Just as a heads up, this chapter contains brief, non descriptive, mentions of an adult inappropriately touching a minor.

Jim sat Lily on his shoulders as they walked towards the beach, Max chattering happily as he walked, hand in hand, with both Rachel and Shelby, the boy over the moon to be on vacation.

They found a selection of bars and restaurants not far from the beach and it didn't take the family long to find somewhere they were all happy with. "What does everyone want to drink?" Jimmy asked once they were settled at a table, Rachel sitting between Shelby and Lily, Amy to the other side of Lily and Max sat between Shelby and his dad.

"Are you having beer Daddy?" Max asked.

"Probably yeah" Jim nodded, "why?"

"Daddy's having beer Mommy" Max looked up at Amy, "so can I have a soda?"

Amy laughed, she tried not to give her kids too many sugary drinks, they were allowed juice with meals but other than that they usually just drank water, "of course you can, what about you Lil, do you want a soda or do you want juice?"

Lily thought for a minute before looking up at Rachel, "what you have?" she asked.

"Erm, an orange juice please."

Lily looked at her father and nodded, "I have oj too p'ease."

"Me too" Amy nodded, "and some water."

"White wine" Shelby handed Jim her credit card, the look on her face telling him not to argue, "just get a bottle, it'll be cheaper" she laughed.

Amy's face lit up, "will you get me some sparkling water too?" she asked, "if Shel's buying by the bottle I'll have half a glass."

"Of course" Jimmy laughed at his wife's excitement at 'treating' herself to half a glass of wine, "I won't be long."

"Mommy" Max looked up from the children's menu he'd been studying, "I want pizza please" he told her after slowly sounding out all of the dishes listed on the menu.

"Okay" Amy nodded, "you need to wait for everyone else to decide what they want though.

"Okay" he grinned as he settled back in his chair to wait.

Jimmy returned a few minutes later with a tray of glasses, "I asked for three wine glasses" he said as he set them on the table, "I didn't know if you'd be having any" he said to Rachel.

Rachel frowned, "me?" she looked to Shelby, "I…"

Shelby tucked a stray strand of Rachel's hair behind her ear, "if you want to have a glass with your dinner then you can, but it's up to you." She'd been around Rachel's age when her parents had first allowed her to have wine with her dinner on special occasions and, whilst she wasn't going to let Rachel drink alcohol every night, she didn't mind her having a little bit with a meal now and again.

"I…" Rachel was confused, she didn't understand why her family seemed so relaxed about this, she always imagined she'd be in big trouble if she was caught drinking under age but now her Mom was telling her it was okay and her Aunt and Uncle didn't seem bothered by the idea either.

"I'd much rather your first experience of alcohol was a glass of wine with your dinner when you're with family than getting wasted on God knows what at a party with no adults around" Shelby told her daughter gently when she saw how conflicted Rachel looked. "I'll by no means be letting you drink every night, but if you'd like to try some then you can, but if you just want to stick to juice and water then that's okay too."

"I, I think I'll just have juice thank you."

"Okay" Shelby kissed Rachel's temple as she filled her own glass before handing the bottle to her sister, Rachel watching as Amy half filled her glass with wine, topping it up with sparkling water.

"Tomorrow" Amy sat back in her chair and kicked her shoes off under the table, "I want to find somewhere that does fancy, fake cocktails" she said as she took a sip of her wine. Smiling softly as she saw Rachel looking at her glass, "do you want to try it?" she offered.

Rachel shook her head and dropped her gaze, "no thank you."

"Can I try it?" Lily asked hopefully.

Amy chuckled and shook her head, "when you're as big as Rachel, then you can try it" she said, ruffling her daughter's hair.

They soon discovered that the restaurant they'd chosen had entertainment each evening and Lily and Max finished eating just in time to join a small group of other children, sitting on the floor in front of a low stage a few feet away from their table to get a better view of the magic show that was on that evening.

"There's karaoke later" Rachel smiled, "you should sing something Mom."

Shelby chuckled and reached for her wine, "maybe, I'm not promising anything though."

That was enough to keep Rachel happy and she turned her attention to her Aunt, "will you sing something?"

Amy shook her head, "I don't sing"

"Why not?" Rachel asked.

Amy saw the look Shelby gave her and spoke before her sister could, "it's okay Shel, I don't mind her knowing?" Rachel frowned as Shelby nodded and sat back in her seat, "I used to sing" Amy told her, "I used to sing a lot. I think, at first, I was young and I was just wanted to be like my big sister, but Mom and Dad got me vocal lessons and I joined a community theatre group, I really enjoyed it, I had the same vocal coach your Mo had, but she retired not long after I turned 16, and her replacement… he was… his techniques were different, but he was supposed to be the best and I had plans to get out of Ohio, so I told myself I could stick it out for another couple of years and then leave and be done with him. Then things changed, but I, I already had auditions lined up for Tisch and Juilliard, and I was still waiting to hear back from another couple of colleges... I wasn't comfortable with him but I felt like I had to put up with him to get into college."

