Disclaimer: I don't own Our Girl. Everything you recognise was created by Tony Grounds and is owned by the BBC.

Common Ground – Chapter 1

His mobile phone chirped, indicating a text message, and Charles James went to pick it up. It was a beautiful April day with temperatures just nudging into the late-teens and he was currently finishing off some paperwork in the study, preparatory to taking his afternoon run. He had been back from Indonesia for all of three days after the clean-up following the horrific tidal wave that had hit nearly two months ago.

He could have chosen to come back sooner, but since he knew that Molly was away on a course which was part of her JNCO requirements to be promoted to Corporal, he hadn't bothered to rush back. There was nothing worse than sitting in the house twiddling his thumbs while he knew Molly was having to do some horrific survival course where they dropped you on a mountain with only a jock strap (he supposed a bikini in her case) and a Mars Bar and told you to walk 50 miles to the nearest town!

Still, after nearly two months out there (a week at the beginning with Molly after she had given up her leave to fly out with him), he was finally back and ready to start some well-deserved leave of his own. It was Wednesday and her course was due to end on Saturday morning and he had been expecting to finish his reports and be ready to take her for a weekend of relaxing and pampering at some of their favourite places. He thought that after nearly two months away, and some of the worst stress he had ever experienced in his job, he might even join her for a spa session at their favourite hotel!

Grumbling to himself at the interruption to his thought processes, he picked up his mobile and looked at the screen. Rebecca. Why would Rebecca be texting him? He opened the message.

"Charles I need to talk to you urgently. Celia says you are back from Indonesia. Can you give me a call?"

His first thought was, God, I hope Sam is OK. But surely she would have just called him if something was wrong with Sam? This was strange. His relationship with Rebecca had been about as good as it could be in the circumstances over the nearly two years since he had left the Army. Luckily Molly and Sam got on very well and Molly was really sweet with him.

Rebecca was still pretty cold around Molly, and he supposed he could kind of understand that, however painful it was for him, and particularly for Molly who was determined to do her best for him and for Sam. He thought Rebecca was a bit jealous on two counts; firstly that he was with Molly now and secondly that Molly had such an easy, almost sisterly relationship, with Sam. Molly generally opted out of seeing Rebecca because of this, although on events like school plays and sports days where they both had to attend they were cool but civil. But he had seen the disapproving glares that Rebecca sometimes shot at Molly when she thought nobody was looking. It was sad, but her inflexibility with people of different social classes was, in any case, one of the reasons that they had split up in the first place. And it wasn't like Molly had split them up. They had been apart (including trial separation and divorce) for nearly two years before he had started going out with Molly. Unfortunately Rebecca's first post-marriage relationship hadn't gone the distance and he didn't think she had found anyone serious since then, which must be all the more galling for her, bearing in mind how close Charles and Molly had become.

Oh well, thinking about it wasn't getting him any closer to finding out what was wrong, so he gave her a call.

"Charles?" she answered, "Oh thank God!" Now he was worried. Her voice, normally so controlled, sounded brittle and emotional, as if she was just holding onto her emotions.

"Rebecca? Is everything OK? Is Sam OK?" he asked, wondering what was up.

"Sam? Oh no, don't worry, Sam's fine Charles. He's at school at the moment. He's looking forward to seeing you when you get down here. He's missed you, but he really appreciates your e-mails.

"No, it's not Sam. Well not directly, anyway. I-… It's difficult Charles, but I'm just going to spit it out… I've got cancer Charles. It's serious and it's advanced and they've scheduled me for an emergency operation next week."

He did not know how to react. Of all the things that he had expected, this wasn't it. She was still young; only in her early-thirties. She had never been ill, that he could remember. And they had Sam. Would she be OK? If she wasn't OK what was going to happen to Sam? All these thoughts swirled through his head as he desperately tried to get a grip of himself and say something to her. Finally he managed, "I'm sorry Rebecca… how did you find out?"

