Never Be Lonely Chapter 30: If The World Owes Someone, It Is Rachel, a waterloo road fanfic

Thank you for the reviews.

So here we are. At the end of the school year. And it isn't, really, going to end in doom or disaster. And I think we all agree with the title of this chapter.

If The World Owes Someone, It Is Rachel

If there was one thing for certain, it was that Melissa liked to cause trouble. It was probably why Rachel had seen her every single day for the last six days and part of Rachel wished that she never mentioned about the house because it seemed to be the only thing that Melissa wanted to talk about, always moving the conversation back to the house whenever Rachel tried to move it onto Philip.

So the last thing that Rachel needed, as she was trying to keep all her emotions in as most of the upper sixth returned for the last day of the school year, was for Melissa to drag her away from the sixth form common room just as she had found a pen that would work on the shirts that were being presented to her. She could tell that both James and Amelia were as annoyed as she was.

"Melissa, what is it? I am at work." Rachel said, once they were in the corridor.

"It's the end of the year. You aren't doing anything important, are you?"

"Still? I don't come and bother you while you are at work. That is if you have a job."

"So when were you going to tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"About the holiday," Melissa said, making it sound like the most obvious thing in the world.

"How…" Rachel paused as she composed herself for a moment. "How the hell do you know about that?"

"Well I was thinking about booking one and Philip said not to so I asked him why and." Melissa huffed. "Well it took a lot to get it out of him but he told me about the holiday that you had booked. We fly tomorrow and I am already packed."

Rachel was fairly certain she just blinked at Melissa for a minute as she processed everything. She wasn't mad at Philip for telling Melissa, she was mad that Melissa automatically thought that she was invited.

"We fly tomorrow. Meaning Eddie, James, Amelia and myself." Rachel said.

Melissa started laughing. "You are joking."

"No, I'm not."

It worried Rachel how long it actually took Melissa to realise that she was serious and that she hadn't been invited. It made it slightly better that Rachel hadn't changed her plans to involve Philip. She could only imagine the upset that would have caused.

"No, you are," Melissa said. "What about all those holidays that I planned that we went on?"

"You mean all the holidays that you booked but couldn't pay for so I paid for them and then organised everything because if I left it up to you, we would have been staying on building sites or cockroach-infested apartments."

"Oh come on. Ibiza wasn't…"

"Your fault? Even though I said that I had looked up the hotel and told you of all the complaints and bad reviews."

"Rachel, I am your sister," Melissa said, getting rather defensive.

"Then maybe start acting like it. I am not doing this anymore. I can't do it anymore. You are 34 years old. Grow up and take some damn responsibility. Spend the time getting to know your son and looking after him and caring for him. Or you are going to lose him. That is the one thing that I can promise you. You might not be Dad but your actions are just as bad as his. You don't have to hit to be abusive."

"Well you would know all about that, wouldn't you?" Melissa said with a smirk.

"Dad. Robert. I don't care. Because they can't hurt me anymore. You as well. But with every decision you make, you are hurting Philip. You can stop the cycle for him now. Not for him to work it out by himself when he is in his late 30s."

"Oh, I forget. You and your sad, sad life. You had more time with Mum. You got the chance to start over. You had the twins. You found this perfect man. Good thing after good thing after good thing it has been for you. You said that you have struggled but you haven't really, have you?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you." Rachel said, turning away from her sister to go back into the sixth form common room.

"Maybe if you loved me more, you would have saved me."

Rachel stopped for a moment before she swallowed and held her head up a little higher before she left her sister. Because she had tried to save Melissa. It wasn't her fault that Melissa never wanted saving.

When Eddie saw that Rachel was talking to Melissa, he almost turned around to go through the other entrance to the sixth form common room. But there was a part of him that was grateful that he stayed to hear what Melissa said to Rachel.

"You might not be Dad but your actions are just as bad as his. You don't have to hit to be abusive." Rachel said.

"Well you would know all about that, wouldn't you?" Melissa said.

"I don't have to explain myself to you."

"Maybe if you loved me more, you would have saved me."

