Hope

Adrienne

It would be good to see everyone at Hope’s party, her children Joseph and Jakob from her ex husband Billie, also her twins Charlotte and Jared, Charlie’s children would be there. She enjoyed getting together with everyone but it wasn’t like the old days, she couldn’t dance anymore she just sat, sat in her wheelchair and watched everyone else. She’d had bad days, awful depressive days where she thought that life wasn’t quite worth living but she’d got over those and resigned herself to the fact that she’d never walk again and that was that.

Thank god for Millie who she’d hired to help her out, Millie who was such a help to her she wouldn’t have known what she’d have done without her. She helped her get dressed and get her ready for the day, did her hair, helped her with shopping and all sorts of things when she needed anything doing and she’d become a good friend over the years too.

Except something worried her slightly about Millie, she wasn’t quite sure what it was. Franky had never taken to her and she didn’t know why. They clashed; she didn’t understand it because everyone loved Millie, everyone except Franky it seemed.

She loved Franky.

They’d had their moments in the past, especially when Franky was young, when she’d first come here to live with her father, Tre. She smiled as remembered the crush Franky had on Billie it being so obvious to everyone but that crush, unusually had turned into true love. Billie had felt the same way towards Franky and by then her marriage to Billie was over anyway. Adrienne was sure Billie still loved Franky, she was sure of it, they had been due to get married at one point all those years ago and Adrienne had never understood why Franky went off to Ireland for three years, just upped and left and left them all behind. Things weren’t the same after that; Franky and Billie had never quite got it together properly. Billie had said they had tried on and off with their relationship but Adrienne remembered one late night drunken conversation with Billie that she’d had and he’d told her that Franky wouldn’t commit, not properly commit to him. Adrienne couldn’t quite understand why Franky wouldn’t commit. It didn’t make sense; it was as though something was holding her back. Franky was stubborn, she always had been and kept quite a lot close to her chest, she was hard to get close to but was the kindest person Adrienne had ever met.

Glancing at herself in the mirror her best features, her hair and her eyes sparkled but behind those eyes was a loneliness, a loneliness for someone to love and be loved back.

But who’d want her like this, stuck in a wheelchair, unable to hardly do much for herself?

God she missed Charlie so very much and always would. It made her sad to think that his children never got to know what a wonderful person he was.

That was another reason why she loved Franky, she would often tell the twins tales of when they were younger and what Charlie and her used to get up to.

She wished Franky would just open up a little, forget what was bothering her from the past, move on into the future and be happy.

Her mother Sammi would have wanted that for her.

Julia

It had been like a dream come true being with Tre. Her and Emily had found someone special in him but she had wanted more than anything to give him a child. It had ruled her life for so long but now she’d come to accept it, it was just not going to happen. She was with the man she loved; and she knew he loved her in return. She also knew he still occasionally thought about his previous wife Sammi. She’d accepted that too, there was no changing it so she just lived with it.

It was Emily that worried her; she’d got into a relationship with a much older guy, someone close to the family, almost a family member. She hadn’t approved of it but over the years she’d come to realise how happy this guy made her daughter.

She’d tell her today, make amends with Emily as they’d had a few arguments about her being with this guy.

She’d finally come to accept Emily’s relationship with Mike.

Emily

Today she was going to see everyone at Franky’s. It was going to be fantastic celebrating Hope’s birthday with everyone; it had been awhile since they’d all been together like one happy family.

One happy family.

What a joke that was! She hoped her mother wouldn’t start again about her relationship with Mike. They’d been together for so long now, why couldn’t she just accept it.

It had been such a sad time when Jen had died, totally unexpected and Mike had felt guilty for not giving Jen his time. He hadn’t coped that well and it was left to her and Ramona and his daughter Estelle to take care of little Sam. He had been such a fantastic baby, she’d always loved him and over the next couple of years after Jen’s death Mike and her, well, their relationship developed. She’d been 18 years old when he’d told her how he felt but she’d felt like that towards him for years, right from when she’d moved here, she’d always felt something for him but had hidden it as she was far too young.

