(A/N): Here is the next chapter! I've tried to move the story along a little, but I need to rewrite everything I've wrote after this chapter, because I spent way too long over Christmas and it spun out of control and I really wanted to get onto the next term. So I need to work on that. Plus the work I'm meant to be doing that I put off by writing this. But ssh, it's a secret. Also I keep getting new ideas for fics in my head and they're all fighting over which one gets written first. My current debate is if I write one with invisible illnesses or not. I might, I'm not sure yet. Anyway, enough of my rambling, I know you just want to read the next chapter. So read on, enjoy, let me know what you think!

What the Heart Wants

Chapter 28

It took a couple of days, but the gossip and general excitement surrounding the underground fight did die down, though Donte was still looking a little disheartened at having to give up all his profits for Bolton's fighting fund. The rest of the school, however, had gone back to as normal as it ever got, with the exception of Bolton training harder than ever. The first physiotherapy appointment had been scheduled for the following Friday, just at the end of break time. Steph had a free period after break on Friday so she had offered to take both girls as Rachel usually had most of her meetings Monday and Friday mornings, to which Rachel had gratefully agreed.

Alia watched down the corridor as Rachel and Eddie walked along together, both still seeming a little shy around the other, but happy, the fifteen year old smiling almost involuntarily as Rachel said something that made both her and the deputy laugh. It was nice, seeing her so happy. The pair of them deserved to be happy, no matter how ridiculous their dancing around each other had gotten. Janeece nudged her gently, breaking her from her wandering thoughts as she turned to the older girl with questioning eyes. Janeece rolled her own eyes but gestured with her head towards the science block. It was their shared science lesson, though the rumour was that their teacher had left at lunch, and no one could see his car in the car park. The pair wandered to their final class of the day together, discussing the latest gossip around the school and whether or not Steph would actually get her house sold soon to move in next door to Alia. Entering their classroom, they noted that though most of the pupils were there, the teacher wasn't, an unusual occurrence for the usually prompt science teacher. Shrugging at each other, both Alia and Janeece made their way to a wooden bench and sat down on the stools, ignoring most of the graffiti that was etched into the desk and the scorch marks from the last time someone set the science tables on fire the previous week as they pulled out their science books and opened them to the correct page. Most of the teenagers in that class either were top set year 11 or retaking the GCSE and so nearly all the class just wanted to pass the class and be gone from it.

Danielle hopped up from her chair and skipped up to the teacher's desk, glancing at the paperwork left there before looking back up at the assembled teens. "The stuff he's left says the exercises on pages 53 to 67, and then a science wordsearch from the cupboard if we finish early."

A chorus of thanks rose up as she hopped back to her seat beside Aleesha and Karla. Davina had had an assessment with one of her other students and so she'd left Karla in Danielle and Aleesha's care, as science was one of the lessons that seemed to be easier on Karla. The assembled class all rolled their eyes at the amount of work set but settled down, a low hum of chatter amongst them as they worked together on the exercises, asking others when they didn't know the answers and discussing different possible answers together.

About ten minutes into the lesson, the door swung open and a woman in her late twenties walked in, dark hair in a bun on top of her head and a severe look on her face, wearing an oversized cardigan with a pink flowery blouse and black suit pants, impractical heels adorning her feet. She shut the door with a bang that the pupils ignored, not really caring who had interrupted their lesson. She cleared her throat loudly, but gained no attention for the action, something that only caused her frown to deepen. "Class, I am Miss Fredericks." Still nothing. "Class! I am Miss Fredericks!" She slammed the books down on the desk, causing all eyes to turn to her, wide in surprise at not only her entrance but also her attitude with them. "That's better. Right, everyone put your things away and go line up outside." She glared when no one made a move to obey her. "It's very disrespectful to enter a classroom without your teacher's permission and I need to seat you all properly!" Her voice rose slightly as her words still didn't seem to get through to them. "Do it. Now!"

"You're not our teacher," One of the students, Frankie, pointed out. "You're just a cover. We are sat in our seating plan and we've been doing our work."

"You were over ten minutes late," Aleesha added. "What were we meant to do, wait around forever in the hopes a teacher showed up eventually?"

Miss Fredericks eyes narrowed at being answered back. She'd been to a few schools before and had never faced such blatant disregard and disrespect before. Usually, all she'd had to do was speak and the pupils obeyed. "I am the teacher. That means you don't get to question me. Now you will do as you are told and you will do it now, or I will have you all in detention straight after school."

"You can't do that," Karla pointed out.

"She's right," Alia added before the teacher could home in on what Karla had said. "By law, you can only keep us for ten minutes after the final bell goes. Any longer needs at least 24 hour notice to our parents."

"And we know it's the law." Janeece folded her arms over her chest. "So don't try and tell us otherwise."

"How dare you? You will do as you are told! Outside now! All of you! I will be listened to!" She was rapidly losing her cool with the assembled teenagers, who seemed unmoved by her usual threats.

Nearly thirty sets of eyes narrowed at the teacher. This would be too easy.

Rachel pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a tension headache coming on as she made her way to the science block. How, how did a group of mere teenagers, usually well behaved ones at that, reduce a perfectly competent supply teacher to tears within fifteen minutes of class starting, with the teacher in question running out of the school refusing to ever come back? She knew the kids at the school were quite unique, but honestly, scaring away supply teachers would not serve them well when they were faced with the real world. Just how rowdy was that class to scare away a teacher?

