"How did it go?" Imran asked already knowing the answer.

"You know how it went. I am dead to them, never to cross their door again. I am dirty, I've ruined the family, shall I go on." Rana hadn't expected her parents to accept her straight away but didn't think they would turn on her so much. "Dad offered me conversion therapy, said he knew someone, they could cure me."

"I thought they would take it badly, but not this bad. They called me and told me to throw you out. That you aren't a part of the family anymore, I told them no of course."

"I don't know what to do, I've lost my home and now my family. All because I fell in love with someone."

"You can stay here as long as you need. What are you going to do about Kate? Are going to be together now?"

"I can't believe she told Zeedan, I was trying to find a way out of this sorry mess. And she just outs me."

"Whilst it wasn't right of Kate to do that, it sounds like she just panicked. You two definitely need to talk."

"You are right." Rana decided she may as well do it now and headed to Kate's flat.

"Thank god you are okay, I've been so worried." Kate enveloped Rana in a tight hug.

"I'm fine, well not fine, but…" Rana burst into tears, now realising everything that had happened today.

"Sshh, I've got you honey."

Once Rana had calmed down and drank some water she needed to say something to Kate. "How could you out me like that? Do you realise the consequences?"

"I panicked, I wanted Zeedan to leave Daniel alone. It was the only way I thought he would stop."

"My parents want nothing to do with me, my aunts, uncles, no one." Rana had hoped she might start to feel a little relief now everything was out in the open.

"I'm so sorry Rana, I wish I could do something to make you feel better."

"They even called Imran and told him to kick me out."

"What?" Kate was feeling terrible for the pain she had caused Rana, but the mention of a contract was still stuck in the back of her mind. "Rana, what was Zeedan talking about, with the contract?"

"After the Adam and Zeedan fiasco my parents offered Zeedan the money for the café if he would stay with me. He agreed, and I agreed to it, just for him to get on his feet, said I owed him."

Kate was feeling a mix of emotions, anger towards Zeedan for forcing Rana into the contract and betrayal that Rana hadn't told her. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"How could I? I was already ashamed of myself, I couldn't take you looking down on me as well."

"I would never look down on you, I just wish you had told me the truth."

"Once my parents then knew about my affair they offered Zeedan more money, and wanted us to sign a contract, that we would be together for three years."

"What? Please tell you me didn't sign it." Kate felt like she had just got Rana, only for her to slip away again.

"No, I told him I wasn't going to sign it. That was how the fight started in the Bistro. Sian said I needed to stand up for myself."

"You told Sian but not me?" Kate could handle Rana not telling her, but to confined in Sian.

"I needed someone to talk to."

"You could have talked to me, instead of leaving me to look like an idiot. It all makes so much more sense now, what Sian had been saying. Who else knew?" Kate's ego was hurt.

"Michelle and Robert…"

"What?"

"That's only because they overheard us arguing. I wanted to tell you I really did."

"But you didn't, when I've been talking to Michelle and Sian about you, I am sure they were having a good laugh at me being stupid enough to listen to your lies."

"I never lied to you, I did need time…" Rana knew Kate might be a little upset, but not like this.

"But you had time to tell Sian and chat about it with Michelle?"

"No, I was trying to sort things with Zeedan, make sure he knew I wasn't going to sign the contract, then I was going to tell you, I swear."

"You've told so many lies, I am struggling to know what is the truth anymore."

Rana had heard enough, after the day she'd had with her parents disowning her, Zeedan ready to dirty her name at the mosque, and Kate outing her, she was the one that needed comforting not Kate. "I am sorry you are hurt I didn't tell you, with the day I've had I can't take any more fights, I need you to hold me and tell me everything is going to be okay."

"But it's not going to be okay is it?"

"No, it isn't and who is to blame for that? You outed me Kate, because of you I've lost everything, EVERYTHING! When I need you the most you are having a go at me for not telling you about the stupid contract. If you had just kept your mouth shut…"

"Because of me, are you kidding. It takes two people to have an affair Rana, and I sure as hell wasn't in this on my own. You knew this would be hard, how long were you going to wait?" Kate's temper had stepped in and she wasn't thinking straight.

