Chapter 25

April 6, 1996

On Saturday morning, Kerri was at the beach with Anne-Marie Barton and Sharon Thomas.

"I'm SO looking forward to tonight!" Kerri said to them.

"Me too." Sharon said.

"Expect a big turnout." Anne-Marie told Kerri. "I let the city crew know about this warehouse party."

"This is going to be such an awesome party!" Kerri said.

"Roll a joint for me, Kerri." Anne-Marie said.

Kerri and Anne-Marie smoked the joint, while Sharon stared at the ocean.

"Shaz?" Kerri asked.

"No thanks." Sharon replied. "I need enough smokes to last me until tomorrow."

"So, what's the story with you and Jack?" Anne-Marie asked.

"We're kind of dating." Kerri replied.

"Young love." Sharon said.

Kerri tapped Sharon lightly on the arm before starting to laugh.

Meanwhile, Selina and Jerome were playing pool at the Surf Club.

"Good shot, babe!" Jerome said to Selina.

"Thanks." Selina said.

"Have you got anything planned tonight?" Jerome asked.

"I'm just staying at home." Selina replied.

"Come over to mine and watch a video."

Selina smiled at him.

"Sure." she said, smiling at Jerome.

"Cool." Jerome said.

Selina and Jerome then started to kiss.

"I just hope Melanie is okay." Selina said.

"Same here." Jerome agreed. "I know she's my ex-girlfriend, but I still care about her well-being."

"Her broken heart will heal eventually." Selina told him.

"Moving on." Jerome said. "I love you, babe."

"Love you too, babe."

Selina and Jerome started to kiss again.

At noon, Tiegan and Stephanie were on the bus to Yabbie Creek. They were going to Melissa's house to chill before they went to the movies later that evening.

"That Damian Roberts is a hunk!" Tiegan gushed.

"I'm glad you think so." Stephanie said.

Tiegan noticed something was troubling Stephanie.

"What's wrong, Steph?" she asked her.

"I've been thinking about Louis." Stephanie replied. "I can't believe he's gone, especially when he wanted us to be a couple."

Tiegan held Stephanie's hand. "I know it's hard." she said.

"I'm glad to have my sister from another mister with me at the moment or I would've broken down crying." Stephanie said.

When the girls got off the bus, they started walking to Melissa's house.

"I wonder what movie we'll be seeing tonight." Tiegan thought out aloud.

"It's up to Melissa." Stephanie told her.

Tiegan knocked on the front door and waited for Melissa to come. Melissa opened the door not long after.

"Come in, girls." she said to them.

Tiegan and Stephanie followed Melissa into the living room, where Damian Roberts happened to be sitting.

"Damian, hi!" Tiegan said excitedly.

"Hey." Damian said, smiling at Tiegan.

"I invited Damian along to come to the movies with us tonight." Melissa told Stephanie and Tiegan. "I hope that's alright."

"I'm cool with that." Tiegan said.

"Melissa, can I use your phone?" Stephanie asked her.

"Go right ahead." Melissa replied. "Use the one in my room."

Stephanie went into Melissa's bedroom and dialled the number of her old foster parents. A woman picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Mary, it's Stephanie. How are you?"

While Stephanie was on the phone to Mary, Tiegan was talking with Damian.

"You go to the movies much?" she asked him.

"When I find the time." he replied.

"How long are you in the Bay for?"

Damian smiled at Tiegan before replying, "Just for the weekend."

"It's a shame you're leaving." Tiegan said softly. "I thought you and I would get to know each other more."

Damian started blushing like crazy. When Stephanie returned to the living room, she was smiling.

"You look happy, Steph." Tiegan said.

"I'm visiting my old foster parents next weekend." Stephanie told her.

"That's great news!" Tiegan said.

Stephanie and Tiegan gave each other a high-five.

That night, Kerri turned up at the old warehouse in Yabbie Creek wearing a white lace crop top and high waisted denim jean shorts.

"Let's get this party started!" Kerri said, dancing her way inside.

While the music started playing, Kerri went over to Jack and began to kiss him.

"I love you so much, babe." she said to him.

"I love you too." Jack said.

