Thank you for the reviews.

Don't really know where this idea has come from but it is another What If. I mean... I could have written a whole story just based on the what-ifs... Maybe another idea for another story (like what-ifs of series 3/4. All Reddie obvs. Which means I need a serious rewatch from series 3 episode 7). And I kinda didn't know how to end this...

And I have been quite good with these and have another three written and ready to go (two of them being other what-if scenarios). It will kinda just depend on how impatient I get. And because I am planning on not uploading again this year, I wish you all a Happy New Year and I will see you all in the new decade...

Role Reversal

"What are you doing out of class?" Rachel said as she walked towards the student.

"Miss, I was sent to the cooler but I don't know where it is. Everyone just assumes because I am in the second year that I know where everything is."

"Why were you sent to the cooler?"

The girl looked down at the floor before she answered. "I may have said to Miss Brown that she wasn't a very good teacher and that I knew my dad could do a better job at teaching me what she was attempting to teach us. Half the class was almost asleep and the other half just looked so confused."

"That isn't really for you to judge now, is it? Name?"

"Sophie Lawson."

Rachel swallowed as it finally clicked and she realised that she was looking at a 13-year-old Melissa. This was it. This was their daughter.

"Is everything okay miss?"

"Right let's get you to the cooler."

Rachel knew that she had done an awful job of hiding her emotions and she hoped that the young girl was more like her mother than her father. Because she knew how well her father could read her.

"Mum?"

Rachel turned to Tommy, coming out of the daydream and slight panic that she had got herself into.

"Thought you weren't going to call me that in school. Didn't want to be associated with the head."

"You were miles away."

"Yeah well… why wouldn't I be?"

"People are saying that the new second-year girl is giving you a bit of grief. It isn't about… Dad?"

She smiled at his concern. "You know how I've been talking about this place?"

"Yeah."

"And I spoke of my deputy."

"Eddie. The one man that you have never been able to fall out of love with. Yeah?"

She took a shaky breath. "I've had to call him and Melissa in. The second-year is their daughter, Sophie."

"Oh."

"Facing my sister for the first time in 13 years."

"It will be okay."

"Will it?"

"Of course Mum. You are going to be reunited with Eddie Lawson."

Since setting up the meeting with Eddie and Melissa, Rachel had got more reports about Sophie's rude behaviour. The fact that the only thing the girl was worried about was whether it would just be her dad, she knew where the problem was.

Georgina knocked on the door before she entered the room. She came straight over to the desk and leant on it.

"It is just Mr Lawson out there at the moment. Ms Ryan is on her way but she is finding it hard to get from work at the moment."

"Of course she is."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, can you go and get Sophie? We should probably start this."

It took Rachel a bit of time to actually get the courage to stand up and take the few steps from her chair to the door. She heard Sophie's voice as she opened the door.

"Dad, look…"

"Mr Lawson." She said before the courage left her.

He stayed looking at his daughter for a few moments before he turned and looked at her. The shocked expression probably matched hers. He let out a short laugh before he stood up.

"Ra… Rachel."

"Hello, Eddie."

"I… Mrs Fleet?"

"It's a long story. But that is going to be changed soon. Back to Mason."

"Dad. Is that Auntie Rachel?" Sophie said.

Eddie ignored his daughter as he took the few steps between them and eloped her in a hug. She held onto him tighter than she imagined and it just brought her back to the times when he did that before she gave him up.

"Shall we?" Rachel said as they drew back.

Sophie called after her father as they entered her office. She sat down in her chair as Eddie turned to his daughter.

"Yes, that is your Auntie Rachel."

"Dad and Philip have told me so much about you."

"I can imagine." Rachel said.

"Did you get a hold of Melissa as well?" Eddie asked.

"Yes."

"Is she coming?"

"Yes."

Eddie and Sophie turned to each other.

"She isn't going to like that," Sophie said.

Rachel found herself smiling. Her eyes flick up to Eddie and she knew that he knew what she was thinking. It was weird how it seemed like nothing had changed between them. She was about to say something when the door swung open.

"I am dreadfully sorry," Melissa said before she had taken in who was in the room. "You?"

Georgina gave Rachel a small smile from the door as she closed it.

"Melissa." Rachel said.

"I'm sorry this has to be some kind of a joke."

"No joke."

"No wonder you wanted to send her here," Melissa said to Eddie.

"Melissa, we were running out of options because of her track record. If you didn't see her as this 'perfect' child and actually thought about addressing any of the problems, then we wouldn't be in the situation that we are in."

Rachel turned her attention to Sophie, who just rolled her eyes at her. This was obviously a conversation that they'd had before.

"I mean, what has she done now?"

"Generally, in the six weeks that she has been here, she has been rude to every member of staff, meaning that she has near enough had a lunchtime detention every day. There was an incident with another girl that was, for some reason, not brought to my attention. And honestly, you do need to do something about it." Rachel said.

"Rachel, come back to me when you have children of your own. Then I will take parenting advice from you."

She thought about saying something back. Some remark that would mean that she would mention Tommy without totally saying about Tommy. Eddie and Sophie deserved to know about Tommy, Melissa didn't at the moment.

The door opened again and before a word had left her son's mouth, Rachel was up at standing in front of him.

"He's here."

"What?!"

"I've just seen him. I went a really weird way just in case he saw me but he is in the school."

Just the thought sent Rachel into a panic that she knew that she'd been in many times over the last couple of years. Only this time, she had someone else to calm her down.

"Rach."

Eddie's voice cut through her thoughts and, even though her mind took her back to the day of the gun, she couldn't help but feel the comfort in him standing in front of her, with his hands on her arms.

"Georgina." She called out. "Can you call the police and then find Louis and Robert? When calling for the police, ask for PC Emily Miller and tell her that we think Adam is in the school. Tell Louis and Robert that… he is here. They will know what that means."

