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For everything that had happened, Rachel had forgotten just how easy it was to be around Eddie. She didn't have to be perfect Miss Mason- in fact, he didn't want her to be. She could just be Rachel, and she'd forgotten what a relief that was.
Their tea, which had been ignored on the side was remade, drunk as they chatted about no topic more serious than a student at Eddie's new school who had been suspended. He told of her his plan to return to work within the next couple of days, and she winced. "Do they know? About… the baby?"
But he shook his head. "I never talked about it. It was too complicated, and I don't know anyone that well. My boss knows, because of the paternity and compassionate leave, but he just told everyone else I was going to be away."
"Will you tell them?"
"No point. I doubt anyone will ask."
They didn't sound like a friendly bunch, Rachel thought. Then again, Waterloo Road did have a fairly high proportion of gossipers on its staff. She'd thought it might change with the loss of Matt and to some extent, Jasmine, but judging by the whispers throughout the day, something had certainly been said in the staffroom. "Do you like it there?"
He shrugged. "It's not bad. I miss Waterloo Road, but I'm still settling in. And my boss is a good bloke. I've only been there a few weeks and I've had to take leave already, and he hasn't said a word about it." As he spoke, he glanced at the clock and winced. "I should go. I haven't got a single lesson prepped yet."
She nodded, stacking their cups in the sink and followed him to the door, but put a hand on his arm before he could open it. "Eddie... are you going to be alright?" She asked hesitantly.
Warmth pooled within him at her concern, and he smiled at her,. "I'll be fine. Do you have plans on Saturday?"
She blinked in surprise, not expecting the sudden topic change. "No. Why?"
"Will you let me take you out?"
Her stomach sank. Just when she thought they might have been able to rekindle some sort of friendship… oh, who was she kidding? They'd never manage to just be friends. But this? This was perhaps a step too far. "Eddie..."
"No alcohol involved, I promise."
"I'm not sure it's a good idea."
He tilted his head, more calmly than she'd been expecting. "Why not?"
"You know why not." She looked frustrated, and he fought to keep his expression neutral.
"Rachel we were good together."
"Until we weren't!"
"No." He shook his head, one hand reaching out to catch hers. "We didn't break up because of us, we broke up because of the baby. An issue that no longer exists."
She swallowed thickly, torn. "I don't think I can just pick up where we left off."
"I'm not asking you to. I'm just asking you to spend the day with me."
His eyes never left her, and she bit her lip, trying to push down the stab of longing in her chest. "Answer me one thing first?"
"Anything."
"Did you and Melissa get together again?"
His mouth dropped open. "What? No!" The look of confusion and mild horror on his face had a jolt of relief crashing through her, even as he caught hold of her other hand as well. "Rachel, I couldn't. I wouldn't. Did you really think I would?"
"I don't know," she admitted. He'd done it before, hadn't he? From her to Melissa and then back to her. Admittedly it hadn't been quite that simple, but the point remained. It would have been a simple jump back to Melissa again.
He looked slightly disbelieving, and hurt but at the same time, there was a tiny voice in the back of his head that understood her doubt. He had to fight to stop himself from reaching for her, drawing her in to convince her the best way he knew how. A way that probably wouldn't help some of her other doubts, he knew. "Rachel, don't you know it's you? It's always been you."
Her thoughts stuttered to a halt. "But... Mel..."
"Was a really stupid mistake. I was hurting, and thought that you didn't want... it doesn't even matter now." He shook his head slightly. "My point is, it's been you, for a long time. I thought I'd lost you, multiple times over and now... Rach, we finally have a chance. Please don't turn away from it."
Did he not see how much she wanted to grab it with both hands? But she couldn't help wondering if this was a bad idea. He was still grieving; she was still hurt. So much had happened, and the one big thing they'd always had in common was the school... the school he no longer worked at.
Fingers brushing against her cheek brought her back to reality. "For once in your life, would you please stop overthinking?"
