lollypop

Charlie slapping his hand away in public says a lot about their current status. They really need to sit down and have a serious conversation of this pairing is to have any chance of being anything more than friends with benefits. Charlie can't keep hiding it from everyone because she's afraid of the affect it will have on her relationship and Brax needs to seperate himself completely from anything dodgy if he wants to have a normal relationship with a police officer. If that's how he wants to continue then I don't want to see Charlie have anything to do with him. I mean seriously, a guy doesn't go to those extreme lengths to threaten someone if he has nothing to hide. Verbal threats is one thing, using gun fire to spoke someone, is a far more serious matter!! Edit: Spoiler tags added

Although there is a lot of chemistry between Brax and Charlie, there's also something about the potential for them to be a couple that leaves me feeling rather uncomfortable. I dunno why? Maybe it's because I always thought eventually they would put Charlie with a man who doesn't have a bad reputation, or a bad boy image, or who has done a lot of morally questionable things. Just a regular guy with a regular job from a regular family who doesn't make you question whether or not he's genuine. The last three guys Charlie has been with or slept with have all done something dodgy. Although I would like to believe that Brax is just a good guy with a bad rep, another part of me would be really disappointed if this were true considering the hype around them shaking up the Bay. That part of me wants him to be just plain bad. And if that happens, then I don't think I want to see him potentially in a relationship with Charlie. Especially when myself and other members have been giving her grief over her treatment of Casey. It would be stupid of the writers to have Charlie preaching to Ruby about staying away from Casey because he's a River Boy, then to have her turn around and jump into bed with Brax who is not only a River Boy, but pretty much the proclaimed leader of the River Boys. I understand she's a protective mother, but you can't tell your own child to act one way, when you go completely against your own word and do the opposite of what you've been preaching. It's bad parenting plain and simple. While I love the chemistry between them and I agree that they are a potentially hot couple, another part of me is conflicted and screaming out that this is doomed to fail. And the this sense of a Romeo and Juliet feeling that they are using to promote it only makes me doubt the longevity of a possible romance even more. Considering that Romeo and Juliet ended in in tragedy, and they were pretty much doomed from the beginning because of their polar opposite existences and their individual peers frowned upon their romance, maybe a long term romance isn't actually on the cards. It is possible for people to be sexually attracted to each other but for no real relationship to come out of it. I think I'm going to wait and see how this pairing developes before I start uncorking the champers!!

Then why not let Ruby blow up like she has been? Let her make her own decisions, let her break ties with people. I gurantee you it won't be long before she comes running back with her tail between her legs when she realises the real world is a lot harsher than the safe sheltered world she's been living in thanks to Charlie and her friends etc. She's a headstrong teenager who wants to grow up before her time. Why not let her live in the real world for a while and fend for herself. Too often Charlie comes running to Ruby's defence over every little thing. Which in my opinion is someone who is trying to over parent. If I had done half the things Ruby has, my parents would make me suffer the consequences and own up to what I'd done. Not go storming around trying to fix things for me. Charlie's trying desperately to make up for 16 years of missed opportunities by over parenting Ruby all at once and clearly it's not working. I mean Ruby being head strong and acting out is nothing new. Even when Ross was her dad she still defied his rules and lectures. But eventually when she had time to cool off she came around. But Charlie seems hell bent on making things right. Which I can understand. But she has serious issues with authority. She tends to take a very hard stance with Ruby, but when Ruby doesn't react well she spends the rest of the week apologising to her daughter. If that was me and my mother she would tell me off and wait for me to come back grovelling. Not run around the town trying to make it up to me. Like I said in another post. I believe this is down to Charlie's fear of pushing Ruby away. She's afraid that if she comes down too hard on Ruby she'll run off. Much like she did after she found out Charlie was her mother. I can understand her concern. But it's been two years. If she wants to be a proper mother to Ruby and keep her on the straight and narrow then she needs to take a firm stance with her when it needs be. Even if she risks pushing her away. I mean it's not like Ruby will go far. She'll probably just end up at Irenes