She frowned as she approached the classroom. There was no fire, no chemicals, not even a mess. Any or all of the above would be par for the course with Waterloo Road students left unsupervised in a science lab. Instead, the students seemed to be sat quite sensibly, and though she could hear a hum of chatter, it wasn't loud or overwhelming in volume. It was strange, and Rachel felt oddly unsettled at watching the class seemingly perfectly well behaved. She opened the door hesitantly, but the pupils didn't even seem to notice her enter. She saw Karla sat with Danielle and Aleesha, all three poring over a textbook. In fact, most of the students seemed to be in groups, bent over their books. Was it possible they were actually doing their work? She blinked as a shout went up from one area of the room, a reasonable question that was actually about science. The answer that was shouted back was also reasonable and well thought out. Had she entered an alternate dimension and no one had told her? She cleared her throat, blinking once again as all eyes turned to look at her, most seeming wary once they realised the headmistress was in the room. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Janeece reluctantly handing Alia a pound coin, who was smirking. "Why have I just had Miss Fredericks in floods of tears, telling me you lot were awful and she was never coming back?" She winced as a cheer went up amongst the teenagers at the knowledge that the supply teacher wouldn't be back. "Fifteen minutes must be a record, even by your standards."

"It's more like five," Alia offered with a smirk, pocketing the pound coin she'd just won from Janeece, having bet the other girl a pound that Rachel would show up less than ten minutes after the teacher had ran from the room crying. Janeece had bet on twenty minutes and lost. "She was ten minutes late." Her smirk didn't lessen as Rachel sighed, clearly thinking of just what they could achieve being left alone for ten whole minutes.

"We were doing our work, miss, but she comes in and yells at us to pack up and line up outside." One of the pupils near the back of the room, Alex, spoke up with a roll of his eyes. "We ignored her and she started on at us on how we'd all be in for an hour detention if we didn't."

"She can't do that though, it's against the rules," Karla told her calmly as Danielle and Aleesha nodded their agreement.

"She was losing her temper with us and was practically screaming at us." Janeece pursed her lips slightly in distaste at the teacher. "So we showed her a real Waterloo Road welcome."

Rachel fought the urge to put her head in her hands as a chorus of "Who are ya?"s rose up in the class, clearly all on the same side on the issue.

"She was a nightmare, honestly. Much better off without her," Alia finished up.

"I can't leave you lot alone, no matter how well you were getting on without her." Rachel sighed. She had been the only supply available on such short notice. There was only one option left. "Looks like you're all stuck with me. I warn you now though, bigger people than you have tried and failed to make me cry." The class burst out laughing at her warning.

"Don't worry miss, you're cool," Danielle told her, though Rachel knew Alia would probably disagree with that statement on principle alone. "That teacher was awful. What do you know about the electromagnetic spectrum?"

"I'm a little rusty, but I think I remember enough. It's not like it's maths, I was always terrible at maths." Rachel settled in at the nearest desk, ignoring the teacher's desk as she resigned herself to being stuck there supervising the class for the rest of the lesson.

Alia hung behind as the rest of the class rushed out of the room, glad to get out of school at the end of another day there, helping Rachel tidy up a few stray sheets and textbooks back into their rightful places. Just as she was about to leave, Rachel stopped her, closing the door to give them a little privacy. "Okay, was she really that bad?"

"She snapped at anyone that spoke back to her, made it clear she was going to make our lives hell if we didn't jump at her every command. She really was a nightmare."

"She was here for all of five minutes."

"So? She made herself well and truly known from the moment she showed up. We just fought back, that's all. Where was our teacher today, by the way?"

"Last minute custody battle, but you do not let on that you know that. Am I clear?"

"Crystal. I swear, we were just trying to get the work done."

"I know, that's why none of you are in trouble. I'd forgotten what teaching a class is like."

"You had my maths class the other week."

"You know I can't do maths. I actually quite liked science."

"Well I don't think anyone's guessed you're an English teacher yet. It's like they forget headteachers had to actually teach lessons themselves at one point."

"I'm just glad there's one subject I can help you with your homework on."

"I still don't have homework, not until I can write in class again."

"You know what I mean. Are you still going to Jack's tonight?"

"Yeah, his mum's cooking us lasagne. We're meeting up at the hospital first though in about an hour or so."

Rachel glanced at the clock. "You'd better get going then, or you'll be late. Say hi to Jack and Sam for me?"

"Of course I will." Alia leant in and hugged Rachel tightly before pulling away again and swinging her bag over her shoulder. "I'll be back home before eleven, okay?"

"Okay. Oh, Ali?" She called out as Alia paused in the doorway, glancing back curiously. "Love you."

"Love you too, mum."

"They didn't." Eddie laughed as Rachel poured them both a glass of whiskey, the pair nestled away in the latter's office, the school nearly empty an hour after the final bell had gone. She'd just finished explaining what had happened in the science class to him, lamenting just how devious their pupils were. "Well, they're certainly well informed."

Rachel rolled her eyes, moving to sit beside him on the sofa, handing him one of the glasses before taking a sip from her own. "The law will change one day from teenagers using it to get out of detentions like that."

"But for now, I'm going to stay impressed that they actually looked up the law about it all." Eddie took a sip of his own drink. "How're things between you and Alia?"

"Getting there." Rachel sighed, scrubbing at her face with her free hand. "Every time I think things are getting back to normal, I mess it all up again."

"That's not true."

"Isn't it? I mess it up by making her go to school in the first place. Just as things are settling down, she gets shot. Then I try and pull her out of school. Then I try to punish her for something she didn't even do. I'm seeing a pattern here."

"Rach. You're human. You're going to get it wrong sometimes, but that doesn't make it inevitable that you'll mess up. You never know, Alia might be the one to mess up next." Eddie reached out and took her free hand in his, intertwining their fingers with a soft smile. "Stop stressing so much. You're a worrier, I know, but don't go borrowing trouble."

"I told them that."

"Told who what?"

"Jack and Ali. They were arguing over who worried more and I told them that I would always worry the most." Rachel squeezed his hand slightly. "I'm wondering if I'm going to have to inform the staff of who Alia really is."

"Oh? How come?"

"Parent's evening is in a couple of weeks. I've roped her in to stand and look pretty for the parents to think we're not completely full of hooligans but the staff are bound to notice that she's there without her parent. Obviously, I'll be working that night. Once they find out it's going to be all over the school in a week."