There was faint exasperation in his voice, but it was tinged with an affectionate note, joining the amused smile on his face and oddly enough, it was that that convinced her.
"Okay."
"Okay?"
"Saturday sounds good."
His expression grew into a beaming grin. "Really? You won't regret it," he promised. She couldn't help but smile back, and hoped desperately that he was right.
W.R.
"You are not fit to run this school!"
Max glared at Rachel, who raised her chin defiantly at him from across the office. "I'm better qualified than you!"
"Did you really think you could get away with it?" he challenged. "That parents would ever accept a former whore being in charge of their children?"
She couldn't stop herself from flinching, a sick feeling settling into her stomach.
"Well, maybe the parents around here would, but I think you'll find the families of John Fosters students are a little more… particular. The governors and the LEA agree- you're finished, Miss Mason."
She looked over and suddenly her desk, which had been full of her things, was empty and clear and she went to turn back towards Max but he was behind her, hands on her shoulders and his breath tickling her neck as she tried not to shudder. "Don't worry," he breathed, "I'll take good care of them- they'll all achieve exactly what they're supposed to."
He shoved her and she fell forward with a cry, landing on the concrete of the playground. "Of course, for most of them that'll be a prison sentence," he commented conversationally, and even as he said it she looked up to see Denzil being pulled into a police car, crying out as Sambuca screamed.
"No!"
"Did you really think you could make a difference?" Max sneered at her. "This is my school."
She wanted to stand, to race towards Denzil, to stop Sam from attacking the police but she couldn't move, remaining where she was even as she pushed against the ground. From somewhere behind her, there was a noise that didn't fit- the school bell ringing, perhaps, drowned out by Max laughing at her. But the noise got louder and louder, until she realised it wasn't a bell, but a phone, ringing incessantly.
She opened her eyes.
Her phone was still ringing, buzzing on the table beside her head and she scrambled to answer it, frowning when she saw the number of the site manager at school. "Hello?"
She listened disbelievingly as the man explained that the security alarms had gone off, and someone had broken into the school. "I'm coming," she promised, swinging herself out of bed and trying to shake off her dream.
Less than an hour later, she was stood in the main corridor, staring incredulously at the graffiti in front of her. "You have got to be kidding," she muttered. "John Fosters go home?"
"We can probably get it off," John, the site manager said thoughtfully, "but not before the kids start arriving."
She groaned. "And we can't close down the main corridor. Wonderful. This isn't going to cause issues at all." Someone had a suspension heading their way, she thought grimly, then paused. "Actually- don't start cleaning it up."
John eyed her curiously. "You want it left?"
"I want whoever put it there to get rid of it. If you don't mind supervising."
"'Course not."
She wondered if whoever it was had been clever enough to remember the security cameras. As she headed upstairs to check, her phone buzzed and she looked at it automatically, expression softening when she saw the message.
From: Eddie
I can't wait till Saturday x
Right now, neither could she.
Over the next few days, she received more random texts from Eddie. Some were about his day, or funny things that happened, some asking about hers. And some were instructions or requests for Saturday- dress casual, I'll pick you up at eleven, do you want to eat before or grab a late breakfast? Frustratingly, however, none of those messages gave her many clues to exactly what he was planning, and he refused point blank to tell. She suspected he was enjoying her reactions to being kept in the dark.
Still, despite her good-natured annoyance at not knowing, she couldn't deny that the sense of excitement that it provoked. Not only what they were physically going to be doing, but knowing that Eddie was putting so much thought and work into it, that it meant so much to him… she found herself with a small smile as she went about her day, sure she would have been humming under her breath if she were inclined to such things.
She never noticed Steph watching her from the sofa in the staff room with a knowing smirk on her face. "You're in a good mood."
She barely resisted the urge to jump, glancing at her before returning to making her tea. "I'm not allowed to be?"
"Didn't say that."
But the blonde continued to watch her with that same expression, and finally Rachel sighed, turning to her. "What is it, Steph?"
She shrugged. "I haven't seen you like this in a while. Since at least before the summer."