"Great, because your ego wanted everyone to know we were together, that was why you outed me. You're unbelievable!"

"Me, that's rich, I've lost count of the lies you have told me, Zeedan, your parents. It's no wonder they have disowned you…" Kate realised what she had said. "Rana, no I didn't mean that…"

"Forget it, at least I know where I stand. You, me, it was obviously a mistake. It's true the only person you can depend on is yourself. Goodbye Kate." Rana held back her tears until she was outside.


In the last two weeks Rana had moved all her stuff out of the Nazir's and was now living with Imran. She had done her best to avoid Zeedan and Kate, simply going to work and home. Rana had tried a number of times to see her parents, but sure enough Zeedan had come through on his threat. The Habeeb's were now known as the family that has a lesbian daughter, even though they had denounced her publicly it still hadn't helped their reputation.

"I can't believe you got me to agree to come to the Rovers." Rana had finally given in to Sian's pleading to come to the pub.

"Woman, if ever anyone was in need of a drink it is you." Sian knew all the details about the fight between Kate and Rana, she'd had an angry Kate knocking at her door, who then crumpled admitting how much she had messed up.

"I feel like everyone knows, that people are staring at me."

"Trust me, no one cares. The rumours now are that Chesney fancies Jemma! Exciting hey!"

"Yeah really exciting."

"Kate's been over a few times, she is a mess." There was nothing Sian could say to make Kate feel better, she knew she was in the wrong.

"Rana you have impressed me, here I was thinking you were boring. I never would have put you down as rug muncher, you must have been spending too much time with Sian." Tracy Barlow had been waiting all week to use that comment.

"Shut up Tracy!" Toyah hissed giving her the wine she had ordered.

Rana buried her head in her hands. "I told you everyone knew."

"Does it matter? The worst that could happen, it has already happened. Now you get to live as the real you, no more lies or faking a life you think you should be living." With the benefit of hindsight Sian knew it got better, but it was too soon for Rana to see that.

"This is where you are hiding." Carla appeared as if by magic at the booth Rana and Sian occupied. "I've been looking for you Sian, I hope you have remembered we have a 7am conference call tomorrow."

"Yes boss, of course I have." Sian gave a salute to boot.

"Toyah a wine when you get the chance please, actually make it a bottle as these two are drinking as well."

"I thought you were telling me off about tomorrow?" Sian wondered.

"I was reminding you, it is 4pm on a Sunday I think we should be fine with one glass. Rana love don't look so nervous around me."

"Sorry, I know you are Kate's sister and…" Rana desperately wanted to leave but was boxed in by Carla and Sian.

"And she is an idiot, I have told her that. But she is a Connor and we often speak without thinking, you know she didn't mean what she said." Carla had berated her sister when she heard what she had said to Rana, but just as quick offered her full support to Kate.

"I know she didn't, but I can't forgive her for outing me. I lost everything in one day, now I have people whispering about me behind my back and Tracy making comments about me being a rug muncher. It's just too much at the moment." Rana felt so vulnerable at the moment, it was like she was walking around naked, exposed for all to see.

"I know she is sorry and has been moping around even more at mine and Sian's than normal. Can you please speak to her, she said you aren't returning her calls or texts?" Carla didn't want to push too much and make things worse for Kate.

"I don't want to talk to her, when I think about her, all I feel is anger. If it wasn't for Kate I might still have my family. Thanks for the drink Sian but I really should go." Rana pushed past Carla to get out.

"Rana wait up. Nice one Carla." Sian jumped up and followed her friend. "I know you are hurt and angry with Kate. But it has been two weeks, how long are you going to avoid her for?"

"Great so now you are on her side."

"No, I'm not anybody's side. But I do think it would help if you talked to her. I know she is at mine at the moment. Go and talk to her, I'll keep Carla in the pub."

Rana nodded and headed towards the flat hitting the buzzer. "Kate it's me."

