Summary: Karen Fisher has a secret, and when new site manager Rob Scotcher decides to dig a little deeper into the mystery she shrouds herself in; his past and her present collide in ways they could never have imagined. Karen/Charlie; Karen/Rob

Warning: This is darker than anything I've written in a while, and may be emotionally triggering to some readers as it refers to domestic violence, and a mention of suicide in later parts. Rated M for this reason.

Author Note:

This is the first in a three or four part story, and the idea came to me based on some dialogue that was in my head when I woke up this morning. (I love it when that happens :D) It however didn't turn out in the way I expected, and ended up much darker.

I'm not sure how in-character I've made Rob, so apologies if he's slightly off the mark. Also it seems slightly disjointed to me, but every author is their own worst critic so it's probably fine.

Slightly AU in that it takes place during series 7; however Karen is still married to Charlie for the purpose of the story.

I may also write a prequel to this at some point, if the inspiration strikes because I think that whilst it can stand alone, it may work better with something before it.

Please read, and hopefully leave a review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Waterloo Road. Enough said there.

Half Alive

Karen let herself into the darkened house and switched on the light in the hall. She turned at the sound of footsteps behind her. Her husband stood in the doorway and she swore he could hear her heart starting to hammer wildly in her chest. "Hello Charlie."

"Why are you so late home?" Charlie asked, ignoring her greeting, and advancing towards her. He'd been drinking, Karen could tell. The slightly slurred words and the smell of alcohol on his breath were an instant giveaway.

"Sorry love," She apologized, taking off her coat and moving to hang it in the cupboard under the stairs. "I had to write my staff reports, I must have lost track of the time." She pretended not to notice the way his eyes narrowed, or that she wasn't intimidated by him, as he backed her against the wall.

Charlie's hands tightened around her wrists, and he used the weight of his body to pin her against the cupboard. "It won't happen again," he said threateningly; it wasn't a question, she knew. "Will it?" She tried to shake her head, fearing that if she spoke her voice would betray her fright. "I said will it?" He raised his voice, "Answer me Karen!"

She took a deep breath before responding, "No Charlie, I'll be home earlier tomorrow." With every word she spoke, she felt more ashamed of herself. She was so weak for letting him take advantage of her like this.

He gave her a dirty look, "You better see that you are," he said warningly letting her out of his grip and storming off upstairs; the door to their room slammed shut. Shaking violently, Karen slid down to the floor, crying silent tears of relief that a few bruises were all she had to hide. This time.

Part I.

A knock on her office door caused Karen Fisher to stir; and dazed she realised she'd fallen asleep, her head resting on the pile of statistics she'd spent the evening trying to analyse. She looked up, and feeling a pair of eyes on her, saw Rob hovering in the doorway. "Rob," she managed, looking at him through tired eyes, "I was just-"

He held up his hands, "Relax Karen," he said, stepping inside the office. "Perhaps this isn't the best place for sleeping; why are you even still here?"

Her shoulders tensed visibly and he frowned; she hadn't been herself for weeks; he'd barely seen her and in a school the size of Waterloo Road, avoiding someone wasn't easy. On the rare occasions he did see her up close, her eyes were rimmed red as though she'd been crying, and there were bags under her eyes. Truthfully, he was starting to worry. Karen stood up, trying not to wince as though she was experiencing some discomfort, which Rob duly noted. "I had a lot of work to finish," She said shortly, turning away from him and filing her paperwork away into the relevant section of her expanding file.

"Right," Rob started, "Well I need to lock up now so-" he paused eyeing her worriedly; he'd swear that he could see fear in her eyes. Perhaps he was jumping to conclusions; connecting dots that weren't there but deep down he was sure he was right. In his minds eye he could remember the first time he met her. At his interview he couldn't help but notice the tell tale bruise on her cheek, which she easily dismissed.

"Forgive me Karen, but I have to ask," Her whole body froze at his words, and she looked at him like a deer trapped in the headlights, before training her eyes on the carpet. "Is something the matter?"

"No!" She snapped, her hands shaking as she tried to clip her file shut. "No, everything's f-fine." Her voice trembled and she struggled to remain composed.

"I don't believe you," Rob said slowly, with a resigned sigh. He swore that he was right, but until she gave him some concrete proof there was nothing he could say to her. "But whatever it is, you know you can always talk to me. I care about you a lot Karen." He admitted.