Rachel waited for the lance of pain that would shoot through her, but it never came. She paused in stirring her tea, a little puzzled. Even thinking about that time usually led to feeling as if someone had split her heart in two, but now that was gone. Oh, there was an ache when her mind inevitably drifted to Melissa, but that was it.
A slow smile spread across her lips. "I suppose you haven't," she murmured, remembering that she hadn't replied to Steph yet. She was giving her an odd look, but Rachel merely flashed her a polite smile. "Have a good afternoon."
She left the staffroom with a spring in her step, and even the sight of a certain executive head sat in their office didn't dampen her mood. "Afternoon, Max."
He raised an eyebrow at her, but she ignored the less than warm greeting, instead reaching for the phone she'd tossed in her bag sometime that morning. Sure enough, a message from Eddie was waiting for her, and her smile widened.
"Good news?" Max asked snidely.
"Very." She didn't have to look at him to imagine the sort of expression that would have appeared, but for one of the first times all term she didn't actually care.
From: Eddie
I can't wait until tomorrow. Want to come over tonight?
She suppressed a giggle, aware Max was watching her from the corner of his eye. And ruin all your hard work?
She turned back to her paperwork, keeping her phone on her lap so that she could see it light up, but Max wouldn't be able to. She felt a bit like a child in school again hiding notes from the teacher as she carefully angled her laptop so that he couldn't see her hands, and she was free to type her replies out.
Spoilsport. I'll make dinner?
Now that was tempting. Years of bachelorhood and then having to provide dinners for Michael meant that Eddie was a good cook, and she'd come to enjoy sharing the kitchen with him. They'd often shared cooking duties, but on a few occasions he'd flown solo and she couldn't deny the success of his results. Still- if he was going to tease her…
You're so insistent on making me wait until tomorrow, I think you should learn some patience yourself x
She could just imagine the pout on his face when he read that. She realised she was grinning again, and that Max was giving her a funny look; she hastily wiped the expression from her face, bending her head over her work. But on her lap, her phone flashed again and she couldn't resist flicking her eyes down to read it.
I always forget about your competitive streak. Have it your way then, but I'll get you back for it :) xx
She suppressed a chuckle. She'd like to see him try.
"Rachel." Max's sharp voice drew her gaze upwards, and she plastered on her best neutral expression as she looked at him enquiringly. "Is there a problem?"
"Why would there be a problem?"
She very carefully kept an innocent curiosity on her face, hiding her amusement when Max's eyes flashed with anger, and he turned back to his computer without another word. She made a face at him where he couldn't see, fighting to keep a scowl from showing. As she bent her head again, her phone was still on her lap and a pang ran through her- Max would be tolerable, she thought, if Eddie had been here. At least she would have had someone on her side.
She tightened her grip around her phone, taking a deep breath. Max was not going to ruin her good mood, she decided, scribbling her signature down on a form and placing it in her outbox. She refused to let him.
What she didn't realise was that her determination to ignore Max and his antics had the added consequence of blinding her to what was going on with the rest of the staff. Despite it being a week ago, the topic of Eddie Lawson was still a popular one in the staff room, and it was only by chance that Rachel hadn't actually overheard the details of the whispers that were going around. Matters weren't helped when Steph 'casually' asked Phillip how his mother was doing, citing concern for a former colleague and the boy, not knowing any better, happily told her that he had a healthy baby sister.
Rachel knew nothing of any of this. She ignored the whispers, assuming- wrongly- that the topic of her past had probably been passed around the new staff, provoking the extended gossiping. And when the end of the day came around and with it Kim to visit Max, she quietly slipped from the building without talking to anyone and so was absent from the pub, where another round of stories from the previous few terms ended up being told.
If Eddie had been in a position to know, he wouldn't have cared. He was determined to remind Rachel of what they'd had, excited to spend time with her in a situation that didn't involve Melissa or her children in any way. So excited, in fact, that the next morning he was fifteen minutes early when he showed up, much to the amusement of a certain headmistress.