Kate quickly checked her hair in the mirror before opening the door. "Hi."

"Sian said I should talk to you."

"Did she? I've been trying to get hold of you for weeks. I am so sorry for what I did and what I said. I panicked, and it just blurted out. It was nothing to do with my ego, I just have a big mouth and I wasn't thinking. I would never do anything to hurt you deliberately, I am just an idiot." Kate took a deep breath and carried on. "I didn't mean what I said about you being rejected by your family, they are fools not to realise this wonderful daughter they have. You are so compassionate, intelligent, forgiving, I hope." Now Rana was finally in front of her Kate was determined to get everything out. "Please forgive me and my stupid mouth, I've been lost without you. I love you so much, and I promise I will do anything to make it up to you. Just give me another chance, please."

"Have you finished?"

"I think so." Kate was worried she had lost Rana for good and judging by her face now it didn't look like that was about to change. "I don't want to lose you, I'm terrified of losing you."

"We've both made mistakes, said the wrong thing and lied. I'm sorry too, I should have told you about the contract." Rana hadn't thought about what she was going to say, she was just saying what was on her mind. "I know I have hurt you too, maybe we have hurt each other too much."

"No, no we haven't. We can make this work, if we both work at it, I know we can be happy." Kate was trying to hold back her tears.

"You and me, all it has done is hurt people. I don't want to hurt anymore…"

"And you don't have to…"

"You aren't listening Kate, what did we think was going to happen. Once we were out in the open we could live happily ever after?"

"We can face the future together. You said you wanted to be with me, that you loved me. Was that a lie?"

"No, of course not."

"I love you, you love me. What else is there?"

"It shouldn't be this hard. Love is supposed to be simple, easy." Rana could feel her resilience starting to fall.

"When I think about love, all I see is you. It is simple, love is unassuming, falling in love with you was effortless. I have never felt about anyone the way I feel about you." Kate was crying now, her fear of losing Rana feeling ever real.

"Kate please…"

"I am a good man in a storm…I love you and I protect the things I love. You are strong and caring and honourable, and…"

Rana was laughing. "What are you doing?"

"It's the famous good man in a storm speech. Sian said it was your favourite. Did I say it wrong?"

"You are so incredibly cute, it is Sian's favourite quote from Grey's Anatomy. She is obsessed with it."

"Bollocks, I was trying to remember it. They always seem to have these great speeches about love. I messed it up." Kate chastised herself. "Hang on you said I was cute."

"Yes, I did." Rana couldn't help but smile at the gorgeous woman in front of her, who was fighting for them to be together, isn't that was she wanted.

Kate risked leaning towards Rana for a kiss. "Does this mean we can start again?"

"I think it does." Rana grinned into the next kiss, and the one after that. "I do think we should keep things a little out of the public eye for a bit, just till things calm down."

"Are you ashamed of me" Kate pouted winding Rana up.

"No, I just don't want to draw any more attention to myself. I could never be ashamed of you."

"Agreed, we can keep us on the DL for now."

"Please never say DL again." Rana laughed. "That doesn't mean our friends and family can't know. Perhaps keep the PDA in a minimum when out?"

"You tell me off for saying the DL and you use PDA?" Kate teased. "Hypothetically, if I was to invite you over to my Dad's as my girlfriend, does that mean you would come? Hypothetically of course."

"That would depend if you asked in theory for me to be your girlfriend, so you could then hypothetically invite me."

"Come here you idiot." Kate was beyond happy that she could freely kiss Rana without worrying about who found out. "I want you to be my girlfriend."

"You two don't hang around, going from Rana hating you, to now being girlfriends." Carla commented arriving back at her own flat with Sophie and Sian in tow.

"Have you two finally worked things out?" Sian was hopeful seeing the two of them tangled up on the sofa.

"I guess you could say that." Kate kissed Rana again.

"I am delirious in happiness for you." Carla replied sarcastically. "There are too many lesbians in my living room. Kate bugger off back to your own flat and take Rana with you. Sian goes to your room."