"You don't know that. I mean, I would've thought Steph would be the biggest gossip about it and she's never let on. Would it be so bad if everyone did find out?"

"It's not just about me. I want school to be as easy as possible for her and her being outed as the headmistress' daughter is not going to make anything easier for her. As for no one finding out from telling the staff, how long do you think it'll be before she mouths off in class and the teacher says "right, to your mum's office" instead of "to the head's office"? Because that would happen and then there would be a field day over it."

"You're worrying again." Amusement tinged his voice. "Here's an idea: don't tell them. I'm sure Alia has already thought of all this and knows the inquisition the staff will give her. Plus, we'll rescue her if needs be. I mean, there are four teachers who know you're her mother, including you. We'll manage."

Every parents evening always arrived much too soon for both pupils and staff. The pupils dreaded what their parents would have to say about their grades and behaviour whilst the staff dreaded giving up their night to interact with the parents of said pupils. The year 11 one in particular was stressful as the parents always seemed to demand the world so that their child could have the best possible GCSEs going, blaming the teachers if that wasn't the case.

Once the last bell had rung for the day, the students rushed from the building, the year 11 group dreading having to be back a couple of hours later. Alia slipped into the hall, finding Rachel and Steph in there beginning to set up for the evening. Dropping her bag beside her mother's one on the stage, she moved to help them set up some tables. There was no point in her going home only to have to turn right back around again, despite her not actually bringing a parent to the evening. She couldn't move tables but she could move chairs onehanded, as well as placing name signs on the right desks for each teacher, the teachers being split via the subjects they taught. Physiotherapy was going well for both her and Maxine, with them able to do small tasks without the sling but for the most part, they still needed to rest their arms as much as possible.

"Did you bring your blazer, love?" Rachel asked as they were finishing up the final touches, about fifteen minutes before the teachers were due and about half an hour before the evening was due to begin. Alia nodded.

"Yeah, it's in my bag. And before you ask, yes I took the badges off this morning and rolled the sleeves back down." Alia sighed. "I'll look ever so boring but I assume that's what you want."

"Only for tonight, Ali. I'm sure you'll customise it as soon as we're home." She helped Alia change her leather jacket for her school blazer before reaching out and adjusting the teenager's tie until it vaguely resembled the size and shape it was supposed to be, sat close to her collar rather than her ribs where it usually rested. Finally, she helped Alia get her arm comfortable in the sling, offering her daughter a warm smile. "Only a few hours Ali and then we can go home. How about we go to that new kebab place on the high street for dinner?"

"Oh the curries there are to die for," Steph inputted as she approached them. She and Maxine were still living with Rachel and Alia, but the sale on Steph's house had gone through and the paperwork had just been finalised on the house next door to Rachel's. She and Maxine were moving their things slowly over to the place next door over the week, with the large furniture being moved that weekend when they would officially move out of the headmistress' home, though Steph had insisted they share a takeout on the Sunday night to mark the occasion. "But probably not going to happen." She smirked at the looks of incomprehension from the mother and daughter. Sometimes she wondered how no one else had cottoned on to who they were in relation to the other. "It's parents evening, which means drinks down the pub straight after. We've managed to avoid it so far but I think there'll be even more talk if you don't go."

"I could grab the takeout on my way home and we could warm it up when you get in," Alia offered, knowing Steph was right. Rachel had been hovering since she'd been shot and whilst it was nice, she knew her mum needed to get back to normal, whatever that actually entailed when a part of the madhouse school. "Go mum, have a drink. Have some fun."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes I'm sure. Plus it'll be fine. It's not like I never spent hours a day at home by myself before is it?"

"Alright but I'll be home before nine."

"Don't put a time limit on it, just see what happens. Oh, looks like teachers are arriving. I'd best go pretend I'm here to help."

"You are here to help."

"That's what you think." Alia laughed, moving away from the teachers and plastering a fake smile on her face. It was going to be a long evening.

Later that night, Rachel sat in the pub in between Eddie and Tom, the former of which had bought her a glass of wine as soon as she'd set foot through the door and the latter of which was telling them all about one particularly irritating parent that had not left him alone for over half an hour until one of the other parents had taken it upon themselves to rescue the English teacher. She settled back into her seat, hiding a smile as she felt Eddie's hand brush the back of her neck slightly from where it rested on the back of her chair. True to his word, he was still waiting most patiently, and she'd promised him the bowling date in the new year, which they were both looking forward to. But they also knew their behaviour hadn't changed that much, which was why none of the rather drunk teachers had noticed anything amiss with them, though Rachel thought she caught glimpses of Melissa glaring at them both as they chatted generally with everyone.

She smiled, taking a sip of her wine. These people may be absolutely insane, but they were good people, and they were her people. She wouldn't have them any other way.

All too soon it was the end of term and the day of the big boxing match. It was also Denzil's first day back at school after everything that had happened with the start of term and Earl. He'd tried apologising when he'd seen the three girls together at the beginning of break time, but they'd just smiled at him and told him that there was nothing to apologise for, that they never blamed him for anything before Maxine and Alia were whisked away to physiotherapy by Steph. He'd walked away a little lighter, a lightness that only increased once Jasmine had had Sam in to help him and they'd posited the idea of extra help for him for dyslexia. Unfortunately, that didn't help when Rose found out they'd been evicted from their house and everything kicked off on that front.

It was a half day of school for anyone who wasn't going to the boxing match, hundreds of kids rushing out of the building more than ready for the Christmas holidays with about twenty pupils lined up ready for the coach to take them to the boxing match. Bolton had made it clear that he wanted his friends and girlfriend there, and the cheerleaders had also grabbed places on the bus. The few remaining tickets were first come first served for his own year group, though the demand wasn't as great as it might have been, given that it was a choice between a boxing match with heavy teacher presence or home from school.