She replied, "I went in for a regular check up at the GP about three weeks ago. I had lost my appetite and wasn't feeling well and they took some blood tests. Then it all accelerated. I went in for a day of tests last week and your mother took Sam in the evening and I just had my consultation with my specialist this morning.

"Listen Charles, there's lots we need to talk about. Can you come to Bath?" Her voice was tired, but pleading.

It was a no-brainer. She was the mother of his child and his ex-wife. He still cared for her, even though he didn't love her, and she needed him, "Of course. I'm leaving now. I'll text you once I know what time I'll be there, probably in about two hours."

- OG - OG - OG - OG -

"Thanks for coming so quickly Charles," she said, smiling tautly as she opened the front door. He paused on the doorstep, not knowing whether to simply nod, or whether to kiss her or hug her. They hadn't touched much over the past three years but, deciding that she probably needed the support, he went in for a hug. She hung on as if for dear life and he knew he had made the right decision.

"Thanks," she told him eventually, disengaging from the hug, leading him into the house and closing the front door, "I needed that." She favoured him with a sad smile and led him deeper into the house. He hadn't been here very much. It was a nicely sized cottage with a small back garden just outside Chippenham, within easy reach of Bath. He knew that on the right of the hall there was a nicely sized lounge and behind that a kitchen with adjoining family room and views of the garden. It was towards the kitchen she led him now. The kitchen was to die for, with light wooden cupboards, a black granite work top and white floor tiles, and it was huge, at least 20 feet long and 15 feet wide and with a small table and chairs at the end, he assumed for breakfast.

"Would you like a coffee?" she asked him, to which he replied affirmatively and she went to the Nespresso machine. They both shared a love of coffee and he had bought her the machine for their last Christmas together. He smiled sadly as he saw it perched in pride of place on the counter in one corner of the kitchen. "Rosabaya isn't it?" she asked and he nodded.

They were silent until the coffee was made and then she picked up both cups, added saucers and put them on a tray (he couldn't help but smile – she had always done this for as long as he could remember. So unlike him and Molly who would just bung the drink in a mug and start sipping it) and led him into the family room. He'd never been in this room before. It was joined to the kitchen by a set of pullable doors which were currently open, but which could be pulled across the gap to separate the room. It was also a big room, at least 14 foot square, but was a lot more cosy than the kitchen, decorated with homely colours, and he could see a box of Sam's Lego tucked in next to the sofa and some of his Transformers toys on a bookshelf. The back wall was filled with bookshelves and in the middle was an area just about filled by a wide screen TV.

They sat opposite one another on the sofa and both reached for their coffees. It was a poignant moment. They had spent so many times relaxing together and sipping coffee. They both paused for a moment in contemplation, before Rebecca started to talk. Sitting back more comfortably in the sofa, she cradled her coffee cup in her hands and looked at him, "Thanks again for coming so quickly Charles," she told him, "It's all a bit of a rush. Mum and Dad are in Australia at the moment visiting Robert and Chris and the kids," Robert was her elder brother who worked in Australia for a major investment bank, "they've cut short their trip but they won't be back until Sunday, but the big issue is Sam. I'm going to be in hospital from Monday next week and will have around two weeks there and then, even though I will be out of hospital, I won't be able to take care of him at home for another week or ten days. We need to come up with some way to handle this – he needs to have somewhere to stay – will you be able to step in and spend some time with him?"

She looked at him pleadingly and he smiled at her. He had already considered this in the car on the way down. It was clear that she would be in hospital for some time and his first responsibility had to be Sam's well-being. There were two options, as he saw it, either he pulled Sam temporarily out of school and brought him to live with him and Molly in Aldershot, or he moved back over to Bath so that he could be with his son. Both had advantages and disadvantages but being in Bath was by far the best result for Sam – he could stay in school, and he'd need that support and the routine, and he'd be closer to his mother and in easier visiting distance. He had already resolved to move back over here for the next few weeks. He hadn't had a chance to talk to Molly but he was sure she'd understand. It would be tough, but at least they could spend weekends with each other.

