Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty Five
Ruby was in a particularly good mood the following morning, surprising her parents by making them breakfast.
"What's all this in aid of?" Joey wondered, sitting obediently at the table.
"Well, I have this wonderful second Mum," Ruby explained. "And she thinks I'm talented enough to perform at the opening of her restaurant. So I'm trying to thank her for her faith in me."
"I have faith in you too!" Charlie squeaked.
"And that's why you get breakfast as well," Ruby said, putting a plate in front of her.
Satisfied, Charlie tucked into her meal.
"I cannot believe you've done this!" April shouted as she and Bianca marched across the beach.
"I wasn't my fault!" her sister replied.
"Oh, your body was taken over by a poltergeist that made you shout at our Landlord, was it?"
"He shouted first!" Bianca insisted.
"He's the Landlord!" April snapped.
"So?" Bianca replied. "That doesn't give in the right to…"
"Be angry about late rent?" April challenged.
The blonde sighed grumpily and sat down on the sand. April sat beside her.
"What are we going to do now?" the younger girl asked.
With Ruby visiting Nicole, Charlie and Joey headed towards the restaurant where there were really few things left to do, fortunately. The bulk food delivery was arriving today, which meant that the deadline was getting closer. They also had a hell of a lot of interviews to do, which Joey was horrified to have left to the last minute.
"How did this happen?" she asked, opening the booking book on the stand by the door.
The idea was that customers would wait there for a waiter or a waitress to see them to their table.
"What?" Charlie wondered.
Joey showed her the book. Opening night was completely full.
"That's a good thing, isn't it?" she asked.
"Well, yeah but I didn't book anything," Joey said, a little bewildered. "Did you?"
Charlie shook her head. Joey continued to look confused.
"Okay," she said. "We can go with it."
"What do you want, Xave?" Gina asked.
Her youngest son was hovering behind where she sat at computer, working over the weekend.
"Um… well, I was just wondering…"
Gina turned and looked at him.
"Wondering what?" she asked.
"Is there any chance that April and Bianca could move in with us?"
"Do I look okay?" Joey asked, dressed in a suit, ready for conducting the interviews.
Charlie was in the same attire but not quite as anxious.
"You look beautiful," she promised. "Me?"
"Perfect," Joey replied.
She scrutinised her face in the bathroom mirror.
"I'm really nervous," she admitted, turning back around.
Charlie chuckled and pulled her into a hug, gently reminding her that she wasn't being interviewed; she was the boss now and she should enjoy it.
Ruby and Nicole had opted to go for a walk on the beach together.
"So you're going to perform at the opening night?" Nicole asked. "That's really cool."
"Yep," Ruby beamed. "And she said that I could apply for a job there – but not until the holidays."
Nicole smiled.
"She's such a parent!" she giggled.
Ruby nodded.
"She is!" she agreed.
"And how are things with… you know?" Nicole ventured.
"What?" Ruby asked.
"Liam," Nicole said. "Are your feelings…?"
"Gone," Ruby told her. "Completely and utterly gone."
She froze when she saw the man in question, sitting on the sand with Bianca. Nicole abruptly stopped believing her lie.
After a successful day, Charlie and Joey took a slow walk along the seafront, hand in hand.
"Do you think it's a good idea?" Joey asked.
Charlie had suggested that they do a trial opening night by invitation only to do a rehearsal for the real thing.
"We've completed almost everything," Charlie said. "But you're still fit to burst with anxiety. So, what is it that's stressing you out?"
"Failure," Joey said. "I mean, I know I've been driving you and Ruby mad with menu ideas and stuff and I know everything is in place but I just… I'm panicking about how it'll go on the night. I'm terrified that it's going to go wrong and…"
Charlie stopped walking, pulling her girlfriend into a hug. She kissed the top of her head and cupped her face, guiding her back up to look at her.
"I think a trial run will help," she said. "If you want to?"
"I trust you," Joey decided. "If you think it's a good idea, let's do it."
At the bait shop, Angelo rejected another call from his brother. Part of him wanted to answer and tell him exactly what he thought of him. But a bigger part of him was intent on running away. For too long, he had been considered a failure by his family, starting with an event that hadn't even been his fault. They hadn't visited him in prison, which had hurt and they had been adamant that he should have paid for his crime. Getting off the charges, he had hoped to make his parents proud by opening and closing the human trafficking but nothing had turned out the way it was supposed to. The last thing he wanted his brother to see was him working in a bait shop with no prospects.
Charlie and Joey arrived home to find Ruby looking rather sullen and watching TV.
"Hey, where's that smile from this morning?" Joey wondered.
"Nobody can be in a good mood the whole time!" Ruby snapped back.
Charlie and Joey exchanged worried glances.
"What's wrong?" Charlie asked, coming to sit in the arm chair across from her.
"Nothing," Ruby said, her voice still hostile. "Why does there have to be something wrong?"
"Because you're shouting," Charlie replied.
"I'm not shouting!" Ruby yelled.
Sighing, she lowered her voice.
"I'm just nervous about the performance," she lied. "Nothing more than that. Sorry."
Joey came to join them, perching on the edge of Charlie's chair.
"If it's too much pressure for you, you don't have to do it…"
"I want to do it!" Ruby snapped without meaning to.
"Seriously, Ruby!" Charlie criticised. "Why are you being so rude to everyone?"
Her daughter leapt to her feet.
"Because I'm sick of everyone telling me what I should and shouldn't be doing!" Ruby told her. "It's my life. Stop telling me what to do!"
Charlie didn't have time to protest before Ruby stormed into her bedroom and slammed the door.
Xavier met up with April, having convinced his mother to let her and Bianca stay with them. She had agreed on the promise that there would be no 'hanky panky' and that Xavier was friendly to John for two whole months. As much as he disliked his mother's boyfriend, it seemed like a small price to pay to be close to his girlfriend and help her out at the same time.
"Aside from Ruby turning into the teenager from hell, today was a pretty good day," Joey mused that night as she and Charlie got ready for bed.
"And tomorrow is going to be extra exciting!" Charlie enthused, sitting at the dressing table and brushing her hair.
She saw Joey smiling at her in the mirror. She turned around and caught hold of her hands.
"I can't believe you've made me wait this whole time to find out what you're calling the place," she remarked.
Joey perched on the edge of the bed, still holding her hands.
"I'm pretty nervous about it actually," she admitted.
"Why?"
"In case you don't like it."
"I'm sure I'll love it," Charlie told her. "But if you wanted to give me a preview just in case…"
She grinned but Joey shook her head.
"You've waited this long," she said. "One more night won't hurt."
Next time… Ruby is depressed over Liam, Dex drops Indi in it with Romeo and the name of the restaurant is finally revealed…