The boxing match itself hadn't been all it had hyped up to be, with Melissa not even showing up for the match, despite having promised to be one of the attending members of staff, and Philip leaving halfway through. Rachel exchanged a worried look with Eddie as she spotted him leaving the venue, murmuring for him to keep an eye on the match and the pupils whilst she rushed outside to try and catch a glimpse of her nephew. He'd seemed more silent and withdrawn recently, despite the reports she'd had from the teachers that knew of her relation to both Alia and Philip that he'd only toned down the verbal attacks on her slightly, though Alia seemed much more inclined to ignore her cousin outright than rise to his attacks anymore.

Rachel found Philip outside the venue, hugging a lamppost and staring off into the distance. She approached him cautiously, aware that she may not be his favourite person since over a month earlier when his mother and Eddie had parted ways. "Philip?" She asked gently, moving to stand beside him.

He swiped a little at his eyes but did a poor job at hiding the few tears that had leaked out. "I'm alright, Rach. I just need a glass of water."

"Has something happened?" She placed a hand on Philip's arm, concerned with his pallor. She'd spent the last twenty years around teenagers and knew when they were mere minutes from passing out or throwing up. Philip looked like he might do both.

"No, no, I'm alright."

"Okay, I'll get you a drink." She hadn't moved more than a few steps when she felt Philip grab hold of her arm, unsteady on his feet. She turned quickly, guiding him to sit on a nearby low wall. "Phil?"

"Here." Philip fished out his phone with shaky fingers, pressing the right buttons before handing his phone to his aunt, who read the screen with growing concern.

From: Mum

You'll be alright, I just really needed to get away from it all.

She blinked in horror as she glanced from the phone to her nephew, who looked miserable and sick to his stomach. "Philip, is this what I think it is?" She handed the phone back to him, watching as he pocketed it.

Philip nodded jerkily. "I tried calling as soon as I got the message. Her phone is switched off again."

"Oh Philip." Rachel sighed in sympathy. It was all part of Melissa's disappearing act, one they knew all too well by this point. She would tell someone, usually Philip, that she just needed to get away, then she would disconnect her landline and turn her mobile phone off, disappearing almost without a trace within the hour. They didn't know where she went to, or how long she would be gone, only that she would randomly show up again and pretend that nothing had happened, usually with a new man in tow. "I'll give you a lift once we're back at school, get you all packed up."

"Eh?"

"For you living with me, of course." Rachel fought the urge to roll her eyes. She'd clearly gotten that habit from her daughter. "I can't promise you chicken nuggets or satellite tv, but you won't be on your own."

"I, I can't. I've been so awful to Ali, and you. Why would you want me around?"

"You're family, Philip. It's what families do." She patted his arm reassuringly. "Now, let's see just how proud Bolton has made us all, shall we?" She led him back in and got him seated down, making her way over to Eddie, who seemed torn between frustration and confusion. "What's going on? Have we won?"

"I don't know." Eddie shrugged, frustrated with the lack of answers. "What's up with Phil?"

"I'll tell you later." Rachel put it off, not wanting the conversation in front of pupils at a crowded, noisy ringside.

"I'll go see what's happening." Eddie squeezed her upper arm briefly before following Bolton, Rob and the officials into the back area, leaving Rachel to try and calm the students, though she did spot Alia watching her warily, having clearly caught on to her following Philip outside. She gathered them all together, having ordered the coach to come and pick them up as Eddie reappeared, murmuring to her that the fight had been postponed because Rob had been giving Bolton pills to help him win. Rachel's face had tightened in anger at the PE teacher, but she'd nodded to Eddie and they both shepherded the students outside and onto the coach, though Bolton had sullenly refused, going back to the school with Rob as they informed the sports teacher that they would be having words once they were all back at the school.

The two senior teachers climbed onto the coach tiredly, noting that Davina and Matt had already gotten everyone settled onto the coach, just waiting for them. They pretty much stumbled into the front seats as Rachel informed the driver he could set off, neither one ready for the conversation they knew had to take place once they were back at school.

"Ali?" Rachel let herself into her home later that night, a few bags and Philip in tow. She frowned as she heard laughter from the direction of the kitchen, more than one person's laughter at that. She knew it couldn't be Eddie, as he'd had to rush and pick up Michael, as he had him for the weekend and then would have him for a few days as of Boxing Day. It could be Jack, but she didn't recall her daughter telling her about inviting him over. Though she couldn't remember much of her interactions with her daughter that day, what with the sheer number of things that had happened. She dumped Philip's things at the bottom of the stairs along with her own bag, placing her coat over her daughter's jacket on the banister, before walking through to the kitchen and blinking in surprise, feeling Philip pause in surprise behind her. Surrounding the kitchen table was Alia, Maxine, Janeece, Chlo and Bolton, all laughing together over something or other. Open packets of crisps and glasses of what Rachel was praying was fizzy drinks and not alcohol sat before each of the teenagers. Bolton was clearly the butt of the joke as the girls laughed at him and he pretended to be offended.

Rachel cleared her throat loudly, bringing five sets of eyes to turn to her in surprise. "Why have I left school for the holidays only to find the chief troublemakers sat in my kitchen?" She asked mildly, not sure if she should be amused or scolding her daughter. Then again, only one of them hadn't been in her house before. The five at the table all laughed at her description of them.

"We're going out in a bit, I told you yesterday." Alia frowned at her a little in concern that she hadn't remembered. "Bolton was just telling us what happened with Cleaver."

"And getting ganged up on by these four," Bolton added good-naturedly, considering all he'd been through that day. Rachel's face softened automatically at the reminder.

"Bolton, I'm sorry about what's happened."

"Nah, it's all good miss." Bolton waved it off with a smile. "It was good to have someone believe in me, y'know. And not you, you're the weird one, believing in me when even my mum had doubts. But, when that boy hit the ground, I didn't feel like I'd won. I just felt so bad."

Rachel cracked a smile at being called weird for believing in him, but she nodded understandingly at his sentiments over the fight. "Alright, well I'm not used to cooking for more than two most of the time, but who wants some pasta? Have something to eat before you go out."

