4th May 2013. So they've made up which means everything's going to be okay, right? Mmm, I wonder...

Chapter 31.

Joey and Lauren walked out of the hospital two days later. It would be a lie to say their relationship was completely repaired because it wasn't. There were still issues they had to face and Lauren's health problems hadn't miraculously disappeared overnight either. They were prepared to try and sort things out though and that was a step in the right direction. Joey helped Lauren into his car and walking round to the driver's side. Joey reached over and took her hand in his; he squeezed it gently. "Time to go home, baby girl." He said softly.

Lauren was now on a more regular appointment schedule with her consultant, after the alcohol debacle. She knew Joey was sure it was Abi who had spiked her drink and Lauren couldn't think of anything to convince him she was innocent but she couldn't tell her parents. It would destroy them to know Abi would do something so stupid; would put her own sister's health at risk out of spite. It hurt for her to know it so she knew how much it would hurt her parents. She couldn't do that to them.

She stared out of the car window as they drove back to their house. She was tired and part of her worried it was her illness and not a result of the stressful days she's just gone through. She yawned and Joey noticed. He squeezed her hand again, "Are you working tonight?" she asked him, glancing in his direction.

"Nope. I've got the rest of the week off. I'm putting you first." He lifted her hand and pressed his lips to the back of it.

"That'll be nice." She said softly. They were silent for the remainder of their journey home. When Joey pulled up outside the house, he ran round to her side of the car and helped her out of the car again. She smiled at him in thanks. He led her slowly up to the house and through the front door. Joey helped her sit down on the couch then went to the kitchen and got her a glass of water. He walked back into the room and handed it to her, "Where are your mum and Alice?" Lauren said, sipping on the drink.

"Alice is at college and mum's gone to the shops. She's getting something nice for dinner."

"Can we watch a movie?" Lauren whispered.

"Sure." He rifled through the post he'd picked up when they'd walked into the house. "Hey, there's something for you here." He passed her an envelope.

Lauren tore it open and gasped as she saw what was inside. She pulled out another cheque from the gallery. It was money for the sale of the remaining pictures. "Wow..." she said.

"What is it?"

"It's more money from the gallery... It's £12,000, Joe. What are we going to do with this?"

"It's going to go exactly where the last one went, baby girl. It's going to go in the bank for our future." He whispered to her softly.

*JL*JL*

Lauren's next appointment with her consultant was a little better. There was no residual damage from everything that had happened at the Vic. Her health was back to how it was at her previous check-up, six weeks before her drinks were spiked. There was no physical damage but the psychological damage of what they'd been through has left a permanent scar. The whole experience had scared both Joey and Lauren but it was something neither of them spoke about. Her good result from this appointment was a much better thing though so they focused on that instead.

They went home together and went up to their room. Joey lifted Lauren in his arms and placed her gently on the bed. He moved to lie next to her. "I love you, baby girl." He said softly. "Things with us are okay again, aren't they?" he whispered.

"I hope so..." she replied. Despite their efforts to repair their relationship, there was one thing that had suffered after everything they'd been through. They hadn't been intimate with each other since the night before it all happened. That was a month ago and they'd both missed the closeness they shared. Despite everything they'd been through with their relationship this was the first time their sex life had been seriously impacted, apart from when Joey was sick in hospital and even that had only been affected for the first couple of weeks. The most they'd done in the last month was kiss and it was pretty chaste at all times. "Joe, we need to fix this; fix us."

"I know. I thought we were."

"I mean the physical side of us..." she whispered. "I know it shouldn't be the most important thing about our relationship but I've missed being with you. We wake up in the same bed every day but it feels like I might as well be in Walford. You don't hold me in your arms anymore and I miss it. Your heartbeat beneath my ear used to soothe me to sleep every night; the way you brush your fingers through my hair and tuck it behind my ear. I miss running my fingers through your hair. It feels like we're drifting apart." As she'd spoke she rolled over to face him.

Joey also turned to face her and his hand reached up to wipe away the tears on her face. "I miss it too. I've wanted you since the day I brought you home from the hospital but something has always held me back."

"What?" she whispered.

"I don't want our relationship to always be about sex. We're stronger than that."

"I know we are." She said, "That doesn't mean the sex wasn't pretty good." She added.

"Pretty good?" he said, his voice sounding insulted. He moved closer to her, "I'll give you pretty good..." he breathed before his mouth crashed against hers and he kissed her deeply. He rolled them so she was on her back. Their kiss deepened, already deeper than anything they'd shared in the last month. His hands brushed under her top and up her body. He was surprised to find she wasn't wearing a bra. He cupped a breast and heard her moan as his thumb stroked her nipple.