"I pay half the rent here, you can't demand I go to my room." Sian acted angry, Sophie was whispering in her ear. "Actually, don't worry."

"Do you want to come back to mine? Imran is visiting some mate in Leeds tonight." Rana asked shyly, Kate didn't reply and pulled Rana towards the door with her.

"Finally, peace in my own home." Carla reclined on the sofa with a wine.


Kate and Rana had been careful to only appear as friends in public, whilst it public knowledge by now Rana didn't want to draw any more attention to them.

"You are telling me Kate has a new girlfriend, she had an affair with a married woman, who is also Muslim, who has now been disowned by her family. That we are to welcome her, but not really tell anyone outside of the family, even though everyone already knows?" Jenny was exasperated with the information just dumped on her by Johnny.

"I wouldn't lead with that, but in a nutshell yes. This is the first time I have seen Kate so happy."

Jenny loved Johnny and was very happy with him, but the ongoing drama with his children was exhausting. "Who am I to judge, you did tell them it was three o'clock?" With the buzzer going off.

"I think I did?" Johnny smiled to himself, he had deliberately told Kate two o'clock to spend a little more time with her and Rana.

"Hi Dad, you remember Rana, my girlfriend." Kate held a nervous Rana's hand, she had been fidgeting all morning, worried what Johnny would think of her.

"Mr Connor, pleasure." Rana stuck her hand out for a formal handshake, only to be surprised with a hug.

"Come on in Rana, I think we are far past the Mr Connor stage, after all the support you gave me during my MS diagnosis, and for making our Kate so happy." Johnny was beaming, he already had a soft spot for Rana.

"Can I get anyone a drink?" Jenny offered, putting two and two together realising her husband had invited them over for two o'clock.

"Just a water for me please." Rana was still extremely nervous.

Kate leaned in. "A water? Since when do you drink water when wine is available?"

"Sorry I am just really nervous, I don't want to mess up."

Kate cupped her girlfriends face, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. "I love you, you could never mess up. Please try and relax." Kate headed over to Jenny to get some glasses of wine.

"Let's just get the elephant out of the room shall we, we all know you had an affair to be together. But the heart wants what the heart wants. Rana no one cares about your past, it's the future that counts, and if you keep making Kate as happy as you have, that is all I can ask." Johnny just wanted to get the poor girl to relax.

"Thank you, that means a lot. I do really love your daughter and will do all I can to make her happy." Rana wondered if this was how her ex-boyfriends felt when they met her parents for the first time. "Can you excuse me a moment." Rana disappeared into the toilet, she realised that Kate would never get to meet her parents, they would never say all they wanted was her to be happy, now they wouldn't spit on her if she was fire.

"I don't understand what you are going through, but my Dad left me when I was a child, for eight years he didn't care for me. We did eventually reconcile, I guess what I am trying to say, is that time can help, and you never know you and your family in the future, it might all work out." Jenny had seen Rana slip away and wanted to offer the girl some support.

"Thanks Jenny, I appreciate it. Sian said the same, just because her Dad hasn't changed his mind, it doesn't mean mine won't. It's just so lovely being here as Kate's girlfriend, doing the family lunch. It made me realise I will never have this, get to introduce Kate as my girlfriend."

"You are stuck with the mad Connor's now."

"I heard that!" Kate laughed placing a hand on the small of Rana's back, checking she was okay.

The buzzer went again, Johnny answered telling everyone to come up. "Carla, Aidan, Eva, Sian, where's Sophie?"

"She couldn't make it, something on at the church." Sian was still trying to get used to being part of a family and a large one at that, Carla had been insistent that she attend all family meet ups.

"How come you aren't there supporting your girlfriend?" Aidan smirked.

"Me and God we decided it wasn't going to work out between us, so we broke up." Aidan was always teasing Sian about not going to church. "I didn't see you at the gym this morning Aidan, did a cake distract you from going?" Sian threw back.

"Oh no babes, I wanted sex this morning, so he couldn't make it, and…"

"Eva, remember we had that chat about oversharing." Aidan grimaced.