There was unanimous approval of that plan from all the teenagers, with Philip muttering that he wanted to go put things in his room, not up for pretending to be alright in front of those present when his mother had just abandoned him again. Rachel made her way to the stove, grabbing a pot of sauce from the fridge and the pasta from the cupboard, listening to the teenagers chat to one another, eating crisps. She smirked to herself as Bolton's words filtered through to her, not as quiet as he'd clearly hoped they were.

"I mean, it's pretty hard to believe, Mason having a whole life. I mean, look, she's cooking."

She turned, pointing the spoon she'd been using to stir the pasta at the wide eyed boy, who looked like he regretted ever opening his mouth. "I'll have you know, Bolton, that most of us do have a life outside of school thank you." She fought to keep her amusement contained as the girls snorted and giggled.

"That's not, I mean…" He trailed off as even Rachel couldn't keep her amusement in, huffing in mock indignation. "Alright, that's it, it's make fun of Bolton day, innit?"

"You said it in the same room as her. It's a rookie mistake." Alia patted his arm with mock sympathy for him. "I've said things in my room when she's been in the living room and she's still somehow heard me."

"I was doing the laundry and was outside the door to bring in the clean clothes actually," Rachel told her with a smirk. "I had both you and Jack behaving yourselves for a whole week over that incident." She laughed at the face her daughter pulled, turning back to the food and turning off the heat on the pans, plating up enough for everyone sat at the table and herself, leaving a portion for Philip, who would eat once he'd finished putting his things away. She handed out the bowls and forks, sitting herself down in the only free spot between Chlo and Janeece, opposite her daughter, who was sat between Maxine and Bolton. They all dug into the food, the teenagers thanking her through mouths full of pasta, making her laugh once more at them as she ate at a more sedate pace. The conversation turned to the events of the evening for the teens, with Bolton already dressed for going out, and Maxine already having nipped next door to grab some things for herself and Janeece. Alia would grab something from her wardrobe, though she had promised her mum that she wouldn't wear heels quite as high as the ones she'd worn for Chlo and Donte's wedding. Rachel spotted Chlo looking slightly down about it all, correctly guessing that none of the other girls' clothes would fit her now she was sporting a baby bump. She nudged Chlo quietly. "I've got a few things left over from my pregnancy in the back of my wardrobe, if you want to take a look." She offered gently. Chlo nodded instantly, looking quite relieved.

Alia had caught her mum's offer and smiled, directing Bolton to the living room to watch tv whilst the girls changed, leading Chlo to Rachel's room whilst Maxine and Janeece got changed in the room they'd shared after Maxine and Alia had been shot. She offered Chlo another reassuring smile as Rachel entered the room, going straight to the wardrobe and rummaging around until she found the few dresses she'd kept from her days as a pregnant teenager, laying them out on the bed so they could be seen properly. Alia and Chlo instantly discarded two of them as unsalvageable, to which Rachel had rolled her eyes, knowing that they'd been in fashion at one point and sadly enough, would probably come back into fashion at some point.

Rachel stepped forward, pointing to a small black dress with added support for the bump, dressy enough for a night out with support for the baby built in. She didn't think it even looked too out of place with fashion, though she wouldn't really know. Nowadays she tended to go for what she thought was comfortable and modest, not what was fashionable, despite Alia's many protestations that she'd look good in some of the modern fashions. "What about this one? Your bump won't be too noticeable but will be supported." Chlo and Alia looked the dress over, both nodding in agreement.

"Thanks miss." Chlo bit her lip, clearly nervous. Alia caught it and excused herself to get changed quietly. Rachel directed Chlo to sit on the bed, her brow furrowed in worry for the teenager.

"What's wrong, Chlo?"

"What? Oh, nothing, at least, not like that. You didn't have to, y'know." She gestured to the dress, to which Rachel shrugged.

"It's alright. I'm still not sure why I kept them, really. It's not like I'll need them." Rachel smiled as Chlo immediately protested that she was still young. "I'm not nineteen anymore for a start, plus I'm not pinning my hopes on it. I've got Alia and that's enough for me."

"Mika's coming home for the holidays with Brett," Chlo confessed quietly, fiddling with the hem of her school shirt.

"Ah. I take it she doesn't know."

Chlo shook her head. "No. I meant to tell her, I really did, but every time she called it was to tell us what she was doing and well, I never got the chance. Nor did Tom. Now she's coming back and I just… I dread to think what her reaction's gonna be."

Rachel reached out, placing an arm round the teenager's shoulders comfortingly. "I wish I could promise you that it would be overwhelmingly positive, Chlo. Unfortunately, I can't."

"I know. I just know everything's going to kick off and Donte and Tom want me as stress free as possible and Tom wants a quiet time as Davina's going to be over as well and I… I want to put it off as long as possible." Chlo sighed. "Did you put it off?"

"Yes, but I don't think I should be your example here." Rachel laughed lightly. "I turned up one day at my parents' house and went something along the lines of "Hi, my name is Rachel now, not Amanda, and I have a five year old daughter, Alia", well, something like that anyway."

"Yeah, there's probably better ways of breaking the news than that." Chlo agreed.

"Chlo, listen. If you need a break this holiday, from your sister or Tom or whatever, come round here. We're not going away at all and so we'll be home near constantly. Just… you have somewhere to go if it all gets too much, okay?"

"Thanks miss."

"Oh, for crying out loud, call me Rachel outside of school like Max and Jan do, alright? I can't be having 'miss' constantly in my own home." Rachel stood. "I best go make sure Bolton hasn't wrecked my house whilst you girls get ready."

She popped her head into her daughter's room, smiling as Alia turned from her place at the mirror, dressed in a deep blue strappy dress and matching heels, the sling having been taken off and put in the bag she was taking with her. Maxine and Alia no longer needed the slings on all the time, but they were helpful for when their arms got tired or sore, which was why they had them on at school most of the time still or carried them around with them if they weren't wearing them.