The spoiler promos from the beginning of the year and the end of year promo from the last episode of last year, for the episodes which are to air, were filmed roughly 3 months ago. So, some of the things you mentioned, such as the other Brax and Charlie kiss, and not the one that was already shown outside the surf club, will probably air in the next couple of weeks. A lot of stuff within those spoiler promos have happened, such as Ruby and Romeo, Elijahs return, the arrival of The Riverboys, the riot at Angelo's. And Roo's impending return is tomorrow. So I'm guessing that other kiss, will happen in the next 2-3 weeks??? or maybe I'm wayyyy off.

rachelFAN....I think the "Changelo" are just realising that Charlie and Angelo are never going to get back together, so they're moving on to Charlie's next conquest eho they will probably champion by the end of the year. Personally I'm glad Changelo are through. I hated that pairing. They were the most boring couple on the show. I like Brax. He has attitude, but it's more quick wit than anything else and he makes me laugh. He has an arrogance about him, but it's only about business and respect that we see this arrogance coming from him. Unlike Angelo who's arrogance came across as being smug. A trait I really disliked in the character. I hope Charlie and Brax get a good run. And hopefully, they won't be on and off like a light switch, as was the situation with "Changelo".

The chemistry between Charlie and Brax could be the final nail in the coffin of the "Changelo" relationship!! The writers would be complete idiots not to keep this couple together. They have more spark than Charlie and Angelo ever had.

I get the complication in this family unit. The fact is, Angelo is not and never will be Ruby's father. So she doesn't necessarily have to regard Angelo as a parent/father. However she does see him as a part of the family, although what part that is I'm not quite sure. They needed to define that role. There has been more than one time when Charlie has failed to be there for Ruby as a mother. In fact, most of the year, Irene or Nicole were the one's drying her tears and listening to her problems while Charlie was off with Angelo. Which was a serious bone of contention among viewers for a good period of time during the last season. Ruby may have used Angelo like a pawn over the whole grounding situation, but he should not have given in to her in the first place. He should have done the responsible thing, called her Charlie and consulted her over the whole thing instead of trying to play the good guy. And Ruby didn't interrupt Charlie and Angelo. First of all Ruby didn't know Charlie and Angelo were having a discussion, she knocked and waited at the door. Secondly, Charlie chose to walk away from the conversation and Angelo did not try to stop her. So it's not Ruby's fault. You keep slighlty contradicting yourself. You say Ruby isn't to blame but yet you keep trying to make it a point that whatRuby's has done has contributed to the break up. Charlie and Angelo are grown ups. If they couldn't make their relationship work against whatever difficulties or troubles caused them to break up, then obviously they weren't ready to be in that relationship in the first place. It's their problem alone and nobody elses.

Okay I get the point you made about them not getting to finish their conversation. However, what was Charlie supposed to do. Her daughter was on the verge of running off to the city and she clearly did not want her to go. Was she supposed to leave Ruby hanging so she could finish her conversation with Angelo? The problem is, if Charlie had decided to finish her conversation with Angelo, viewers, members on this boards etc, would have been complainin that she focuses too much on Angelo and not enough on Ruby and that she neglects her daughter. Which has happened A LOT. Especially during the six or so months that Charlie was permanently glued to Angelo's side. See it doesn't matter what Charlie does she's always going to be wrong in someone's eyes. If she spends too much time with Angelo people are complaining because she's not spending enough time with Ruby. If she's spending time with Ruby people are complaining because she's not handling the situation right. I still don't believe it was Ruby's fault for the break up. Angelo knew that when he decided to live with Charlie and Ruby that the women had a lot of stuff they needed to work through and that it was never going to be easy. You can't land the blame on Ruby just because her acting out conveniently matches in with Charlie and Angelo's problems. Firstly Ruby stopped acting out before any of Charlie and Angelo's real problems started and as far as we know, she didn't do anything rebellious in the six week time jump to cause it!!

How exactly is Ruby to blame for Charlie and Angelo breaking up? I mean sure she acted out a lot by the end of the season but we saw Ruby come round in the end. The only reason Charlie and Angelo would have broken up is because of their own issues!!!!! Ruby loved the idea of being a family so much, I highly doubt she would do anything to cause them to break up and ruin that. And Angelo said so himself they didn't tell her because they wanted to protected her. And he never made any hint that the reason they broke up was Ruby so I think pushing the blame onto her is a little much. Sure she's no angel, but she's also not that devious as to ruin her own mothers happiness.