The big question was where he would live and this was a difficult one to broach with Rebecca. He had thought about just moving Sam and him into his parents' house, but it was a good thirty minutes' drive from where Rebecca and Sam lived and away from the friends he was building up in the local area, although closer to some of his friends from school. But he thought that the trauma of his mum being in hospital would be significant and that Sam would probably benefit from keeping as many familiar routines as possible and, that if Rebecca could be persuaded, it would make sense for him to live at her home.

He became conscious that he hadn't answered Rebecca, and she was starting to look concerned, "Sorry, Rebecca, I was wool gathering. I had already considered this on the way over, and of course I'll step in. Have you given any thought to where Sam should live?"

She smiled softly, grateful that their son would be taken care of by the best person for the job. Then she grimaced at him, "I've thought about this a lot Charles and I know that this will be more difficult for you, but would you consider moving in here? Sam's already going to have so much to come to terms with and I think any routines that we can keep will only be for the best, so if you wouldn't mind staying here, it would mean a lot to both of us?"

He couldn't control his surprise and could feel his eyebrows rising, almost outwith his control. He could see her concern ratchet up and, as she went to speak, he raised his hand, "Don't worry Rebecca, I'd already reached that conclusion myself but I thought it would be a lot more difficult to persuade you." He told her, and she smiled.

"That's great Charles, thanks so much," and then she really gobsmacked him, "and obviously it's fine if Molly wants to stay here at the weekends."

This time he made no attempt to control his shock, and she smiled at him sadly, "Don't be so surprised. I'm pleased that the two of you are so happy, Charles. I'm not denying it's hard, but she's good for you and you seem much more balanced than you have been for a long time. You're going a long way out of your way to make everything the best it can be for Sam, and it's only right that I do the best I can to make everything as easy as possible for you. I know you haven't seen her for ages and it's not right that you will be separated from her again because of this."

After that they talked about the logistics of situation. She would speak to Sam's headmaster and some of his friends' parents to inform them of the situation and make sure he had the support he would need, and she would let Charles have a list of his after school activities and any matches that he would be involved with over the next few weeks, and she would speak to her specialists and her parents about keeping him informed. She also needed to sort out some legal affairs, including updating her will and setting up a power of attorney in case there were any complications. They had briefly discussed how they were going to break it to Sam and what they were going to tell him.

He would speak to his work and get a leave of absence and then he would try and get a message to Molly (she was on an exercise at the moment but he would send a written note and her course leaders would get it to her, hopefully before she finished the course on Saturday). He would stay in the area to speak to Sam tonight so that they could both be here for him, and over the rest of the day he would see his parents and explain the situation to them. He would look to drive across and move into the house on Sunday evening then he could help Rebecca run Sam to school on Monday morning, see his teachers, and help Rebecca get to the hospital for her admission after that.

All that was worked out, which took two additional cups of coffee and a sandwich, she showed him around the house briefly, handed him a set of spare keys, explained how to use the burglar alarm, and they parted, with him promising to return at five o'clock.

- OG - OG - OG - OG -

It was 16.45 when Charles parked his car back in the driveway to Rebecca's house. Hers was already in the garage, signifying that she was back from picking Sam up from school. He had spent a little while this afternoon with his parents, who were understandably upset by the development but had resolved to cancel their planned trip to the South of France next week so that they could be here for their grandson and son. He had also spoken to his colleague Georges, who had been very understanding and had told him he was due two weeks' leave anyway after the Indonesia trip and that he was welcome to have an additional two weeks compassionate leave if he needed it, and could either take additional unpaid leave or work from Bath for as long as he needed to. That should be fine for his needs.