"On it."

"You are staying here." Rachel said as she turned to Tommy.

"I'm not going to leave you again Mum."

Eddie let go of her at that point and Tommy walked into her arms. She knew that they would all be confused about what had just gone on but she took the comfort of Tommy and Eddie being there. She only had to look up at Eddie to see that he wanted to ask her so many questions but he wanted to be there to support her as well.

"Mum?" Melissa said.

"What class are you meant to be in?" Rachel said, ignoring her sister.

"English with Miss Moore and then I have French with Mr McKay." He paused. "I can always wait outside with Georgina while you finish up."

"No, I want you where I can see you. Just in case." She turned to Eddie. "If you don't mind?"

Eddie was in agreement, Melissa wasn't. Not that she felt like she was really asking Melissa.

"Where were we?" Rachel said as both her and Eddie took their seats and Tommy sat on the sofa behind them.

"I think Mum said that she would take parenting advice from you when you have children of your own," Sophie said cheekily.

"Enough from you," Eddie said.

"Why? Because Mum is so perfect. Dad, you can't stand her half the time and you only follow her about because she takes me with her. Honestly, I am working out more and more why her and Philip fell out."

"Another thing ruined by you," Melissa said pointing her head toward Rachel.

"Nice to know you don't hold a grudge."

"With you and your perfect life."

"My perfect life? You think Tommy running into my office is part of my perfect life?" She paused. "30th May 2011. Just because I know that you are wondering whether he is a threat to the obvious 'perfect' little family that you have going on." She took a deep breath. "I knew this meeting would go this way."

"Rach, what happened?" Eddie asked before Melissa could say anything else.

It was just a look off Tommy that made her change the subject. They did deserve to know about what happened. It might help Melissa see that things weren't alright with them.

"I wanted to return here."

"Dad attacked her. Put her in hospital and I was put into care while she was getting better because Dad had scared off Philip." Tommy said.

"He got himself a good lawyer who twisted everything. Instead of being a domestic violence case, it was GBH, which should have been with intent but… apparently he made them believe that it was not. He was sentenced for two years and it has taken me that long to get the divorce and restraining order as well."

"They held the job for her as well. Finally got her back here."

The last time she had seen Eddie look as angry as he did, Melissa had just returned pregnant with Sophie.

"Oh just say it, Eddie," Melissa shouted.

Rachel flinched as Tommy did. They both really needed to get used to the shouting.

"I told you that you should have asked more questions." He said.

"Oh, so you could be reunited with my sister sooner."

"Yes. Please, Melissa, get rid of that chip on your shoulder. You won. Didn't you understand that 13 years ago?" He paused and looked at Rachel. "You were there to support her. Maybe I should have realised that she would never have told you everything with Hordley and the fire, but you were meant to be there to support her. I mean, have you ever supported Rachel?"

Rachel knew that she had tried to but Melissa's silence showed more than any lie or half-truth that she could come up with.

"Tommy could have had our support instead of being in care if you had asked a few more questions. We could have supported Rachel better."

"You could have asked them."

"They wouldn't speak to me because I wasn't family. No matter how I dressed it up."

"Back to Sophie." Rachel said as she tried to stop the wave emotions that hit her.

"Honestly Miss, you are right. I do lash out because of these two. Maybe I have finally realised why Philip says he can't live with Mum."

"Blame it all on me," Melissa said.

"Well, you blame everything on Auntie Rachel. The reason Dad doesn't love you or won't marry you, or why Philip left. Everything that is wrong between you and Dad is her fault for some reason. And I know that Dad and Philip probably have given a rather bias version of events but honestly, if I was Rachel, I wouldn't have given Dad up. Why did you deserve him more than her? And look what it did. She ended up marrying a man that she is now scared of. I think Rachel is probably the reason that Tommy is an extremely decent person."

"Thanks, Sophie," Tommy said.

Silence fell between them as Melissa stood up.

"We are not moving again," Eddie said.

"No, you aren't. At least I know where I am not wanted."

"Melissa. Didn't you learn anything last time?" Rachel said, trying to reason with her sister.

"Yeah, that I should never have returned."

Rachel couldn't stop herself from flinching as the door to her office slammed shut.

"To think, you said you wanted to reach out to her last Christmas," Tommy said.

"Honestly, she isn't worth it," Sophie said.

"That is your mother," Eddie said as he turned to his daughter.

"And I didn't see you denying anything that I said."

"Still."

"What now?"

Rachel found herself staring at Eddie. There was no way that she could just pick up where they left off. She was a different person to the one that he left and she had Tommy to think about as well.

"I don't know. Rach?"

"It is like the fire all over again."

"I can imagine."

"I…"

"I'm not expecting you to."

"Eddie Lawson, how after all these years you still know exactly what I am thinking?"

"Because, Rachel Mason, and I think I can say this with some certainty, that I am one of the people that know you best in the world."

"No. You are the person that knows me best in the world."

"You are struggling and you need support. Let me be that again and I promise to do it properly this time."

"Don't worry, I will make sure he does," Sophie said.

"Tommy?" Rachel said.

"Mum, after the last few years, all I want you to be is happy. And the way that you spoke about Eddie made me think that you were happy with him."

"And Sophie will be better behaved because now she doesn't just owe it to me any more," Eddie said. "I'm sure that when Melissa gets back from wherever she disappears to, she might have thought more about what has happened and is more willing to listen."

Rachel knew that could be one outcome or Melissa could do what their mum did and never return. From the way that both Eddie and Sophie's moods had changed since her sister had been gone, she could think that Melissa's disappearance would go down better than their mothers.

Maybe the one thing that Rachel should be taking away from it all was that she had been reunited with Eddie and it somehow made everything alright.