Life hadn't exactly gone to plan for Kaz. She was six months into her third year at university when it happened, and everything turned to shit after that. She'd been on her way home from the late shift at the bar she worked at to help fund her studies when he grabbed her and dragged her into the park. She had deliberately taken the long way around to avoid walking through the secluded area but had to walk on the street alongside it. It was only a short distance and wouldn't take her more than a minute, but he only needed a few seconds. He had clearly been waiting for someone to come by, whether it was her specifically or any woman on her own, but when she felt his hands on her she knew what was coming. He was a lot bigger than her relatively small frame, but he clearly wasn't expecting her to put up such a fight.
The second she felt his hand pawing at her breast something in her snapped, and every time her biological father touched and abused her came flooding back into her mind. She was a vulnerable kid back then, but that wasn't the case now, and she was determined that she wasn't going to let another man take what he wanted from her. Finding an inner strength that she didn't even know she possessed she managed to push him off her, but when he tried to grab her again she lost it, reigning blow after blow down on him. Someone must have heard the commotion and called the police, as the next thing the blonde knew she was being dragged off the now bloodied man and cuffed. She had tried to protest, telling them that she was simply defending herself against a man who was clearly trying to rape her, but they just told her to shut it before throwing her into the back of the police car.
The officers that had attended were clearly members of the old boy's network, and with no witnesses or evidence to prove that he was trying to rape her, Kaz had been interviewed then thrown in a cell, without being allowed to make a call to anyone. She had made a real mess of the guy, not that she regretted it for a second. How dare he go around thinking that he can just take what he wants, when he wants, and suffer no consequences. She had fought her case, but she was hot headed by nature and one of the officers had picked up on it early on, using it to their advantage when it came to the charges against her. She knew her bail had been set extremely high, but if she could just get in contact with her parents then they could sort everything out. What she didn't realise was that the guy she had supposedly assaulted was not only a cop, but also a colleague of the two fuck muppets that had arrested her. Meaning they had accidentally on purpose forgotten to give her the phone call she was entitled to, claiming that she had refused the offer.
She didn't have that kind of money, and with no access to a phone she had no choice but to wait it out in the cell. She was being charged with aggravated assault, and the guy they had sent over from legal aid to represent her had been as helpful as a fart in an elevator. His stellar advice had been to plead guilty as it would reduce the length of her sentence, not that she was planning on taking any notice whatsoever. They kept her locked in her cell, only giving her one meal a day, and she was practically tearing her hair out. She was the victim here, not that they saw it that way. If anyone should be rotting away in a police cell it should be him, but she knew that would never happen. The bastards clearly stuck together when it came to one of their own.
By the time she was able to contact her parents she had already been charged and sentenced to three years in prison. As soon as they found out they hired a proper lawyer, and it took a while, but after serving twelve months Kaz was released. Her parents had fought the system, and between their persistence and the knowledge and sheer determination of their lawyer had not only gotten her sentence overturned, but also compensation for the treatment she had received. The officers involved in her original case had been sacked, and were now awaiting a trial of their own, and she couldn't help but feel a little smug when she thought about how the tables had turned. Kaz had considered going back and finishing her degree, but prison had changed her. It was tough, worse than she had thought it was going to be. She had seen some awful sights in there and encountered so many women that had been victims of abuse. They had been pushed and pushed by the men in their lives, or in a couple of cases women, until they finally snapped and fought back. Unfortunately, they were the ones who got punished, although in a few cases being in prison gave them a better quality of life than they had at home.
Another issue they faced was where to go when they were finally released from prison. The halfway houses leaved a lot to be desired and weren't exactly helpful when it came to staying out of trouble, plus prison was luxury compared to most of these places. Deciding to use the money for a worthier cause, she had rented a building and opened a new shelter for woman. The space needed a lot of work, but after meeting with one of the parole officers her lawyer had put her in contact with she was able to hire some of the women to help fix the place up. It wasn't all plain sailing, and a couple of them turned out to be more trouble than they were worth resulting in Kaz having to fire them. But on the whole, it was a relatively smooth process. The first few days after they opened were slow, but once word got around women were arriving in droves in the hope of a bed or hot meal.
She spent every waking hour either working at the shelter or out canvasing for sponsors, and after twelve months had enough support and backing to fund a new-build. The rented space served its purpose, but the rooms were small and there wasn't a lot of light. She wanted the women to be comfortable in the shelter, and in order for that to happen the place needed to feel welcoming. Kaz worked with the contractors and sponsors, and between them they came up with a design that not only maximised use of the site but would also provide the resident with a warm and safe place to stay. It was important to her that every woman that came through the door felt at home, and she would do whatever it took to make that happen.
