The next morning, Carla and Peter were getting ready to go and collect Simon from Leanne's. Peter was sat at the table in his dressing-gown, eating his breakfast as Carla appeared from the bedroom, having just gotten dressed herself.
"Are you gonna get ready darlin', Simon will be wondering where you've got to?" Carla asked Peter softly as she sat on the sofa opposite him.
"Huh, as if? He hates me." Peter said, having just swallowed the last-mouthful of his breakfast.
"Oh Peter Darlin'…..Simon doesn't hate ya, he was just being a typical little-boy, he wanted his own way, and he didn't get his own way, so he played-up, it's what little-boys do, you should know that better than me. If Michelle got a pound for every time Ryan said that he hated her as a little-boy then she'd be a millionaire!" Carla tried to re-assure Peter as she walked-over to him and crouched-down to his level as he was sat-down.
"Now Mr Barlow, are you gonna get dressed or are you really gonna walk through the pub in your dressing-gown?" Carla asked cheekily, gently stroking Peter's cheek, as she knew that this always brought-him around when he was reluctant to do something.
"Do you mind if you go by yourself love? It's just…..ya know…..Going to the pub…..I just think I might get tempted to…..ya know…..have a drink….."
"Alright, but you're gonna need to ring Leanne and let her know that it's me coming, otherwise she'll be keeping-him another night won't she?" Carla reminded Peter.
"Yeah sure. Listen, thanks for this love, I just don't think it's wise for me to go in there at the moment." Peter revealed to Carla.
"I know darlin', don't you worry about it. I'll drop Simon off at school, then come and see ya in the bookies alright?" Carla asked.
"Yeah okay love. Cya later." Peter said, before he kissed Carla on the lips, then let her get-off towards the Rovers Return.
Peter waited a couple of minutes, before heading downstairs to open-up the bookies, as he took a step-outside, Peter watched Dev and Sunita walk into the rovers, the smell of alcohol wafted across the street as the couple opened the doors, then let them swing shut, and Peter became tempted to have a drink. But he couldn't drink in the Rovers, everyone knew him there, plus Carla was in there, along with Leanne and Simon.
Peter tried to distract himself from the temptation as he searched through his load of keys for the one that belonged to the Bookies, but as he put the correct he into the key-hole, Peter found that he couldn't help himself anymore. He put his keys away as the Bookies remained locked-up and headed into the Bistro; he just hoped that Nick wasn't in there.
Finding Eva at the bar, Peter was relieved. "Hiya love, can I buy a bottle of whisky please?" Peter asked politely.
"Bit early for partying isn't it?" Eva questioned.
"I'm not buying it for a party love….." Peter trailed-off.
"Oh, well I suppose you can a have a bottle…..Just go easy ey? It's not even 9 o'clock yet mate?" Eva replied worriedly, unaware that Peter was a recovering alcoholic.
"Yeah well do me a favour love and uh…..don't tell Nick that I was in here…..Alright?" Peter told Eva, before he paid her for the bottle of whisky, and then headed out of the Bistro.
He immediately opened-it and took a large-sip as he wandered-down the street...
Back at the Rovers, Carla was having trouble with Simon.
"I don't wanna go to school with YOU! I told you last-night, I HATE YOU!" Simon screeched.
"But Simon, Daddy wants you home, and you need to go to school. What if Leanne picks you up later-on?" Carla tried to reason with Simon, remaining calm for-now.
"I'm still not going with you; I want Leanne to take-me. I want to live with Leanne forever!" Simon shouted angrily, before cuddling Leanne.
"Carla listen, he obviously doesn't want to come with you, so just leave-him alone alright?" Leanne said, warning Carla away from Simon harshly.
"Fine, you stay here! But Daddy's not gonna be very happy with you is he young man?" Carla said, in a firm but fairly-quiet-voice.
Carla then headed-out to the front of the pub, and decided to have herself a small-glass of wine before going to see Peter. It wasn't as if she was about to drink herself silly, so she didn't see the problem with it. She would just have one-small glass, and then she would head-back.
Peter had drunk the majority of the whisky bottle by now and was staggering along the street.
"Peter, how good it is to see you again!" Said a smug-voice, approaching Peter from directly in-front of him.
"Get Lost Frank!" Peter drunkenly, instantly recognising him, even in the drunken-state that Peter was in right-now.
"Oh look, the alcoholic is drunk! No Surprises there I guess….." Frank said, purposely ignoring what Peter had said as he tried to wind-him-up even-more than he already-had-done!
"You sh-shouldn't be fr-free! You're a…..a r-rapist!" Peter slurred-out furiously.
"Alright…..Whatever you say…..Drunkard!" Frank said smugly.
"I'M NOT DRUNK!" Peter shouted.
"Ohhhhh, ha ha! You're not drunk, that's a good-one Peter!" Frank joked as he laughed in Peter's face.
"You leave me alone Fffff-Frank!" Peter warned him off, wobbling all over-the-place now as he wavered his bottle of whisky around in Frank's face.
"Oh I couldn't do that Peter you might hurt yourself." Frank replied with a sarcastic-sympathy, continuing to laugh at Peter, and smirked-widely.
"I said, GET LOST!" Peter shouted as he punched Frank.
"Woah! You don't wanna do that mate!" Frank said as he grabbed Peter's arm, the one with the bottle of whisky-in and dis-armed Peter, before he punched him back with full-force, knocking Peter off his feet, and to the ground, in the drunken-state that he was in.
Eventually, Peter passed-out as he lay in the road unconsciously. "Ah-Ha! The drunken-idiot!" Frank said smugly to himself as he kicked Peter in the stomach, then placed the bottle of whisky next to him, before wandering-off, appearing to be a completely-innocent-man.
