Dodger

Yeah, they can still find time for some clean fun.

She has to be sick, for sure. But she could be working her way through the whole family for all we know.

Anything is possible. We will find out next weekend.

Thanks @Israfil Unfortunately, every school cafeteria has its share of Mitch like characters. Lets hope Stephanie comes to her senses.

I think everyone would like to see Don implode although I'm not quite sure what it means.

Well, that puts Daniel in the frame too, which would be a bit of a shocker, but plausible. He's straight and maybe Stephanie has a thing for younger guys. He's underage, of course, so she may be in a bit of trouble there. Ironically, despite an obscene age gap, Don wouldn't be breaking the law, although it would certainly end his marriage, and his kids would likely never talk to him again.

A happy weekend of family bonding would be the perfect antidote to the poisonous atmosphere Don creates, and provide Sue with all the incentive she needs to finally show her husband the door. But life is rarely that perfect and Don's like a bad penny.

Sue seems pretty certain that things will be different and Robbie has to believe her. Yes, it is about time.

Now that would really throw the cat among the pigeons!

Don tends to rub most people up the wrong way. Thanks for your comment and for loving the story,@Modified Cub

Whenever Don was away, everyone seemed to get on a lot better, and it was noticeable almost immediately. The tension that hung in the air when he was there vanished the moment he walked out of the door, and even Sue’s surprise statement about Stephanie failed to dent my optimism. I was able to get a worm’s eye view of my sister’s friend as she watched me pick up the pieces of Don’s broken mug, and she didn’t look any different. But even if Sue was right, and Stephanie was up the duff, I was

My mistake, but I think it was fairly obvious even before this chapter.

Okay, here's the Toronto contingent and I'm angry after just watching the Leafs lose to the Jets. That's a pretty cool story though, Steve. I was a late arrival to Canadian sport and it took me a while to appreciate hockey. By that time 'the great one' had long since retired, but he was well-known even in England where they have no NHL coverage at all on the regular channels. My first love was soccer and I still watch most of the Arsenal games on TV. However, my stubborn refusal as a teenager to accept North American sport didn't last long, and I soon started cheering for everything Toronto. I love baseball and used to watch the Blue Jays regularly at the Rogers Centre before they moved to Buffalo, but tickets for the Maple Leafs in Toronto are ridiculously over-priced. In the states, Tom Brady would probably be considered the greatest QB.

The Carry on films, were a series of English comedy films that featured the same group of actors playing different roles in a variety of settings. I don't know if I've explained that too well, but they are a good example of British comedy from the 60's 70's and 80's. It's Benny Hill type bawdy humour with a lot of slapstick and double entendres. Some of the humour is very close to the mark and just about acceptable for a family audience. They were well-loved in the UK and regularly repeated on TV, although I'm not sure if this is the case anymore in the era of political correctness. According to google there were 31 movies in different settings. Carry on Doctor, Carry on Sergeant, Carry on Cowboy etc. I loved these movies as a kid, especially the naughty bits.

She obviously saw something she didn't like. Maybe Robbie should have been more honest with her about Conner and Nathan.

Abortion is available free on public health care in Canada, but she will need to move quickly. Jo has her eyes set on Don. She sees him as a serious and likely threat to Robbie's safety. Don will want to see the back of her, but I doubt if she's going anywhere while he's still a threat.

You make some very good points. This may not prove to be the disaster everyone is predicting. As for Don, they say that only the good die young. I'm betting he could walk through the worst neighborhood in Sao Paulo, in the middle of the night with a gold watch on his wrist and a wallet full of cash, and still nothing would happen to him.

If this is the case then they will have to act quickly. Twelve weeks is usually the cut-off point in Canada, although this can be extended in some cases. Stephanie is eleven weeks and it doesn't look like Nicola even knows about it. There does seem to be a lack of urgency with Stephanie's handling of this problem, which doesn't look good for Robbie. If he is the father then I suspect he will take a bit of convincing.

If it is true and people find out. It'll be a kick in the teeth for a lot of straight boys in the school who may have fancied their chances with Stephanie. At this rate Robbie will soon be knocking Nathan off the top of the gossip charts.

The nurse thing is a big one for Robbie. I think he knows what he wants to do with his life and he believes he can be good at it. He's been in and around hospitals for most of his teenage years and has developed a lot of respect for this profession. The nurses have been his heroes, so I guess it's no surprise that he should want to emulate them. Robbie is slowly dropping his guard and allowing Sue into his life in a way he swore he never would. It takes time but she will eventually replace his mom and that's how it should be. She will make it easier for him to get into nursing but she wasn't the reason for his decision. I've always said that Jo is a useful person to have on your side. She's good at her job with a high rate of success in a field that terrifies health officials and politicians. Teenage suicide is a hot potato and anyone who can keep those numbers down is priceless. It allows her a lot of freedom and I think it's safe to say she's better connected than Don.

There's already a lot of mess and Don falling from 30,000 feet will only make it worse. I wouldn't fancy cleaning that up. There was a certain inevitability about Sue's statement at the end. I think everyone saw it happening while hoping it wouldn't.

I don't think any of the readers will be surprised, but I doubt if any of the characters would have put their money on Robbie fathering a child, if, of course, it's true.

Well, Robbie certainly didn't see it coming. We're only going by Sue's educated guess, of course, and she could be wrong. AS for Don, I don't think it's horrible to wish bad luck on him, but I think it's safe to say he will return.

I had never given much thought to what I wanted to do with my life after leaving school. I just assumed it would become obvious as I got older. The only serious hobby I ever had as a boy was swimming, but I lacked the determination and ability to succeed. I was never going to follow in my mom’s footsteps and match her achievements in the pool. So, I shunned her efforts to get me involved in competition and concentrated instead on passing my lifesaver exams. It meant a lot to me back then, but no

Thanks, @Jon Jon That's a neat compliment and I understand your frustration, because I get frustrated too. It's not my intention to keep people waiting, and there's always a reason. Unfortunately, work slows things down quite a lot. I sometimes have to work long hours on consecutive days, which doesn't leave me a lot of time to do anything else and I can't do any writing if I'm tired. If I do delay posting a chapter, it's because I'm not happy with it, but that is the only reason. I'm definitely fussier than I was a few years ago, and at this stage in the story it's important that I get everything right so it all makes sense in the end. This has been the most difficult part for me, and a steep learning curve. I am grateful to everyone who reads the story and other than the occasional cliffhanger, I would never deliberately tease them. I am a reader too, so I know how frustrating it can be when you're following a story, but I have to make sure it's right before posting. I'm glad you brought this up, so I can explain my position to anyone reading the comments.