Even with everything going on Allie was never far from her mind. She had seen the news a few years ago so was aware that her mum was now in prison, but there hadn't been any news on the young blonde. She'd asked her lawyer to put her in contact with someone who could look into her disappearance after being released, and after weeks of digging the investigator had finally found out that someone matching her description, with the same name and date of birth had been living in Sydney. She had been to her last known address but had come up empty handed. Unfortunately, it had been over a year since Allie had lived there and the current tenants couldn't help in any way. Knowing Allie had been in the same city as her, brought her some comfort. But it didn't stop the niggling feeling that something was wrong.
Things were as hectic as ever at the shelter, and to make matters worse they'd had a couple of incidences recently where a few of the residents had almost drowned after getting caught in a rip in the ocean. Not everyone who came through their doors were local, and some had been brought up miles and miles away from the beach. As a result, Kaz had contacted the council regarding setting up a talk on the dangers of the ocean. She was on her way back from meeting with Will Jackson, the head lifeguard down at Bondi. The meeting had gone well, although the blonde wasn't sure about Jackson. He was pleasant enough and extremely helpful, but there was something about him that got under her skin. She couldn't quite place the feeling, and it wasn't necessarily unpleasant, but she didn't know what to make of him. He had offered to do the talk himself, wanting to make sure everything was done properly, and while she would have preferred a female lifeguard, was grateful for his time.
Kaz had taken Mel, one of the girls that helped her run the shelter with her to the meeting. She was her second in command and the blonde knew that she could rely on her. They had been in the car for about ten minutes when it happened. The lights changed to green as they approached, and as Kaz made her way through the junction someone stepped out into the road, straight in front of her car. She slammed her foot on the break but it was no use, they were too close, and despite her best efforts she couldn't stop in time. It couldn't have been more than a few seconds, but it was as though everything was happening in slow motion. She saw a flash of blonde hair as the person landed on the bonnet before falling to the floor. The noise was horrific, and she felt sick. Putting the handbrake on she threw her door open before jumping out and rushing over to the woman lying motionless on the ground.
A few people had gathered around her, and one guy was on the phone to the emergency services. Kaz felt awful, but there really was nothing that she could do to avoid her. She just hoped that it wasn't too serious. As she got closer she felt her stomach drop and had to fight back the urge to throw up. It couldn't be, surely, but the similarity was too great for it not to be her. Kneeling down beside the woman she brushed her hair out of the way, her heart breaking as she came face to face with Allie. She was all grown up now, but Kaz would recognise her in a heartbeat. She just hoped that the young blonde wasn't too badly hurt. Kneeling down beside the woman that she still thought of as her sister despite not seeing or speaking to her for a few years, she brushed the back of her hand over her cheek, tears pooling in her eyes when she saw the blood on the floor. "Allie…Allie…oh fuck" she said before breaking down, Mel's hand on her shoulder offering Kaz some much needed support.
Kaz knew that she had to hold it together for Allie's sake. She would do anything right now to change places with the younger woman, but she couldn't. Using the sleeve of her shirt she wiped the tears away, the siren of the approaching ambulance a welcome sound. Reaching out, she held her sisters hand, and for the first time in what felt like forever she felt whole again.
"K…Kaz…" Allie half spoke, half groaned, her big blue eyes flicking open for a few seconds before closing again. Kaz had never heard such a perfect sound, and as she took a step back to let the paramedics do their job she prayed to whoever was listening that it wouldn't be the last time she heard her voice.
Allie had spent a week in hospital, and despite the broken leg, cracked ribs and severe bruising had been very lucky. The cut on the back of her head had been responsible for all the blood on the road, but after a few stitches the only thing she was left with was a bitch of a headache. It could have been so much worse, they both knew that, yet despite Allie being ok Kaz couldn't stop the guilt. Was she going too fast, not concentrating, why hadn't she seen her? She had spent the first ten hours impatiently waiting for the young blonde to wake up, pacing up and down the room and snapping at everyone that told her to go home. She wasn't going anywhere, not until she knew that her little sister was going to be alright. Technically she wasn't family so the doctors and nurses wouldn't give her any information, and if she hadn't caused such a scene when they took Allie to her room she wouldn't have been allowed to see her either. The younger woman had to have surgery to fix the break in her leg, so Kaz had been left in the waiting room for quite some time. She had sent Mel home, asking her to clear her diary for the next week. It had been a long time, and Allie may want nothing to do with her. But if there was any chance that they could get back to how things were then she would take it.