Eddie was quite glad that he could look up to see that Rachel was walking away from Melissa but he was sure that Melissa was going to follow Rachel, meaning that he walked into the corridor, calling out Melissa's name, even if it was the last thing that he wanted to do.

"A word?" Eddie said when Melissa turned to him.

Melissa looked reluctant before she rolled back her shoulders. "Sure."

Eddie may have taken her to his classroom but he knew that there were a lot of people wandering around that there was enough of an audience that Melissa wouldn't do something stupid.

"What was all that for?" Eddie asked.

"I think it is best that you stay out of things. This is between me and Rachel."

"Rachel will tell me later anyway. Mainly because I am certain that you have upset her. Again."

"Was it your idea then?"

"What was my idea?"

"The holiday. Without me."

"Melissa, you act like the world owes you. It doesn't. If the world owes someone, it is Rachel."

Eddie didn't quite know what he said that had prompted the slap from Melissa but his cheek really stung with the impact of it. At least if she was slapping him, she was less likely to kiss him. Even if he found himself having to shake his head at the memories that the sound had brought up for him.

"She has had everything," Melissa said.

"No," Eddie said, bringing himself back to the situation in front of him while he balled up his fists to try and stop him from reacting to the memories. "She has worked hard so she can have everything that she has ever wanted. Everything she has done is so that the twins had everything that they have now. She has made sure that they haven't had a life of hard decisions. Of being between a rock and a hard place and fighting for everything they had. Honestly, Melissa, can't you see the incredibly strong woman Rachel is?"

"But that is the problem. She did have that. She had the twins."

"Is that really what you are so jealous about? Because she had twins, something she has no control over, and you didn't, something you have no control over?"

Eddie got that Melissa was dense at times and was one of the most selfish people that he had ever met, but for some reason, Melissa's silence spoke volumes in that moment and it was almost like she wasn't just dense, she was just plain stupid.

"When Jamie told me that you were petty, I didn't realise that you were this bloody petty." Eddie continued. "Can't you see it? That you have let her down time and again. All she has wanted to do was protect you. When have you been there for her?"

"What do you mean?" Melissa said with her usual ignorance.

"When she came home. For you. And her and your dad were arguing. She asked you to stay when your dad asked you to leave. She wanted you to stay because she knew that she was pregnant with Jamie and Amelia and she didn't want to lose them. But she put them in danger for you. She came back home for you."

"Well, she was used to getting smacked around by him. I wasn't about to allow that to happen to me as well."

"But she was trying to save you. When she comes running to you whenever you are in trouble is her trying to save you. So don't you dare insinuate that Rachel has never tried to save you because she is constantly trying to save you. And all she has ever wanted in return was a bit of sisterly support and you can't even do that."

"That's not…" Melissa started.

"It is your fault. And she is right. You can't look after one child. Imagine that pain that you would be causing if you had twins."

That was the moment that Eddie had decided that he had wasted too much time on Melissa and headed out of his classroom to finally head to the sixth form common room. He just hoped that something that he had said had got through to Melissa (although he didn't think so).

"I-I-I'm sorry." Philip stuttered out as he stood in the doorway of his auntie's office.

"What do you have to be sorry for?" Rachel said as she looked up at him.

He couldn't stop himself from swallowing. "About telling Mum. About the holiday."

There were times when Philip could see the auntie that used he used to run to for her to pick him up and swing him around whenever she came round before he ran off with James and Amelia to go and play. He could see the auntie that joined them in the playing, with her seemingly on board for anything that they were doing.

His mum had always described herself as the fun auntie, saying that Rachel was the worrying auntie but Philip didn't see it that way. Rachel's worrying never meant that she took the fun out of things. He probably would have broken more bones if Rachel was as laid back as his mum.

But Philip was sure that his auntie looked every bit of her age when he said that, if not older. It was clear that Rachel was still giving his mum a thousand chances, even if it was something that Eddie didn't want her to do, and it seemed like it was taking its toll on her.

"That isn't your fault, Philip. You have nothing to apologise for." Rachel said.

"But I do."

"No, you don't." She said as she started to move towards the sofas. "Come on."

