Hi everyone. Just to let you know that after the weekend, I won't be updating for a couple of weeks. I'm off on holiday on 1st February and back home again on 16th. Add in the jetlag factor and I will probably be back with you by 18th. I think my last update until I go will be on 31st but I can't promise. I have so much to do before I leave! Love, IJKS xxx

Chapter Three Hundred and Thirteen

Across the breakfast table, Romeo and Nicole couldn't quite look each other in the eye. Both of them were embarrassed about the kiss they had shared the night before and neither of them knew how to even start dealing with it.

"What is with you two?" Miles asked.

Both teenagers flushed and avoided the question.

"Mail's here," Alf announced, walking through the front door.

He dished out some bills to Miles, a letter from Roman to Nicole and a return to sender to Romeo. The young surfer sighed heavily. It was yet another rejection from his mother.


Breakfast the Buckton/Collins residence was muted, as it had been for days. Ruby still felt like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders and she was one step away from telling her parents everything. But every time she opened her mouth to speak, Xavier's angry voice invaded her brain and she fell silent.

"Is there something you need to talk about, Rubes?" Joey ventured.

Ruby clammed up and shook her head.

"Because, you know if you've done something, or seen something, or even if you just know something you shouldn't," Charlie added. "Then you won't be in trouble or anything. In fact, it would be really great if you felt you could open up to us about anything that's on your mind."

Ruby swallowed and hesitated. They know, she realised. Instantly, guilt attacked her. But soon after, Xavier's words echoed in her ears again.

"There's nothing," she lied. "Nothing."


Romeo and Nicole were silent as they walked to school together.

"Look, about last night..." Nicole finally started.

Romeo blanched, dreading what she would say next.

"It shouldn't have happened," Nicole said.

Romeo stopped and breathed a genuine sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness you think that!" he laughed.

Nicole looked bemused.

"I knew it was a mistake as soon as it happened," Romeo explained. "But then I started panicking about how you might feel and that it might ruin our friendship and everything."

"I love you," Nicole said.

Romeo looked horrified.

"But only as a friend," she assured him. "Maybe even as a brother, which makes last night ever weirder!"

Romeo laughed loudly and nodded.

"It's definitely weird," he agreed as they resumed their walk to school. "I guess we're both just grieving over Annie and Aden."

"Yep," Nicole said. "I'm just glad we didn't go too far!"

"We definitely wouldn't have gone too far," Romeo said quickly.

Nicole paused.

"Am I not 'going too far' material?" she asked, feeling rather self conscious.

"No! I mean, I know that's what you do but that's not what I do..."

"That's what I do?" Nicole demanded, growing immediately angry. "What the hell do you think I am?"

"What?" Romeo squeaked. "No! I didn't... I didn't mean it like that!"

"Well, what did you mean?"

Her eyes burned into his. He wanted the ground to open up and swallow him whole.

"Just that, well, you've gone further with guys than I have," he said. "You know, than I have with girls. Not guys. I've never done anything with a guy. Not that that's not cool or... anything."

His cheeks burned as he glowed bright red with sheer embarrassment. Nicole cracked a smile to show he was forgiven. They fell into step beside each other again.

"Wait," she said. "Does that mean you've never...?"

Romeo flushed even further.

"Don't spread it around," he begged.

"I won't," Nicole said, her face unable to hide her surprise, especially considering the name her friend went by.


At lunch time, having spent all morning desperately trying to track Hugo down – not to mention trying to keep Angelo calm – Charlie was relieved to be sat down to lunch at the Diner with Joey.

"Any luck?" Joey asked.

"Nope," Charlie sighed. "Angelo's been staking the farm out. He's convinced that he's hiding out there."

"Not at Gina's?"

"He thinks he moved because Martha's barely left the farm in days. Prior to that, she was at Gina's all the time, including when we went round to talk to them. Angelo's trying to get hold of a search warrant."

Joey nodded.