Now she didn’t have to hide it, they’d lived together for years, their relationship having been accepted by everyone apart from her mother.

Well she’d have to accept it now because she had some news for her; she couldn’t wait to tell her and just wished she’d be happy for them.

Hannah

She felt sick thinking about meeting up with Tre later that day. The flight over had been a nightmare, her heart beating fast when she thought about the party and everyone there.

She’d come to a decision that she was going to have to tell Tre that Eddy was his son and she’d kept the news from him to get back at him all those years ago.

What a bitch, how foolish and childish and immature. She’d been a fucking idiot and everyone was going to hate her.

Ed hated her anyway, their marriage was a sham and he’d told her on the flight over that he was considering leaving her, he couldn’t do it anymore. He’d grown to accept Eddy, was pretty good with him and Eddy loved him like a real father but of course he wasn’t and poor, poor Eddy was going to find out later today that Tre was his father and his whole life had been a lie.

She’d also have to tell him that he was therefore a blood relative of Hope, Hope who he got on so well with. Hannah was sure he had feelings for Hope and she for him in return but it would soon be coming to an end.

Later, at the party she was going to have to tell them all the truth.

She was going to ruin so many lives.

Ed

Ed hated himself. He hated himself for not having spoken up sooner for letting Hannah rule his life. He was an asshole, such a weak man and he’d gone along with her because he’d loved her.

Well, he had once, now he hated her as much as he hated himself.

It was the boy he felt sorry for. Poor Eddy whose life was a lie. Funnily he’d grown fond of Eddy who’d looked up to him but now, now he didn’t deserve to be around him. Eddy deserved to get to know his real father. Tre.

He didn’t want to go to this party, to smile fake smiles when all along they were living a lie. He’d decided that if Hannah didn’t tell Tre about Eddy then he would.

Then he’d tell Eddy that he wasn’t really his father.

Then he’d leave, head off somewhere, away from the bitch and her lies.

Something he should have done years ago.

Jared

She was his soul mate, he was sure of it. She was more his twin than Charlotte was. He couldn’t remember a time when they hadn’t argued.

Today he was going to tell her but…what if she laughed in his face?

It could change their relationship forever. It could ruin things between them and he wouldn’t want that.

He’d ask Charlotte’s advice. She’d know what to do. Charlotte, the wild child, his total opposite, fun to be around, always telling funny tales and making jokes. Everyone loved listening to Charlotte, everyone was I awe of her.

He loved his twin but kind of a little bit hated her. Not hated her but she annoyed him because she was what he wanted to be like.

But he was who he was, there was no changing him.

He just hoped that Hope felt the same way.

Because he’d loved her forever.

Charlotte

She was so excited, she loved family parties where everyone got together, and she loved to talk to everyone and to make them laugh and just talk all night and dance.

She loved it.

She loved spending time at Franky and Hope’s house; it was like a second home. Hope was her best friend, she could tell her anything and nothing or nobody had come between them, even Jared. But she was more excited about the fact that Eddy was going to be there. She’d met him a couple of times but last year when he’d visited she’d got on so well with him and hadn’t stopped thinking about him since.

This was the one thing that she hadn’t told Hope. She didn’t want to tell her how she felt about Eddy because she was sure that Hope felt the same way about him.

She didn’t know what to do.

Mike

He couldn’t wait to see Tre and Billie again. It was weird; he saw them practically all the time but if a day or two passed when he hadn’t he just couldn’t wait to see them again.

Whatever he was doing, wherever he was there was nearly always something he wanted to just call up and tell them or ask them about. It had always been like that with the three of them and probably always would.

They’d had their ups and downs of course and Tre and Billie had gone through patches of not talking but on the whole they’d always been there for each other.

