Hello again :)

As you probably already know, it's Rachel Mason's birthday today so I have written this story to celebrate it.

The song the story is based on is 'Step with Me' by Mika, so I would recommend listening to the song while you read.

I hope you enjoy :)

Step One: Come a Little Closer

Is this happening to me?

Have I lost all my defences?

Should I wait around and see

What it's like to lose my senses?

'She must be freezing' Eddie muttered to himself as he stared at the young woman sat at the bar, a whiskey in her right hand and her left arm wrapped around her waist protectively as her whole body shook. He wasn't sure if she was shaking from the alcohol or cold, but after glancing at her skimpy and short attire he assumed it was the latter. Eddie, being the sensible and kind young adult that he was, walked over to the quivering form, prepared to ask if she was okay; only to pause when he heard the unmistakable sound of sobbing reach his ears.
"Are you okay?" Eddie asked the woman, sitting next to her at the bar. "No." The woman whispered back, trying to discreetly wipe away her tears. "What's wrong?" Eddie enquired, slightly scared of the answer. "Uh...well, it's a long story," Amanda whispered, hesitating slightly to glance into his caring eyes. She smiled slightly before she decided to reveal the truth, "I...My family don't want to know me, my sister, especially. You see... It's my birthday today and I just want to feel loved, even for just one night." She sobbed, her hands moving to cover her face. "I'm sure your family loves you, deep down," Eddie reassured her, placing a comforting hand on her back. "What's your name? I forgot to ask before."
"Amanda." She whispered confusing Eddie slightly with the slight disgust that was shown when the name was spoken. "Nice to meet you, Amanda, I'm Eddie," Eddie replied, holding out his hand for her to shake. This had the desired effect as Amanda giggled slightly, shaking his hand. "I don't like my name, for years now I have despised it. I don't want you to call me by a name that I have disconnected from so much, it brings up bad memories." Amanda muttered.
"What should I call you then?" Eddie asked as he took her hand, looking deep into Amanda's eyes. Her eyes were fascinating; the beautiful hazel coloured orbs dazzling in the mildly lit pub. "Rachel, I always wanted to be called that when I was little," Amanda murmured as she played nervously with her fingers.
"That's a beautiful name."
"I have nowhere to go anyway, nowhere to hide, I don't know why I would bother changing my name. People have always said I was useless and unchangeable, maybe I should start to accept that." She let out a depreciating laugh as she went to stand up and head to the opposite side of the bar to drown her sorrows in peace, only to stop as she felt Eddie grab hold of her wrist lightly to stop her from leaving.
"Wait a minute, what do you mean you have nowhere to go?" Eddie questioned as he joined her in standing.
"You're not who I think I am."
"Try me?"
"I'm a hooker," Amanda whispered, closing her eyes and waiting for the now-familiar reaction of either shouting or a hand travelling down her body to pull her into a bruising hold, only it never happened, Eddie's hand was still wrapped around her wrist and he was close enough to hear her quietly spoken words but far enough to preserve personal space. Maybe he was a true gentleman?
"Do you really think that makes a difference to how I see you?" Eddie asked incredulously as he moved his hand to hold her own, their fingers interlinking automatically, almost as if they had done it many times before. "Nobody has ever reacted well after knowing that."
"Well, they should, from your reaction I can tell you hate it. Why do they have the right to judge you?"
Amanda just shrugged her shoulders in reply, squeezing his hand as if in gratitude for how well he had reacted.
"Now, you said you had nowhere to stay. I have a place if you want?" Eddie questioned as he stared into Amanda's eyes once again. He knew very well that he shouldn't really invite strangers to his flat, and yet he felt differently when it came to Amanda. He couldn't pinpoint his emotions at this point, but his gut instinct was saying that it was the right decision. Maybe he could change Amanda's life for the better, and she could change his as well.
"Really?" Amanda looked up surprised.
"You're going to leave this place and start afresh, Rachel," Eddie replied confidently as he saw Rachel smile warmly at him as she grabbed his hand and they walked out of the pub to their desired destination, his home. Or now he supposed it was their home. He grinned slightly at that knowledge as they walked through the threshold, a new life, a new chance.
Arriving back at his flat, he opened the door and guided Rachel to the spacious bedroom which was next to his own bedroom. It was a beautiful modern room with a large double bed, wardrobe and ensuite bathroom.
"Here you go, I'm, going to nip to the shop to get some dinner. Make yourself at home." Eddie replied as he stepped away from the door to head to the shop, only to stop when he felt Rachel tug on his hand. Turning around to face her, confused, only to have his arms suddenly full as Rachel wrapped her arms around his waist to bring him into a warm hug.
"Thank you so much for this," Rachel murmured into his shirt as she continued to embrace Eddie, who soon hugged her back after the shock had worn out. Letting him go slightly, she sent him a nervous smile until Eddie pulled her into another quick hug before walking out the door to the nearest shop.
Eddie had a plan, the lie he told was only a little one as he did have food in the fridge but had wanted to surprise Rachel by getting her a birthday cake as he knew when he saw her that she obviously hadn't received one. Picking the nicest cake that Sainsbury's had in store along with some candles, he walked back home with a grin on his face. He just wanted to cheer Rachel up a bit.
"Rachel?" Eddie questioned as he opened the door to his flat, finding the woman in question sat on the sofa watching the TV. He smiled warmly as she turned to face him at his voice and grinned at him, her smile was so beautiful. He went to the kitchen and quickly lit the candles on the cake before turning the lights out and walking into the living room where Rachel was still sat there looking confused as to why it was suddenly dark.
"Happy Birthday Rach!" He brought the cake to Rachel and laughed as Rachel blew out the candles and stood up to wrap her arms around him. "Thank you so much Eddie" She murmured into his chest. Eddie gently rested his chin on her head as he hummed quietly to himself. He was so glad that Rachel had experienced a good birthday for the first time in a while and vowed to himself to make every birthday special to her.

