Hello! Look another chapter! This is part 2 as promised. I apologise in advance…
By Thursday Clara had barely slept. Each night Danny would head up around 11 and tell her not to be late, but having to double mark a whole department's worth of work on top of her general coursework was far from fun. Graham's mock exams had been pretty eye opening, but thankfully the rest of the staff were absolutely fine. The confusing thing was that the marking she'd managed to get from last year was absolutely fine. Unfortunately that didn't change the fact she had to contact the exam board who decided they wanted all his coursework remarked by Clara and Adrian - which was exactly where she was now. It was 2am and the house was silent. Clara had started to use music through her phone at this time of night just for a little bit of noise while she worked. She was slowly nearing the end of that night's designated pile although was interrupted by her phone going of through her headphones. Clara picked it up - good to know she wasn't the only one still up.
Still up? Adrian text. It was likely to be his first late night of the week as they'd only started this joint venture today.
Not much choice in the matter. Clara replied, just about teaching the end of the next essay.
Go to bed Clara, you looked shattered today. Clara rubbed her eyes, she knew full well when she'd made it into the staffroom for 30 seconds at lunchtime Danny and Adrian were discussing her - something that probably had a good deal to do with these texts.
I'm almost finished, honest. How are you getting on? She was always grateful to have a good friend in the department.
Done for now. Just about to go to bed. Did you eat tonight? She rolled her eyes at his question.
I'm fully aware Danny has asked you to keep an eye on me. Adrian I'm fine, go to bed! I'll see you later. She replied, putting her phone back down and starting on the last few essays.
Morning came too fast. 4 nights with 3.5 hours sleep at most was taking its toll. Clara jumped in the shower and went downstairs; the girls sat eating their breakfast as had become the norm this week. Ellie looked around at Clara as she packed her work back in her bag to go before standing up and quickly pulling her hair back into a ponytail, shaking her head at the sight in the mirror.
"Mummy you look really pretty." Clara stopped rushing for a second and looked over to Ellie, smiling and walking over to hug her. "Love you Mummy."
"I love you too darling, and I'm really proud of you for this week you've been brilliant." Ellie had done so much better than she'd expected. There had been one reported meltdown in school but since then she'd had no problems. "Thank you." Clara added and kissed her head gently, releasing her to finish her breakfast and giving the twins a quick hug too - they deserved just as much credit for being so good in a week of chaos. "You three be good for Daddy and I'll see you later okay?" She went in to the kitchen quickly and Danny presented her with a travel flask of tea. Clara smiled a thank you at him.
"Please look after yourself today, I know there's no point in trying to find you at lunch but you're worrying me Clara." He kept contact as she took the flask from him.
"I told you I'm doing okay. I'll see you at home later, unless we do by some miracle cross paths in the meantime." Clara kissed him gently and grabbed a banana off the side to show willing before heading out the door
By the end of lunch she'd made a good start on her marking for the day, but had yet to leave her classroom since the day began. It was almost a shock when her year 10s turned up at the door for their lesson, but Clara let them in and quickly pulled out what she needed. As she got back to her desk from placing books out she had to quickly lean against it to steady herself, but soon recovered to start the lesson. She started them on task and soon sat back down at the desk, trying to focus on yet another essay.
"Miss?" Clara tuned in and realised one of the pupils, Freya, was talking to her. She seemed to have come forward on behalf of the class based on how everyone was looking at her. "Are you alright?" She glanced around the class and realised that Freya's friend was missing too.
"Where's Georgie?" She avoided the question. Freya looked a little sheepish and nervous, but didn't have a chance to reply when Georgie returned with Danny in tow. Clara suddenly realised she must have missed a couple of minutes somewhere along the line. "Carry on with your work." She stood up, steadying herself on the desk and stepping outside the classroom with Danny who looked quite unimpressed. "I'm sorry I had no idea she was..." Danny stopped her there.
"They were very right, Georgie said you dazed out. You nearly fell when you stood up just then too. When did you last eat? The truth please." There was definite anger in his voice. Clara tried to work it out.
"Well I did have that sandwich last night..." Danny shook his head.
"You've hardly eaten at home this week and you've been assuring me you've eaten here but that's clearly not the truth is it?" Clara shook her head which caused her to go dizzy again, she steadied herself on Danny. "Clara you are no good to these pupils like this. I'm taking you home now." She looked up at him, eyes wide. "No! Clara I'm not arguing anymore. I'll drive you back in your car and get your dad to bring me back in time to collect the car and the kids. You're going to eat and go to bed and all the marking is staying downstairs. Tomorrow I'll bring it up but you're going to rest and eat. I'm going to see if your dad will have the twins - they've been asking to go anyway." Clara nodded, knowing he was right and it was no use arguing with him in this case.
