2- Blazing flames

Description: What happens if Eddie had gone back into the school in S3 E20 and saved Rachel from the fire? ( A 'reddie' story)

Rachel's POV

The whole school was in a panic, students were running around everywhere, searching frantically for their friends and siblings, desperately hoping they had gotten out safely. I watched with despair as one of the Forest Mount kids sat down on the stairs, having what appeared to be an asthma attack. I quickly helped him retrieve his inhaler from his backpack, gave it to him, and sent him and his friends out of the building urgently.

Eddie approached me on the stairs as I was urging the remaining students to get out of the building as quickly and safely as possible.

"Rachel, are you okay?" he asks, his eyes searching mine.

"Yes, I'm fine, what's going on?" I ask, unsure of what had actually happened, I had heard the fire bell and I knew there wasn't a fire drill meant to happen today.

"The canteen's on fire" he replies.

"Is anyone hurt?" I ask, with a sinking feeling in my stomach, these my students and my school, I hope nothing bad will happen.

"It's.. it's too difficult to tell" Eddie says, shrugging his shoulders with a helpless expression on his face.

How had all this happened so suddenly? One minute, we were winning the Spelling Bee and the next, there was a fire and everyone was panicking and screaming, what a disaster, I think sadly.

"Come on, straight on guys" I say to a few students who are still in the building, more urgently than before, trying to be faster.

Eddie runs off to alert the other teachers on what was happening and to check on the students outside, waiting for the fire brigade to arrive. I search every classroom and toilet cubicle frantically, wanting to be sure that every single person was safe and outside, where they should be.

When I've finished my search, I run through the double doors and bump into Eddie.

"All clear?" I ask him.

"Yeah."

"I'm going to do one last sweep just in case" I reply, not being able to stand the thought of one of my students trapped in the building, with no one to help them.

"Well, I'll come with you."

"No,no, no. You go to the assembly point, I'll be right behind you" I answer, smiling to reassure him I'll be fine, not wanting him to be in any danger.

"Ughh.. okay" he responds, not too happy with this arrangement.

He hurries off to the assembly point, glancing back behind him one last time to make sure I'm okay, then he goes.

I search the whole school one last time, worrying that I might have missed somewhere and that there still might be someone in the building. As I walk through the hallway, I start to notice that more and more smoke is building up and I cough, my lungs aching painfully. Still, I won't give up just yet, my students' safety comes before mine always, I think.

I notice a dark figure sprawled across the floor and my heart begins to race. As I get closer, I recognise the figure to be Stuart and I call out for him, wondering if he's still conscious and why he hadn't left yet like I'd told him to.

"Stuart?" I call, my voice all raspy from the amount of smoke I'd inhaled.

No response.

"Stuart?" I call again, a bit louder this time.

I lean down and grab his hands, dragging him along with me.

"Stop being a pain in the arse" I moan, wanting to get out of the building as soon as possible.

Eddie's POV

I dodge my way through the pupils, panicking, looking for her.

"Matt", I shout, spotting a familiar face in the crowd of crying, oanicked students ans teachers.

"Have you seen Rachel?" I ask, my heart beating fast, threatening to burst out my chest.

"No", he answers, looking straight ahead at everyone.

"Has anyone seen Miss Mason?" I ask, my voice rising in panic.

Nobody says anything and I chew on my bottom lip, wondering where she could be and if she was ok.

'I knew I shouldn't have let her search the school on her own" I think, wanting to kick myself for being so stupid. Now she could be in danger, and it's all my fault.

I charge up to the police officer who is standing outside the school doors, not wasting any time. I barge past him and try to get inside the school, but am stopped by the officer, and he holds a hand out to stop me.

"Woah woah woah.. where do you think you're going?" he asks me, surprised.

"I need to get inside the school" I answer back urgently, attempting to get past him again.

He holds his hand out for the second time though, stopping me.

"Nobody's getting past there" he answers, sounding annoyed.

"But Rachel's still in there" I argue, pointing towards the school which is now covered in bright orange flames.

"I don't care" the officer retorts.

Matt runs after me and puts his hand on my shoulder, trying to stop me as well.