"Everything alright?" Alia asked softly, finishing up her quick makeup look. Rachel nodded.

"Yes, she was just worried about Mika. I need to see if my living room is still in one piece. Could you help Chlo if she needs it?"

"Of course." Alia nodded.

Rachel closed the door, not bothering to check on the other two as she could hear them giggling together through the door, turning and heading down the stairs to the living room, where Bolton sat slumped on the sofa, channel surfing with a bored expression. She sat on the other sofa, stifling a smile as he instantly tried to correct his posture as though they were still at school. "Relax, Bolton. We're not in school. Here I'm just Alia's mum, not your headteacher. Well, sort of. It's not as though I can forget everything that's happened at school the moment I come home. How are you doing after today?"

"I'm alright, yeah." Bolton shrugged, leaving the channel on a random news programme as he turned to face his headmistress. "Cleaver's gone for good, ain't he?"

"He is," Rachel confirmed.

"He was alright, y'know, pushed me more than I ever thought I could go. But it was weird at the end, like it wasn't for me, any of it."

"It probably wasn't. It's likely it was just as much about him, if not more."

"Hang on, how're you not freaking out?" Bolton changed the topic, his brow furrowed in confusion. Rachel blinked at him, wondering what on earth he was asking about.

"About what?"

"You're the head, right, and you've a bunch of us going to a party tonight, but you're just sat here calm as anything." Bolton explained, fearful that once he'd explained it she'd come to her senses and realise she shouldn't be so calm about it all.

"How am I meant to react Bolton?" Her lips twitched in amusement. She'd known of the party for weeks, the pupils involved not thinking about keeping quiet about it at school. But she also knew her daughter and knew that she would be fine. Plus, she wanted her daughter to fit in more, to socialise. It was the thing she'd missed out on most by home schooling herself and Rachel was determined she would get as much as possible from her high school days.

"I dunno, forbidding us or something?"

"What good would that do? I trust Alia and you're all on the holidays now. It's not like you started a rave in the music room in the middle of the school day, is it?"

Bolton shook his head. "You're weird." He repeated from his earlier sentiments. Even his own mum was never so calm about him going to a party and the woman across from him was in charge of his school. She knew even better than his mum the people that frequented the parties and she was still oddly calm, somewhat amused by it all. Definitely weird.

"I think I'll take that as a compliment." Rachel laughed, smiling as Alia and Chlo entered in their dresses, Chlo having reused her school shoes for the occasion. "You look lovely, girls." She told them with a warm smile.

"Thanks. What's so funny?" Alia asked as she settled next to her mum to wait on Maxine and Janeece. Chlo perched on the sofa beside Bolton, wary of not being able to get back up if she got too comfy sat down.

"Bolton called me weird." Rachel laughed again.

"Hey, she's not freaked out about us all going out tonight like at all. That is weird." Bolton protested.

"I'll be home by twelve," Alia promised Rachel seriously.

"Not too much to drink either, please."

"Of course not. We're seeing Sam tomorrow and he'll only make my life hell if I show up with a hangover."

"Who's Sam?" Bolton asked curiously, before his face lit up with mischief. "Hey miss, is he your boyfriend? Lawson's gonna be well jealous." He cackled.

"I did make out with him once," Rachel provided with a smile as Alia wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Ew. Gross." Alia turned to Bolton. "Sam was my dad's best friend and my godfather."

"Kissing him was your dad's fault." Rachel added mainly to Alia as all the teenagers in the room cringed slightly, regretting that Bolton had ever brought the subject up. What teenager really needed to know about their headteacher or mother's love life? Alia knew she was deflecting away from talking about Eddie as well, not wanting to add to the rumours floating round about them just yet. It would probably change once they were all official, or got caught together. "He dared me to do it, thought I'd chicken out."

"You've never backed down from a dare in your life." Alia shook her head at the rookie mistake her dad had made.

"I know. Why do you think Sam has never dared me to do anything, ever? He's a quick learner." She smiled as Maxine and Janeece appeared in the doorway and the teenagers all got ready to head out. She saw them to the door, hugging her daughter on the doorstep before waving them off for the night. "Have fun, guys."

Rachel sighed as she settled into the sofa with her second glass of wine for the evening, waiting for her daughter to return from her party. She'd tried talking to Philip, but he'd stubbornly refused to talk to her, which slightly irritated her, though she didn't let it show through her face or voice with her nephew. She knew Alia had been avoiding him, not that she blamed her, and she had no idea how she was going to work things out with this one. She'd also phoned Eddie, telling him about the scene she'd walked in on with more than a few laughs on either end of the line, before being roped into reading Michael his bedtime story. It was nearing half past eleven and though she had sworn to herself she wouldn't be the parent that waited up for their child to come back from parties or nights out, she couldn't help but sit up, knowing she would only worry more if she had gone to bed and something had happened to her child.

To her surprise, she was only five minutes into the mindless programme she'd put on the tv as a distraction when she heard the sound of a key in the lock, followed by two sets of footsteps, one set definitely in heels. Rachel fought the urge to go check who was with her fifteen year old, forcing herself to keep her eyes on the television screen. She glanced over to the door as the footsteps grew closer and the door to the living room opened, revealing a surprisingly sober looking Alia, her arm in her sling, a tired looking Chlo trailing behind her.

"Hey Rach, I said Chlo could stay the night if that's alright. It's really late and Tom can't come pick her up because he's had a beer." Alia flopped down onto the sofa beside her mother, Chlo moving to sit on her other side. "You don't mind do you?"

"Not if it's alright with Chlo and Tom." Rachel confirmed.

Chlo shrugged. "Tom's fine with it, seemed more relieved than anything else. Thanks miss, uh, Rachel. I'm too tired to even think of how I'd get home tonight."

"How was your night then?" Rachel asked, giving up all pretence of watching the programme she'd put on. Both girls shrugged.

