Chapter Three Hundred and Four

It was starting to rain heavily as Elijah, Leah, VJ and the rest of VJ's classmates made their bus trip out of town to go caving together. Everyone was excited and in good spirits about the adventure they were planning to have. VJ had nagged to see if Joey and Charlie could come with them too but were rather disappointed that they were both working. The more time he could spend with Joey, the happier VJ was. But still, he was determined to have a good time regardless.


Romeo sat on the beach reading through the story he had written the night before about Annie. It had been Liam's suggestion and to be fair, it had helped a little to get all of his feelings out. But now, reading through it, he just felt stupid. Staring off into the distance, he spotted Joey opening up the bait shop. Standing, he headed over to make a nuisance of himself again.


The bus hurtled towards the caves that Elijah, Leah and the kids were intending to explore for the day. They sang travel songs and mused excitedly about what the day would bring. As they continued along the road, nobody noticed a warning sign about flash flooding.


"We need to go clubbing again," Watson announced, appearing in Charlie's office and presenting her with a coffee.

"Yep," Charlie agreed. "When?"

Suddenly, she very much liked the idea of getting out on the town with her girlfriend and her friends and enjoying herself. With the news about Hugo hanging over her, she was eager to forget about it and have fun. At least the nightmares had stopped for the most part. She was grateful for that and hoped that soon, she could get back to normal. Even if Hugo was still alive, it didn't mean that she had to have anything to do with him. For starters, he wasn't likely to be returning to Summer Bay any time soon. It wasn't like he would be in a position to hurt her again.

"Whenever you like," Watson said. "We could..."

"We've got an incident," Angelo said, poking his head round the door. "Who wants to come?"

"What's the situation?" Charlie asked.

"River Boys," Angelo informed her.

Charlie pulled a face.

"I'll go," Watson said. "Just remember this next time!"

Charlie grinned.

"I will!" she promised. "Have fun!"


"Is this a good idea?" Leah wondered.

Elijah looked around as they rain got harder.

"Well, if it was dangerous there would be a warning sign or something," he said. "We've driven all this way. We may as well go for it. And besides, there won't be any farmyard animals here."

He grinned, making Leah laugh. Then they both felt guilty for laughing at Miles who had been rambling for days about them falling into some animal related danger.

"Okay," Leah said. "Let's go."


"You do realise that the point of you returning to school was that you actually went there to study," Joey smirked when Romeo announced that he was skipping classes again.

"Yeah, I know," the teenager sighed. "But I'll go back tomorrow. I'm pretty much a genius so I'll catch up."

He grinned, making Joey laugh.

"Can I say something honestly?" she asked in a more serious tone.

"You're going to anyway, aren't you?" Romeo replied.

Joey sat down on the step outside the bait shop and gestured for him to do the same.

"I know you're heartbroken," she said. "If you feel for Annie even half of what I feel for Charlie then I can't even imagine how lost you must be. But the thing is, as much as you love Annie, she's gone. She made the decision to leave and you're too lovely and have too much going for you to let that ruin your life. Think about where you've come from and everything you've achieved in difficult circumstances. You told me not so long ago that this is the happiest place you've ever lived. So I think you need to hold onto that now. It would be such a waste for you to drop out of school or make things harder for yourself because you're missing the girl you love. Honestly, I think the best thing you can do right now is stand up, dust yourself off and start again. Make something of yourself, achieve your dreams and be happy – but do it for yourself rather than someone else. Don't let a broken heart get in the way of a wonderful future."

Romeo nodded thoughtfully.

"You're right," he said.

Joey offered a cheeky grin.

"I usually am," she joked.

Standing up, Romeo decided that he would go to school after all.

"That's my boy," Joey grinned.

Nodding enthusiastically, Romeo dashed off. Heading back inside, Joey saw a crumpled piece of paper on the side.

"Wait!" Joey called. "You forgot your..."

But he was already gone.


The caving trip had gone wrong in record time. With the heavy rain pounding down all around them and the caves filling up with water, Leah and Elijah were struggling over what to do. Staying in the cave would protect them from the weather... unless it filled up too much and drowned them. There seemed to be no way forwards or back.

"Hello?" a voice called.

"Hello?" Elijah called back. "Can you help us?"

Leah couldn't even begin to describe the relief she felt upon seeing a ranger approach them through the dark and wet.