Charlie can't be that sore about it. In Friday's episode where Leah said she wants to find someone she can settle down and spend the rest of her life with, Charlie replied with "I can't say I know that feeling very well". I get the feeling that maybe Angelo's insecurities about Charlie's commit issues may have played a part in the break up. Maybe he could see a clear pictue of the future he wanted, the whole marriage, kids etc, and Charlie just couldn't see things past getting used to living with someone. Maybe he couldn't deal with not knowing whether or not any of those things where on the cards for him if he stayed with Charlie. Let's face it neither of them are getting any younger and Angelo probably wants to settle down. However Charlie, already having a daughter and not feeling the need to rush into anything is probably, it's probably causing friction. It's very hard to be in a relationship when two people are in two very different places in their lives. This is just a theory but maybe this is what caused the breakup

Okay I would just like to point out that I will be the first person to put my hands up and say that I just don't like Angelo. I freely admit that. I also accept the fact that there are people out there who do. Which is why I respect the opinions of people who defend him or who post positive things etc. I agree that Angelo hasn't always had it easy. and I know there are two sides to a relationship. But for me, in my opinion, Charlie is the one who suffers the most. I know Angelo isn't exactly left unshattered in it all, but sometimes I just feel that he pushes Charlie to take a step forward with him and then reacts badly when she takes two steps back. Knowing full well that being in a commited relationship with someone and trusting someone completely is not easy for her. I just feel that sometimes he spends too much time thinking about his own feelings or hurt too much and never really takes a step back to think about how Charlie is dealing with it all until it's too late. And frustrates me when he expects Charlie to be honest and open with him when at times he won't do the same for her and when she pushes him, yes, he does sulk like a spoilt child. I've tried to like the Angelo character in the past but I've given up because he just irritates me to no end. I just think the way they turned him from public enemy number one to prince charming is what really put the final nail in the coffin. Maybe if Angelo had been PROPERLY punished for the more serious crimes he has committed and then returned I would have more respect for him. But he hasn't and that's what really gets me. That and the whole breaking up and getting back together with Charlie. That's just boring and repetitive to watch. I actually wish he had stayed with Mae.

To see Charlie and Angelo reunite one more time........would be more depressing than seeing a much loved character being killed off. I mean seriously how many times have they broken up now?? They have problems, so what.....look at all the problems Rachel and Tony had to overcome in one season and they're still together stronger than ever, living happily ever after in Boston. If Charlie and Angelo can't make it work then they should leave it at that. The idea of them getting back together just because they don't like seeing each other with other people or because they're jealous is stupid teenage stuff. They should just cut ties with the past and move on. It must be extremely frustrating for Esther and Luke to acting out the same storyline over and over again. Give them some new fresh material. Let them interact with new characters/lovers/partners etc. I mean Ruby's love life and the way she's getting around may be pathetic, and it may be ruining a good character, but at least it introduces viewers to new new people, new eye candy and has her interacting with more characters rather than having her run back to Xavier over and over again.

But the problem is....he only ever does the right thing when he gets caught out or when he cannot continue lying. And the reason that annoys me is because it makes him a complete and utter hypocrite. Okay fine, he apologises in the end, but if Charlie or anybody else does something along the lines of what he's done, he calls them out on it. Like Paolo with the loan sharks. Yes what he did was dumb and irresponsible. But wasn't Angelo breaking the rules as a police officer and using criminals do his dirty work about the development site and tampering with police evidence pretty much the same thing? People always make the argument that Jack did the exact same thing for Martha, and yes that's true. But Jack was trying to protect Martha from a man who could have seriously harmed her. What Angelo did was all about getting credibility as a police officer. The only reason I'm making such a big deal about this is because it annoys the hell out of me whe people pummel Charlie into the ground over "breaking" poor Angelo's heart, when he shouldn't even be in Summer Bay anymore. If the law was on the straight side, he would have been locked up and we would never have seen him again. They should be thankful he has any sort of relationship with her at all. I'm actually glad Charlie gets involved with Darryl Braxton because at least he seems upfront about who he is and his intentions. At least I hope so.