"Alright," Alia confirmed, seeming more bored than anything. "Not really much to talk about, except Steph's going to be in for a long night once Max and Jan finally get home." Rachel winced, never thinking she'd feel sympathy for the French teacher but actually feeling sorry for Steph. But then, did that mean they'd left the girls alone? Alia read the thoughts straight off her face. "I'm sure Steph will be round to complain about them tomorrow at some point and no, we left them with Bolton, Paul and a bunch of sixth formers. It's mainly the guys from our school at that party anyway."

"I was tired and getting a little hungry. Ali just looked bored after a couple of hours, so we left to grab some food and the nearest McDonalds was closest to here, so we came here after eating." Chlo smiled at them, more exhausted by the minute. She'd been desperately trying to keep up with her friends despite the exhaustion she'd felt and the nausea, but she'd been ready to leave an hour into the party. Alia had found her not long after and they'd stuck together for the rest of the night until they decided they'd been there long enough and left, to which she was grateful. "Thanks for letting me stay."

"Don't worry about it. But you both look exhausted, so upstairs with both of you, get ready for bed. I'll make you some hot chocolate when you're done." She ushered the girls up the stairs, inwardly proud as her daughter patiently helped the pregnant teen up the stairs despite the heels she was wearing. Once they'd disappeared, she moved to the kitchen, grabbing her phone from the side and dialling Tom's number, relieved when he answered on the second ring.

"Rachel? Is everything alright?" Rachel could hear Davina in the background, asking why Rachel was calling him so late.

"Everything's fine, Tom. I'm just letting you know that Chlo's here with Ali, all safe and sound." She heard him breathe a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Rachel. Is she alright? The party didn't take too much out of her, did it? Donte's been nothing but worried about her too, not that he'd ever admit it." She bit her lip to keep from laughing as she heard Donte's muffled background protest.

"She's fine, just tired. Personally, I think she tried a bit too hard to prove nothing's changed even with the baby, but it's nothing a good night's sleep won't fix. I'm about to make them hot chocolate."

"Chlo likes marshmallows in hers if you have any. It's something Izzie used to do for the girls. I'll pick Chlo up about lunchtime tomorrow if that's okay?"

"That's fine Tom. I just called to let you know she's here for the night now. Enjoy the rest of your night." She hung up and moved to the cupboard to make the hot chocolate, finding a bag of mini marshmallows in the snack cupboard that was bereft of crisps after the earlier gathering of the teenagers.

The two girls came downstairs just as she'd finished adding the marshmallows to Chlo's hot chocolate, Alia in shorts and a t-shirt and Chlo in an oversized t-shirt, both wearing fuzzy socks as a nod to the cold weather and floors. They smiled at Rachel, moving to sit together at the kitchen table as Rachel handed out the mugs, sitting opposite Chlo. The seventeen year old took one look at her drink and burst into tears, prompting alarm in Rachel and Alia, both moving to comfort her as much as possible.

"Chlo, what's wrong?" Alia asked, concerned. Chlo gestured to her mug.

"I… my mum… she put… marsh…mallows… in my chocolate… too. I miss her." She burst into further tears as Rachel gathered her gently into her arms and Alia rushed to find some tissues for her.

"Ssh love, it's okay," Rachel soothed softly. "It's all okay. I'm sure she's proud of the wonderful person you are and will become." She took a tissue from the box Alia had found and handed it to the girl to wipe her eyes and nose. "All your mum would ever want is for you to be happy." She made soothing noises as Chlo's tears calmed and the girl finally pulled away enough to wipe her eyes from the last of her tears. "Do you want me to make you a new hot chocolate?"

Chlo shook her head. "No, this is fine. Sorry, I don't…" She trailed off, embarrassed, but Rachel waved it off.

"Don't worry about it, Chlo. I know I'm the scary headmistress but I'm always here if you need anything."

"Plus, she's used to being cried on by me." Alia tried to inject a little levity into the situation before seating herself back beside Chlo and placing a hand on her arm. "I know how you feel though. I lost my dad when I was twelve and it still gets to me." She turned to Rachel, the mischievous glint in her eyes setting Rachel on edge instantly. "The funeral was great though, there was nearly a full out catfight in front of the coffin."

Chlo blinked in surprised, glancing between Alia's slight smirk and Rachel's resigned expression. "Really?" She took a sip of her hot chocolate, feeling oddly comforted by the drink.

Rachel nodded, taking a sip of her own drink. "His wishes for his funeral were very specific. But he liked to cause chaos. His last three girlfriends all thought they'd be in his will, which was to be read out publicly at the funeral as per his wishes."

"Me and mum already knew what it said as we'd been told earlier in the week. Mum was the executor of his estate along with Sam." Alia added, her hands wrapped around her mug, having left her sling up in her room.

"Still, it was up to Sam to read it out to a room of grieving people in front of his coffin." Rachel shook her head slightly. It had been three years and she was still in mild disbelief over what he had managed to cause when he wasn't even there. "His sister was sat up front with me and Ali, and us three plus Sam were his only beneficiaries. He deliberately called me the love of his life in his will, which caused his ex-girlfriends to start to protest, loudly, in church, on who was actually the love of his life. They stormed to the front to fight me but caught sight of each other and it became a three way argument of who he'd loved more. Sam was in tears on the platform, laughing at the chaos his best friend had caused. It even made Alia laugh."

"You missed out the best part," Alia complained, though she was laughing. "The worst one of the lot, Helen, actually grabbed a candlestick to hit one of the others with, but the priest grabbed it off her before she could and she started yelling at the priest!"

Chlo let out a startled laugh at the scene of chaos they'd described, surprised at the level of disruption that had happened to the funeral. "What happened?"

"The rest of his Army friends that could make it to the funeral escorted them outside, where we all heard them arguing for a good ten minutes after they'd been ejected from the church." Rachel rolled her eyes. "The funeral was just in complete disarray after that." She joined the two teenagers in light laughter as they all finished off their drinks with lighter conversation before she sent them off to bed, knowing they needed to get some sleep. So did she, for that matter, she decided, placing the cups in the sink and checking the windows and doors before joining the rest of the household in going to bed.