"Don't have a heart attack or anything, but I do kind of feel sorry for Angelo on this one," she admitted.

Charlie chuckled but agreed.

"I just hope that we can reach some kind of conclusion – sooner rather than later."

They looked up when they saw Miles enter the building, very dressed up. He greeted them warmly when they waved.

"Is this all in aid of the P&C meeting?" Joey asked.

"Yep," Miles said. "It's my last ditch attempt to make things right."

"Good luck," Charlie said. "Make sure you let us know how it goes."

"If it goes my way, everyone in the whole town will know about!" Miles laughed. "I'll be shouting it from the rooftops!"

Their attention was stolen by a loud argument in the corner of the room. Rachel and Tony were laying into each other and the words 'boxing' and 'John' could be heard distinctly by everyone in the room.

"Ah, John Palmer," Joey mused. "Always making everyone cranky."

Charlie laughed, reminding Joey that she had decided to try and like him.


"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ruby asked sceptically.

Romeo and Nicole had gathered Ruby and Xavier together in a bid to storm the P&C meeting so that they could fight for Miles.

"Of course it's a good idea," Romeo insisted. "We can't let Miles lose his job."

"I'm sure he can fight his own corner," Xavier said doubtfully.

Quite frankly, he had enough on his mind without taking on other people's problems.

"When has Miles ever been confident enough to shout about how amazing he is?" Nicole said. "He needs us. If we can get enough students involved then the powers that be will have no choice but to reinstate him."


With Charlie back at work, Joey had stopped by the Surf Club to talk to Alf about new stock she'd found that she thought was worth a try. Getting a little distracted, she had settled down and got chatting with her boss and Marilyn.

"See you later, handsome," said a woman, winking at Alf.

Joey and Marilyn burst out laughing at the way Alf flushed with embarrassment.

"Who was that?" Joey asked curiously.

"Oh, just Jill," Alf said, still blushing.

"Just Jill, hey?" Joey teased, giggling with Marilyn.

"She's new in town," Alf explained, just about returning to a normal colour. "She was looking for a place to stay so I directed her to The Sands."

"Not the caravan park?" Marilyn smirked. "Where she could call you handsome all the time?"

Joey snorted without dignity and Alf turned red again.

"Oh Alf!" Joey swooned. "You're just so handsome!"

"Don't you have a job to do?" Alf asked quickly.

Joey laughed again.

"On my way, boss," she saluted before dashing out.

"And I always have an elsewhere to be," Marilyn added. "See you later, handsome."

As she walked out, she didn't realise that Colleen had arrived and caught the very tail end of the conversation. And typically, she had jumped to her own conclusions.


Romeo, Nicole, Ruby and Xavier left the P&C meeting triumphantly. Having stormed the meeting, they had wasted no time in praising Miles for being the best teacher at the school. And happily, it looked like the panel had paid attention. Gina had been impressed and Miles had looked nervous but grateful. They just now hoped that they had done enough to help him.


"Dammit," Angelo shouted, slamming the phone down.

Passing by his office, Charlie poked her head around the door, worried.

"What's up?" she asked.

"They don't think there's sufficient evidence to grant a search warrant for the farm."

He looked sick with bitterness.

"Maybe we need to find a different way to tackle this," Charlie suggested.

"Like what?" he snapped.

"I don't know," Charlie said. "That's why we have to sit down and figure it out."

Angelo sighed heavily and sank into his chair.

"I can't let him disappear, Charlie," he said sadly. "I can feel this whole case slipping away and..."

He shook his head sadly and rubbed his face with the palms of his hands.

"I just don't know what to do," he admitted.

Feeling compassionate, Charlie glanced at her watch and then came to perch on the edge of his desk.

"We have an hour until our shift finishes," she said. "Let's head to the Surf Club, have a drink and try to come up with a plan of action."

Angelo knew he must be depressed if the thought of going for a drink with Charlie wasn't even enough to lighten his mood, but he agreed anyway.