I doubt it was a miscarriage. Charlie has a hard enough time trying to get used to doing the less seriosu commitment stuff with Angelo, like moving into together etc. I highly doubt the writers would go down that route. Plus if Charlie had have been pregnant or had a miscarriage, I'm pretty sure she would have told Ruby. But since Ruby seems very unsympathetic towards her I'm guessing that that whole theory isn't very plausible. It's not what Angelo has done that annoys me, it's more how he deals with those situations. I mean okay he shot Jack, but it's more the fact that he ran off and lied rather then doing the noble thing and calling for medical services and owning up. It's the fact that having known what he did he still took a police bargain to stay out of jail and head back to the very place where he caused so much heartache. I also thought the way Angelo acted after being kicked off the police force was dispicable. He chose to let Hugo and Martha go, I'm guessing out of guilt, and instead of owning up straight away, he attempted to make lie with a story that was never going to work anyways. Thus making everything worse for himself and avoiding doing jail time yet again. It's the fact that he never seems to listen to what Charlie's saying to him when he overreacts about situations. She told him not to defend Indi in court, which would have been ten times worse for him instead of just taking the fine and caution, instead he argued with her about it. Instead of being honest about Paolo and the debt, the loan sharks, what happened when they were teens, he decided to lie, refused to talk to her about his past and made a big deal of it. Yet he thinks it's okay to demant Charlie to tell him everything about her. He stalked her when she went to counselling, and rather than asking her straight out what was going, he climbed a tree and spied on her. I know Charlie was probably more than likely not going to tell him about therspy, but it was still very sly of Angelo to invade her privacy like that. When he decided he wanted to open a restaurant Charlie was supportive. He asked, almost begged her to tell him when she thought he was getting in over his or wasn't doing something right while he was doing it and the minute she does do that, he gets angry and storms off more or less telling her that she was unsupportive. Angelo is manipulative, sneaky and very self centred. When things aren't going right he want's the easy way out and never thinks of anyone else's feelings. And fed up with people trying to make him out to be the hero when he is anything but. I get that people like him, but it seems no matter what he does, he's never really in the wrong, he is. Charlie kops most of the attacks when things don't go right in their now non existent relationship which is unfair cause Angelo is as much to blame for his own heartache. He knows Charlie has issues commiting so he was entering that relationship at his own risk. People need to stop blaming Charlie for everything.

But Charlie is having trouble being Ruby's mother. Granted she has always been very parental towards Ruby even when they were sisters, but it's different now. When Charlie was just Ruby's sister she could talk to her about everything and anything and when she had to discipline Ruby she could do it without fearing Ruby would run off. Ever since the whole revelation there has been serious confusion as to what they are, how they should act and it's gone on too long. Charlie wants to be a mother to Ruby because that's what she has always wanted to be so she has a clear vision of how she see's their relationship. Whereas Ruby grew up believing Charlie to be her sister, only to find out 16 years later that it was all a lie and that she is in fact her biological mother. So for Ruby her vision is more blurred which is understandable. Although not much has changed with regards Charlie parenting Ruby, you do get a sense that she is a lot more maternal towards Ruby now than she was back when they first arrived and midway into 2009. You can see the difference in her. She was always protective but now it's gone further than that, it's almost like the lioness protecting her cub, she will tear through anything that poses a threat to her child. Charlie wants to parent Ruby like a normal mother, but because Ruby still doesn't know what way to think of Charlie she doesn't react well to Charlie playing the mother card. Usually she packs her bags and runs 100 miles in the opposite direction. And I think this has kind of made Charlie fearful of really fulfilling her full motherly potential. She doesn't want to force Ruby in the opposite direction again. I think they need to have Ruby and Charlie try to figure out where they stand because if they don't Ruby is goin to abuse the position she's with regards Charlie. Making Charlie feel lke a bad mother when things do go right. And Charlie needs to stop being so confusing. I don't understand how one minute she can go from grounding her daughter and doing all the normal parental stuff, and the turning around two seconds later spilling information about her sex life or relationship woes. I know it must be awkward Ruby doesn't know how Charlie is going to react in certain situations anymore. Is she going to act as her mother, or as her sister. And Charlie at times I don't think she knows which one to act as at the best times either. Although I will say towards the end of last year, it was a bit more clearer. Charlie was a mother, Ruby was the daughter and Angelo was Angelo. It was more family like than the way things were before. I think what both Bucktons are missing is stability.