"I thought you were going to take up running with me?" Kate joined in.

"Ladies, Kate you are his sister, and Sian I thought you were gay. Why are you all perving on my man?" Eva did her usual laugh at the end.

"Talking of Sophie, Sian can you explain yet again that I don't like being spoken to in the morning. She is so damn chipper, singing and dancing around. I will throw something next time she speaks to me." Carla hated mornings, even more so when someone was all happy in the mornings, it drove her mad.

"CHILDREN! Dinner is served." Jenny shouted over the top of everyone. "Roast ham, I boiled it in coke all night, so it should taste great."

"Pork?" Kate asked.

"Everyone loves my ham, what's wrong?"

"Rana can't eat pork, it's against her religion." Kate responded.

"Kate your girlfriend is a lesbian, I am sure that is against her religion as well." Jenny replied through gritted teeth.

"Jenny, Kate is just winding you up, I do eat ham and I am sure it will be delicious." Rana elbowed her girlfriend who was now laughing with the rest of the table.


Kate had been walking on cloud nine the last month, sure her and Rana were still sneaking around to an extent, but everyone who was important knew. Sian and Kate had planned a romantic night out for the four of them, dinner in a flashy restaurant and then into town. "Hey, how do you always look so gorgeous?" Kate smiled catching Rana on her lunchbreak.

"I can't help it, I was born this way." Both of them burst out laughing.

"I'll pick you up from Imran's at seven thirty tonight, make sure you are ready." Kate moved in to kiss Rana who instead pulled her into a hug.

"Remember we are in public baby."

"Force of habit, when do you think we will go public? It's just that everyone knows now."

"I know, I suppose I am living in hope that my parents will change their mind. If they don't know we are still together, dirtying the family name…"

"Is that what you think we are doing? Us together is dirty?" Kate hadn't meant to snap.

"No, not at all. That is how my parents see us, what we have is special, I love you so much. I would never think that." Rana had noticed that Kate seemed to be getting frustrated with their agreement.

"I know, sorry I think I am just tired. Someone kept me up late last night." Kate noticed Rana blushing, she loved it. "I'll see you later."

"Sophie! Your date has arrived." Kevin smiled welcoming Sian in. "Going anywhere special?" Kevin had noticed how dressed up Sian was.

"We are going to that new flashy restaurant in town. Had to wait three months to get a table." Sian face broke into a massive smile when her girlfriend walked into the living room. "Wow, just wow. You look sensational."

"You look stunning, you know how much I love you in blue, and thank you." Sophie took the bunch of Amaryllis from Sian. "Where are we meeting Rana and Kate?"

"I said we would meet them in the Bistro."

"Sophie, Sian you both look beautiful." Rana gave them both a hug. "Not as exquisite as you of course.'

Kate gave a shy smile, still not quite used to the compliments that Rana showered her with. Caz hadn't been so forthcoming and Imogen, well she was Imogen. "Stop you are making me blush."

"Here you are." Imran appeared. "Why aren't you answering your phone?"

Rana checked her phone, there was six missed calls from Imran. "What's wrong?"

"It's Dad, he's had a heart attack."

"What? How serious?" Rana was on her feet gathering her things.

"I don't know, Mum just called, I thought you'd want to come with me."

"Of course." Rana looked down to a disappointed Kate. "I'm sorry."

"Go, go it's your Dad. Do you want me to come?"

"I don't think that is a good idea, do you? Come on Rana." Imran glared over to Kate to make sure she didn't follow.

"Poor Rana, I hope her Dad is okay." Sophie worried.

Sian noticed how upset Kate looked at being shut out of Rana's life at such a worrying time. "How can I be her girlfriend if I can't even support her now…" Kate looked down shaking her head. "Sorry guys, enjoy tonight."

"Do you think she will be okay?" Sophie asked her girlfriend.

"Of course, she will, it must be hard not being able to help the one you love. I am sure they will work it out. Now Ms Webster shall we continue our night."