But is he ready to attend a gay night at the club?
Despite Sally's best efforts to keep spirits high amongst the family, motormouth Mercedes has other ideas and confronts a stubborn James.
When Ste hosts a peacekeeping meeting with James and McQueens, John Paul snaps after James calls his family scum.
Outside, Ste tries to find James’ heart and diffuse the feud, but James vows he’s not going to stop until they pay for what they’ve done to him.
Later, in touching scenes, Ste tries to get through to John Paul. After turning to a dating app, John Paul tells Scott he wants to go to the gay club night at the Loft. But is he ready? Sally fears that he might not be.
Despite not wanting to hide away anymore, John Paul admits to Scott that he doesn’t want to go to the club night, and is advised to do something that makes him feel good.
Hollyoaks continues Mondays to Fridays at 6.30pm first look episodes available weekday mornings on Channel 4 and weekday evenings at 7pm on E4