Step Two: Rest upon my Shoulder

Sun is shining up my head

In thirty years we'll still be happy

Making movies in my head

Making Hollywood look tiny

Three years. Three wonderful years they had been living together. Rachel did not regret for one moment that night in the pub where her life changed for the better, and nor did Eddie for that matter.
They had been dating for two short years that felt like a lifetime of happiness. Eddie had wined and dined her as well as comforting and supporting her through her recovery. It felt as if two hearts beat as one. It was like an unbreakable bond. Yes, they had arguments but both had agreed on a set of values. One of the values being that neither would go to bed until the said argument had been resolved and both Rachel and Eddie had kept to these.
Cautiously sneaking down the stairs, remembering to avoid the step that creaked, Eddie quietly opened the kitchen door and set about his desired task for his sleeping beauty. Breakfast in bed was not a regular occurrence for Rachel as on most days she would be awake, dressed before waking him with a kiss and handing him a cup of coffee to wake him up. He obviously was going to change this today as it would be the third birthday of hers that they had spent together. But at this point in time, Eddie was the only awake occupant in the house, with Rachel still asleep after their heated night.
'Pancakes. How do you make pancakes?' Eddie thought as he picked up their laptop and searched up the recipe. He had never made them before but Rachel had told him once that she loved the times when she was little and would make pancakes with her mum and sister, the kitchen being a mess by the end of it. He wanted to recreate these treasured memories to show Rachel just how much she meant to him. Eddie loved her with all his being and intended to show her that for the rest of their lives, whether physically, mentally or emotionally. Rachel was the most special person in the world to him.
Eddie mentally shook himself when he realised he had just wasted five whole minutes just thinking about Rachel and set about frying the pancakes.
A few burns to his hand later, Eddie had finally succeeded in making the pancakes and slowly crept back up the stairs with them placed on a tray along with a cup of herbal tea. Rachel was still in a similar position he had left her in, with the only difference being that her head was snuggled into his pillow, probably unconsciously inhaling his scent that he knew she loved. Moving silently to the bed, he sat down cautiously on the edge, careful not to jostle her in the process. He smiled slightly as he bent over to press a gentle kiss to her forehead, lifting a hand to soothingly stroke her hair as Rachel murmured something incoherent in her sleep, subconsciously bringing her arms up to wrap around his waist and pull him closer. The smile turned into a grin as he emitted a butterfly kiss to each of her closed eyelids along with a peck to her lips.
"I love you," Rachel mumbled against his lips as she started to stir. Opening her eyes she giggled as Eddie winked at her, scrunching up her nose as he planted a kiss there.
"Happy Birthday! I love you too."
As Rachel ate her breakfast, she noticed that Eddie kept twitching and was instantly curious, he had never been good at hiding things so something was definitely up. She was currently resting her head on his shoulder peacefully until suddenly she placed her knife and fork down and gave Eddie her whole attention, grabbing hold of his hands. "Eddie, are you okay?"
That was the only question that Eddie needed before he stood both himself and Rachel next to the bed and bent down to one knee, her hands still encased in his own.
"Rachel, I have loved you since I first saw you that night exactly three years ago, I love your passion and confidence and the way your smile can light a room, your laugh and your care towards every single person you meet. I love you so much, that it grows each day when I wake up with you by my side. I don't think I have ever felt this way about someone before and I don't think I ever will. So Rachel, will you be my wife?" Eddie by now had pulled the small box from his pocket to reveal a beautiful gold ring with a ruby and pearl pattern. It was a ring that he knew Rachel would look amazing with, as soon as he had seen it he knew it was the one.
"Yes, yes!" Rachel giggled as Eddie picked her up and spun her around, it was an incredible moment as they passionately moulded their lips together, pulling away breathlessly a few minutes later.