Kaz had overheard the doctor taking to one of the nurses about Allie, saying there were narcotics in her system, she was dehydrated and looked like she hadn't eaten in a few days. The older blonde had noticed that her clothes were a little tatty but it didn't really register at the time. But with everything they had said, plus Allie's disappearance things started to fall into place. She must have been living on the streets, which would explain why the private investigator couldn't trace her. The past few years clearly hadn't been kind to the young blonde, and Kaz was determined to help her turn her life around. Even if she did put up a fight. If she had a drug addiction then it wasn't going to be easy, but she would help her through it. Deciding to wait until Allie was awake before putting a plan together she dropped down in the chair by the bed, taking her sisters hand in hers before closing her eyes.
It was late morning the following day when Kaz was rewarded with the best sight in the world. After feeling her hand being squeezed she lifted her head and looked into Allie's bright blue eyes. Although the light they once held as a kid wasn't there anymore. Whatever had happened over the past few years had clearly taken its toll on the younger woman, although she suspected the drugs hadn't helped either. After pressing the nurse call button Kaz ran her fingers through the younger woman's matted blonde locks, happy when she saw a slight smile on Allie's face.
The first hour after she woke up was strained, Kaz apologising over and over again, and a sobbing Allie saying she wished that she had died. She was in pain a lot of pain, and the positivity she'd felt before the accident was now nothing more than a distant memory. The drugs she had taken the previous day had worn off and she felt anxious, which on top of the pain was all she needed. Kaz's constant apologising wasn't helping either, and while Allie knew that it was entirely her fault and that she should have been paying more attention to her surroundings, had snapped at the older woman. Kaz had decided to get some fresh air, not wanting to get into an argument with her sister. If what she had heard the doctor say was true then that would certainly explain her mood swings, and if she was going to get through to the younger woman she knew she would have to bite her tongue.
Allie was quiet when her sister came back into her room, simply looking away when Kaz asked her what she had been doing with herself for the past few years. She told her that after she didn't show up at the airport both her and her parents had been looking for her, but had been unsuccessful. The older blonde knew by the look on Allie's face that whatever it was wouldn't be good, but with what had happened to her she wasn't really in a position to judge. Not that she ever would. They followed the same pattern for the next two days, Kaz quizzing her little sister on what she had been doing with her life, and Allie either changing the subject or pretending to be asleep.
By the fourth day Kaz was getting more than a little frustrated, and despite never leaving her bedside the younger woman still hadn't said much. After reassuring Allie over and over again that nothing she could say would make her walk away she finally started to talk. And once she started it all came out. Allie told her about what her dad had done that night, explaining that was why she never made the flight to Sydney, and everything that had happened since she woke up in the children's hospital. When she got to the part where she had caught Paige with her friend she felt like a complete idiot. She should have known better than to get too close to her. People didn't want Allie around, at least not long term. Her own family had started the ball rolling on that one, and since then it hadn't stopped. She was worthless, and despite feeling safe for the first time in forever, wasn't prepared to drag Kaz down with her. "I appreciate you being here, and it's so good to see you Kaz, but you should go. I'm toxic and I'll only bring you down if you stick with me" she said, smiling sadly at the older blonde before letting go of her hand and turning away from her.
"You're not toxic Allie, and I'm not going anywhere" Kaz replied, grabbing the younger woman's hand again.
Allie could feel the frustration building. The last thing she wanted to do was push away the only person who had truly cared about her, but she was scared. Scared that she would fuck up, let her down, and she would rather the older woman hate her than be disappointed. That was something that she couldn't bear. Snatching her hand away she glared at the only family she had ever had, fighting back the tears as she lied straight to her face. "I don't want your pity, I don't want your help, and I don't want you here. Get the fuck out"
Allie's words hurt, but Kaz knew what she was doing. She had tried the exact same thing with her parents while she was in prison, and like them, she wasn't prepared to walk away. She could be just as stubborn as her little sister, and she didn't care what Allie threw at her, she wasn't going anywhere. Moving around to the other side of the bed so she could see the younger woman's face, she sat back down and grabbed her hand, holding on tight so she couldn't pull away again.
