Chapter Ten

Aftermath

It had been a few weeks since Denny's admission to hospital, and he was recovering from his operation fast. Elodie sighed as she reached for a bowl from the cupboard above her head, filling it with chocolate ice cream from the freezer. Den certainly knew how to milk the situation for all it was worth, but after the ordeal they had been through in the past few weeks, she was ready to do anything to make sure he was comfortable, safe and happy. Having handed Denny his ice cream and the TV remote, she heard a knock at the door. She ran to get it, and could not hide her disappointment when she saw Chase standing there. He smiled apologetically, his hands in his pockets.

"Chase, hey," she said, making an effort to force her face into a friendly smile.

"Hey, you guys OK? Just thought I'd come and check, hope you don't mind," she let him in and closed the door behind him.

"We're fine," Elodie said, tucking Denny's blanket in under him on the sofa.

"Ice cream?" Denny brandished a loaded spoon at Chase, who laughed and shook his head.

"I'm OK thanks mate, just had lunch with Blake…"

He saw Elodie's eyes flicker at the name, and wandered what he should say.

Elodie was annoyed. For two weeks he had semi-ignored her at school, with awkward corridor meetings and silent half hearted smiles across the room. He made little or no effort to speak to her, and had not called or visited since Denny had come home. Had she read it all wrong? Perhaps the night at the hospital had been just that, a night at the hospital where she had let her emotions run her, and he'd simply picked up the pieces and left it at that. She had thought- hoped, that it was more. She hadn't liked the man at first, 'obnoxious cretin' was what she'd put him down as, but then…. Then she'd been stupid. She'd glimpsed a different side of him and had wanted to cling to it, and had allowed herself to hope. Silly really- how many nineteen year old students dated their school director? But how many school directors would have done what Blake Collins had done for her that night? He'd gone way beyond his call of duty.

"How is Blake?" she managed, realizing that Chase had been watching her as her thoughts took over.

He looked sideways and nodded. "He's OK; tense again, he's being a bit of a bully."

"When is he coming to see us?" Denny piped up, looking at Chase hopefully.

"Er, I'm not sure, soon probably."

"Have I said or done anything wrong?" Elodie could not help herself.

Chase looked uncomfortable.

"No, no way, he'd just… being him."

"Oh. Only, he was so….. involved that night at the hospital, and then…. Nothing." There was a pause. "It's ok you know, if he's lost interest or something, or if he just doesn't want to go there. We are kind of used to it."

Chase felt rotten and useless, and could only make feeble excuses for his brother. But this could not go on.

And the confusion just kept on coming.

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Blake slammed the filing cabinet drawer shut and threw several files backwards onto his desk. He had seen her again that morning, at her locker in the corridor talking to Andie. She looked pale and drawn, and was engaged in a conversation. He'd looked away before she could notice him staring, and had retreated briskly to his office. Running away was not working. He could not stop thinking about her, and seeing her and not being able to explain, just watching her confusion and hurt was driving him insane. He didn't look up when his younger brother stormed into the office.

"You have to stop this," Chase stated matter of factly.

"Stop what?" Blake said flatly.

Chase rolled his eyes and laughed.

"Come on man, don't act like that with me, I know you. Elodie."

"Chase, I've known the girl for a matter of weeks, and she's a student. I'm over ten years her senior and I'm the headmaster of her school. Can you think of a single reason as to how it would be right to let anything develop with her?" he threw himself down into the chair at his desk and rammed a drawer open. Chase put his hands on his hips.

"So you are ignoring her because it's the 'right thing' to do? Because of what the governors will say? Or the press? Is that it?"

Blake stood up furiously.

"I couldn't care less about the bloody governors or the press, it's her, everything is her. I can't lead her on and ruin her life. What will people say when she scores well in exams? 'It's because she's with director Collins.' And when she gets better grades than them? Every time she gets anywhere they will look past her abilities and say it was me that put her there. I can't let her throw herself away."

Chase was silent.

"Do you not think this is breaking my heart as well? I may have only known her a few weeks, but she's unlike anyone else I have ever known. Her and that kid brother of hers own my every waking thought at the moment, and that night at the hospital….." he trailed off and walked slowly to look out of the window. He sighed quietly, his hands on his hips.

"I have to do what is right, as a responsible adult."

Chase snorted.

"Sod responsible. She's hurting now because of a mistake that you made. You need to put this right bro. For what it's worth, she's going as crazy as you are."

Blake looked at him and his face softened.

"Plus, you have been a right git to live with since you last saw her, and I can't stand that forever more. You screwed up Blake, you should have handled the whole thing a lot better than you did, but that doesn't mean you can't put it right. Find her, and talk to her. Either explain that you plan to do 'the right thing,' or do what you know you want to do and deal with the consequences when they come."

He turned to leave and hoped he'd said enough.

"Chase?"

Chase turned back to his brother, who looked worried.

"What will she say?"

He grinned.

"Blake, I can't imagine why any girl in her right mind would fall for you, but it would appear that this one is incapable of getting back up she fell so hard."

Blake almost smiled as he remembered the frog incident in the dance studio.

"It's up to you where you take this, and who has to know, but trust me, you don't have anything to worry about." With that he left, having chosen to leave out the part about Elodie being quite possibly quite angry at him. He'd find out soon enough.

Watching his brother's retreating back, Blake Collins took a deep breath and made a decision that he knew would change his life.

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