. Sneaked off again. They couldn't even communicate properly anymore.
"It's tearing this family apart"
Shelley felt weaker than ever. For years she had been respected by all of her children. They had accepted her as a voice of authority. If she had told Kirsty not to go out she wouldn't have gone. She had lost Kirsty's respect and she felt helpless, unable to hold her family together.
Flynn found it near impossible to understand the situation from Shelley's point of view. A parent's perspective.
"I caught Josh and Kane tearing strips out of each other earlier."
Flynn paused, wondering what the best way would be to approach the matter.
"I think the best way to sort this out is through a mediation session - you, Rhys, Kane, Kirsty, Dani and Josh sat around a table, talking it over. I'd supervise everything and you can all get all your feelings out into the open"
"Don't patronise me Flynn. I'm a counsellor, I know what a mediation session is supposed to do"
Shelley was bitter towards Flynn. She couldn't believe that he had put loyalty to Kane as a client before his loyalty to her, a colleague and close friend. That he had kept the relationship a secret from her. That he had watched the relationship develop and not said a word. How he had allowed it to get this far.
"So what do you think?"
Flynn was eager to get the Sutherlands to agree to counselling. No amount of disapproving or advice seemed to tear Kane and Kirsty apart. The only way was to try and make all of those involved come to some sort of understanding.
"I'm not putting Dani in the same room as that man. She's already put herself through two mediations. She doesn't want to put herself through that again."
"Have you asked her?"
"It would do more harm than good. Do you know what it would do to Dani to see her sister and... him all over each other"
Shelley was only trying to do what was best for her family. But she couldn't protect them all at once. Keeping one daughter happy meant that the other had to get hurt. Sometimes motherhood could be impossible.
Flynn had no children of his own. Maybe that's what made it so easy for him to see things from other points of view other than Shelley's. Shelley would always have a mother's perspective of the situation.
"At least ask her about it - get the family together and talk about it"
"Everytime we try and talk about it Kirsty storms off in a temper, Rhys loses control or Dani breaks down. Talking about it is like walking on eggshells"
"Would it help if I was there?"
"I don't know Flynn"
"I want to get this sorted as much as you do - believe me. I think this is the best way."
Shelley nods reluctantly. She knew he was right. He often was. She knew it was logical. But when it came to her family her own logic went out of the window. She just wanted to protect them.
"Come over for dinner later then. But I'm telling you Flynn, this could break the family instead of bringing it closer. It could drive my daughters further away"
.............................
SURF CLUB
Josh examines his face in the mirror. Dani sits nearby, miles away in thought. All she had been doing for the past day was thinking. What had she done wrong? Did she deserve this? Why was this happening to her? Why had Kirsty turned against her?
.............................
CARAVAN PARK
Early Afternoon.
Kirsty enters cautiously. Rhys and Shelley are talking in the kitchen. The conversation trails off as they see Kirsty enter. Rhys can't bring himself to greet his daughter. Shelley smiles awkwardly at her. She feels like a stranger. One of the kids at the drop in centre who her Mum gave that smile to. That patronising, meaningless smile.
"We're going to have a family meal tonight. See if we can't get this all sorted. I've invited Flynn over"
"For a family dinner? Is there something you're not telling us?"
Max enters from the back porch. He shuts up when he sees Shelley's serious face.
"I can't Mum, I'm going out."
Rhys is ready to intervene but Shelley interrupts before he can say anything.
"Please Kirst, for the family. Maybe we can sort this out amicably. I don't want us to fall out over this"
Kirsty looks at her parents. She wanted to get everything sorted out as much as them. But their solutions couldn't be more different. Kirsty was willing to do anything to stay with Kane and her parents were willing to do anything to keep her away from him.
.............................
WHARF
Late afternoon
Kane stood on the wharf, frequently checking his watch. Kirsty knew what time his shift had finished and she was already twenty minutes late. The sun would be setting soon and there was already a chilly breeze settling in Summer Bay. She wouldn't stand him up. Would she? Or had her family forced her to stay home?
.............................
An hour later, Kane turned and walked towards the car park, his eyes gazing downwards, dismal.
.............................