"Jemma's free... I'll get her to cover." She turned round to go to her room but Danny stopped her.
"Get your things, go to the car and eat the banana that is presumably still in your bag. I'll be there soon." She slipped back into her classroom, letting him go off. Clara collected up her bags, instructing the class on the rest of the lesson before going out to the car.
By the time she woke up it was just before 8 - there was no need to look at clock, she could hear Ellie in the bathroom. Clara slipped out of bed, pulling her dressing gown on and went out, appearing in the hall as Ellie came back out of the bathroom. Ellie diverted and hugged her.
"Hey darling, you had a good day?" Ellie nodded.
"They're all done now. I think I did okay." Clara smiled and kissed her head.
"Well done clever girl, I'm very proud of you. Shall we get you into bed?" Clara followed her into her room, tucking Ellie in. "I'm sure Daddy will be here soon to say goodnight. What you reading at the moment El?" At the age of 11 Ellie read to herself now instead of being read to. She showed Clara her latest adventure - Little Women. "Beautiful choice." Clara replied. Quite often Ellie picked her books from Clara's shelf - she'd organised an area with suitable books. "Are you enjoying it?"
"I'm not far in yet, but I think so." Clara smiled and at the same time Danny came in through the door. Clara went to stand up but Ellie stopped her. "Can't you and Daddy both be here?" She asked. Clara realised where she was coming from - they'd hardly been in the same room for 5 minutes in the last week.
"Of course, sorry sweetie." Clara made space for Danny to sit beside her.
"Daddy says I can go to Erin's after athletics tomorrow." Clara looked to Danny who just smiled. "Is it because you're not well?" Clara looked back to Ellie again, that girl was too perceptive.
"A little, but we know you've wanted to go visit Erin for a while so it's a reward for doing so well this week." Danny explained. "We'd best say goodnight so you have time to read." He kissed her head, standing up and letting Clara do the same before saying goodnight and leaving.
They both went downstairs and Danny flicked the kettle on and stuck bread in the toaster. Clara sat at the breakfast bar and watched him, the atmosphere a little tense.
"I'm sorry Danny." She spoke to his back. "I just kept forgetting to eat; lunch would be gone before I knew it. I have to get this done by Monday or it could affect all the results." Danny slammed the mug down he had in his hand and turned around; Clara jumped and tried to read his facial expression.
"This stupid thing is all his fault Clara! The marks, the exams, your health, you! You've been lying to me all week, not just about your eating because you still haven't told me what happened to your face!" He wasn't shouting but his voice was strong. "That was him too wasn't it?!" Clara nodded her head, her hand automatically moving up to cover her bruise. "Why haven't you told anyone? This is serious!"
"He didn't mean to... I don't know it was just another thing! I can't deal with everything Danny, please don't make me bring this up too!" She held her head, it starting to throb a little. Danny immediately came round and hugged her, apologising in a whisper. "Danny I am so sorry, I've been trying to keep you out of this for your own benefit I promise but I obviously got that wrong. This whole situation is just out of my control and I don't know how to handle it." She placed her head in her hands. "This is such a mess..." Danny kept a hold on her, trying to comfort her as best he could.
"You've done your best, I get that. I'm proud of you for that, I wouldn't expect anything other than you trying to put the pupils first it just wouldn't be you otherwise. The thing is that you've suffered yourself because of this and you don't deserve that sweetheart, none of this is your fault." Danny kissed her forehead once he'd managed to get her looking up at him. Clara smiled a little and kissed him properly. "Now - I'm going to make tea and toast and we can relax a little and then we can get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow we can mark in peace and I can look after you. You're going to be fine, it'll be sorted before you know it. And that will all be done because of you." Clara hugged him again quickly before he went to finish off supper.
The next morning arrived and Clara was trying to determine when she fell asleep. Eventually she decided it must have been on the sofa fairly soon after they finished eating. It was 10:13 now so Ellie just have already left for athletics with Danny, meaning she had a few minutes alone to grab a shower which she duly did.
By the time she had got dressed and made it downstairs Danny was home and presented her with breakfast which had clearly been prepared before he left.
"How're you feeling?" He asked after giving her a good morning kiss.
