Welcome to my new story all about Charlie and Brax.

I hope you like it.

Please take some time to review at the end so I will have the inspiration to keep writing.

I do not own or claim to own Home and Away, I write for fun.

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The world changes so easily, after hearing one sentence, after hearing one noise, after seeing one thing.

For Ruby Buckton, hearing one sentence changed everything.

"Ruby, your mother is alive."

There was a significant silence that followed.

Ruby stared at Sid Walker, former resident of Summer Bay and another man whom she did not recognise.

"I don't understand." Ruby stated, staring at the two men whose news had literally changed her whole life.

"It's a lot to take in, Ruby, we understand."

"I think it's fair to say that it's doubtful. How?"

"Your mother was put into the Witness Protection program after we realised Jake Perovic and his family were not going to stop pursuing her until this was over completely," the second man told her. "Al Hunter's my name, I am the police liaison officer who worked on Charlie's case."

"I cannot believe she would do this," Ruby said to herself more than anyone else.

"Ruby, this is a lot to take in, I think you should sit down," Sid advised concern for her wellbeing evident.

"I don't want to sit down," Ruby snapped. "How could she do this?"

"Ruby, she put up a fight, a big one, for a really long time but in the end when it came down to your safety, she finally agreed to be involved in the program," Sid tried to explain. He ignored the stern look he was getting from Hunter when he mentioned Charlie's fight not to participate in the program.

"So you're telling me 6 years later, that my mother never died. Instead she's been living a second life in witness protection."

"You're making this sound like she has been on holiday," Hunter commented.

"Ruby, the reason you are here, and the reason we are telling you this is because Charlie donated a kidney yesterday and is not recovering as we had hoped. She requires a blood transfusion. Normally, we would just use blood from the blood bank but unfortunately donations are low." Sid noticed Ruby paled considerably. "You really should sit down."

"Will my blood do?" Ruby asked ignoring the request for her to sit down.

"We're hoping so, being her daughter but time is of the essence, there are nurses trying to locate possible donors in the hospital as we speak but it might be faster if you are screened immediately," Hunter shuffled some paperwork and handed Ruby a pen for a signature.

"Umm, now?" Ruby asked, confusion was starting to take over and the young woman didn't know how to take in everything she had been told in such a small amount of time. Ruby needed a minute to think.

"We don't expect you to believe all of this based on our words alone Ruby, Charlie's inside this hospital," Sid explained gently.

Ruby finally sat down.

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Ruby sat in a small room while a small sample of blood was taken by a nurse who, Ruby assumed, had been waiting outside the door.

A sudden thought popped into Ruby's head and she felt guilty to not have thought of it sooner.

"Does Brax know?"

"No, you, being the next of kin, are the only person who we are authorised to tell," Sid answered as he watched the young nurse tidy up and leave.

"Who is Brax?" Hunter asked.

"He needs to know," Ruby declared firmly.

"Ruby, that may not be the best decision for Charlie. You're here because she needs your help," Hunter advised.

"Don't tell me what's best for my mother. Brax needs to know," Ruby reiterated looking at Hunter first, then Sid.

"Ok, it's your decision," Sid stated not allowing Hunter the opportunity to intervene. "Would you like to call him?"

"Who is Brax?" Hunter repeated.

"Brax was Charlie's partner," Sid answered Hunter but both he and Ruby knew that the word partner did not truly encompass what Brax had been to Charlie and vice versa.

"Don't you want to see your mother first, before you make that decision especially, considering the seriousness of her condition," Hunter persuaded, trying to override Sid.

"No, I'll wait for Brax," she was desperate to see Charlie but she didn't think she would be able to leave her to make the phone call to Brax.

"Ok, you can use the phone in this office, Ruby. We will be back shortly." Sid stood and gestured for Hunter to leave the room first.

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Ruby had kept it together and remained strong for the entire morning and it wasn't until Brax answered the phone that the reality of what was actually happening dawned on her and she burst into tears.

"Rubes?" Brax questioned down the phone.

"Brax, oh my god."

"Rubes? Are you okay?"

Ruby couldn't verbalise anything and all Brax heard were sobs down the phone.

"Rubes, you're scaring me."

"Brax, can you come to the hospital?" Ruby managed to say.

"Are you ok? Where's Casey?"

"I'm fine, I'm really fine," Ruby began to cry again. "Actually, I'm better than fine. Can you come here?"

"Yeah sure, Ruby if you tell me you're pregnant tell Casey he better start running."

Through her tears, Ruby was able to laugh loudly at the comment and she didn't think it would be fair for Brax to find out about Charlie on the phone.