"Do you think you're they only one with problems Allie? The past three years haven't been easy for me either" she said, trying hard to keep the bite out of her voice. Kaz wasn't known for her tact, which was one of the reasons she'd had issues with officers that had arrested her. "You said that you tried to find me, right?" she asked, waiting for the younger blonde to nod before continuing. "Well the reason you couldn't was because I was in prison. Some bastard tried to rape me one night when I was walking home and I beat the shit out of him. Someone called the cops and it turned out that they were even bigger bastards than he was. He got away with trying to rape me, and I got three years for assault"
Allie couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could anyone punish someone for defending themselves. But then life wasn't fair, something she knew all about. She spent the next hour listening to Kaz's story, her heart breaking for the woman that she still thought of as her big sister. She had hoped that she was somewhere out there making a name for herself after getting her degree, but despite the setback and somewhat change of direction she was so proud of her and what she had achieved.
The past few of days had been hell, and although she was on strong painkillers Allie was still feeling some of the effects of coming off the drugs she had started taking on a regular basis. When she first ended up on the streets she swore she would never go down that path, despite feeling a temporary reprieve from the hurt after taking what Zoey had given her. But things got worse, quickly, and before she knew it the drugs were the only thing getting her through each day. She didn't want to be dependent on them and knew that if she wanted any kind of life she needed to kick her habit. But what if she couldn't. Kaz would have wasted her time and effort for nothing.
After being released from hospital Allie went to live with Kaz. She had tried to protest, claiming that she would be perfectly fine staying at the shelter but the older blonde was having none of it. While they tried their best to keep drugs out of the shelter they couldn't be everywhere at once, and sometimes they slipped through the net. It wasn't that she didn't trust Allie, she just didn't want her subjected to any unnecessary temptation. Plus, it would be good to have her around the house. It hadn't been easy, and they had gotten into a disagreement over it when she first suggested it. But in the end Allie had given in, and so far, things were going well.
The first few weeks were difficult, especially during her withdrawal. The painkillers she'd been on at the hospital had numbed it slightly, but as soon as they were out of her system it hit her hard. She had yelled, screamed and lashed out, but Kaz had stayed by her side through it all. She had been her rock, and Allie knew that she wouldn't have gotten through it if it hadn't been for the older woman. Despite needing her there, Allie felt guilty for keeping her sister from the shelter, not that Kaz minded. She knew that Mel was more than capable of looking after things, and right now Allie was her priority. Once she was off the drugs and feeling a little better she had started helping out, although she had been confined to the office until she had the cast taken off her leg. Everything was going well and they had gotten into a routine both at home and the shelter, but one afternoon a few months after she had started working there two of the women got into a pretty big fight. The fight was over drugs and in trying to separate them Allie had got hurt. It scared her, but after taking a couple of days off she went back to work, only to be confronted by one of the women who accused her of stealing her gear during the fight. Mel had walked in on the woman before things turned really bad but she managed to get a few blows in, and with Allie still recovering she had come off worse. She had defended herself as best as she could but the other woman was twice her size.
In the end it had taken threatening to throw her out of the shelter to get her to back off, and despite Allie asking Mel not to mention anything to Kaz, the other woman had done it anyway. As soon as Kaz found out what had happened the woman that had attacked Allie was thrown out and told not to come back. While the older blonde was willing to go out of her way to help anyone out, hurt her family in any way and they were on their own. Allie had felt guilt after that, not that any of it had been her fault. But after years of getting the blame for everything and being treated like crap she thought the worst. She decided to stop working at the shelter after that, although after a couple of months Kaz convinced her to help out in the office. It wasn't something she wanted to do long term, but felt like she would be throwing the older woman's generosity back in her face if she refused.
Things had been much better since she moved to the office, and Allie found that she was quite interested in this side of things. Since the new building opened Kaz had been so busy that she had taken her foot off the gas when it came to marketing and fundraising. It didn't help that the systems they used were like something out of the dark ages. To say it was basic would be a compliment, and they had no real programmes set up. Everything was stored on the computers themselves, rather than being linked to a network, so in order to access everything she had to go back and forth between the three machines in the office. While Allie hadn't had any kind of formal training, she knew her way around a computer and it needed sorting out. She had no doubt that Kaz was on top of everything and knew exactly what was coming and going, but if anyone asked to see any documentation she'd be screwed. Deciding it needed an overhaul, Allie set about looking into what was needed to get everything in order. Minutes turned into hours, and before she knew it she not only had a plan in place, but it was also time to go home.
Before leaving the office, she showed the older blonde what she was planning to do, and how much time they would save with just a few changes to the system. She also ran through a few fundraising ideas she'd had, and Kaz was impressed. She knew how important it was to keep the donations coming in but had dropped the ball a little recently. While they had their regulars that always donated, finding ways to get new people interested was getting harder and harder. It had started to take up too much time, time she need to be spending on other things. Plus, she clearly didn't have the imagination or creativity that Allie did if her ideas were anything to go by.