"Better, thank you. Did Ellie get off okay?" She sat down and started eating.
"Absolutely fine she is very excited about today. Your dad text to say he's taking Chloe and Faith to the zoo so they're fine too. You are number one priority today." Danny spoke, sitting beside her with his tea having already eaten. Clara smiled and finished up. "I've put all our marking in the living room, but if you get stressed or tired you stop, please." He took her hand.
"I'll be fine Danny, please don't fuss." She smiled and kissed him. "You'll be distraction enough don't worry." They stood connected for a while before going through and sitting comfortably on the sofa, pulling the pile beside her and leaning up against Danny.
"And how am I meant to mark?" Danny asked light-heartedly. Clara looked up at him, grinning.
"Creatively?" She replied, smiling at his mock disappointed face. "I thought I was number one priority anyway?" He rolled his eyes, tickling her a little so she moved and he could get his arm. "That's called cheating!" She tried her best to look unimpressed but had to laugh in the end. "You're cruel, but I love you." They eventually settled down for the day, working their way through what was left.
It was a much more productive day than either of them had expected and by dinner time Clara had completed everything she wanted for the day. She plonked the pile down on the floor and settled back, sighing in relief.
"One more load and it'll all be done. Why did the exam board have to insist on it all being remarked? I've just read about 50 essays that were marked absolutely fine, I think changed 2 and that was only a couple of marks or something. Honestly ridiculous." Danny had finished a while back and moved to let her lie against him, knowing she'd likely fall asleep there.
"You're nearly there now, but you can relax for the rest of this evening now. You hungry at all?" Clara shook her head, taking his hand and linking fingers. "You sure?"
"Danny I ate enough to feed an army at lunch and still ate dinner, I'm absolutely fine." Clara was looking at their hands together; smiling at how much Danny was worrying. Suddenly something occurred to her. "Why isn't Ellie back?" She sat up, making eye contact with Danny who didn't seem all that fussed at all. "Danny?" She asked, realising he'd been organising things again.
"She's sleeping over at Erin's. Her Mum phoned earlier and suggested it, apparently Erin filled her in on the bedtime routine before I even had a chance to ask so there's nothing to worry about she'll be absolutely fine - means we can really relax tonight." Danny smiled and kissed her. Clara moved in to a more comfortable position, kneeling on the sofa beside him and smiling as they kissed again. "Just say if you're getting tired and…" Clara rolled her eyes, shaking her head and shutting them up with a further kiss.
"Shut up Danny, remember what you said." She spoke to his lips. Danny knew exactly what she was on about and did as asked.
For the first time all week Danny was still in bed when she woke up and something didn't feel right. Logic would suggest it was purely down to the children all being elsewhere, but when she looked up he appeared to be, as she'd thought, a little shaky and warm.
"Danny?" She tried to wake him gently, but no such luck. "Wake up babe…" He didn't. Clara felt his forehead but his temperature wasn't up. This was most likely a nightmare, the first for a while, but he was deep in. Clara pushed the duvet off them to help cool him and carefully wrapping herself round him to try and help. Forcing him awake was no good, she'd learnt over time. "You're safe, everything's fine." She spoke to him, hoping it would get through. "I'm here, we're both safe, the girls are safe too."
Danny slowly started to settle, the shaking stopped and he seemed less restless. Clara relaxed slightly, but jumped when he suddenly sat up, breathing a little deep. She also sat up, almost forced from his movement, and quickly took his hand. Danny looked around, working out where he was and eventually sighing.
"Talk to me?" Clara asked, although it wasn't really a question. Danny slid back to sit up against the headboard and she joined him.
"The usual, the original." Danny replied, she nodded knowing exactly what that meant. She moved again to hold him carefully. "I don't know why… it's been a long time, I'm sorry." Clara shook her head, kissing his forehead gently.
"Don't you apologise for this, not ever. I love you, all of you. I knew about this right from the start – well, almost, and I promised you I would always be here through this so here I am. Tell me what you're thinking?" It was a long shot, he rarely talked in depth about these nightmares, there was so much she still didn't know and would probably never know. Danny didn't speak, he didn't want to and that was clear. "Okay, that's fine. Will you be okay if I go get tea?" He nodded, the silence a little worrying and Clara was beginning to wonder if there was something he wasn't telling her and so she grabbed her phone off the side on the way downstairs.
