Disclaimer I do not own Press Gang. I will be finishing this story pretty soon. Thanks for reading/reviewing.

Fireworks.

"Colin!" Lynda barked his name as she walked past his desk. He buried his head deeper in the paperwork in front of him, determined that he'd make her believe that he hadn't heard her.

"COLIN!"

"Coming" He mumbled as Frazz shook his head sadly.

"Good luck." The sports reporter smiled. "She was in that meeting for almost an hour. God help us if it went wrong."

"Thanks." Colin sighed wearily before heading towards Lynda's office. He knew that even if Kenny was there, even if the meeting went well there was a very good chance he was not going to be able to talk himself out of this one.

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Spike checked his watch as he walked down the street towards the Bistro Czars had become. He couldn't help but think about the times the Junior Gazette team had in the small greasy spoon. Shaking his head he knew everything from childish teasing of Sarah's book worm tendancies, to Danny hiding in the corner, Kenny chasing the story of the shops that sold solvents to teenage drug users and Sarah discovering the bomb plot that had almost finished the paper. Shaking his head he glanced at his own scared forearm, remembering the time he had spent talking to a girl in the rubble after the bomb had gone off.

"A lifetime ago." He mumbled to himself before checking his watch and pushing the door to the Bistro open.

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"Do you have any idea what I just had to agree to so that you could keep your job?" Lynda snapped at Colin as her old friend raised an eyebrow.

"Er."

"We are on the brink of going out of business anyway. A lawsuit it the last thing we need on our hands. Colin, listen to me. I get that you are only trying to bring in advertising for the paper but seriously you cannot sell advertising space to people like that."

"They looked legitimate." Colin glanced towards Kenny who just shrugged.

"I'm sure they looked legitimate." Lynda snapped. "But they weren't. Do you know how much money they made off gullible people? Off this newspaper? Kenny, write a full apology and have it printed on page 2. I'll ask Sarah to investigate the diet pill scandal. See if we can turn a negative into a positive." She glanced at the clock and sighed. It was already well past two in the afternoon. Chloe's words still rang in her ears.

"You late for something?" Colin raised an eyebrow.

"Just checking the time to make sure the job centre is still open." Lynda snapped. "Be more careful. For the next six months everything goes through either me or Kenny. Understood."

"Yeah." Colin sighed before walking out the office.

Kenny glanced at Lynda as she rested her head in her hands. He had known her since they were babies and knew when she was trying to hide something.

"Lynda?"

"Umm?"

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

"Lynda."

"Kenny."

"Stop it." Kenny kept his voice deliberately low. "Please just stop taking things out on people. Spike is back. Chloe knows who her dad is now. We all knew that would happen one day. Believe me, the minute I knew he was back my first reaction was to find him and beat the crap out of him." He watched as she looked at him through her fingers.

"You have never hit anyone in your life."

"I did."

"What? When?"

"Doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does. If my daughter's godfather is a secret psycho I want to know." She tried to keep the smile out of her voice as she spoke. Kenny tried not to look offended as he watched her.

"It was years ago. Chloe would be about three? That idiot you went on a date with."

"Patrick." Lynda sighed. "Not the wisest decision I ever made. Don't tell Spike."

"I wont."

"Why did you hit him?"

"I." Kenny thought about saying it didn't matter. That is was over a decade ago, but he knew there was no way she was going to let it go.

"Kenny?"

"He made you cry." Kenny said simply. "You had been through so much, what with your mother and Spike and the baby and everything." She knew 'everything' meant the fire that had initially ended the Junior Gazette. "I lost my temper. Even Sam was surprised."

"I bet she was." Lynda smiled. "Just, don't do it again. I can't handle you going all knight in shining armour on me. Shit, I've got to go."

"Where?" Kenny looked up as she pulled on her jacket.

"Not a word to Sarah, Frazz or any of that lot?"

"Ok."

"Into the fire." Lynda sighed before leaving the office.

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Spike checked his watch as the young waitress brought him his drink. He felt like a teenager on a first date, not a grown man meeting an ex girlfriend. He was convinced she was not going to turn up. It was already 3pm. Closing his eyes he began to think it was time to ask the waitress for the bill when he felt someone at the table opposite.

"Sorry, I'm waiting for someone." Spike spoke without looking.

"Yeah." The distinctly female voice spoke. He raised his eyes to see the young woman looking at him. Her eyes. She has her eyes. He thought as the blue eyes bored into his own. "Mum has been delayed. She will be here, even when it kills her to go somewhere she will, if she thinks it's worth it."

"Chloe."

"Yeah." Chloe stared at him. "Chloe Day. Nice to meet you Dad."

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Lynda thanked the taxi driver before rushing towards the Bistro entrance. She knew she was running late but blamed Julie and her incessant chattering about some inane problem in the graphic department. She narrowed her eyes as she realised who the brunette Spike was talking to was. Sighing heavily she stepped towards her daughter and her ex. She knew this conversation was going to be difficult to say the least.

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A/N please review x