"Thank you Rob," she said briskly, brushing her hair away from her face and immediately wishing she hadn't, but there was nothing she could do about it now. She knew by the look on his face he'd seen. For Rob, it was all the proof he needed; her right eye was surrounded by a deep purple bruise. She'd clearly tried to hide it, but no amount of make up could have made it any less obvious.

The expression on his face hardened and when she nervously met his eyes, it scared her. If he wasn't sure before, there was no doubt in his mind anymore, especially if the distance Karen had now put between them was anything to go by. On top of her strange behaviour, and then finding her asleep in her office when she could quite easily have been at home, it all added up. "Talking to me is no longer just an option," He said quietly, reaching out a hand and moving her hair back from her face so he could take a closer look at her eye. The office lighting made it look worse and she flinched at his touch. "It's nothing really – I just –" She started, clearly panicked.

"Let me save you from thinking up an excuse," Rob said gently. "Charlie did this to you, didn't he?"

Karen opened her mouth to vehemently deny Rob's accusation but found she couldn't form the words. Instead she swallowed hard and nodded, hot tears coursing down her cheeks.

"Oh Karen," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her. Her body stiffened, and he heard her stifle a gasp, as pain radiated throughout her chest. It didn't go unnoticed, and Rob stepped back from her, eyes scanning her for any other signs of injury. His eyes narrowed as he realised, "Undo your shirt please." His tone remained neutral, but she could feel the anger emanating from him. Now he knew what she'd been hiding, he couldn't just ignore it.

Karen looked away from him, embarrassed. It was ironic how she'd spent years silently willing someone to notice… to give her a way out, but now Rob had, she was too ashamed to let him in. With trembling fingers, she slowly unbuttoned her blouse. Karen was too mortified at the state he had found her in, to be concerned about him seeing her semi-undressed.

Rob inhaled sharply, beneath the pressed white blouse, her skin was mottled purple. Bruises tainted pale skin, spanning across her chest. They dipped beneath her bra and ended just below her right rib. "Oh Karen," he said again, at a loss for what to say. Her eyes filled with tears and now he knew the truth, Karen needed to get everything out there. She wordlessly rolled up her sleeves, revealing a series of small bruises; he knew that was where Charlie's fingers had wrapped around her arm. "How long has this been going on for?" He whispered, horrified.

She buried her face in her hands, "A while," she muttered, finally looking up and meeting his eyes. Rob raised his eyebrows, "On and off… for about seven years," she elaborated tonelessly. "Seven years, and no one ever knew. I'm sure some people guessed, but they couldn't ever have proven it."

"I thought I knew before today," He admitted quietly. "I recognised the signs." Karen started to cry; Rob held out his arms and she hesitated before burying her face in his shirt and clinging to him like a drowning man would a life buoy. Seven years of pain and sadness overwhelmed her, and emotions which had been hidden deep inside for so long, resurfaced. They remained like that for nearly ten minutes, until, her face damp, she pulled away from him, noticing the clock on the wall behind him. "I need to get home!" Karen said anxiously, fumbling with the buttons on her shirt. "They'll be wondering where I am."

For a second Rob was sure he couldn't have heard her properly. "You can't be serious!" He was incensed, "After everything you've just told me, you're going home to that – that – monster."

"Do you really think that it's what I want?" She asked quietly. "He's my children's father; I have to go home for them."

"Jess and Harry are both old enough to be able to understand the truth," Rob countered, folding his arms.

"They may understand, but it doesn't mean that they'll accept it," Karen answered quietly. "I can't do that to them Rob," She started to tremble and he took off his jacket, wrapping it around her shoulders.

"Ssshh," He whispered, holding her close to him again. "It'll be okay, I promise."

"How?" Karen whispered brokenly. "Tell me how it's going to be okay! How will anything ever be okay again?"

For all the talking in the world, it hadn't been enough to convince Karen that she couldn't go home to that.

"Promise me you'll call if anything happens tonight," Rob said anxiously, taking her hands in his. "I'm scared for you Karen."

Her eyes glimmered with unshed tears, and she blinked three times in quick succession. "Don't." She whispered sadly. "I'll be okay, it'll all be okay. You promised." She wasn't naïve enough to think his words could make a difference, and he knew it.

Rob watched her drive away, before getting into his own car and putting the key in the ignition. He didn't go anywhere though, instead sat there for the longest time, a faraway look in his eyes as the shouts and screams of his mother reverberated through the intervening years.