01/06/2021 - a podcast by BBC Radio 4

Mia spots Ruairi as Emma meets her from the school bus. Emma’s cool with Ruairi; Mia’s more keen. She sees his bags and is relieved when he announces he’s only moving to Adam and Ian’s. She engages him in conversation about environmental issues. He responds politely, and Mia’s thrilled to get a positive reaction. Later Mia shows Emma her social media account – she’s set up a research project on plastic waste. Emma’s shocked by the tone and some of the imagery. She advises Mia she needs to be careful not to upset people. She probes Mia gently on her obvious crush on Ruairi, and promises to keep it to herself. She shares her own experiences before trying to prepare Mia for the fact Ruairi might not feel the same. Mia counters that it’s not a crush; she’s in love with Ruairi.
Adam’s worried about Alice. Ian can’t get his head around her drinking in pregnancy. They both feel sad for her. Ian mentions to Adam he heard Ruairi on the phone to Troy. They sounded flirty and he’s thinking Ruairi might be gay. Adam’s stunned. How could he have missed it? Remembering his own experience of coming out, he’s concerned for Ruairi. He resolves to talk to him. Ruairi pre-empts their discussion and is touched. He explains he’s bi-sexual. He’s not in the closet, Ben and some of his school friends know. Brian and Jennifer don’t, but he’s sure they’ll be cool with it – largely thanks to Adam and Ian paving the way. And the fact they both care means a lot to him.

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