KANE'S HOUSE
Late night
Kane sits in front of the television, some sort of action movie playing at high volume. But he wasn't watching. His thoughts were far away. With Kirsty. He had tried calling her but her phone was off. He was missing her already. He had had a long hard day on the boat and the thought of seeing Kirsty at the end of it had been a light at the end of the tunnel. He kept wondering why she had let him down. Why she hadn't been in touch. She had been so sure about the relationship. Had she just decided he wasn't worth the trouble? He wouldn't blame her.
There is a hammering at the front door. Kane grabs the remote and harshly pushes the volume down button. It was probably his neighbour come around to complain about the noise again. It had happened all the time when Scott lived there. He used to have late night parties frequently and Mr Harris next door was convinced that they did it just to wind him up.
Kane picked himself up off the sofa and walked through into the hallway. The banging persisted. He unbolted the door and clicked it open, coming face to face with Rhys, Shelley stood several metres behind him. Rhys pushes the door open fully and Kane takes a step back, alarmed. Rhys grabs his shirt and presses him up against the wall.
"Where's my daughter?"
Flynn shook his head, exasperated and fed up by the repercussions of Kane and Kirsty's decisions. Something had to be done. He knew as well as anyone else that this could not be sorted through fights and arguments. And he was stuck in the middle. Kane's counsellor, Shelley's colleague, friend of Kirsty, Dani and Josh. He might be the only person who could bring them together. Josh wasn't badly injured in the fight. It was his pride wounded more than anything else. But a repeat was inevitable if the situation was left as it was.
He made the decision to have a word with Shelley. To see if she and Rhys could agree to a mediation session. He wasn't convinced it would work but it was the only solution that Flynn could think of.
...........................
WHARF
Kane and Kirsty stroll up the wharf, arm in arm. Kane is already running late for work.
"I'll meet you back here at the end of my shift"
"Can't you just phone in and say you're ill today. We could take a boat out again"
Kane smiles at her. Only a few months ago no one would have wanted to spend any time with him. He had no one he could call a friend. He had colleagues, and his aunt, but no one he felt he could open up to. Now his life was unreal. He had love. He thought he had felt love before, with Shauna and then Dani but it wasn't until now that he realised that that was obsession and infatuation rather than true love. His life had changed for the better since he met Kirsty and he was determined to make a life for himself. A life for Kirsty. So she could be proud of him.
"I wish I could... but it's best that I don't let the boss down"
He pauses and looks away, not liking to let her down.
"I'll take you out somewhere tonight instead"
"Where?"
She knew she would have to sneak out again. But she was used to it now. She had got into the habit of not telling her parents where she was going. It was easier that way. She didn't get the third degree. They would only try and stop her leaving the house.
"Wherever you want"
He had visions of them in the future. Candlelit dinners. Proper dates. A proper couple.
"So long as it's not an evening cruise then I'm happy."
............................
CARAVAN PARK
Late morning
Flynn has arrived to talk to Shelley. He isn't sure of the best way to handle it. Shelley was protective of her family, Dani in particular after all that she had been through.
"This situation with Kane has got out of control"
Flynn was angry at himself for starting the conversation so formally.
Shelley was at the end of her tether. Kirsty had left the house before she had spoken to her that morning. Sneaked off again. They couldn't even communicate properly anymore.
"It's tearing this family apart"
Shelley felt weaker than ever. For years she had been respected by all of her children. They had accepted her as a voice of authority. If she had told Kirsty not to go out she wouldn't have gone. She had lost Kirsty's respect and she felt helpless, unable to hold her family together.
Flynn found it near impossible to understand the situation from Shelley's point of view. A parent's perspective.
"I caught Josh and Kane tearing strips out of each other earlier."
Flynn paused, wondering what the best way would be to approach the matter.
"I think the best way to sort this out is through a mediation session - you, Rhys, Kane, Kirsty, Dani and Josh sat around a table, talking it over. I'd supervise everything and you can all get all your feelings out into the open"
"Don't patronise me Flynn. I'm a counsellor, I know what a mediation session is supposed to do"
Shelley was bitter towards Flynn. She couldn't believe that he had put loyalty to Kane as a client before his loyalty to her, a colleague and close friend. That he had kept the relationship a secret from her. That he had watched the relationship develop and not said a word. How he had allowed it to get this far.