Over the next few weeks not only did Allie set them up on a small network, linking all their IT equipment to it, she had also been working on a brochure to send out to potential investors. She would need input from a professional as the design element wasn't really her thing, but idea's wise Kaz was impressed. Very impressed. Plus, Allie looked like she was in her element. While every bit of what they did there was important, Kaz preferred dealing with the women, whereas it was clear that Allie's talent lied within the business side of things. With everything the younger woman had been through in the past few years she really wasn't cut out to work with the residents, which was understandable. But she had obviously enjoyed letting her creative side out to play. Leaving everything up to Allie, Kaz was impressed when a few weeks later a couple of large donations came in, one of the companies wanting to sponsor the shelter and set up donations on a monthly basis.
Allie took to this side of the business like a duck to water and her sister started to wonder if it was something she would like to pursue. The following evening after they'd had dinner she dropped down on the sofa next to Allie, resting her head on her shoulder. It had been on her mind since the previous day, and while she would never force the younger woman to do anything she didn't want to, she would love to see her make something of her life. Deciding that now was a good a time as any to broach the subject she suggested that Allie might want to look into going to college or university, assuming that was something she was interested in doing. The younger woman had been a little apprehensive, not wanting to leave Kaz in the lurch at the shelter. But now the suggestion was out there, she knew it was something she wanted to try. She was nervous, having not studied for a few years, and she may find that it wasn't for her after all. But if she didn't try then she would never know.
After making a few enquiries she enrolled on a course at the local university, continuing to work at the shelter until her studies started in a couple of months. Over the next few weeks both Kaz and Allie conducted several interviews, wanting to find someone to take over running the office. While the young blonde was happy to continue working there around her lectures Kaz was having none of it, wanting her to concentrate on her studies. After what felt like the longest day ever they finally found someone they were happy with and offered her the job. Doreen Anderson had recently moved to Sydney after her partner Nash had been transferred for work. She had a few years' experience having worked in the marketing department in her previous job, and could start straight away, giving Allie a week or two to show her the ropes before she started university.
As much as Allie appreciated her sister looking out for her, she was bored. She was only in university three days a week, despite it being a full-time course. She had work to do outside of class, but with her lack of social life still had a lot of time on her hands. She had tried several times to help out at the shelter but had been sent home every time. This had been going on for a couple of months now and she knew that she needed to find something to occupy her time before she drove herself crazy, she just wasn't sure what.
A chance meeting in the park a couple of weeks later ended up being the answer to Allie's problem. She had spent the best part of the day trying to formulate a plan as to how she could keep herself busy and so far, hadn't come up with much. Deciding that some fresh air might help she had gone for a walk through the large park near Kaz's house, and after an hour decided to head home. The older blonde would be back in a couple of hours, and while Allie wasn't the best cook, she could just about scrape something together for dinner. As she rounded the corner she was almost knocked of her feet by a small dog, the excited animal jumping up and down in a bid to try and get her attention.
A few seconds later a large woman came stumbling down the path, five other dog leads in her hand and she mumbled and cursed to herself. After securing the lead to the runaway dog who appeared to have taken a liking to the blonde, the other woman apologised for the ambush, saying she had only stopped for a few minutes so she could eat her Monte Carlo's and the little fucker had done a runner. She was out walking six dogs when one of them made a beeline for Allie, dragging the other five as well as the unsuspecting woman along with it. It was the smallest of the five dogs as well, which made the whole situation even more amusing.
After fusing the little guy for a few minutes, she smiled when the other woman sat down beside her before introducing the dogs first, and then herself. Her name was Boomer, although Allie suspected that wasn't her real name. She had a childlike quality to her and the blonde felt comfortable with her right from the start. Something that came as a surprise to her. There was an innocence about the other woman that relaxed her, despite Boomer's somewhat larger than life presence. They chatted for a while, and by the time Allie was on her way back home had made a new friend and had a clear idea as to what she wanted to do with her free time. Boomer worked part-time at the local animal shelter, and during their conversation had mentioned they were looking for staff. Deciding she had nothing to lose Allie made a note of the address and told her new friend that she would pay a visit and check the place out. Six months later and Allie couldn't be happier. She was at university studying marketing and business management while working at the animal shelter. As well as caring for the animals she was also helping out with both fundraising and advertising for the place, and the women's shelter. Despite Kaz's reluctance she was grateful for the younger woman's help. The donations were coming in thick and fast, enabling the to offer the women a better quality of life.