Carla had text Michelle from the Rovers, asking her to meet her in there, so that they could walk to work together, Michelle was curious as to why Carla was in the pub so early, but never-the-less, Michelle made her way-over immediately.
As she opened the front-door, Michelle immediately spotted-Peter led in the road.
"Peter?" She asked worriedly.
"Peter?" She repeated, frightened as to what she would as he ran-over to him and crouched-down besides-him.
"Oh My Goodness Peter. What've you done this time?" Michelle said, picking-up the whisky-bottle. She was dreading telling Carla about what had happened. She couldn't cope without Peter.
"HELP!" She called.
Sean & Marcus rushed-out immediately and ran-over.
"Michelle what's happened?" Sean asked.
"I dunno. But can you go and get Carla, she's in the pub, and Marcus, can you call an ambulance, I know he was drunk, but he's bleeding and I'm worried about him!" Michelle ordered Sean and Marcus before she checked Peter's pulse. The pulse was existent.
"Oh thank goodness he's still breathing!" Michelle said in relief.
"Peter? Peter can you hear me?" Michelle said, tapping his cheek in attempt to try and wake-him-up.
Sean came running into the pub and ran straight-over to Carla.
"Miss Connor! Miss Connor!" He said in a panic.
"What is it Sean?" She asked, the last thing she wanted was to be disturbed by one of her employees right-now.
"I think you better come with me….."
"Sean, I asked ya before, what is it?" Carla asked-again, beginning to get worried-now.
Sean took a deep-breath-in. "It's Peter."
"Ohhh please no….." Carla said sadly as she followed Sean outside, and immediately saw Peter's unconscious body sprawled-out in the middle of the road, with Michelle next to him, and paramedics crowding round-him with oxygen-masks and all sorts of medical-equipment and different-things.
"Peter! Peter my darlin'!" She said tearfully as she approached Peter, crouching down next to Michelle and hugging her boyfriend gently. "Wake-up for me darlin'!"
"Carla….." Michelle said, trying to pull her-away from him. "Carla come-over-here for a minute, come-on, come-away." Michelle said, taking her hand and pulling her-aside.
"What is it? What do ya want?" Carla asked in a panic.
"I found a whisky-bottle next to Peter….." Michelle said sadly, as she broke the heart-breaking news to Carla.
"But…..the whole reason that he didn't come to the pub with me this morning was because he felt tempted…..He was doing so well…..I should have realised that he was gonna drink when he told-me that this-morning, this is all my fault 'Chelle….." Carla told Michelle as she broke-down in her arms.
"Ohhh…..No it's not babe. Carla this is not your fault. It was Peter's choice as to whether he drunk or not. This is his-own-fault, not-yours. He made the choice to buy the bottle of whisky Carla…..not you." Michelle said as she tried to comfort her best-friend/sister-in-law.
Carla and Michelle went with Peter in the ambulance to the hospital. It wasn't long until they had arrived, and were sat with Peter in RESUS. The Doctor's had stitched-up Peter's cuts and he was now just coming-round from being unconscious.
"Carla, he's waking-up." Michelle whispered to her crying friend.
"Car…..Carla." Peter said, the oxygen-mask muffling his words.
"Hey Darlin'." She said, as she took Peter's hand, and then kissed the back of it. This place always reminded Carla of two things, The first memory was the tram-crash, when she watched Peter come close to death, and the second was when she had tried to over-dose herself, because the memories of the rape were all getting to much for her. Peter was here then too. And now she was back-here with Peter. At-least he wasn't near-death this time around.
"What are we gonna do with you ey mate?" Michelle joked as Peter tried to sit-up.
"Michelle, do you want-to go and get yourself a coffee or something from the canteen?" Carla suggested, as she handed Michelle a fiver to go and get herself something with.
"Alright, hint-taken. I'll leave you two-alone for a bit. Just give me a shout if you need-me okay?" Michelle said, before leaving the couple alone to chat by themselves.
"Thanks Sweet." Carla said before she turned her attention back to Peter.
"Are you alright?" She asked-him, concerned for her boyfriend, who she loved-so-much, that Carla didn't see how she could live without-him right at this-moment.
"I'm fine." Peter replied, as he moved the oxygen-mask away from his face and allowed-it to rest against his-chest. "But I should be asking how you are? I'm sorry about all of this baby. This is the last-thing you need right-now. Peter told Carla sadly.
"Heyyy don't you worry about-me, just get yourself better ey?" Carla paused, as she prepared herself for the change of topic. "Peter listen to me for a second…..Michelle found ya with a whisky-bottle next to ya...You were drinking-again weren't ya?" Carla asked-him tearfully.
Peter laid back-into his pillow ashamed of himself. "Yeah I was…..I'm sorry. But it wasn't the drink that put me in hospital Carla, I can give you my word." Peter said, slightly breathless, before he took a few more breaths into his oxygen-mask.
"Oh, then what did then?" Carla questioned, not quite believing him just yet.
"It was Frank." Peter revealed.
"Frank?" Carla asked suspiciously.
"Yeah…..We got into a bit of scrap…..I started-it, but then he punched-me-back, and I ended-up on the floor, and he must've kicked-me when I was unconscious or something, because my ribs are killing'-me!" Peter confessed to Carla, tears falling from both of their eyes as Carla suddenly realised that she would never-escape the clutches of Frank as-long as she lived.
"Oh darlin' you poor thing come-here." Carla said as she kissed Peter's forehead, and then hugged-him tightly. Part of her wanted to kill Peter for drinking-again, but that wasn't gonna help-him, and now wasn't the time for any-arguments that needed to be had between the pair of them.
"I love you peter Barlow. And I'm not gonna let Frank hurt-ya ever-again. Okay? Never. Alright? I promise." Carla said as she cried into Peter's shoulder.
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