"Joe..." she moaned as his mouth moved across her cheek and down her jaw.

"I love you, baby girl. I've wanted to do this for the last four weeks but I was afraid you'd push me away." He whispered in her ear.

"I was afraid too."

He lifted her top up her body and over her head. "I've missed these so much..." he said with a slight smile as he stared down at her breasts. She giggled. He lowered his mouth to one and then the other of her beautiful breasts, taking the peak of each into his mouth in turn. "Do you want me? I mean now... do you want me now?" he asked softly.

"Of course I do, baby." She replied. "I always do..." Joey sat up and pulled his T-shirt over his head. He placed his hands both sides of her head and leant on them. He slowly lowered his body so he could kiss her passionately.

"I'm glad about that, baby." He murmured, kissing her softly.

Lauren brushed her hand down his back and then his side. Their kiss deepened and Joey pressed his body against hers. Lauren brushed her hand down his thigh. He moaned into her mouth and Lauren smiled. She ran her fingers back up until they rested at his waist. He pulled his mouth away from her and stared into her eyes. She slipped her hand into his jeans, navigating her way past his boxers and gently gripped his length in her palm. She stared into his eyes, seeing them flutter close as she ran her thumb over the tip. "I want to taste you, Joe." She whispered and he moaned, resting his forehead on her chest. She turned her head and breathed her next words into his ear, "Do you want that, baby?"

"You know I do..." he moaned, his hips shifting as her hand increased its speed. "You might want to stop that, baby girl... it's been a pretty long time."

"Baby, move," She said. He frowned and pulled himself away from her, resting back on his heels. He was confused as to what he'd done wrong.

"Lauren..." he murmured.

She looked up at his face, seeing the tension written across it. "Relax, babe..." she whispered, sitting up and reaching for his jeans, undoing his belt and pulling his length free from his pants. She glanced up at his face then leant forward and took him into her mouth. The next few minutes passed in almost silence, the only sound being that of their breathing and the odd moan from Joey. Just like he said it didn't last very long and soon he was throbbing in her mouth and she was getting her wish to taste him. She pulled away from him, "Yum..." she said with a smirk and he rolled his eyes.

"You really are amazing, baby girl..." he whispered before launching himself at her and pressing her back into the mattress. "I'm going to show you how much I've missed you; how much I've missed being with you."

*JL*JL*

It was the week before Christmas and Lauren wasn't sure how she felt about the approaching festive season. She'd been so excited last year and that had turned out to be a dismal failure. Now she didn't know what to feel about it. She was truly mixed about it. She was sure Joey was concerned about how quiet she'd become. It wasn't just Christmas that was approaching. She had another consultant's appointment tomorrow. The tests were last week and she knew these were the most important results she'd had since her initial diagnosis. What the consultant said to her and Joey tomorrow would decide whether they were okay to try for a baby or not. To say Lauren was tense about it would be an understatement.

Then there was the whole Christmas debacle to face. Her parents had invited the four of them over for Christmas lunch, knowing that Joey and his family didn't usually make a big deal about the day. Max and Tanya wanted them to be included in their family celebrations. Usually the whole Branning tribe would descend upon number 5 and they would celebrate it together. This year was going to be different. This year there would just be eight people at the table. Lauren and her family and Joey and his family. Lauren was relatively calm about this until you factored in the whole Abi situation.

There was another thing she wasn't sure about. Joey was hiding something from her. He'd become secretive over the last month or so and it was bothering Lauren. So much had gone wrong in her life in the past and she was quick to doubt things these days. Even Joey. Lauren hoped it was something simple like he was just planning a Christmas present for her but she couldn't be sure. And there was a large part of her that was scared to mention it.

*JL*JL*

Lauren and Joey sat outside the consultant's office. It was a familiar place now but it still filled them with a sense of dread each time they were here. The door to the office opened and they went in, taking their seats like normal.

"Lauren, Joey..." he said. "Before I start I'd like to say Merry Christmas..." he said with a smile. He opened Lauren's now very bulky file and looked over the pages. "Well I have your test results, Lauren." He said. "Now according to my records you stopped taking your medication on June 25th. Is that right?" he asked.

"Yes." Lauren said, squeezing Joey's hand.

"And your contraceptive... when do you finish your current cycle?" he asked.

"Uh, the 29th."

"I see." He looked up at the couple, "Well, Lauren, it seems your test results show that you're healthy enough to start trying for a baby. The tests we've run show that there is no longer any trace of the medication in your system. You therefore have my blessing, Lauren." The smile grew on his face as he gave them the news they wanted to hear so desperately.

