Welcome! Imagine a world where they hadn't always lived in Carrs Park. Where Carbo and Ben hadn't known each other since they were infants. Where Julie Rafter didn't fall pregnant with Ruby when her kids were twenty six, twenty four and twenty two.
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Rhyleigh


"We're almost here, guys", Julie Rafter said, glancing in the rear view mirror. Her youngest son Nathan, at eleven, was leaning against the window behind the passenger seat, while her fifteen year old daughter Rachel sat behind her. The newborn in the car seat was sleeping peacefully, as her middle child Ben twiddled his thumbs in the passenger seat. "We're almost there".

"Okay", Rachel mumbled, while Nathan merely nodded.

"Good", Ben decided.

Ten minutes later, Julie pulled into the driveway of the new house, parking behind the white van her husband owned.

"Hey guys", Dave said with a smile, watching as the kids climbed out of the car. "How were they, Jules?"

"It was a silent road trip", she said with a shrug. "It hasn't been that quiet since Rachel was a baby. A baby who was asleep".

He smiled, as Ben reached in to pluck the car seat from the car. "Careful, Ben".

"I know, Dad, I've got her".

"Want me to go and put Ruby down?" Nathan asked helpfully, accepting the car seat.

"Thanks, Nathan", Julie said, kissing his cheek.

The move had been a big one. Seven hours in the car, more than any of them could take. But unlike the trip they took to the beach every year, they knew it was different. They would never be seeing their old house- much less their old town- ever again. They were in Carrs Park for good, new schools awaiting them.

A whole new life.

"Come on, guys, go inside", Dave encouraged, nudging Rachel. "There's work that needs to be done- Nan and Granddad are helping to paint your rooms- but it'll do for now".

"Who gets which room?" Ben said automatically.

"Dad's already decided", Julie said, to defuse any arguments before they started.

Heading inside, Rachel was surprised to see their names plastered on doors. Dave had only gotten there an hour before them, but already he had gotten to work, setting up the bassinet for little Ruby and unpacking as much as he could without the moving truck and their furniture.

Her room was far from perfect and far from home, but she knew she could make it work. Her bed was arriving, and with that, she'd have the same purple blankets she'd always had. The bassinet in the corner was a little daunting, but she knew she could work around it.

Almost as if she could sense her there, Ruby started to squirm. Letting out a little squeal, Rachel made her way to the bassinet, placing a hand on her tiny body.

"Hey Ruby", she said gently, stroking her soft baby cheek.

It didn't seem like it to her parents, but she loved that little girl more than they would ever know. She had carried her within her body for the best part of nine months, nurturing her to the best of her ability. And now that she could hold her, she struggled to find a connection.

As Ruby squirmed and cried, craving attention, she stood there helplessly, patting her stomach, trying to soothe her without picking her up.

"She wants you to pick her up", Dave said helpfully from the doorway, making Rachel jump. "She wants to be held, Rach".

"I know I just got here!" she snapped. "Jeez, Dad!"

She gently lifted the little girl into her arms, Ruby immediately quietening. Grabbing a fistful of the teenager's shirt, she nestled her head into her chest, sighing contently. Dave sighed at the sight, wanting no more than to go over and hug his daughter and tell her, like he had when she was a little girl that everything was going to be okay.

He had taken an oath when she was born, that he would never let anyone hurt his baby girl. He was all for building a moat around their house and keeping her forever, until Julie pointed out that teaching her to swim would be the downfall. While they had chuckled at the time, seeing his baby girl so broken made his heart ache.

Since that very night, he had seen a complete three sixty turnaround in her personality. They all had. She'd gone from outgoing and social to a girl who barely spoke, keeping to herself at all times. The little girl had been breaking point- night after night Rachel cried, unable to form a connection with the daughter she loved.

"It's a new start", Rachel whispered to Ruby, brushing her fingers over her soft baby cheek. "A new start for both of us. This is just the beginning".

The two month old nestled her face into her mother's shirt, before sighing contently.