"I'm not pregnant you goof, just hurry. I'll meet you outside."

"Yeah, right, see you soon."

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"I don't know how to tell you?" Ruby whispered before Brax had a chance to ask what was wrong.

"I wasn't serious about the pregnancy thing," Brax tried to assure Ruby.

Whatever she rang him about was something big. Ruby looked frazzled but elated at the same time. Her eyes were swollen and she clutched a wad of tissues in her hand.

"Rubes, whatever it is, it's ok, you can tell me," Brax led her to a chair in the hospital foyer and sat down with her.

"Umm, I'm scared that you won't stay and hear the whole story, that you'll listen and then freak and then leave, and I really need you here right now."

"Rubes, I'm not going anywhere."

"Promise me?" She requested.

"I promise you I will not go anywhere."

"Charlie's alive."

Whatever he was expecting, out of all the possible scenarios he ran through his head on the way to the hospital, nothing could have shocked him as much as those two words.

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Ruby allowed Brax a few moments to take in the news, in fact he was taking the news a lot better than she had.

"How?" Brax croaked at the same time Sid and Hunter walked around the corner.

"Are you ready?" Sid said with a gentle smile.

"Ready for what?" Brax asked.

"We're going to go see her," Ruby said through teary eyes. "Come on."

Brax followed Ruby who followed Sid and Hunter around the corner, they entered the lift silently, Brax could hear his heartbeat thundering and 31 steps later his eyes fell upon a woman who he had not seen in 6 years but had thought about each and every day.

"Oh, Charlie," Ruby whispered and she continued slowly to the bed.

Seeing Charlie back in a hospital bed did nothing to soothe either Ruby or Brax. The last time they both saw her; she lay in almost the exact same position, hooked up to what seemed like the exact same machines, the only difference was the room.

"Can you believe this?" Ruby whispered to Brax as she took a tentative step closer.

Brax didn't respond, he couldn't, there were no words to express how this was even possible.

Ruby turned and looked at Brax when she realised he hadn't and wasn't going to answer her question.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good, Rubes." Brax said with a soft smile, he leant against the wall from the bed; his eyes scanned Charlie's bed ridden form.

Ruby filled Brax in on the whole situation however both kept their eyes on Charlie as she slept.

After being cleared, Ruby had donated a unit of blood while she had waited for Brax to arrive. Sid had also informed her that they were able to locate another donation from another hospital and that it would be unlikely that they would need any additional blood.

Now, they just needed to wait for Charlie to wake up.

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Ruby and Brax were able to sit in a comfortable silence while they watched and waited for Charlie to wake up.

Neither knew what to say to the other to reassure or calm them, so instead they watched the person whose death had almost torn their lives apart.

Luckily, Ruby and Brax did not need to wait long, Charlie began to stir later that afternoon.

It was a slow process to watch, nothing like in the movies.

Charlie moving her head to the side was the first indication that she was beginning to wake up.

Ruby almost catapulted out of her chair onto the bed but Charlie had stilled.

Brax noticed Charlie's fingers begin to move as if scratching the bed which she lay upon.

Very slowly, Charlie's eyes began to open.

Charlie's eyes made contact with Ruby's first. They watered instantly, as did Ruby's.

"Charlie?"

"Rubes," Charlie croaked.

Neither had a chance to say more before Ruby gently engulfed Charlie in a gently hug.

Brax watched the interaction between mother and daughter and for a moment, felt as though he was intruding.

Charlie's eyes found his and Brax felt as if the world stopped.

She was real and alive, everything that Brax had longed for the past 6 years.

"I'll go get Sid," Brax said gently, his eyes never leaving Charlie's, she blinked slowly taking him in.

Sid entered the room instantly and checked Charlie's vitals.

Brax and Ruby watched, Charlie had yet to speak again after seeing her daughter for the first time.

Brax watched Charlie's eyes widen and make contact with Sid's, he stilled suddenly.

"You were in trouble, Charlie, I had no other choice," Sid explained gently.

Charlie gave the slightest nod to acknowledge that she understood and a tear finally fell down her cheek as she closed her eyes.

For a harrowing moment, Brax realised that there was a big possibility that Charlie may not have wanted anyone to know she was in the hospital.

Brax heard the quietest sigh emerge from Charlie's bed and he understood completely that it was a sigh of relief.

Charlie was home!

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Well that was Chapter 1 :)

I always think the first chapter of a story is important. If no one reads or reviews the first, why bother in writing more.

Do you want more?

The focus is not on Charlie being in Witness Protection; trust me when I say there's more coming, if you want it that is?

Please, please take a minute to let me know what you think so far.

:) xoxox