"Really?" she asked excitedly, practically bouncing in her seat.

"Yes, really."

"Thank you, so much..." she said, tears forming in her eyes.

"Now, you need to come back to see me in three months for a check-up, Lauren. If you fall pregnant before that time, please contact my p.a. and arrange an appointment. This will be just be for an initial check and to arrange the frequency of our appointments throughout your pregnancy. I'll also need to liaise with the person monitoring your pregnancy." He stood and shook their hands and they rushed out of the room.

Once they were out on the street Joey picked Lauren up in the air and spun her around. He kissed her deeply when he put her down, his hands cupping her cheeks. "I love you..." he whispered to her.

"Love you more." She said back.

"Let's go home, baby girl." He said softly.

*JL*JL*

Lauren's mobile rang as Joey drove them home and she smiled when she saw the name on the screen, "It's dad." She said before answering it, "Hi daddy."

"How did it go, babe?" he asked.

"We've been given the all clear," she giggled, turning her head and looking at Joey.

"You have. I'm so glad for you both, sweetheart." He cleared his throat as this was still a slightly difficult subject for him. "I'll let you both go but I'm looking forward to seeing you next week."

"See you then, dad." She ended the call.

"I take it he was pleased?" Joey asked.

"Yeah. Pleased but I could tell he was a little uncomfortable talking about it."

"Well, he's essentially thinking about the two of us having sex, baby girl. I'd be uncomfortable if it was my child we were talking about too." Joey said softly.

She giggled, "It is your child we're talking about, babe."

"You know what I mean..." he said.

"I do." She reached for him and squeezed her leg.

*JL*JL*

Joey was busy for most of Christmas Eve and it brought back some weird memories and emotions for Lauren. She became more uncomfortable as the hours passed by and she couldn't help the feeling of dread that was building within her.

Lesley and Alice could also sense that something was bothering Lauren but neither of them said anything to her, knowing she wouldn't open up to either of them.

Joey got home and he found his mum in the kitchen. His sister and fiancée were nowhere to be seen. "Hi mum..."

"Joe..." She turned to face him, "You may have a small problem on your hands."

"What do you mean?"

"Haven't you noticed something has been bothering Lauren for a few days now? She's got even worse today. I don't know what it is that's wrong but she's upset about something."

Joey frowned. "I've just been planning things for tomorrow... after last year I wanted to make it special for her. I owe her a lot."

"Go and talk to her, son. She needs to hear you say it. You spoke about last year... I should imagine it's playing on her mind just as much as it has been for you. From what Max and Tanya have told me, last Christmas very nearly broke her and tore her apart. You've been distant with her the last few days and I'm sure it's reminding her of last year... when you didn't contact her for days. You need to fix this, Joe before you lose her completely."

"I will, mum. This Christmas will be good, I promise..." He hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek before dashing up the stairs to his room.

*JL*JL*

"You okay, baby girl?" he asked after pushing the door open and finding her curled up on the bed. She didn't answer him and he moved to sit beside her. "Talk to me, Lauren."

"Have you gone off me?" she whispered.

"Why would you think that?" he asked.

"You've been acting strange for the last few weeks... the only day we felt okay was when we went to the doctors."

"I've been planning something special for you for Christmas." He said softly. "I'd tell you what it is but I really don't want to spoil the surprise."

She rolled over so she was facing him and he could see her face was blotchy. "You still love me?" she whispered.

He lay beside her, brushing her hair back from her face and kissed her tenderly, "More than I can put into words, baby girl. I've never stopped loving you. You should've spoken to me about this when you first started worrying about it. I should've noticed something was bothering you." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "I'm sorry for being the worst boyfriend ever..." he whispered.

"You aren't, Joe... that's why it was bothering me. I don't want anyone else, I just want you and I thought I was losing you."

Joey pulled her into his arms, against his chest. He felt her start to cry against him and his guilt climbed further. "I'm sorry I made you think about what happened this time last year... it wasn't my intention. I was trying to make up for it. I want this year to be perfect and I guess I got so caught up in making it right that I overlooked you. It won't happen again, baby girl, I promise."

"I believe you." She whispered.

TBC

A/N: Silly Joey for stressing Lauren out. So should Lauren be concerned about the festive season? Surely this Christmas can't be as bad as last year? Right...? Of course, they're going to Walford and we remember what happened last time they were there... and then, of course, there's the Abi factor... What was I thinking... It wouldn't be a Branning Christmas without some drama. Back tomorrow.