"Eddie, come on!" he yells, trying to get through to him.

I ignore him though and brush his hand off me, getting angry. I push past both of them and run through the school doors, hearing Matt and the officer yelling my name behind me.

I don't care about what they think though, all I can think about is Rachel, loving and kind Rachel who would do anything for the kids, trapped in the fire. I bolt past the classrooms, peeping my head in each one.

After about five minutes, my lungs are gasping for air and the smoke is making me have a coughing fit but I won't let that stop me from helping Rachel. I carry on searching the classrooms and corridors, but to no avail as they are all empty.

I begin to think that coming in here was hopeless, when I spot two figures passed out on the floor, and my heart stops. I run towards them, immediately spotting Rachel as the body on the right. I drop down to my knees, despite the smoke, and look at her, trying to assess the damage.

She is lying there unconscious, her hair matted in blood seeping from a cut on her forehead. Her clothes are covered in soot and she is barely breathing, her chest slowly heaving up and down. The sight brings tears to my eyes, and I worry if she's going to make it out alive.

I gently lift her up from the floor, her feather like body feeling super light in my arms. I hold her face closely to my chest and stroke her head, desperately hoping she'll be okay.

I then wander back through the maze of classrooms and doors that lead to who knows where, desperate to find the exit and get Rachel medical help. I eventually find it, and carefully shifting Rachel's weight onto my left side, I manage to open the door.

I know when everyone sees me because they all start shouting my name, angry.

"What the hell were you thinking? Eddie, you could have been kill…" Matt stops when he notices Rachel's limp figure in my arms and his eyes zoom in on her multiple cuts and how she isn't breathing properly. He stares at her in shock, and I ignore him for the second time, grabbing my phone out my pocket and calling an ambulance for Rachel.

They say they'll be here in up to twenty minutes and I exhale, knowing that she was going to get the help she needed. I look down at her fragile state, and pull her body to me, hugging her gently, not caring who is watching.

I lean and whisper softly in her ear "It's going to be okay, Rachel, it'll all be ok. You'll get better and then you come back to school and things can be back how they used to be"

Hearing my words out loud make me believe them more and I breathe a sigh of relief, so glad that Rachel was going to be okay.

When the paramedics arrived later on, I carry Rachel onto the stretcher, not letting anyone else touch her and get in the ambulance with her, I want to be there when she wakes up.

Two hours later…

Rachel's POV

I wake up groggily and sit up, feeling a sharp pain in my back as I do so and a throbbing sensation in my head.

'What the hell is going on?' I wonder, confused.

I look around, and spot a relieved Eddie sitting at my bedside, he smiles at me and takes my hand softly.

'I'm so happy you're finally awake", he admits, looking worried.

'What happened?" I ask, the last thing I can remember is finding Stuart and dragging him down the corridor, but everything else is all fuzzy and it hurts me to think about it.

"You were searching the school for the second time and you found Stuart on the floor and tried to help him. You'd been in the building for too long though, and the smoke must have been too much for you, because you passed out and hit your head on the floor" he answers, waiting for my reaction.

"Oh yeah", what happened is starting to come back to me now, and what Eddie said was right.

"I do have a question though…" Eddie asks me, looking curious.

"What?"

"Why did you help Stuart after all he did to you? He illegally blackmailed you with your past, threatened you and then told the whole school your secret" Eddie says, frowning.

"Well.. I forgive him for what he did, and anyway I wasn't just going to leave him there and let him die in the fire, was I?" I ask.

"He would have deserved it", Eddie mutters darkly.

"Nobody deserves that" I disagree.

"You know, Rachel?"

"Hmm..?"

"You're too kind and forgiving to people sometimes" Eddie laughs, teasing me.

"I can't help it" I reply, smiling.

"I know…. and I love you for that".

He leans in to kiss me and our lips touch, sending a wave of pleasure through me. I kiss him back, giving it all I've got, and his arm curls around my neck and he strokes my hair lovingly.

Ok, so I know that you guys LOVE Rachel and Eddie as a couple, so I decided to write this fanfic because I always thought what would have happened if Eddie had gone back in the fire to save Rachel, and the whole idea was kind of cute. Please review x