"I'll ask Joey to come," Charlie decided.

He opened his mouth to object but she interrupted.

"She's good at thinking imaginatively about things," Charlie said. "She'll be useful."


"Miles!" Gina called, chasing the English teacher down the corridor.

He spun around in surprise. The meeting had only just ended.

"Good news!" she gushed. "They didn't even need any deliberation. You're completely cleared to teach again."

"Seriously?" Miles gasped, almost in disbelief.

"Yep! I expect you here bright and early on Monday morning."

She squeaked as he picked her up in excitement and spun her around in a circle.


Joey was just closing up the bait shop when she spotted Romeo, looking pleased with himself.

"What's so exciting?" she asked, as he fell into step beside her.

Judging by his surfboard, he looked set to hit the waves. Joey was aiming for the Surf Club where she was supposed to be meeting up with Charlie and Angelo.

"Miles got reinstated at the school," he announced. "And me, Nicole, Ruby and Xavier were a really big part of it."

Joey grinned, thrilled with the news.

"What did you kids do?" she wondered.

He explained with such animation and jubilance that she couldn't help but laugh.

"Now, I just have to get over Annie and my mother and everything in life will be grand," he said.

"Your Mum?" Joey asked curiously.

He had never mentioned her before, except to explain what had happened to put Mink in jail.

"I keep writing her," he explained sadly. "But she just sends my letters back unopened. I need to just swallow my feelings and forget about her. Obviously she wants nothing to do with me."

Joey put an arm around him and offered a gentle squeeze.

"I'm not sure swallowing your feelings is the best move," she said. "But I guess you have to do what you've got to do. But the Joey Collins counselling service runs five days a week!"

She grinned, making him laugh.

"Thanks for always being there," he said earnestly. "I don't know what any of us would do without you!"


Jill was back and flirting with Alf again by the time Charlie, Angelo and Joey settled down at a table in the Surf Club.

"What's going on?" Charlie wondered, amused by how shy Alf seemed to be.

It was a side to him that she had rarely seen before. The first and last time had been when Tony Holden's one time fling, Bridget had arrived in town. But unfortunately, she had proved to be nothing but a con woman who had taken poor Alf for a ride.

"Alf has an admirer," Joey giggled, watching them interact.

"Could we focus, please?" Angelo said in a rather harsher tone than he meant.

"Yep," Charlie said, snapping to attention. "Okay, where do we start?"

"Well, what do we know?" Joey asked.

"That Hugo's hiding out at the farm," Angelo told her.

"Well, technically that's only what we think," Charlie pointed out.

Angelo looked set to yell. Joey quickly interrupted.

"We can go with that," Joey said evenly. "So, how do we find out for sure?"

"Well, we search the house," Charlie said.

"Except, we can't get a search warrant," Angelo pointed out grimly.

"What about if someone visited as a friend instead of as a cop?" Joey suggested. "She might let us in. I mean, Charlie and I visit her all the time. If she keeps us on the doorstep then that might proof in itself."

Charlie nodded.

"That might be a good place to start."

All three of them looked round when they heard an argument erupt. First, Tony yelled at John. Then Rachel yelled at Tony and stormed out. Then, abandoning Alf, Jill began to flirt with John.

"He'd better not be about to break Gina's heart," Joey complained.

"Can you two stop getting distracted?" Angelo snapped. "I'm trying to bring down a criminal here!"

"And you'll be doing it on your own if you don't start playing nicely," Charlie warned.

Joey glanced up again when she spotted Romeo, done with his surf, walk into the building and stop short when he spotted Jill at the bar. Drunkenly, she wobbled to her feet and approached him.

"Mum?" he managed quietly, painfully aware of everyone watching them.

"Todd!" she exclaimed loudly.


Next time… Tony and John are disappointed with their boxing match, Elijah decides he wants to marry Leah and Charlie and Angelo try to find a way forward with their case…