Step Three: I'm calling you Baby

"Oh, so you're stealing my shirts now," Eddie grinned as he noticed that Rachel had just walked into the living room wearing one of his shirts, the thin shorts she wore to bed hidden underneath. It stopped mid-thigh on her small frame and he had to swallow as his imagination went elsewhere for a moment. "It's a birthday present?" Rachel giggled, squirming slightly as Eddie started to tickle her ribs. "A birthday present?" Eddie inquired jokingly. "Eddie!" Rachel gasped out through laughter as she squirmed in his grip, trying to escape the tickle torture. Eddie stopped tickling her immediately, his hand staying around her middle as he pressed a sweet kiss to her lips. "So, does this mean that I can wear your shirts on my birthday?" Eddie teased as he patted her cheek lightly. "No!" Rachel laughed, lightly hitting him on the arm. "Why not?" Eddie pouted, looking like a child not getting their own way. "Because I said so."
"But Rach, I want a reason," Eddie smirked slightly when Rachel rolled her eyes, pretending to think for a moment.
"Two reasons. One you will probably stretch them to the point that they will rip. And secondly, I don't think you would suit a woman's shirt," Rachel continued to giggle as Eddie wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her into his arms. She normally would have protested about being too heavy to carry, but instead, she just relaxed into his chest, smiling widely as Eddie sat down on the sofa, bringing her form closer to his. "Can you guess what your present is going to be?" Eddie questioned, pulling out a wrapped box from his pocket. "Honestly? I have no clue." Rachel giggled as Eddie nuzzled her neck as he passed the gift to her, pressing a gentle kiss on her shoulder and watching in anticipation as Rachel started to gently unwrap the wrapping. She gasped as she saw the most beautiful bracelet she had ever seen. It was a silver bracelet with a sapphire heart in the middle, it looked amazing and was simple enough to be worn to school.
"Thank you, Eddie!" Kissing Eddie passionately, she brought him closer to her while holding his chin to keep their lips moulded together. Soon though, oxygen became a necessity and they broke away, and instead brought each other into a warm embrace. Rachel's head nuzzled into Eddie's neck. "I love you," Rachel whispered.
"I love you too baby," Eddie murmured into her hair as he pressed a gentle kiss to her soft blonde hair.

Step Four: We Can Get Married

Don't know why but all your words

Sound just like a melody

From the pieces that I've heard

I could build a symphony

Nervously, Eddie turned to his soon to be wife as she walked elegantly towards him with Steph trailing hurriedly behind her in her bridesmaid dress. As usual, Steph was tripping over in her ridiculously high heels. He could hear the rowdy noise surrounding him and slightly regretted agreeing to invite the students to the wedding ceremony that would change personally change their lives forever. He didn't particularly want them at his wedding but Rachel had twisted his arm and had of course invited the students as they were an incredibly important part of her life now, and always would be.
Rachel herself looked like the most beautiful person in his entire universe. Her golden blonde hair fanned out on her shoulders, the back half encased in the partially transparent veil that highlighted her stunning beauty. Her hazel eyes twinkling and showing off her rosy cheeks and soft pink lips.
His eyes continued to trail down her body, tracing her curves that could put anyone to shame and her small waist that he loved to wrap his arms around.
At this moment in time he felt like the luckiest man in the world, he gets to marry his one true love, his soulmate. And they were soulmates, both loving each other more than anything else in the world.