First of all I'm delighted Charlie and Angelo are no longer together because they were miserable to watch as a couple. They were never equals in the relationship. The balance of control would swing back and forth between the two, probably due to the fact they are both stubborn and have this need to be in control. Also Angelo had a serious issue with putting into practice everything he preached to Charlie. He wanted her to be honest, to stop keeping secrets and talk to him more. Yet whenever the situation was reversed, he would do the exact opposite. Refusing to talk and tellling lie after lie until he realised Charlie was gettin suss and he had to confess e.g the whole Paolo thing and Shandi. Charlie can at least justify some of her actions, like her commitment issues and being open and upfront with people because of the fact she was sexually assaulted and impregnant at 14 years of age. Which would be enough to traumatise andy person for life. I know it doesn't justify all her actions, but at least we have a better understanding of why she acts the way she does. Angelo on the other hand has nonw. He didn't have a traumatic experience to justify his. Being arrested for shooting Jack, how he was treated and being kicked off the police force don't count as they all occured because of his own actions. I don't get how anyone could think Charlie is treating Angelo badly. Yeah she slept with him but she was grieving the death of her father and wasn't thinking clearly. Angelo on the other hand had a clear head and he still went ahead and took advantage of her in her emotional state. And what's worse is, he ended the relationship in the first place. Which makes what he did even worse. Charlie even apologised to Angelo the day after for sleeping with him and he brushed her aside. He's the one being difficult. And I find it slightly heartless that he would show up at her work place to hand her back the rest if her stuff. For a man that was so hopelessly in love with her last year, he has done a complete 180 this year. Charlie went through therapy and battled her anxiety issues to commit to him, to be able to share a life and a house with him, and he more or less shoved it back in her face because they couldn't make it work? Maybe Angelo didn't love her as much as he thought he did if he was willing to give up that easy? So Yeah, Charlie is the one I feel sorry for in all of this. She has done nothing wrong. To be honest though, I don't think Charlie was really ready to make such a big commitment to Angelo when her relationship with Ruby is still kind of all over the place. I think Charlie trying to juggle her career, a relationship and sort out her mother/daughter issues with Ruby was probably too big a load to juggle all at once. Whereas Angelo only had Charlie and the restaurant to think about, making it easier for him. I think maybe of Charlie worked on building a better relationship with Ruby, focused on her career for a bit and then tried again with Angelo or started fresh with someone new, maybe she might be better off for it. For Angelo things just seem to fall into his lap, his promotion when he was a police officer, get out of jail free cards, the restaurant, the money for the restaurant. Whereas Charlie, as Alf would say, seems to get the rough end of the pineapple all the time. She never seems to have it easy. I just want to see Charlie relax and be a mother for a while. Although I'm guessing from the previews that it won't happen anytime soon.

Loving this story!!! Really wondering what happened in the city....wat "m....," a clue?? Wonder what Matt said about Ruby that has Charlie so protective of her past?? So many questions. I love how Charlie is so worried about people finding out but at the same time you make it come across from Charlie's P.O.V so clearly that it's not because she's ashamed of how Ruby was concieved. But at the same time she's worried people will look at them differently and they way Charlie is so protective of Ruby makes me think that she's mostly worried about how people will treat her. Keep up the good work. Really enjoying this fic. Lollypop x x x x

I dunno.....to me it just seems like the writers brought them in to fill in the void left behind by Charlie and Ruby since they moved on from being sisters to mother and daughter. They've played the Scott sisters too close to the old Bucktons. Again you have the older more highly strung sister and the younger more free spirited sister who bounce off one another. The only difference is, while Charlie was always maternal towards Ruby and Ruby always acted like the way younger "child" of the family, so to speak, the Scotts have a more balanced sibling relationship. Although there appears to be an age gap of about roughly 8 years, Biance plays the role of the older protective sister without mothering April. Which makes their sibling relationship work so well. I think the way Charlie parented Ruby so much, it was kind of obvious that she had a deeper affection for her than that of just a sisterly love. I hope Charlie and Bianca can form a tight friendship because they have similar fiery personalities. I also think their shared commitment to raising two teenage girls will probably give them a lot to talk about on the odd occassion of rebellion. I wasn't a fan of the Scott Sisters when they first arrived. I felt that they were just there to replace a gap left behind by Charlie and Ruby or "The Banger Sisters" as I now refer to them due to their inability to stop jumping in and out of bed with men, or in Charlie's case Angelo all the time. But towards the end of last year I began to warm to them and I'm slowly coming around. More so towards Bianca than April but I'm slowly warming to her as well.

