Pierce came into the kitchen and saw Joe leaning against the sink, half a glass of water in his hand looking at Frank who seemed to be shell-shocked. "He giving you a hard time?" Pierce asked Joe.
Joe stared at Frank for almost a minute then turned to Pierce. "No," he responded, finished his water and left the kitchen.
Frank glared at Pierce. "Why are you pretending to care so much about Joe?" he demanded.
"Why should I tell you anything?" Pierce retorted, following Joe's path out of the kitchen.
Frank grabbed a glass and filled it with water. Downing it, he returned to the living room and sat down on the floor by Callie's feet. He watched Joe holding Jeremy on his lap while he teased Justin, who giggled at him from his mother's lap until Callie reached down and stroked his hair. Frank looked up into her smiling eyes and felt a little better knowing she still loved him even though he had done the unthinkable by alienating his brother.
It was almost time for the weather report and Fenton flipped on the radio a fraction of a second after a cry sounded from upstairs. Joe swiftly lifted Jeremy and placed him on Roxy's knee beside Justin then ran upstairs.
Pierce rose and followed Joe up the stairs. Frank, not about to be left out, followed Pierce. When Frank reached the doorway he saw Joe starting to change one of the girl's diapers while her sister gurgled in the next crib.
"Thanks," Joe told Pierce out of the blue.
"For what?" Pierce asked, confused. Frank stepped away from the door. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop but he had missed so much of Joe's life and he fully intended to find out everything he could. Maybe he would learn something to help him regain Joe's trust.
Yeah, right! his subconscious nagged. He's supposed to trust you when you eavesdrop on him? Okay! Frank admitted to himself. He was jealous of Pierce's relationship to Joe and wanted to change it.
"For taking care of me," Joe replied.
"The others helped," Pierce admitted honestly.
"I meant, well, now too, but, then," Joe explained. He paused as he removed Robyn's diaper. "You helped me to feel again. If it hadn't been for you, well, I don't know where I would be right now."
"What happened to you?" Pierce asked. "I know you didn't just meet Roxy and everything was all rosy. I wish it had been for you, but it wasn't, was it?"
"No," Joe admitted, busying himself with putting a clean diaper on Robyn. "After I got through the gates, the Hardys were there. I just...I couldn't handle seeing them." Frank felt tears spring to his eyes when he heard the loneliness in Joe's voice. "I kind of reverted. All the time you put into making me feel again..." he broke off and took a deep breath. "I felt. Too much. I tried to shut it out. I tried everything I could think of but it wasn't working. So when this guy came along and tried to treat me like you did, I let him. I ended up moving in with him."
Joe paused briefly before continuing. "Frank kept trying to find me. Craig knew I didn't want to be found so he arranged to have Frank believe I was dead so I would be left alone. It worked. For almost a year, I stayed at Craig's condo. I didn't really do anything. I worked out, took walks, waited for him to come home from his business trips so he could help me forget."
Joe stopped and sniffed. He hadn't been able to cry during that time of his life but now, he didn't have quite such an easy time hiding his emotions. "One day, not long after Craig had left, his sister arrived. She had been raped by the guy who lived next door to her. We got to know each other but neither one of us talked about what had gone on in our lives. Then one night, we started talking. She told me about her neighbor, also her best friend, until the night he raped her. Then it was my turn. I told her about going to prison and about you and, well, everything.
"When I finished my tale, Craig came in. He had come home and started listening to what that bastard had done to her. He said he started to come in after that but then I had started talking and he didn't want to interrupt." Joe smiled and looked over at Pierce. "Craig stopped being my lover that day and became my friend. He made me and Roxy..."
"Roxy?" Pierce ejected in surprise.
"Roxy is Craig's sister," Joe told him. "Craig made us both go in for rape therapy. The therapist put us in a recovery group. Eventually, Roxy and I realized we loved each other and we got married. We moved here just after our honeymoon. It's a wonderful place," Joe continued. "A little isolated," he admitted. "But that was what we liked about it. We didn't have to deal with anyone."
"But now?" Pierce asked, hearing hesitation in Joe's voice.
"We still like it but neither of us think the isolation is good for the kids. We just..." Joe broke off.
"You don't know how to interact with other people now," guessed Pierce.
"Yeah," Joe admitted. "I don't want our fears or our past to affect the kids but how are we going to prevent it when we, I, still can't confront it?"
"You," Pierce latched on to Joe's choice of words.