The next few months were hectic for both blonde's, but they always made sure to make time for each other. Allie had been home from university for about an hour that particular evening when Kaz walked through the door, and as their eyes locked she could tell that something was wrong. She had a look in her icy blue eyes that she'd never seen before, and she was tense. Assuming something had happened at the shelter she led her over to the sofa before grabbing a beer and handing it to the older woman before sitting down beside her. It took a while, but eventually Allie managed to get her sister to open up about what was on her mind, and it wasn't what she had expected. She was aware that one of the Bondi lifeguards had gone over to the shelter to talk to the women on a couple of occasions and had been due there that afternoon for another talk. Kaz had mentioned him a few times, although it was usually to say what an arrogant arsehole he was. So, when she told her that not only had he defended her when one of the women turned violent, but that he had also kissed her, Allie didn't know what to say. She had never seen Kaz with anyone, and the older blonde never spoke about her past relationships, so had no idea if it was welcome or not. But as she took a moment to really study her sister she saw the slight blush in her cheeks. Despite her never having a good word to say about Will Jackson, it was clear that she liked him, even if she wasn't prepared to admit it out loud just yet.
It took a few days for Kaz to finally admit that despite her initial feelings towards Will Jackson, she did in fact like him as more than a friend. Allie knew this was a big step for her sister and wanted to make sure he was good enough for her before giving her seal of approval. He was taking Kaz out to dinner that night and despite wanting to give him the once over Allie had to go to the animal shelter. They had called her earlier that day, asking if she would mind coming in as they had a couple of new dogs arriving, and for reasons unbeknown to her, they seemed to relax more in her presence. She had agreed straight away, wanting to do anything she could to make the transition as easy as possible for the already scared animals. Although after her sister's latest revelation part of her wished she didn't have to go.
Kaz and Will had been on three dates now, and if the near permanent grin on her sister's face was anything to go by then things were clearly going well. Allie still hadn't met the guy that had turned the usually tough older blonde into a giggling teenager, but she was keen to rectify that as soon as possible. While Kaz was aware of what Allie's dad had done to her, the younger woman never told her about the fears it had left her with, the main one being the ocean. On the odd occasion her sister had suggested going to the beach she had manged to think on her feet, coming up with good enough excuses as to why she couldn't make it. But when they were on their way back home from grabbing lunch at the bar Boomer worked in and Kaz suggested they stop off at the lifeguard tower so she could meet Will, Allie couldn't think of a valid excuse.
It only took them about ten minutes to get there, although after driving round and round trying to find somewhere to park Allie thought she may have gotten away with it. She was just about to suggest that Kaz invite Will over to the house instead when someone pulled out of a space, allowing them to park up. Taking a deep breath, Allie followed her sister across the promenade and towards the tower, trying not to look in the direction of the water. She could feel her heart rate increasing with every step, and just hoped that they wouldn't be staying long. Pushing away the thoughts that were trying to occupy her mind she focused on her sister, and how nervous she suddenly looked. She had wondered how serious the older blonde was about her new relationship, but if the look on her face was anything to go by she was clearly nervous about Allie meeting him, so she figured it must be the real thing.
Allie had overheard a few of the women at the shelter saying how they wouldn't mind being rescued by him, although that wasn't really a lot to go by. She knew he must be pretty special though to have Kaz's attention. Before she knew it, they were entering the tower. There were three guys in there but she didn't need to ask which one of them was Will, it was clear by the way his eyes lit up when they locked on Kaz. Allie wasn't quite sure what she was expecting, but he was nothing like she thought he would be. He was a big guy, very muscular, and not at all what she had pictured in her mind when she thought about her sister's partner. But when he smiled at Kaz his entire face lit up and his deep brown eyes shone, giving him the appearance of a gentle giant.
They had been chatting for around ten minutes when one of the other lifeguards jumped up and raced from the tower. It was clear by the speed of his movements that something serious must have happened. Allie went from calm to panicked in a split second and as everything around her started to fade, all she could think about was her dad, and what he did to her that night. Her chest was tightening, restricting her airway, and she couldn't breathe. Allie knew that she was safe, and overreacting, but that didn't stop the wave of panic that washed over her. She knew that she needed to get as far away from there as possible, and quickly, but how the hell was she supposed to do that without worrying Kaz.