I am loving this fan fic so much. You have no idea just how much. You are doing such a fantastic job with it and the storyline is really attention grabbing. I love the fact that each character is given their own little moment in each chapter and that everything they feel or think is described so well. I love that each character seems to have their own journey that they have to take and that while certain aspects are wrapped up in other cahracters, you give them that space to develope individually. I really like the continuity of it all. You pay very close attention to detail and it shows in each new chapter. You never faulter in carrying elements of the story from one chapter to the next and it really pays dividends to you in the end because as a reader it makes you go "ah I remember that" and you feel like you are actually being carried along with the story. The Charlie/Ruby dynamic. I love it. You show the heart of the two characters really well and their struggle to move forward even though the past seems to be blocking them from doing so. I like that you are showing the genuine hardship of it all and that you show this in Charlie and Ruby's realisation that it is going to be hard for them to go back to the way things were before. But underneath it all you can see that all they really want to do is love each other and be there for one another. The whole concept of bringing Charlie's journals into the mix was a brilliant idea because it adds a real personal touch to the story. It's always good when we get to see glimpses into a characters past and by adding in the journals you've made it all that more intimate because these journals are Charlie's personal thoughts and her true feelings towards Ruby. I can't wait to read what Charlie has to add to them. I'm sure whatever it is, it will be truly heartfelt and endearing. Keep up the good work. I'm patiently waiting for the next update. Lauren x x x x

If you compare those five episodes in Feb 2009, to what we get now, that's a dramatic fall in the amount of screen time Charlie and Ruby have together. At one stage this year, their lack of interaction was so bad, if you weren't familiar with the show and had only begun watching it, you could almost question if they knew each other. For the first few months the only people Charlie really talked to, where Angelo, Leah and her work colleagues. While Ruby spent most of her time with Xavier and Nicole. The Charlie/Ruby relationship does need fixing. Yes they are close again, but that doesn't mean everythings fine. After Grant was murdered and Charlie and Ruby were being dragged through the murder investigation, they both tried to protect each other because they faced jail time if Ross didn't come forward. But he did and after that it seemed like Charlie and Ruby forgot the situation there relationship was before that. They pushed the friction aside for the sake of getting on. They never actually sat down and talked things through. Discussed their feelings about the whole thing and what it means for them for the future. They had the arguments, disagreements, the "I never want to see you again" tantrums etc. But we never actually saw a reconciliation as such. It's like things were just magically fixed over night when Ruby almost died from undiagnosed diabetes. Obviously if a seventeen year old minor is crushing on her much older school teacher and wanting a relationship with him, the last person she would tell is her Police Sergeant mother. But it's not just that, she never really seems to tell Charlie anything anymore. At one point she confided in Charlie that she was going to have sex with Xavier. Now she doesn't seem to talk to her about anything. It's always Charlie talking about her problems with Angelo. And while Ruby doesn't seem to want to make the effort to confide in her, it's not exactly like Charlie takes enough interest to talk to her properly. It's all well and good to leave the lines of communication open, but up until Thursday nights episode you have never guessed the existed. People say Leah is overbearing of VJ, but compared to the Charlie/Ruby relationship at least we can see that she cares and makes the effort to try and work out what's going on even if VJ won't talk about it. Charlie invests SO much time in her relationship with Angelo, but she can't do the same for her own family. Why is that? The thing with Angelo is, is that he's a grown up. He should have outgrown his teenage tantrums and self centeredness a long time ago. But he hasn't. He just constantly whinges about his problems and has this whole "the world is against me" attitude to everything. Maybe if he didn't screw things up for himself so often the "world" would be much kinder to him. Instead he does something he shouldn't and when it comes to being punished he whinges to Charlie about his life sucks to the point she feels sorry for him and forgets that he was in the wrong anyways and then she tries to fix his problems. I mean at least Ruby tries to make things better for herself instead of running to Charlie and then when she realises she can't she does seek advice (although most recently it's been from Irene or Nicole). Charlie lte Ruby walk around with a miserable look on her face the whole time they were helping do up the surf club/restaurant. And what did she do....nothing. I mean yeah she asked if she wanted to talk and then pointed out the obvious that she was having more than a bad day. But then she went straight back to fixing yet another one of Angelo's problems/concerns and didn't even notice that Ruby had disappeared for quite some day without any apparent excuse or reason. Saying they need more scenes together is an understatment. They need family therapy. If Charlie could to all that effort to sort out her Angelo problems, surely to God she could make the effort for her own daughter. Come on Charlie, kick it up a gear. Ruby's on the verge of a complete meltdown. I know Nicole is trying to help her, but seriously, I think Ruby needs more parental guidence than teenage best friend guidence.