"Roxy's moved on," Joe said. "I'm the reason we're still out here." He looked into Pierce's eyes, his own filled with fear. "I'm scared," he confessed. "I don't want to get hurt again."
Joe stared at Frank for almost a minute then turned to Pierce. "No," he responded, finished his water and left the kitchen.
Frank glared at Pierce. "Why are you pretending to care so much about Joe?" he demanded.
"Why should I tell you anything?" Pierce retorted, following Joe's path out of the kitchen.
Frank grabbed a glass and filled it with water. Downing it, he returned to the living room and sat down on the floor by Callie's feet. He watched Joe holding Jeremy on his lap while he teased Justin, who giggled at him from his mother's lap until Callie reached down and stroked his hair. Frank looked up into her smiling eyes and felt a little better knowing she still loved him even though he had done the unthinkable by alienating his brother.
It was almost time for the weather report and Fenton flipped on the radio a fraction of a second after a cry sounded from upstairs. Joe swiftly lifted Jeremy and placed him on Roxy's knee beside Justin then ran upstairs.
Pierce rose and followed Joe up the stairs. Frank, not about to be left out, followed Pierce. When Frank reached the doorway he saw Joe starting to change one of the girl's diapers while her sister gurgled in the next crib.
"Thanks," Joe told Pierce out of the blue.
"For what?" Pierce asked, confused. Frank stepped away from the door. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop but he had missed so much of Joe's life and he fully intended to find out everything he could. Maybe he would learn something to help him regain Joe's trust.
Yeah, right! his subconscious nagged. He's supposed to trust you when you eavesdrop on him? Okay! Frank admitted to himself. He was jealous of Pierce's relationship to Joe and wanted to change it.
"For taking care of me," Joe replied.
"The others helped," Pierce admitted honestly.
"I meant, well, now too, but, then," Joe explained. He paused as he removed Robyn's diaper. "You helped me to feel again. If it hadn't been for you, well, I don't know where I would be right now."
"What happened to you?" Pierce asked. "I know you didn't just meet Roxy and everything was all rosy. I wish it had been for you, but it wasn't, was it?"
"No," Joe admitted, busying himself with putting a clean diaper on Robyn. "After I got through the gates, the Hardys were there. I just...I couldn't handle seeing them." Frank felt tears spring to his eyes when he heard the loneliness in Joe's voice. "I kind of reverted. All the time you put into making me feel again..." he broke off and took a deep breath. "I felt. Too much. I tried to shut it out. I tried everything I could think of but it wasn't working. So when this guy came along and tried to treat me like you did, I let him. I ended up moving in with him."
Joe paused briefly before continuing. "Frank kept trying to find me. Craig knew I didn't want to be found so he arranged to have Frank believe I was dead so I would be left alone. It worked. For almost a year, I stayed at Craig's condo. I didn't really do anything. I worked out, took walks, waited for him to come home from his business trips so he could help me forget."
Joe stopped and sniffed. He hadn't been able to cry during that time of his life but now, he didn't have quite such an easy time hiding his emotions. "One day, not long after Craig had left, his sister arrived. She had been raped by the guy who lived next door to her. We got to know each other but neither one of us talked about what had gone on in our lives. Then one night, we started talking. She told me about her neighbor, also her best friend, until the night he raped her. Then it was my turn. I told her about going to prison and about you and, well, everything.
"When I finished my tale, Craig came in. He had come home and started listening to what that bastard had done to her. He said he started to come in after that but then I had started talking and he didn't want to interrupt." Joe smiled and looked over at Pierce. "Craig stopped being my lover that day and became my friend. He made me and Roxy..."
"Roxy?" Pierce ejected in surprise.
"Roxy is Craig's sister," Joe told him. "Craig made us both go in for rape therapy. The therapist put us in a recovery group. Eventually, Roxy and I realized we loved each other and we got married. We moved here just after our honeymoon. It's a wonderful place," Joe continued. "A little isolated," he admitted. "But that was what we liked about it. We didn't have to deal with anyone."
"But now?" Pierce asked, hearing hesitation in Joe's voice.
"We still like it but neither of us think the isolation is good for the kids. We just..." Joe broke off.
"You don't know how to interact with other people now," guessed Pierce.
"Yeah," Joe admitted. "I don't want our fears or our past to affect the kids but how are we going to prevent it when we, I, still can't confront it?"
"You," Pierce latched on to Joe's choice of words.
"Roxy's moved on," Joe said. "I'm the reason we're still out here." He looked into Pierce's eyes, his own filled with fear. "I'm scared," he confessed. "I don't want to get hurt again."