Standing up, Allie made what she thought was a quick dash for the door, but she only made it two steps before her legs gave way. She was expecting to hit the floor but she didn't, strong arms catching her before carrying her over to the medical couch in the tower. Despite only meeting Will a short while ago she felt comfortable in his presence, well as much as she could with all the shit racing through her head at least. She knew she was safe, Kaz was right beside her and would never let anyone hurt her in any way, yet she still felt anxious. Sitting up on the bed she tried to stand, dizziness taking hold of her again as she did. It felt like the walls were closing in on her, and she couldn't breathe. She needed to get out of there, and fast.
It wasn't the first time she'd had an anxiety attack, but it hadn't happened in so long that it took her by surprise. Despite the shitstorm in her mind. With every second that passed her need to get as far away from there as possible increased, and just when she thought she was going to lose it completely Will's radio crackled to life and a soothing voice came through it. She'd heard that voice before, or at least she was pretty sure she had, although she couldn't place it. Focusing on the husky tones coming through the radio she felt herself starting to relax, the fear that had surrounded her mere seconds ago being replaced by a sense of calm. Allie had only felt this safe once before, and that was when she'd looked into those chocolate brown eyes that day by the rocks at Tamarama. But all too soon the voice was gone, and all she could focus on what the concerned faces of her sister and Will. She knew she had some explaining to do, she just wasn't sure if she was ready to delve into her painful past for the second time in one day.
Will was clearly concerned, and it was obviously something more than too much sun as Kaz had suggested but given he had only just met Allie he could understand why his girlfriend was playing everything down. Going along with the blatant lie he gave her a Gatorade and told her to go home and rest. Kaz sent Will a silent thank you before promising to call him later. Slipping her arm around Allie's waist she led her from the tower and towards the car, deciding that it would be better to wait until they got home to talk about whatever had brought on the panic attack. Although she was pretty sure she knew what the answer would be.
Allie had gone straight to bed when they got home, promising to talk to her sister later. She knew that she had to explain herself, but right now she just wanted to be alone. Kaz was worried. She had gone into her sister's room a couple of hours later to check on her, but she was asleep. It was clear that she had been crying, the redness around her eyes a clear giveaway. She had called Will after that, needing to hear his voice. It scared her how quickly she was falling for him, despite thinking he was an arrogant arsehole when they first met. But after seeing him in action down at the beach had seen a completely different side to him and understood why he had been so serious during their first meeting. She had gone down to the beach one day with Mel and a few of the women from the shelter. The others were in the water but Kaz was quite content relaxing on the sand with her new book. She was pretty full on as a person and was always racing around doing something so it had come as a bit of a surprise to Mel when her boss and friend pulled the book from her bag after getting comfortable on her towel. She loved to read, but never really had the time to indulge so decided to make the most of her downtime for once. She had invited Allie along but the younger blonde had refused, saying she had to go over to the animal shelter. That was the third time she had bailed on them recently, and although at the time Kaz didn't think anything of it, there was clearly a reason why.
The girls had only been gone for a few minutes when it happened, several shouts from other beachgoers drawing her attention from the book in her hand. There was a commotion in front of her, down on the waters edge. Standing up she looked around to see what all the fuss was about when she saw Will Jackson running from the surf, a small girl in his arms. Her lifeless body looked tiny compared to Will's large frame, but despite the urgency he was so gentle with her. For the next few minutes both Will and a female colleague worked tirelessly to get the little girl breathing again, while trying to reassure her distraught parents. The sense of relief when they finally got a pulse could be felt across the beach, and after handing her over to the paramedics Will turned around, his eyes locking with Kaz's. She could see both fear and pure relief in his deep brown eyes, and for the first time since they met her opinion of him changed.
She had a new-found respect for him after that, and they had been getting on a lot better when he came over to the shelter. Kaz knew how lucky she was that he was there the day one of the women flipped out and tried to attack her. She wasn't a bad person, but had mental health issues and severe mood swings. The blonde was trying to help get her into a suitable facility, but until then she had nowhere else to go. It wasn't an ideal situation for anyone involved, but she couldn't just throw her out onto the streets. Kaz was always on guard when she was at the shelter, but for some reason having Will so close was proving to be a little distracting. As a result, she had let her guard down at the worst possible time, and despite knowing that the woman, Carol, would never intentionally hurt her, it didn't stop the fear when she felt her arm around her neck. Everything happened so fast after that. One minute she thought she was going to die, and the next she was safe, Will's strong arms wrapped around her protectively. The security guards had taken Carol back to her room and Mel was calling for an ambulance so they could get her the help she clearly needed.