He had also managed to send a message to Molly and had been assured by her course commander that he would get it to her as soon as she got back from exercise. He had simply told her that Rebecca was going for an emergency operation and that he had to move back to Bath for the next few weeks to take care of Sam, but that he would be able to tell her more when she saw him on Saturday. He had re-organised the surprise spa appointment he had booked for her to Sunday morning from Sunday afternoon; based on previous experience he didn't reckon she'd be good for much of anything on Saturday but he needed to leave for Bath by mid-afternoon on Sunday. He was sorry to ruin the weekend he'd planned out for them but some things were more important.

He was dreading this meeting with Sam. His son was a happy, bouncy nine year old, but he was still too young to comprehend the sort of changes that might happen in his life in the near future. He prayed that Rebecca would make it through this; he wasn't ready to tell his son that his mother was dead or dying – he just had no idea what he would say. He supposed that if it came to that there would be support for that conversation. He vaguely recalled that there were MacMillan nurses or some such who provided support to families. Maybe he should look into that anyway; Sam might need that whatever happened.

He switched off the engine, got out of the car, shut the door and walked up to the front door. "DADDDEEE!" sounded from inside before he had even moved to ring the bell. He crouched down as his son opened the door, ready to receive the brown-haired missile which shot at him. It was more difficult to pick Sam up these days, but with the tangential acceleration he was able to hoist him up to give him a hug, "Hi Sammy!" Rebecca hated the nickname, but Molly and Sam had started it as a joke between the three of them; now they were Molly, Sammy and Charlie, the three y's, whenever Sam came to visit. He took the opportunity to kiss his son on the cheek before he let him down. Sam was starting to approach the age where he didn't like those sort of displays of affection but he seemed to let this one go, obviously excited to see his father after nearly three months apart.

Pausing only to close the front door, he let his son seize his hand and lead him into the house, burbling away about his school happily. As they reached the kitchen he saw Rebecca standing at the coffee maker. She looked significantly less good than when he had seen her earlier. She was pale and nervous-looking, obviously concerned about the conversation which awaited them. He crossed the floor to again wrap her up in a hug. Rebecca had always been so self-assured. Seeing her like this was painful. She clung onto him again. Sam watched in confusion. He had seen his Daddy hug Molly like this many times, but never his Mummy, even when his parents were together.

"Thanks," she told him quietly, "It's been a tough day what with everything, and I'm not looking forward to this conversation one bit." He smiled wanly in agreement and she asked him more loudly, "Would you like a coffee Charles?" to which he replied affirmatively and then making a sterling attempt to make her voice normal, "Sam, will you pour an orange juice for Mummy? And what would you like to drink, darling?"

"Milk, please, Mummy," was the reply and she supervised him pouring some for himself, before telling him, "Sam, darling, Daddy and I have something to discuss with you, so why don't you come and sit in the Family Room with us?"

A/N 1 I've been planning this piece for a while. A reviewer of Captain's Log asked if I could write a story where Rebecca and Molly got to know one another. At the time I couldn't think of anything, but this came to me later. I went through a similar experience to Sam when I was a child, although my Dad wasn't as proactive as Charles. While the story is not really about Sam my experiences do help me to tell this story.

A/N 2 I have Sam going to King Edward's Junior School in Bath. It's noted for its academics and I thought that Rebecca would be very academically ambitious for her son. I don't know the area and only selected the school after some brief research on the internet, so if there are any Bath residents out there, apologies if I've got something wrong.

A/N 3 I'm taking a break from Road Not Taken for a while. It's an extremely complex story with lots of moving parts and I don't have the mental capacity to focus on it at the moment with my mother being ill. Having said that, I find writing very therapeutic, so I decided to work on this piece which is much simpler and has been banging around in my head for a while. Hope you enjoy it and if so, please review!

A/N 4 Finally, a huge thank you to every reviewer and everyone who PMed with words of support regarding my mother. I was really touched and totally bowled over. Thanks to you all.