"You'll have to give me a minute!" she called over her shoulder once she'd let him in, barely catching a glimpse of her. "I thought I had more time!"
His face heated. "Sorry. I overestimated the traffic," he lied.
"There's coffee in the kitchen!" she vanished back upstairs, leaving him to pour himself a cup and seat himself at the island. He could hear her moving above him- a drawer opening and closing, a few muffled thumps which he thought might have been her throwing shoes behind her as she searched through for a matching pair. Finally though, he heard her footsteps on the stairs, and she tossed him a grin as she came into the kitchen. "Sorry about that."
"My fault. I was early." He rose, crossing the few steps over to her and swiftly planting a kiss on her cheek before she could protest. "You look lovely."
He saw her cheeks pinken as she mumbled a thanks, turning to pull her boots on as he tossed the remnants of his drink in the sink and washed up. When he'd finished, she was just pulling her jacket on, and looked at him expectantly. "Do I get to know where we're going yet?"
"It's a surprise," he said for what must have been the dozenth time, fighting back a laugh at the frustrated exasperation he saw on her expression. She sighed at him.
"Alright, Mr Mysterious."
A quick lock of the door, and they were on their way. Eddie grinned as he saw her reading each sign they drove past, obviously trying to work out where they were going. She became more and more confused as they left the limits of Rochdale and joined the motorway, but he distracted her with chat about work and the kids, and eventually she stopped paying attention.
He got them all the way off of the motorway, before she noticed just how long they'd been travelling for. "Eddie, it's been an hour. Where are we going?"
"We're almost there," he promised. That didn't help her curiosity one bit.
He watched her from the corner of her eye as he drove, and so saw the moment she realised. "Are we going to the coast?"
He grinned. "Surprise?"
Warmth pooled within her. She'd told him once, she remembered, just how much she loved the sea. Not only from her childhood memories, but for the sense of peace it invoked in her, something she'd never been able to fully explain.
And he'd remembered. She bit her lip, hiding her face to conceal her emotions. "Surprise indeed…" she murmured.
Eddie grinned. He'd had a plan- he'd gone onto the internet, found some reviews for a little seaside town he couldn't currently remember the name of and plugged it into the GPS, thrilled to find it was within driving distance. He'd been unsure of the distance, the lack of elegance but now, seeing the look on Rachel's face, he was glad he'd done it.
They turned a corner, and the vast expanse of grey sea stretched out in front of them. Rachel's face lit up. He hid his own smile, thrilled that this was- so far- going well.
Thirty minutes later, they'd parked up and were wandering down the sea front. He had to fight not to reach for her hand, not sure if the gesture would be welcome but Rachel didn't appear to notice his dilemma, nudging his arm as she pointed to things shop windows. Soon it became a game, on who could spot the wackiest item on display. Eddie thought he had clinched it with a rubber duck on a fishing boat, until Rachel gleefully pointed out a toy elephant giving a mouse a piggyback while climbing a ladder, and he had to concede she'd won.
They'd walked all the way to other side of town, and both were hungry, which found them sat on the rocks on the beach, eating fish and chips out of the paper. "So what's going on with the executive head?" Eddie asked eventually.
Rachel glanced at him. "What makes you think something's going on?"
"Rachel. It's me." He pinned her with a pointed look, and she sighed.
"It's complicated."
He lifted a shoulder. "We've got time."
She chewed her lip for a moment. "He's… unpleasant," she settled on. "He's a control freak, and hates that he doesn't have blanket jurisdiction over the school. He doesn't like the kids, doesn't like the vocational skills and really doesn't like me."
"Why?"
"Because I'm still the headteacher, because I'm a woman, because of my past? Who knows?"
He'd stopped eating, frowning slightly as he studied her. She was stiff, her tone carefully blasé but he knew her, better than she'd like to admit. "Tell me."