They were soon interrupted by Anne-Marie Barton.

"What do you want, Anne-Marie?!" Jack snappishly asked her.

"I'm just letting Kerri know that the city crew are here." Anne-Marie replied.

"Sorry, Jack. Won't be long." Kerri said to him before walking away with Anne-Marie.

"Great." Jack said sarcastically.

Near the bathroom, Chloe was talking to Sharon Thomas.

"How are you holding up after that business with Brennan?" Sharon asked.

"I'm not grounded anymore." Chloe replied. "I'm staying off the drugs, though."

"That's a great choice." Sharon said.

"I'm surprised Sonia Hammond and her bitchy friends aren't at this party." Chloe said.

"They'd rather party down Mangrove River." Sharon said, pulling a face. "It's where they belong, anyway."

Chloe and Sharon started laughing.

Meanwhile, Melissa, Stephanie, Tiegan and Damian were at the cinema in Yabbie Creek waiting in line to get tickets for the movie that they were going to watch.

"It's a great night." Stephanie said.

"I thought it was going to be cold, but it's actually quite warm." Melissa said.

"I hear this movie is pretty good." Damian said.

"I just hope it's entertaining." Tiegan said.

"Kerri's party should be going off right about now." Stephanie said.

"I'm so glad we didn't go." Melissa said to them. "Warehouse parties are illegal."

"I know." Tiegan said to her. "I don't want a record."

When Damian and the girls got their tickets, they entered the cinema and found seats in the back row. Just as the movie was starting, Damian suddenly put his arm around Tiegan.

"Damian, what are you doing?" Tiegan asked him, whispering.

"You don't mind if I put my arm around you while we watch the movie." Damian replied.

Tiegan blushed and said, "Of course not."

Stephanie and Melissa exchanged a look.

As the warehouse party raged on, Jack noticed that Kerri was smoking joints and flirting with other guys. This really upset him.

"What's wrong, Jack?" Chloe asked him.

"Kerri, that's what's wrong!" Jack responded. "I can't believe that she's flirting with other guys."

"She's been doing that practically since the party began." Chloe said. "I'm sorry, but you could do better than go out with a slag like her."

"I hope she stops flirting with them, Chloe." Jack said. "Kerri is meant to be with me."

Kerri went over to him a while later and could tell he was upset.

"What's up, babe?" she asked.

"Why were you flirting with those guys, Kerri?"

"I wasn't!"

"I saw you with my own two eyes, Kerri!" Jack snapped at her.

"Well, excuse me for having a great time!" Kerri said. "They mean nothing to me."

"You expect me to believe that?" Jack asked her.

"Okay, I did flirt with one or two." Kerri replied. "But like I said, they mean nothing to me!"

Jack stroked Kerri's cheek.

"I love you." he said to her.

"Love you too." Kerri said before walking away.

The hours went by and everyone was having a great time. By eleven-thirty, however, things started to deteriorate. Jack and Chloe had gone, while Anne-Marie was getting riled up by everyone's behaviour towards her. The final straw came when Sharon told her that she kissed a guy that Anne-Marie had a crush on.

"Just leave me alone, Sharon!" Anne-Marie shouted at her. "I don't ever want to talk with you again!"

"He wasn't your boyfriend, Annie!" Sharon shouted back. "I had every right to kiss him!"

Anne-Marie then burst into tears.

"I HATE YOU!" Anne-Marie screamed before running out.

"Anne-Marie, wait!" Sharon called out.

"Let her go, Sharon." Kerri said. "She's not in the right frame of mind at the moment."

"Has she said something to you?" Sharon asked her.

Before Kerri could reply, police sirens were heard from a distance.

"It's the police!" Kerri yelled out. "Let's get out of here!"

Everyone started to run out of the warehouse. Unfortunately for Kerri, she was caught by Senior Constable Janet Walsh.

"I believe you're the one who threw this party." she said to Kerri. "I'm sure Pippa would be very interested to know what went down tonight, young lady."

Kerri looked really annoyed.

NEXT TIME...
- Kerri receives a final warning from Pippa
- Tiegan confesses her feelings to Damian before he returns to the city
- Stephanie has a heart-to-heart with Melissa