"What on earth are you guys doing in here?" the man asked. "Didn't you notice the weather?"

"We thought it would be okay," Elijah admitted rather sheepishly.

"This place will fill up and drown the lot of you. Come and follow me out."

Nobody argued.


"Did you have fun with the River Boys?" Charlie asked when Watson and Angelo returned to the police station.

"I hate them," Angelo said sourly. "I'm just glad that they stick close to Mangrove River. It's bad enough having to encounter them at work. Can you imagine how awful it would be if they lived closer to the Bay?"

He pulled a face and declared he needed coffee. Charlie sat down on the other side of Watson's desk.

"They're not pleasant, are they?" she remarked.

"They might have been a little more bearable if Angelo hadn't given them quite so much attitude but never mind," Watson sighed. "It all got sorted in the end. Hey, I don't suppose you're up for midweek clubbing tonight?"

"I wish I could," Charlie said. "But Joey and I have dinner plans with Aden and Justin."

"Isn't that a little weird?" Watson mused. "Celebrating your freedom with one of the cops who nearly jailed you?"

Charlie chuckled. She hadn't quite thought about it like that.

"I guess it's weird," she admitted. "But I guess you have to get used to that in a town like this. Plus, we're celebrating Joey passing her exams too so at least the emphasis won't all be on them not being sent down for trying to cover up their father's death."

She shook her head. The whole situation had been bewildering from start to finish. She was just glad that it was all over now.


Elijah resisted saying a very bad word in front of the kids when they arrived back at the car park to find that the bus they had hired had been stolen.

"What are we meant to do now?" Leah said, equally frustrated.

Elijah shook his head.

"I left my phone on the bus," he sighed.

"Me too," Leah admitted.

They looked around at the children who looked utterly miserable, not to mention soaked through.

"I guess we try to find some shelter," Elijah said.

The whole trip had been a disaster and it didn't look to be letting up any time soon.


Having finished work, Joey headed to the caravan park to return Romeo's story to him. The teenager looked mortified.

"I kind of read it," Joey admitted. "Sorry. But it was really good!"

She smiled. Romeo continued to cringe.

"It was awful," he said. "I meant to throw it away."

"It's a good way of venting your feelings," Joey said. "Maybe this is step one in moving on?"

Romeo nodded.

"I think it is," he said. "I feel better today than I have in a while. Thanks for earlier."

"I aim to please!" Joey giggled. "Anyway, I have to get home and changed before dinner with Charlie and my boys so I'll see you later. Hopefully not in school time."


"It's better than nothing," Leah sighed when she, Elijah and the kids found themselves standing outside a small farm shed.

There were a few animals inside but most importantly, hay and shelter.

"Yep," Elijah said.

He turned back to the children in their care, feeling terrible for wrecking their day.

"Ready for some impromptu camping?" he asked.


It was early evening when Charlie, Joey, Aden and Justin were seated around a table in the Diner. They were celebrating Aden and Justin's freedom now that all charges had been dropped, as well as Joey passing her course.

"So, what are you going to do with your new qualifications?" Aden asked his best friend.

He had invited Nicole out with them but she had a cold and wanted to hide away at home. He missed her. But at least it felt like things were starting to work out for her now.

"She's going to open a restaurant," Charlie said.

"I'm still not convinced that it won't be an epic fail," Joey sighed. "I haven't got the first clue about how to run a business."

"You can learn," Aden said. "And you already have the cooking skill. And a lovely woman to support you."

He grinned. Charlie smiled back. Joey couldn't help but blush.

"Well, you got the last part right," she said. "I'm not entirely sure about the rest though."

"It's good to have dreams and ambitions, Joey," Justin said. "If this is really what you want to do with your life then you should go for it."

"I'll drink to that," Charlie said, proposing a toast.


At home, Miles bolted awake from where he had fallen asleep on the sofa. He'd had yet another nightmare and a great fear gripped his heart. Utterly convinced that Elijah, Leah, VJ and the rest of the school kids were in trouble, he darted out of the house, narrowly missing Alf on the way.

"What's going on?" Alf asked worriedly.

He couldn't help but feel constantly concerned about his friend's erratic behaviour. Mumbling something about a barn and some caves, Miles hobbled to his car, still with a broken ankle.


Next time… a search party is sent out for Miles, Charlie and Joey make plans for the restaurant and Aden considers leaving Summer Bay…