Sorry for the lack of update yesterday. I was otherwise engaged and by the time I got to my laptop, I was too tired to turn it on! Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter. Love, IJKS xxx
Chapter Three Hundred and Sixty
"Are you okay?" Joey asked worriedly, when she found Marilyn sitting rather numbly at her table in the back room of the bait shop.
Marilyn responded by pushing the local newspaper towards her. Frowning, Joey sat down and read a particularly scathing letter about Marilyn's new business, signed by Colleen Smart.
Charlie and Watson met Angelo outside the courtroom. He had been granted bail but was suspended from the police force, pending trial. While he knew it was far from over, he was relieved to not have to go inside just yet.
Although he knew that Charlie and Watson had only come because he needed a police escort, he was still touched that they seemed to care about his welfare. For a while there, he had thought there would be no way back after everything that had happened between him and Charlie. But it seemed like even Joey was willing to let it become water under the bridge. Although he knew he would probably always hold at least a vague torch for Charlie, Angelo hoped that he could finally put it behind him and focus on just being her friend instead. He had even started to like Joey a little bit. Sort of.
"You haven't done anything wrong," Joey assured Marilyn. "Colleen was very wrong to write that letter and the paper were wrong to publish it."
"I just feel like this whole thing is over before it started," the tarot reader replied glumly.
Joey patted her hand.
"It'll be okay," she said.
"So okay that I don't actually have any customers?" Marilyn remarked.
"You've only been open for an hour," Joey said. "Give it some time."
She looked up and caught sight of Tony heading towards the bait shop.
"See, here's a customer now!" she announced, all but dragging Tony into the room.
"Actually, I've come to…"
"To have your cards read," Joey insisted urgently.
He caught the look of pleading on her face.
"Sure," he lied. "Sure I was."
Joey sat him down in front of Marilyn and announced that she would give them some privacy.
Outside Summer Bay, Doctor Sid Walker was preparing to move house. His kids lived away from him now and if he was being really honest, he had made a hash of his life. Against his own better judgement, he had rented a farmhouse from Alf Stewart and got his old job back at the hospital in Summer Bay. He just hoped that he could start again for real this time.
Tony thanked Marilyn and headed over to speak to Joey, who thanked him for participating.
"She's feeling pretty low after that horrible letter from Colleen," she explained.
"Yeah, I read that this morning," Tony replied. "It was pretty harsh."
Joey nodded and thanked him again.
"No problem," he said. "I hope it helped. It was pretty interesting actually."
"Yeah, I had my cards read yesterday," Joey told him. "I don't know how much I believe in that kind of thing but I'd never rule it out. It was fun."
Charlie and Watson had dropped Angelo home and stopped off for a coffee at the Diner. Charlie was tempted to stop by the bait shop to say hello but she knew she would be flouting the rules a little bit. She was also sure that she should be able to go a few hours without seeing her girlfriend!
"Sorry!" Miles said when he bumped right into her and nearly spilt her drink.
"Are you okay?" Charlie asked, noting the look of seriousness on his face.
"Yeah," he sighed. "I'm just worried about Nicole."
"Nicole?" Charlie asked. "Why?"
"I really don't trust that Penn guy," he admitted. "I don't know why exactly. I just… don't."
"I'm sure it'll be okay," Charlie tried. "I mean, how bad can he be?"
"That's what I'm worried about!"
"Well, rest assured that Charlie and I will be there," Joey said. "And I hope Rachel comes round to the idea."
Tony sighed, still feeling down about his wife's objections.
"I mean, the plan is to teach fitness and skills, right?" Joey added. "You're not actually expecting Charlie and I to punch each other out?"
"Of course not!" Tony laughed. "You will be sparring but it won't be violent."
"Then we'll be there," Joey confirmed. "We're looking forward to it."
With a genuine smile on his face, Tony thanked her and continued with the rest of his day. He had several things to do before Xavier and April were due to be helping him set up the shed.
Sid was just packing up the last of his stuff when there was a tentative knock on his door. Opening up, he was stunned to see his two teenage children in front of him.