Mike still couldn’t believe what had happened to Jen. She just faded away in front of him two years after having Sam.

She’d never taken an interest in Sam and had suffered from depression but when she’d died after not taking care of herself, having been in hospital for months where they tried to feed her and failed he’d read this diary that she’d kept. She had been convinced that she had breast cancer like her sister and was going the same way so she didn’t want to get close to her son.

It was a sad time. Mike had blamed himself and of course everyone kept telling him it wasn’t his fault and that Jen had just been ill, there was nothing they could have done for her. She’d slowly killed herself.

It had been a terrible time and would have been made much worse if it hadn’t been for Emily. She’d taken care of him and Sam and he’d slowly fallen in love with her.

She was the sweetest person he’d ever met and he’d never felt more content than he did now.

If only Julia would accept him.

Eddy

He felt at home here in California and always had, it was like he had an affinity with the place. He loved the people and everything about it.

He hadn’t yet told his parents that he wasn’t going back with them to New York. He’d decided to stay here for good, to live here and be around the people that made him happy, Tre and his family.

His parents pissed him off all the time because they constantly argued. They’d hardly spoken to each other for months now. His mom was some neurotic woman that constantly moaned at his father who just stormed out after each row and didn’t come home for hours.

He wouldn’t miss them at all.

Plus there was Hope. He was close to her, he felt something there and he hoped later at her party to get to talk to her properly.

He was sure they could be together.

Sure of it.

James

He was happy now, happy with his life at last and it had taken years. He’d done so much wrong but he’d made amends now, he’d met someone special and was getting married.

It will be good to see her again though; he needed to see Franky just one more time to make sure she was happy because he did feel something for her still.

She hadn’t deserved what he’d done to her, none of it and he still felt guilty. He was glad of Tre and Billie for helping him in the past and for letting him back in to their tight knit group.

It would be good to see Hope too, he couldn’t believe she was 18; she was a fantastic daughter and Franky a good mother to her.

He wasn’t taking his wife to be to the party as she didn’t know anyone and was also getting over the news that she’d never be able to give him children.

He was coming to terms with it himself, the fact that he’d never be a father but he loved her and couldn’t turn his back on her because of that.

Gerard

It was his last night off before they set off on the second leg of their latest tour and the band were all excited about going to Hope’s party. They all loved that family, Tre had been so good to them over the years. Billie and Mike were like older brothers too and Gerard had been there for Mike when he’d lost Jen.

Then there was Franky.

He’d tried a few times to get close to her again but it wasn’t what she wanted. He couldn’t understand why she left for Ireland just after Billie had proposed. She’d never explained to him. They talked, had great conversations and he got on well with her daughter Hope.

He didn’t get the fact that she didn’t seem to want Billie anymore and she didn’t want him either.

What did she want from life?

He could love her and take care of her quite easily but knew it would never be returned.

He felt destined for a life alone and childless.

Billie

So Hope was 18 today. He loved her like she was his own; he’d always be there for her, wherever he was if she called him up any time of the day or night he’d be there for her like he’d be for Joey and Jake.

It’s a shame it just hadn’t worked out with Franky.

He couldn’t quite understand why. He’d tried, god he’d tried over the years. They’d got it together a couple of times but it was never quite enough for her. She always held back, made some excuse as to why it wouldn’t work, stupid excuses that meant nothing.

He loved her and always would but now, now he was tired of the whole thing.

Then there was Millie. She was fantastic and he’d slept with her twice but felt nothing for her and that made him feel awful. He shouldn’t have done it but what man wouldn’t? He’d needed it; he needed to feel once again what it was like to be wanted.

He wanted to be wanted by Franky but she didn’t seem to want that.

But now, now he’d had enough of the whole thing, he was sick and tired and after the party he couldn’t wait to just get away, to fly away from California. He’d booked an open ended ticket away from here; he’d travel the world just to get away from Franky.

If that’s what it took to get away from his feelings for Franky then so be it.