While the kettle was boiling, Clara made a call to Emma. It had been a few months since they'd seen her, not through choice more through all their lives being complete chaos, but Emma would have a much better idea of what to say and quite honestly Danny would be more likely to open up to Emma than her. Once Clara explained the situation, Emma said she would come round straight away. Clara then took the tea upstairs, waiting for the door to go.
In the half hour it would take Emma to arrive Clara got herself up and dressed and Danny soon followed. When the doorbell went she left Danny on the bed, still silent and watching TV to go down and answer it.
"Traffic was mayhem I'm sorry I'm a little late, how is he?" Emma asked, coming inside and slipping her shoes off.
"Silent. He told me it was the nightmare he always used to get but I'm sure he's not telling me the whole truth and now he's just not talking at all. It's been months since he even had a minor problem I'm not sure what to do, the old tricks haven't worked." Clara sighed as they spoke in the lounge for a moment.
"Are the girls here?" Emma looked over at the pile of work but the lack of toys.
"Thankfully not, the twins are at my dad's and Ellie's at a friend's for the weekend thanks to Danny - it's been a terrible week for various reasons and he quite rightly got the children out of the house so I actually made it to the end." Emma nodded, not prying further. "I'll bring him down and then disappear for a bit, but I'll keep my phone on me and won't go far." Clara disappeared upstairs, leaving Emma to take a seat.
Danny was exactly where she'd left him, although he had changed the channel. Clara picked up the remote, switching it off which got his attention. "You have a visitor downstairs." She sat down beside him. "I'm going out, but if you need me please call me." She kissed his cheek before they both stood up and went downstairs. Clara sent him in to the living room, shut the door and went out.
Danny wasn't all that shocked at who was sat in there. Emma smiled as he sat down and he returned it although weakly.
"I was secretly hoping Clara was overstating this but alas it appears not. Something had really got to you and I'm not leaving until you tell me although I suspect I already know..." She looked at him, trying to make eye contact and soon deciding she was right. "So you got it then?" Danny nodded. "It's just an invitation Danny, they're hardly trying to send you back to Afghan." He twitched at the word.
"It didn't bother me much at first, but I didn't get to speak to Clara because of everything that has happened this week and I just started over thinking it all mixed with being worried about Clara and then she made herself so ill and it all just..." He sighed. "Last night she was there." Emma moved over to sit beside him.
"I thought you'd had that before...?" Emma asked.
"No. No because before I was there. I was just there and she would be a civilian on the outskirts. Killed by the enemy." Emma was pretty sure she'd worked it out now, but she knew he needed to say it so she waited. "She was in the building. With the girls. I shot, she jumped to protect them and..." Emma shook her head and hugged him. "It's just an invitation, why has it come to this?"
"For exactly the reason you just told me. Danny you have got to speak to Clara about this, this dream is telling you that you cannot protect her 24/7. She's a strong woman and whatever has happened she will want to know about your problems too - this is a two way deal Pink." Danny rolled his eyes a little at the nickname. "Right this is what is going to happen. You're going to phone Clara and when she's back you will tell her everything and I mean absolutely everything. Then you guys are going to do whatever needs doing this afternoon," she nodded to the marking, "pick the girls up and come over for dinner. No arguments. And then Clara and I can discuss what we're wearing to the reunion meal because these are important problems." Emma stood up and handed Danny his phone from the table.
Once Clara got home they talked for at least 2 hours. They both apologised, they both cried, a lot of questions were raised and answered. Danny managed to persuade Clara it wasn't her fault and she managed to persuade Danny to talk to her in future. Then they talked about the reunion dinner, and Danny explained his fears while Clara was able to at least help relinquish them all. A lot of explaining was eventually done and the overall mood was so much better by the end of it. Marking was done over the following few hours, finishing in perfect time to go out.
"We're fools, both of us, but somehow we're still alive and still going strong and I intend to keep it way. We might have hurdles to climb on the journey but I'm proud of us." Danny smiled as they both grabbed coats.
"Very poetic. Especially for a maths teacher who couldn't even ask me on a second date." Clara smiled, kissing him gently - they were going to be absolutely fine.
I'm not overly happy with this ending tbh, but I re-wrote it like 3 times this morning and this is the best I could get it. The next few chapters are uncertain, I have an idea but I don't want it to happen just yet, but shout out to Bobbie for giving me ideas which are now work in progress.
I'm starting full time work next week, HOWEVER I've basically been working full time for the last year and been doing uni work alongside so if we're being honest I'll probably have more time than I've had most of the last year, but just warning you.
I'll shut up now, see you soon!