Gary had been chatting to his parents for a couple of hours, the most contact he’d had with them for some time!

 

‘Can I get you something to eat Mr and Mrs Jacobs?’ Jo asked.

 

‘Please, call us Frank and Dee,’ his mother replied.

 

‘It’s OK dear, we were going to take you out for a meal if you like, Gary?’ Frank asked.

 

Gary had felt hardened against his parents for so long now, but recent events had made him take another look at his life. He didn’t want to fight everything around him anymore, just try and take things as they came and try and be a bit more laid back. They were finally beginning to make an effort, so he may as well go along with it…

 

‘Yeah, sounds great,’ Gary smiled at them.

 

 

***

 

 

Max had met Fiona for lunch at The Headless Pint. They’d been out on a few dates and were getting on very well.

 

‘I remember when he first bought this place,’ Fiona said, watching her cousin Jack serving.

 

‘He’s sure made a success of things, hasn’t he?’ Max added.

 

‘Well, he always was a natural businessman and really threw himself into it after Cassie died.’

The mood became more serious.

 

‘Do you think he’ll ever get married again?’

 

Fiona shrugged her shoulders as she bit into her sandwich.

 

‘Who knows? If the right woman came along maybe, but Cassie is still the love of his life now, so it’d take someone pretty special.’

 

‘You’re pretty special too, y’know, looking out for him the way you do,’ Max reached for her hand.

 

‘Oh, Max, you’re sweet….and you’ve been a great friend to him too, y’know.’

 

Max was rapidly becoming smitten with Jack’s cousin, and could hardly take his eyes off her for the whole lunchtime.

 

 

***

 

 

His younger brother Sam, meanwhile, was hard at work in the builder’s office, when his boss came in.

 

‘Hello, Sam, how’s it going?’

 

‘Good thanks, everything under control,’ Sam smiled, and he genuinely did feel pretty confident about his work now.

 

‘Excellent, because I need to talk to you about where your role in the company is heading,’ he gestured for Sam to sit down, as he did the same.

 

Sam suddenly felt uneasy, as though he was about to be made redundant. After all, he thought, it had happened before, and isn’t that where serious chats with the boss usually end up?

 

 

We’ve all been very pleased with your progress, Sam. So much so that I have an offer for you… Fred Wilson is due to leave us shortly, so how do you feel about becoming the Site Manager for Alborford?’

 

Sam couldn’t believe his ears. He knew things had been going well, but didn’t expect this!

 

‘Er...it sounds great!’

 

‘Don’t worry about not having the labour experience, because it’ll still be a supervisory role for you. You’re a people person, Sam, so you’ll be perfect for it…’

 

***

 

Gary was in a restaurant in town with his parents.

 

‘One thing I’ve got to ask is…’

 

‘Go on, Gary,’ his mother encouraged.

 

‘Well,’ he could feel himself getting worked up again, ‘why now? You’ve not exactly made much of an effort since I moved here?’

 

Frank Jacobs was a big man, and always seemed to loom over his son in a threatening way, but today he seemed gentler in some way.

 

‘I know we can’t make up for the things that have happened in the past, but we’re prepared to try if you are?’

 

‘You both owed me big time, but you didn’t want to know. I tried after a while, what makes you think you can suddenly respond now? Nicola left home after what went on, then I did, but neither of you seemed to care,’ he felt furious now, but held back for

 

 

the sake of the other diners.

 

His mother looked quite tearful now.

 

‘Of course we cared, but it was difficult.’

 

‘We’re very sorry son, can we please try again? We can make it up to you?’

 

 

***

 

 

Kris lay in bed with Nathan, after they had well and truly made up with each other.

 

‘So you’re not going to see her again?’ Kris whispered.

 

‘No, of course not darlin’. It’s just you and me now,’ he stroked her hair.

 

‘Good, because if you mess me around again, you’re for it mate!’ She laughed.

 

Nathan rolled over to check the alarm clock and grinned to himself…

 

 

***

 

 

‘Well done, Sam,’ Don handed his son a beer.

 

‘Cheers dad,’ he took a swig as his smiling parents congratulated him again.

 

‘Everything’s going so well for you now, you’ve put all that rebellious stuff behind you at last,’ said Josie.

 

‘Yes mum,’ laughed Sam.

 

‘Too right, no longer a waster at all,’

Don teased him, but he had never felt proud of his younger son until recently.

 

‘Anyway, I’d better go and tell Ros the good news!

 

Their faces fell, but Sam ignored it. His relationship with Ros was something they still couldn’t come to terms with.

 

As he walked down Rex Road to Number Ten, he could see an attractive young woman hugging Ros in the doorway.

 

‘Sam! I’m glad you’re here, this is my sister Rebecca!’

 

He could see the family resemblance!

 

‘Pleased to meet you.’

 

 

***

 

 

Gary’s parents had gone back to their hotel and he was sat in the lounge of Number Six feeling pretty low.

 

‘Gary? Are you OK? How did it go?’

Jo asked as she arrived home.

 

‘I don’t know if I can forgive them, Jo.’

 

‘Forgive them for what?

 

‘Abuse, Jo. They both abused me and my sister...with my uncle’s help too!’

 

***

 

 

Nathan and Laura had met in Norwich later that evening.

 

‘I thought you’d have finished with her after she treated me like that,’ Laura whined, attracting the attention of some of the other drinkers in the bar.

 

‘I want to, darlin’, honestly, but it’s tricky. I could lose the roof over my head! If she reports me to the landlord, Phil will make me go back to mum and dad’s—especially when I haven’t even got a job yet. That’d mean I’d be away from you, babe. I’ll finish with her as soon as I’ve got a job and a place sorted.’

 

‘Really? Oh, I knew you didn’t really want her, I just needed to hear it,’ Laura hugged him, and that familiar grin spread across his face once more...

© 2010 Danny Alborough / DJA Publications
All characters, names and situations are fictitious.
Any similarities to places or people, living or dead, are purely coincidental.