"I do," Eddie smiled as they both said their vows and placed the rings on each other's fingers. It was official, Rachel Mason was finally his wife. It was the best birthday present he could ever give her. He stayed consumed in his thoughts, his thumb still gently stroking the back of Rachel's hand until he heard Vicar say 'You may kiss the bride' and then he was kissing his newly wedded wife, her 30th birthday would be one that Eddie was sure she would remember forever. Bringing her closer, he wrapped his arms around her waist as he heard the crowd around them, hearing the many cheers of the students and teachers as he grabbed Rachel's hand and walked back down the aisle with her to the doors of the church.
Rachel was the happiest woman in the world, Eddie was now her husband and Michael was now her stepson. They were the two most important people in the world to her and she would get to spend the rest of their lives together. She picked Michael up so they were in a group embrace. This memory would be forever ingrained in her brain.

Step Five: Top it with a Cherry

"Best morning ever!" Rachel laughed slightly as she realised how sarcastic she sounded, even to her own ears. The morning sickness was still occurring and it was starting to bug her when all she wanted was a cuddle and a lie-in with Eddie in the mornings. Dragging herself back to the bedroom and practically throwing herself into Eddie's arms. "Easy there," He chuckled, pulling her closer until she was led on top of him, nuzzling her neck with his nose as he had done many times before.
"Why does it always have to be hot on my birthday?" Rachel moaned slightly as she shuffled downwards to snuggle her head into Eddie's chest. It was about twenty-five degrees at that point and Rachel was certainly not appreciating this.
"Because you were born in the summer love, it's going to be hot and being pregnant probably doesn't help you."
"But your birthday is in two days, so you are a summer baby as well," Rachel smirked at this knowledge, knowing that Eddie had no comeback, and Eddie realised this as he gently poked her in the shoulder and smirked back.
"Well, that's different."
"Care to enlighten me, Mr Lawson?"
"Um, not really."
"Hmm, I thought so," She giggled, giving him a gentle nudge that dislodged him from his comfortable position with her on his lap.
"Anyway, are we actually going to get up and go to work anytime soon? Or are we just going to stay in bed for the whole day?" That was the only disadvantage of both their birthdays as most of the time one would tell everyone it was the other's birthday which resulted in them being crowded in the corridors with happy birthdays and the other typical birthday events. Eddie was the biggest culprit for this which resulted in Rachel being cheered at throughout most of the assembly time while she tried to get the rowdy students under control. Though Rachel had got him back when she told every single student in year 10 and 11 that it was his birthday and he was stuck in his classroom for the best part of an hour with the mobs that had encased him and decided amongst themselves that he wasn't getting out anytime soon, with Rachel watching through the window laughing and sending the occasional smirk in his direction. Revenge, he supposed. "Do we have to?" Eddie couldn't help but look at how adorable Rachel was when she was pouting at him, still blinking sleepily. He couldn't resist placing a kiss on her pouted lips as he thought of a plan.
"How about I sweeten the deal?"
"I'm listening."
"I will leave early and get the pool ready for when you get home?" The pool had of course been Rachel's idea as she wasn't a fan of the constant heat radiating in the summer, and nor was Eddie to be honest. Both spent hours talking about solutions until Rachel had excitedly pointed out that they could get a pool in the back garden as they had plenty of space and it would cool them down. The whole process of picking out a pool shape and where it was going to be placed for Eddie was like watching Rachel turn into an excited and energetic kid as she had loved going to the public swimming pool as a child but wasn't that keen on the crowded and cramped space that you usually had to swim in with others getting in your way and splashing you. After the pool was installed, both Rachel and Eddie had used it at every opportunity to practice swimming and on occasion, splashing each other to cool each other down from the searing heat of summer.
"Deal!" Rachel laughed, sprinting to the bathroom to have a shower and get ready. Today was going to be fun.

Rachel was definitely nervous about what she was going to wear today, it would be the first time she would wear a dress which would confirm everyone's rumours about her being pregnant. She knew that everyone had their suspicions from the way they eyed her stomach with curiosity, but the dress she was going to wear was quite clingy which would confirm the fact that she was pregnant. Her bump was quite prominent at this point, with the dress making it look completely round.
"You're going to be okay love, you shouldn't be getting stressed today. It's your birthday, you can enjoy it," Eddie came from behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist so that his hands were resting on her bump. The baby obviously liked this as it gently kicked Eddie's hand as if to greet him.

"Eddie! Have you been telling everyone that it's my birthday again?" Rachel paused as the whole staffroom looked at her in a mixture of amusement and confusion, Eddie in the corner smirking. A few moments of silence echoed around the room until the staffroom suddenly came into life.
"Happy Birthday Rachel!" was all that could be heard and Rachel mentally slapped herself as she realised that Eddie had only told the students and not the staff. "Why didn't you tell us? We would have organised a celebration?" Steph's voice quietened everyone's cheers as everyone stared at her and nodded.
"This is exactly why," Rachel mumbled under her breath, thankfully not that anybody heard her. Eddie was still sat in the corner trying to contain his mirth so she shot a pointed glare at him, which seemed to only increase the grin on his face.