The following morning, Rachel had woken fairly late by her standards, though still earlier than any of the teenagers, making breakfast for all four of them, though Philip had remained stubbornly sullen with the three females, though it was a noted improvement that he hadn't tried to snipe at Alia so far, though Rachel couldn't tell if that was down to her presence or not. Chlo was redressed in the dress she'd worn the previous night with the cardigan she'd worn for school the day before whilst Alia wore black jeans, a purple top with a matching sling and her favourite wedge heels, knowing she needed to wear heels as often as possible for it to look more natural when she had publicity as Lia Rose. Philip had jeans and a t-shirt on with no shoes on, with Rachel also in jeans and a round-necked t-shirt to hide her scar, trainers on her feet. They ate quietly before settling in the living room to watch tv.

Tom arrived just before twelve to pick up Chlo, thanking Rachel for taking such good care of her, surprised as the teenager once again hugged Rachel for all she'd done before hugging Alia too. Rachel offered him a shrug and a smile, knowing that Chlo would probably tell him about her evening once they were home. They waved the pair off before going back into the house, the awkwardness Rachel had feared descending almost instantly as Philip appeared in the doorway to the living room.

Rachel's eyes moved between the two fifteen year olds as she sighed, all but pushing them both into the living room and onto the same sofa, sitting on the coffee table so she could face them properly. "Okay, this has gone on for long enough. I think we all need to talk."

Alia scoffed. "Yeah, right. Don't you think I've tried that?"

"Philip?" Rachel raised an eyebrow at the boy, who squirmed uncomfortably under her gaze.

"How are you not angry with them too, Rach?" He asked, thoroughly confusing both Rachel and Alia.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about Philip." Rachel told him softly. "Angry with whom?"

"Her." He jerked a thumb at Alia with a sneer. "And Eddie."

"Okay." Rachel drew out the word, still not sure what her nephew was talking about. "Angry about what?"

"Them going at it behind my mum's back." Philip bit out, unprepared for the look of disgust on Alia's face and the confused frown on Rachel's.

"Ew." Alia shuddered in disgust. "That's gross, no." She stared at Philip. "Where the hell did you get that idea from?"

"You kept dragging him off on his own, calling him by his first name. Plus, you were caught together."

"I was trying to get him to take his head out of his arse where Rach was concerned. Most of the times I've spoken to him have been about her or my school work, nothing else. And as for being caught together, what? Who did you hear that from because it's a blatant lie!"

Philip reddened and Rachel had a sinking feeling she knew what had happened. "Philip," she began softly. "Was it Melissa? Did your mum tell you she'd caught Eddie and Alia together and ended things with him?" Philip nodded reluctantly.

"She told me she'd caught them together in your office and when she'd confronted them, Eddie told her if she said anything to anyone about it he'd go to the police over her bigamy." His eyes widened as Alia shook her head in disgust and Rachel bowed her head in anger at her sister, though she was more surprised at her lack of surprise over Mel's actions.

"That day was the morning after I'd been shot." Alia gestured to her arm angrily. "What your mum failed to mention to you was that she was jealous after seeing Rachel walk out with Michael on her hip and thought she was confronting Rachel and Eddie, not me, Maxine and Janeece. Yes, we were all in the office, including Michael and Eddie. Rachel wasn't even there; she'd gone to Steph's place to get our things. Eddie ended things with her and she tried to tell him that Rachel had lied to him about the bigamy. He told her that she should have been honest with him, that he wouldn't go to the cops. She told him to choose; her or Rachel."

"I guess he didn't choose my mum." Philip bowed his head in shame. He'd been fed lies by his own mother once again and believed them because he didn't want to believe her capable of making something like that up. He'd been downright rude and bullying to his cousin for weeks over what he'd been told, not understanding why she didn't react to his veiled threats about what he knew, though he did get a rise from her occasionally with his barbs.

"No," Rachel confirmed quietly. "There is nothing going on between Eddie and Alia, Philip."

"I can't believe you'd even think that of me, let alone anyone else in this." Alia glared at him. "That's not all she said though, is it? I mean, you don't honestly think I'd try and fight you over you calling me a whore, do you? Please, I don't care what I'm called." She glanced at her mother, regretting what she knew was going to be a painful moment but knowing it needed to be aired to get everything out into the open. "I went for you because you called my mum a whore. It was only lucky for you that Bolton and Paul got in the way before I hit you."

Rachel gasped as her daughter revealed what had gone on, which was probably the reason the fifteen year old had never let on about Philip's behaviour to her, trying to protect her. "Philip?" She addressed the boy, not wanting to believe he would deliberately say that about her, especially not in anger. She thought him better than that.

Philip hung his head slightly. "She said… she said you didn't care because you were screwing him too, just to hurt her and ruin her relationship with him."

"That sounds nothing like us." Alia shook her head angrily. "You believed her lies because it suited you to have someone to be angry at and your mum showed you a bit of attention for believing her. Don't even try to deny it."

"Well, wouldn't you?" Philip defended himself.

"I'd sooner live on the streets than have that woman as my mother," Alia denied hotly.

"Alright, enough, both of you." Rachel tried to diffuse the blow up she could see hurtling towards them. "I don't want any more arguing from either of you. Philip, you are more than welcome to stay here for as long as you want. However, could you please in future try and find out the truth before settling on such a destructive course of action?" Philip nodded solemnly, though Rachel could see Alia didn't agree with her decision to have Philip stay with them. However, Rachel knew that deep down, Alia understood that Rachel would always protect people to the best of her ability, which included giving Philip a place to stay.

Alia checked that her mother had finished before rolling her eyes and stalking off to her music room. Philip waited only a minute more before hurrying off to his room. Rachel sighed, scrubbing at her face with her hands. It was the first day of the school holidays and everything had already kicked off. She couldn't wait until term started up again if everything kept going the way it was.

TBC…