With everyone racing around it left the two of them alone, and for the first time since they met Kaz couldn't be happier about that. Something had changed between them in that moment, so when she felt Will's lips on hers a few seconds later would be lying if she said she was surprised. She'd had a few relationships before but hadn't been with anyone since she got out of prison. When Allie had quizzed her about her love life she had simply said that she was too busy for all that. And while that was partly true, the main reason was fear. After what happened that night with the off-duty police officer all the memories from when she was a child came flooding back and she was scared to get close to anyone. But for the first time the sense of panic that usually overtook her had been replaced with something else. A longing for something more, and a need to kiss him again, and again.
Kaz had just ended the call to Will when Allie walked into the room. Her eyes were still a little red, but she looked a lot better than she had a few hours ago. While she didn't want to push her into talking about what had freaked her out, she knew bottling it up would only make it worse. She had learned this the hard way and didn't want her little sister to make the same mistake. Waiting until the younger woman was sitting down beside her she grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze before speaking. "What's going on Allie, and don't say it's nothing. I know you better than that, and I've never seen you as spooked as you were in the lifeguard tower"
"It's stupid, I'm stupid" the younger woman mumbled, avoiding eye contact with her sister. She was embarrassed about what had happened, especially as it was the first time she had met Will. He must think she was off her head.
"You're not, and neither is whatever's on your mind. You can talk to me about anything, I'd never judge you. I hope you know that" Kaz said, running her fingers through the other woman's hair. "And neither would Will. I've just spoken to him and he was worried about you"
Seeing the sincerity in Kaz's eyes she cuddled into her side, needing to feel the closeness in order to relive the painful memories. "I...when he ran out of the tower with the defib I had a flashback. It was dark and I was on a boat, laid out on the deck" Allie said, wiping the tears from her eyes as she started to recount the events of that night, that had unexpectedly come back to her. Her brain had blocked out the details until now, but as they had started to come back to her earlier she felt like she was back there again.
It had been hard, but Allie felt better after talking about it. Although she swore it would be the one and only time that she would ever go back to that night. While she trusted Kaz with her life, she was worried that once she heard how weak and pathetic Allie had been that night she would be disappointed in her. After everything she had been through she was pretty resilient but seeing that same disappointment in her sister's eyes as she had seen in her fathers, and everyone else that had used then thrown her away was the one thing that she feared the most. But Kaz would never judge her, she was the one and only person she could rely on to have her back. No matter what.
They chatted for a while longer before Allie started yawning. She'd slept for a couple of hours that afternoon, but the stress of the day was clearly taking its toll. Kaz had suggested that she see a counsellor, and although she wasn't overly keen on the idea of talking about her past with a stranger had told her sister she would think about it. It was the least she could do after her earlier meltdown, even if she did have no intention of actually going through with it.
Despite feeling drained following their talk the younger woman felt a lot lighter, so much so that she decided to tease her sister about Will. From the short time she had spent with him he seemed like a good guy and she was genuinely happy for the older woman, despite the jealousy. Kaz deserved to find someone who would not only treat her right, but also look at her the way that Will had when they walked into the tower. Despite feeling like she was about to pass out, she saw the way his eyes lit up when he looked at her sister. She just wished someone would look at her like that. But that would never happen. Even if she did find someone she trusted enough to let in, the second they found out about her past they'd be off like a robber's dog. And she couldn't blame them. As Paige had once said to her during one of their many arguments, she was good for a bit of fun, but nothing more. She was done with relationships, even if the prospect of spending the rest of her life alone terrified her. As long as she had Kaz, and the few friends she had made over the past few months she would be just fine.
But if that really was the case then why couldn't she forget about those chocolate brown eyes. It had been three years since that day out on the rocks, and while Allie couldn't remember much she would never forget those eyes. It was crazy, insane even. She had no idea who this woman was, but deep down she knew she would see her again. And that made her happy, happier than she had felt in a long time. Lying in bed an hour later she let herself daydream about how different her life could be if only she could find her. Thinking back to that afternoon, she'd felt the same sense of calm when she kissed the redhead as she had hearing those husky tones down the radio earlier that day. The voice was familiar, but as hard as she tried she couldn't place it. Deciding she would only drive herself crazy trying to figure it out, she pushed it to the back of her mind before closing her eyes and allowing sleep to claim her, her dreams filled with the mystery woman with the soulful brown eyes.
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A/N: Thanks again for all the interest in this story. I promise they will meet again very soon (next chapter). I'll try and update as soon as I can but I'm on some pretty strong painkillers at the minute…and they make me randomly fall asleep :/