Walking into the back garden, Rachel smiled radiantly as she saw Eddie sat in the shallow end of the pool. She was already wearing her bikini as she had changed when she had got home, so elegantly walked over to the side of the pool. The water of the shallow end went up to her hips so she didn't have a problem standing up and making her way over to Eddie who beckoned her onto his lap.
Eddie couldn't resist sitting Rachel on his lap as she rested her head against his shoulder to soak up the sun while staying cool from the cold water splashing gently around her. Rachel may have been 6 months pregnant but she was still light enough for Eddie to have her sat on his lap without being too heavy. He smiled as she sighed contentedly and turned her face into his chest so she could fall asleep on him. "Thank you, Eddie," Rachel murmured before she drifted off, comforted by the way Eddie was cuddling her.

Step Six: As Good as it gets

This love's delicious Like home-cooked dishes

I'm tasting mischievously

"Morning sweetheart," Eddie whispered as he kissed her soft lips, grinning as Rachel blinked blearily at him, she looked adorable when she was that sleepy. "What day is it?" Rachel murmured, still not fully conscious, she had just had the best sleep she had experienced in over a year. "Your birthday," Eddie laughed as he pressed another kiss to her lips. She smiled slightly as she returned the kiss, her arms wrapping around his back to pull him closer. They stayed like that for a while, content in the blissful silence until they heard the baby monitor go off. "I'll go." Rachel sighed.
"No, I'll go," Eddie laughed as he emitted a gentle kiss to her forehead. He had a few plans for today and this first one required Zara to help him. Walking into the nursery, he smiled as he saw Zara giggling and waving her arms in the air. "Come to daddy," Eddie whispered as he picked her up into his arms, carrying her back to the bedroom. He immediately noticed how Rachel's smile was enough to light up a whole town as she saw him come back in with her beautiful daughter. "Hello sweetie," Rachel greeted as she gently settled Zara into her arms, pressing a kiss to her head as she cradled her to her chest. The pregnancy and birth had been tough on both Rachel and Eddie, both of them fearing the worst every time a tiny problem presented itself to them, but as Rachel glanced at her daughter cuddled up in her arms she realised she would do it all again in a heartbeat. Her daughter and Husband were the most important people in her life.

The day was outstandingly hot so the school had decided to let the students wear their own clothes because of the sudden heatwave which meant the staff could have their own clothes day as well. Both Eddie and Rachel had indulged in this as Rachel wore a light pink vest top with a pair of white shorts while Eddie wore the same but in blue. Both of however had the disadvantage of thinking of the same things most of the time so they both had the same idea for a bit of fun. Rachel had brought in a water gun and so had Eddie, though neither knew that the other had thought of the same idea. Both were on playground duty as they were the best people to control the mobs.
"Mr Lawson, how have your lessons been today?" Rachel asked innocently as she stood directly in front of him, hiding the water gun from view not knowing that Eddie was in the exact same stance.
"Apart from the fact that you kept distracting me by walking past the room every five minutes and dazzling me with your beauty, it was fine," Rachel had angled it perfectly as she slowly brought the water pistol from behind her back and stepped back to squirt him in the chest, the freezing blast making him release a high pitch noise before he repeated the action until soon they were both drenched as the kids had decided they would join in so not only they were soaked through, most of the kids were as well.
"You sneaky woman," Eddie laughed as he lifted Rachel into his arms and spun her around, making her dizzy as she giggled. They stopped their childish fun when they saw Donte come out of the school with Zara in his arms. He had seen the deputy head and headteacher having a perfect family moment and thought it would be a good idea to give Zara back to them knowing that Miss Mason was still nervous about leaving her daughter for too long.
Eddie saw Donte with Zara and waited until Donte had reached them before thanking him and taking his daughter of his student's arms and giving her to Rachel.
"I love you both," Eddie whispered as he brought Rachel closer to him so they were in a 'group hug' as Zara snuggled into her mother's chest and Rachel rested against him. "Happy birthday Rach,"
This was more than Rachel had ever wanted for her birthday, and as Zara snuggled into her chest with Eddie holding them both in a cocoon of warmth, Rachel was sure of one thing, she was happy.