She looked at him, saw the earnest expression on his face and remembered how much she'd wished he were with her the day before. So she told him everything. The snide comments, the deliberate times he undermined her, his useless punishments for the kids, his lack of sympathy, his affair with Helen and the one she suspected with Kim, how utterly alone she was at school now. She told him about Emily and Lindsay, about Bolton's slight backwards slide, how worried she was about someone slipping through the cracks because the staff were too busy with internal politics to notice.
By the time she'd finished, their lunch had long since been discarded, and they'd ended up sat closer than they were, legs pressed together. Other the murmured exclamations, Eddie had remained silent as she spoke, desperately wishing he could punch this Max character, or alternatively just fix it for her.
Without thinking, he reached out to catch her hands in his, enfolding them in warmth and for once she refused to allow herself to doubt or wonder at the consequences, and simply took the comfort he offered. "I wish I could be there for you," he murmured and she smiled wistfully.
"Me too."
"What about your new deputy? Is he any help?"
"Chris is... his heart is in the right place. But I suspect Max pushed his promotion through because he's a yes-man who won't challenge him."
"Helpful," he said dryly.
She smiled faintly. "Besides, Max is careful. If I started accusing him of anything I'd just look like a crazy person."
Catch 22, he thought, and cursed himself for ever thinking getting involved with Melissa was a good idea. What had he been thinking?
Well, he hadn't, he admitted. Not properly at any rate.
"Eddie?"
He realised he'd been quiet for too long, his thumb tracing circles over the back of her hand and now she was looking at him in concern. "Sorry. I was just thinking..."
"About?"
"What an idiot I am. If I hadn't gotten involved with Melissa, none of this would have happened."
She tilted her head. "Well, by that thinking, if I hadn't turned you away that first day last year, none of this would have happened," she pointed out. "If I hadn't remained in a burning building, if you hadn't discovered my past, if Hordley hadn't, if I hadn't come to Waterloo Road... there's no use playing that game Eddie. We could both go on forever."
He raised an eyebrow. "Who are you and what have you done with Rachel Mason?" he teased. She shrugged.
"Maybe I've gained a new perspective these past few months."
He sobered at the reminder of exactly what had caused that change. She turned her hands over to squeeze his lightly. "Come on- I have no desire to spend my Saturday talking about Max Tyler any longer. What's the next part in your grand plan?"
"And what makes you think there's a next part?"
She raised an eyebrow. "You mean other than the fact I know you?"
He laughed. "Fair point."
He pulled her upright, grabbing their rubbish to throw in the bin on the way out as he led the way to their next destination. After a moment, her hand slid through his arm and he had to fight to keep a stupid grin from spreading across his face.
It lasted the entire time they were walking, and he was immensely proud of the fact that he managed to keep her distracted enough that she didn't realise where they were until they were stood right outside their destination. When she did, her face lit up once again. "A funfair? You brought me to a funfair?"
"You told me once you hadn't been to one since you were a child."
She turned to him in surprise. "You remember that?"
He shrugged. "Of course."
Before he could properly process it, she had stood on her tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "Thank you, Eddie."
"For bringing you to a funfair?"
But she shook her head. "No." Then, she smiled brightly. "Come on then!"
Eddie felt like a teenager again as they made their way around the fair- as excited as Rachel was, she was too shy to go on many of the rides until he caught hold of her hand and tugged her towards the Ferris wheel. "Eddie, no..."
"Rachel, who cares how old we are? Relax."
She still looked uncertain, but allowed him to lead her on. Within a few minutes, he could visibly see her relax, sitting forward as she admired the view. He was watching her, however. Her cheeks went pink in the wind, eyes bright as she looked out of their little car- so little, their sides were pressed together to fit, and when Rachel shifted slightly they began to sway, and instinctively she grabbed for a hold, her hand landing on his knee.
He wrapped an arm around her waist, pretending not to notice the way she stiffened for a few beats before forcing herself to relax. She felt like every nerve ending was centred wherever he was touching her, her entire awareness on those areas but she couldn't stop herself from leaning into the warmth his body offered, an innate sense of rightness settling over the both of them for the first time in months.