"So what do you think?"
Flynn was eager to get the Sutherlands to agree to counselling. No amount of disapproving or advice seemed to tear Kane and Kirsty apart. The only way was to try and make all of those involved come to some sort of understanding.
"I'm not putting Dani in the same room as that man. She's already put herself through two mediations. She doesn't want to put herself through that again."
"Have you asked her?"
"It would do more harm than good. Do you know what it would do to Dani to see her sister and... him all over each other"
Shelley was only trying to do what was best for her family. But she couldn't protect them all at once. Keeping one daughter happy meant that the other had to get hurt. Sometimes motherhood could be impossible.
Flynn had no children of his own. Maybe that's what made it so easy for him to see things from other points of view other than Shelley's. Shelley would always have a mother's perspective of the situation.
"At least ask her about it - get the family together and talk about it"
"Everytime we try and talk about it Kirsty storms off in a temper, Rhys loses control or Dani breaks down. Talking about it is like walking on eggshells"
"Would it help if I was there?"
"I don't know Flynn"
"I want to get this sorted as much as you do - believe me. I think this is the best way."
Shelley nods reluctantly. She knew he was right. He often was. She knew it was logical. But when it came to her family her own logic went out of the window. She just wanted to protect them.
"Come over for dinner later then. But I'm telling you Flynn, this could break the family instead of bringing it closer. It could drive my daughters further away"
.............................
SURF CLUB
Josh examines his face in the mirror. Dani sits nearby, miles away in thought. All she had been doing for the past day was thinking. What had she done wrong? Did she deserve this? Why was this happening to her? Why had Kirsty turned against her?
.............................
CARAVAN PARK
Early Afternoon.
Kirsty enters cautiously. Rhys and Shelley are talking in the kitchen. The conversation trails off as they see Kirsty enter. Rhys can't bring himself to greet his daughter. Shelley smiles awkwardly at her. She feels like a stranger. One of the kids at the drop in centre who her Mum gave that smile to. That patronising, meaningless smile.
"We're going to have a family meal tonight. See if we can't get this all sorted. I've invited Flynn over"
"For a family dinner? Is there something you're not telling us?"
Max enters from the back porch. He shuts up when he sees Shelley's serious face.
"I can't Mum, I'm going out."
Rhys is ready to intervene but Shelley interrupts before he can say anything.
"Please Kirst, for the family. Maybe we can sort this out amicably. I don't want us to fall out over this"
Kirsty looks at her parents. She wanted to get everything sorted out as much as them. But their solutions couldn't be more different. Kirsty was willing to do anything to stay with Kane and her parents were willing to do anything to keep her away from him.
.............................
WHARF
Late afternoon
Kane stood on the wharf, frequently checking his watch. Kirsty knew what time his shift had finished and she was already twenty minutes late. The sun would be setting soon and there was already a chilly breeze settling in Summer Bay. She wouldn't stand him up. Would she? Or had her family forced her to stay home?
.............................
An hour later, Kane turned and walked towards the car park, his eyes gazing downwards, dismal.
.............................
KANE'S HOUSE
Late night
Kane sits in front of the television, some sort of action movie playing at high volume. But he wasn't watching. His thoughts were far away. With Kirsty. He had tried calling her but her phone was off. He was missing her already. He had had a long hard day on the boat and the thought of seeing Kirsty at the end of it had been a light at the end of the tunnel. He kept wondering why she had let him down. Why she hadn't been in touch. She had been so sure about the relationship. Had she just decided he wasn't worth the trouble? He wouldn't blame her.
There is a hammering at the front door. Kane grabs the remote and harshly pushes the volume down button. It was probably his neighbour come around to complain about the noise again. It had happened all the time when Scott lived there. He used to have late night parties frequently and Mr Harris next door was convinced that they did it just to wind him up.
Kane picked himself up off the sofa and walked through into the hallway. The banging persisted. He unbolted the door and clicked it open, coming face to face with Rhys, Shelley stood several metres behind him. Rhys pushes the door open fully and Kane takes a step back, alarmed. Rhys grabs his shirt and presses him up against the wall.
"Where's my daughter?"