Philip knew that this was probably a chat that had been a long time coming. Probably since the chocolate brownie incident. It meant that he shut the door behind him before he walked over to sit on the sofa next to his auntie, placing his hands on his knees, not really knowing what to do with them.

"I should be apologising." Rachel said.

"Why?"

"Because I think that we should be taking you with us. To give you two weeks away from her. This all… it has got to be as damaging to you as it is to me."

"I'm fine, Rach."

"You're not, Philip." She said, reaching out to grab one of her hands. "She's neglected you and… I've let it go on for too long. But this ends now. Because my home is your home. If or when you have had enough of her, you are always welcomed at mine. Or Eddie's. You are my nephew. You are my family. And maybe I've spent too long trying to save Melissa to realise that you were the one that was actually drowning."

"Y-y-you mean it?"

"Of course, I do." Rachel let out a small laugh. "You are my favourite nephew after all."

"Rachel, I'm your only nephew."

"Doesn't mean that you can't be my favourite? I liked to think that I was your favourite, all the times that you used to run up and jump into my arms. I don't think I'll ever be able to put into words how much the hug you gave me after we left Robert meant to me."

"Well I just didn't know why you were there and it had been so long since I had last seen you." Philip hesitated. "I suppose that was because of Robert."

"The less people we saw, the less people would realise what was happening." She gave him a small smile. "But that is all in the past and that is where it is staying. Okay?"

"Okay," Philip said.

"Actually, while you are here, I might as well give you this." She said as she let go of his hand and dived into her pockets. "You might as well have my key to home. Save us leaving you one and someone seeing where it is hidden." She said as she took it off her bundle of keys with one of her keyrings and placed it into his waiting hand. "I think I can trust you not to lose it."

"Of course you can." He said as he grabbed his own keys to place it on there so he didn't lose it. "Thank you, Auntie Rachel. For everything that you are trying to do. Especially when Mum is such a…" He trailed off, knowing that he would be told if he said what he wanted to say.

"I know. And like I said earlier, maybe we shouldn't be leaving you with her for two weeks but… I am hoping to get through to her one day."

"Yeah, and pigs will also fly that day."

The look on Rachel's face was one that made Philip believe that she thought the same thing but either didn't want to voice that opinion to him or she still held a little hope. But Philip was grateful that Rachel had been fighting his corner for the last couple of weeks and he knew that he would have to think of something to show that in the two weeks that they were away for. Something for his auntie and cousins and (in all but name) uncle.

"I did hear her earlier," Eddie said, placing an arm along the back of the booth behind Rachel, to try and keep the conversation private.

"Hear who earlier?" Rachel said.

It was clear to Eddie that the conversation that she'd had with Melissa was still playing on her mind but she wasn't going to let anyone know that. He wanted to commend her for it, in a way. That her own sister could treat her like dirt and she was still trying to carry on like it wasn't chipping away at her.

"Personally, I think you love her too much. I think you've tried to save her more times than even you realise. And I think she needs to realise that too."

"Why? What have you done?"

Eddie sighed. "I had a word. I'm sorry. I just heard her talking to you like that and I wanted to say something. Maybe I got through to her. Maybe I didn't. I did get slapped for it."

"Eddie." She breathed.

"I'm sorry. But I took a step back because I didn't want anything to do with her when the one thing that I should have done was be there to support you in this. So not anymore. Someone needs to fight in your corner."

"Then if I said that I am having second thoughts about going away tomorrow."

"We are going. For two Melissa-free weeks. We are going because soon we won't see the twins every day. We are going to go because we need to focus on them as well. Whatever happens, when we are away, we will just have to pick the pieces up when we get back, won't we? One way or another, this is going to be sorted before we start again in September."

It wasn't necessarily that Eddie wanted Rachel to be harder with Melissa (mainly because he felt like Rachel would never be hard on Melissa and do what she should have done years ago and tell her to sort out her own problems) but there was this sense that they were better off trying to do it together and Eddie hoped that, also by September, that there would be no more hiccups in their relationship. That it was going to be Fenshaw and Lawson against the world, maybe as it should always have been.