"Dex!" he said. "Indi! What on earth are you doing here?"
"We want to live with you," Indi told him anxiously.
He stared back at her in shock. Last time they had all lived together, things had not gone well.
"You're not supposed to be on school grounds," Miles barked when he came back from lunch to find Penn kissing Nicole in the corridor.
The couple broke apart and Nicole looked particularly embarrassed.
"He just walked me back to school," she said.
"I don't care," Miles said. "You're not meant to be having guests on school property without permission and you certainly shouldn't have your tongue rammed down their throat."
Nicole coloured. Miles fixed his glare on Penn.
"Leave," he said.
Penn held his hands up in surrender.
"I'm gone," he said. "I'll catch you later, Nic."
Nicole glared at Miles.
"When you took on the role of my guardian from Dad, did you promise him to embarrass me at every opportunity as well?" she snapped.
"So, Jody just ran off with this guy?" Sid asked incredulously. "She stole him from you?"
"Pretty much," Indi said sourly. "So you can imagine why I have no inclination to live with my ex-boyfriend as my step-dad."
Sid nodded, his mind reeling.
"So, can we live with you?" Dex asked.
"Of course you can but um…"
He gestured to all his packed belongings.
"I'm moving house this afternoon."
"Then it looks like we arrived right on time!" Dex said cheerfully. "Where are we going?"
"Summer Bay," Sid informed them.
Walking home from school with Ruby, Nicole was still trying to puzzle out why Miles had a problem with Penn.
"I mean, he hasn't displayed any signs of psychotic behaviour," she said. "And I should know, after Elliot. And he doesn't seem all messed up like poor Aden was…"
She held up her hands in defeat.
"It's not like Miles normally acts that way," Ruby said. "Maybe he knows something you don't?"
"Like what?" Nicole wondered.
"I have no idea," Ruby replied. "But I suggest you sit down and talk to him about it."
"You need to sit down and talk to her about it," Joey told Miles.
He had come to the bait shop to sound off to his friends, having been consumed with the incident with Nicole all afternoon.
"She hates me," he complained.
"Oh, of course she doesn't hate you," Marilyn said. "She's just an angsty teenager."
"I agree," Joey said.
They both looked up when Charlie appeared, expecting to take Joey home.
"Sorry!" Joey squeaked, having only just realised the time. "I got distracted."
She hurried forward and kissed her, promising to close up as soon as possible.
"I was wondering if you wanted to stop at the Surf Club for a drink?" Charlie said.
She looked around the room.
"All of you," she added.
"Sounds good to me!" Miles readily agreed.
"How was your first day?" Charlie asked Marilyn.
"Oh, it was okay. I had a handful of customers. Colleen's letter doesn't look like it's done that much damage, although I was far from swamped."
"Joey said you read her cards yesterday," Charlie said on the way out.
"Oh yes," Marilyn gushed. "It was the most positive reading I've done in ages!"
"Would you do mine sometime?" Charlie asked. "I'd love to see if my future matches hers."
Joey stepped up and linked arms with her.
"Of course we match," she said. "We belong together."
Everyone had stayed out much later than they'd intended but Charlie, Joey, Marilyn, Miles and occasionally Alf had all had a really nice time together. Nicole and Ruby had stopped by with their friends and drifted over to talk to them a few times, where Nicole had made friends with Miles again.
"Sorry," Joey said, clapping her hand over her mouth when she yawned.
"Did someone keep you up all night?" Miles smirked, making the girls blush and Marilyn giggle.
"I think we can take it as a yes," Marilyn concluded.
"I had a long day at work is all," Joey protested.
In truth, it had been very late before she and Charlie had actually managed to go to sleep.
"Well, on that delightful note, I'd better take you home, young lady," Charlie decided, finishing her Diet Coke.
She paused in saying goodbye when she spotted a familiar figure walk through the doors. From the other side of the room, Nicole caught sight of him at the same time. Doctor Sid Walker was back in town.
Next time… Angelo is back on form with Joey, Miles blurts out a secret and Indi is smitten with oblivious Romeo…