It's so frustrating. Charlie was out fixing tables with Angelo while Ruby was practically falling apart in the store room. She was literally one room away from having the opportunity of being a proper mother and showing she cared for someone other than Angelo. Ever notice that when Angelo has a problem and says that he's fine, Charlie will keep pushing it until he finally tells her what's up. Although usually she doesn't have to try very hard because he just dumps his problems in her lap anyways. But when something's botheriing Ruby she'll ask her once, maybe twice if she's bored and can't find lover boy, and if Ruby says she's fine, Charlie just seems to accept that and then walks away. Leaving Nicole or Irene to console the poor girl. There is a real imbalance in Charlie's personal life at the moment. While things are going well for her and Angelo, her relationship with Ruby is really starting to suffer. She's focusing so hard on not stuffing up things with Angelo that she's completely lost any focus she had on being a good mum to Ruby. And you know it's bad when Ruby has to have a full on emotional meltdown before Charlie starts care enough to want to help her. If Charlie is so concerned for Ruby and really wanted to know what was up with her, she could have asked Nicole or even Xavier. But she didn't even bother. I know that the writers are probably doing it for storyline purposes to make it so that when Ruby finally does confess everything to Charlie it becomes a big thing. But do they really have to make Charlie look like the worst mother/sister ever in order to do so? We need to see Charlie try more. From what I saw from the preview at the end of last notes episode, it looks like we'll finally get to see the Charlie/Ruby beach scene we've discussed before. Although I'm not sure, I think it could be from Monday nights episode. If not Monday then it's definitely Tuesday nights. I just hope Charlie puts up more of a fight in the beach scene. It's not right the way she keeps just letting the issue go as if it will solve itself. And I can't imagine she'll be very happy with herself when she finds out second hand that Ruby has been drinking to numb her pain rather than feeling like she can talk to Charlie. I hope that when Charlie see's this she realises just how bad things are for Ruby and she'll start to play a much stronger role in her life and be present more often. Unlike the ususal cup of coffee and quick chat at the diner that's been going on now for the last six months. Charlie kicked up such a fuss when Ruby ran away, saying how she wanted her home and how much she loved her. Even going as far as telling her own father she would never speak to him again if Ruby didn't return. But where has this gone? She has Ruby back but yet she has done nothing to bridge the gap between them. Yes they are back on speasking terms, but the fact that Ruby feels like she can't move home obviously means that there are still issues they need to work through. And while Charlie has been good about giving Ruby that space, she's made no effort to to try and correct things between them. I pointed this out on the H&A Message Board but I'll point it out again. Charlie went through months of therapy to try and and work through her issues so she could make a commitment to Angelo and tell him that she loves him. Why the hell can she do that for a man, but she can't be bothered to do the same to fix things with Ruby? I mean surely her relationship with her daughter is much more important than a relationship with yet another man, who she probably won't even be with for the rest of her life. I love the Charlie character. But somethimes she just does things that I don't get. She treats her boyfriend with more care and support than she does Ruby and Ruby's her flesh and blood. No wonder the poor girl is having a meltdown. She has no mother to take care of her. I think Charlie needs to set Angelo aside for a while. Let him deal with his own problems and dramas, and for once pay some attention to Ruby.

If Charlie still can't feel anything for the baby maybe getting a termination would be for the best. Maybe Angelo cheating is a sign that they are not in the best position to be bringing another child into the world. Especially if the only reason Charlie is keeping it is for Angelo. Although I can understand Ruby's resistence to the idea, it's really not for her to decided. It's Charlie's body. She can't be forced to do something she doesn't want to. Sorry I don't mean to sound like a depressing sod. I'm just speaking as someone who's known someone who was actually in that same position as Charlie is in the story. Fantastic story...keep up the good work. I'm really enjoying the Charlie/Ruby dynamic you have going and I love the fact that you've made Angelo the villian so to speak. In almost every story I read he's like a knight in shining armour and it gets kind of old. I love that you're taking the risk and going against the typical cliches. I'm really enjoying this story. Can't wait for the next update.

Love the latest chapter. Although I do feel sorry for Angelo, I mostly sympathise with Charlie. She's the one who has to endure all the physical and emotional stress and strain of the pregnancy. Angelo has the far easier job in it all which is probably why he is easily able to accept becoming a parent for the third time. But poor Charlie is left feeling like the villian. She obviously doesn't feel anything for the baby, even now that it could die, so for her to be stuck in a situation where she is almost made to feel guilty about how she feels can't be easy. I think Anngelo should be more understanding of that. Maybe if Charlie were to lose the baby it would be a good thing. It might make her realise that she does want another baby and they can start over. Or maybe Angelo will accept that two children are his lot and he'll accept that and move on.

Ok so the good new is.....we got a Charlie/Ruby scene that didn't entirely revolve around Angelo, like most of their conversations or purpose of meetings tend to. Very sweet seeing Charlie actually take an interest in Ruby's obvious upset. Did anyone else notice that when Charlie asked her was it anyone in particular, she looked like she was about to go on the defensive and tear some guy to shreads. It's nice to see that protective nature towards Ruby again. Haven't seen that since the Grant storyline. The bad news is.....with all this stupid Angelo nonsense that's going to go down over the next few weeks, we probably won't see another Charlie/Ruby scene for about a month or more. Unless the Ruby/Liam thing comes to a head (or leads to other things e.g. they sleep together or something) and everything gets spilled out into public knowledge. It's very unlikely but since the storyline does seem to continue, maybe an outside possibility.

I don't think VJ was sharing with Leah?? I thought he had his own room. Anyways why would Charlie have to move in with Angelo. She could just as easily find a place of her own for her and Ruby. That would just be an excuse for Charlie to suddenly get over her issues and move in with him. I mean if Angelo could afford to rent his own place on a Constables salary surely Charlie could afford to rent her own place?? Maybe her and Ruby could rent Roman's old place off Nicole. Or has she sold it?? I can understand the writers reluctance to jump into a mother/daughter relationship between the two. I mean they've been sisters for 16 years. It would never be a traditional mother/daughter relationship anyways. But that doesn't mean they should keep them apart like they have been doing. There are literally weeks between Charlie and Ruby scenes and then when we do see them together it's usually one scene that lasts two or three minutes. They"re practically strangers now. I mean we see them ineteract with other characters but not each other. Considering they are each others only family in the Bay, you'd think they would see more of each other?? And I don't want to continuously sound like a "Changelo" basher, but the truth is, is that almost every scene Charlie's in now, is with Angelo!! I mean we rarely see them apart and it's tiring to watch. It's very hard to encourage mother/daughter bonding when the mother is too wrapped up in her latest squeeze to fit anyone else into her time frame. I am actually starting to wonder if Ruby has to have a near death experience to get Charlie's attention?? I mean would another diabetic coma do it?? Or would Ruby's scenes have to include Angelo for Charlie to make an appearance?? If we don't start seeing proper attemps from Charlie at being maternal, or Ruby needing Charlie in a maternal way, people will start to forget that they are remotely related. Angelo is like Charlie's lap dog. He's not going anywhere so she can afford to push aside for a while so she can sort out her family life. But she needs to start soon or by the time they get round to it there will be no point.