"What happened?" Rachel asked quietly even though she was sure she wouldn't like the answer.

"He used to lock the door and close the blinds so we weren't disturbed, and then he'd get a bit… 'handsy', he said he was helping me with my breathing technique but I knew he wasn't. Then one day, he was…" she shook her head, "I was genuinely terrified of what he was going to do, and when I heard someone try to get in the room I knew it was my only chance, it was stupid but it was the only thing I could think to do, and I purpously cracked on a note I could hit in my sleep. I thought I heard the person walking away so I just screamed. I didn't know it was your Mom come to pick me up, I didn't know she was home for the weekend, she'd wanted to watch the end of my class."

"Mom, you…"

"I knew something was wrong when the door was locked, more so when I heard her voice crack. I kicked the door down and broke the bastard's nose" Shelby smirked proudly.

"You…"

"He had one hand over my mouth and the other up my skirt" Amy whispered, "I didn't even realise it was your Mom until I felt someone pull him off me and heard her tell him she was going to kill him, luckily other people heard me scream and came in too, I think if it wasn't for them, your Mom really would have killed him.

"He deserved everything he got" Shelby shrugged.

"And more" Jim added, "I think I'd have put my hands around his neck if I'd have had the chance."

"What happened to him?" Rachel asked nervously.

"He tried to press charges on your Mom, but they had the CCTV of everything they'd done to me, and they still had the tapes from a couple of my other lessons, and then they looked through some other tapes, and after I went to the police, quite a few other girls reported him too. He was in jail the last I heard, and, as some of the other girls were still in middle school, I think he'll be there for a good while yet."

"Good" Rachel nodded, shuffling into Lily's empty chair so she could wrap her arms around her aunt, "but if you enjoyed singing, you shouldn't let him take that away from you."

Amy smiled and ran her hand through Rachel's hair, "it's been too long" she told her, "and I gave up on those dreams and got a BS in biochemistry from Ohio State instead. I was going to go into medical research but decided to take a couple of years out while the kids were young and I just haven't got back into it yet."

"Can I add that she graduated with two kids, one of which was 4 months old when she sat her finals, and a 3.9 GPA" Jimmy butted in with a proud smile, "she always plays that bit down."

Amy rolled her eyes, "nobody needs to know that, and you had two kids too, and a 3.7 GPA. But anyway" she turned her attention back to Rachel, "biochemistry not drama or musical theatre. You don't need any vocal skills for that, and I haven't sung since."

"You sang to me when I was ill!" Rachel frowned.

"And I think you're the first, probably the only person to hear me sing since then, so consider yourself lucky kid."

"I do" Rachel nodded, "but if you ever change your mind about singing, I'd love to sing with you one day." Rachel told her aunt before changing the subject, not wanting Amy to feel pressured into anything.

Conversation turned to lighter subjects, and, almost as soon as the magician had finished, Lily and Max raced back over to their table, Max climbing onto his chair, Lily scrambling up onto Jimmy's lap.

"Can we have dessert now?" Max asked, "please?"

"Yeah Daddy" Lily chimed in, "please?"

"I thought you'd never ask" Amy laughed as Shelby called over a nearby waiter and asked for some menus.

"Does the baby want dessert?" Max asked.

"I think it wants ice cream" Lily nodded from where she'd settled herself on Jim's knee.

"You know what?" Amy smiled as she took the menu she was offered, "I think you might be right."

Amy saw Rachel looking at Jimmy as he started his second beer after they'd ordered their desserts. She knew her husband, knew that he knew his limits, that, if his second beer wasn't his last then his third definitely would be. She also knew that he was likely to have a beer with his dinner most evenings while they were away and she hoped that would be good for Rachel, that she'd get to see that a man, a father, could drink alcohol without becoming abusive or violent like her fathers had.

Although none of the family participated in the karaoke, they enjoyed watching other people in various stages of intoxication sing their chosen songs, some more successfully than others. But eventually, after their early start, Lily and Max were beginning to flag, and, if they were honest, the adults were ready for their beds too so they decided to head back to get some sleep.

"Can I ask you something?" Rachel asked nervously as she walked beside Amy a few steps in front of Shelby and Jim, Jimmy was giving Max a piggyback and, although Rachel had offered, Shelby was carrying Lily, the toddler already fast asleep in her Aunt's arms.

"Anything" Amy wrapped her arm around Rachel's shoulder.

"After, after what happened to you…"

"I was assaulted Rachel" Amy said softly, "you can say it, I won't get upset."

Rachel nodded, "I don't… How did you move on? Because I, some days I feel okay, I, I forget sometimes that I ever lived with them, but other days it's all I can think of."

Amy pulled Rachel closer, "I had therapy for a while, just like you are, and I've got a great family who supported me through everything, just like they'll support you, the only difference is that I've had a lot of time. I know it's a cliche but time really is a great healer, ad that might not be what you want to hear, I wish I could tell you a way to get over what happened instantly but you just have to take things one day at a time, and know that you're allowed to have bad days, you're allowed to take a step backwards, but eventually you'll get to the point where the good days far outnumber the bad ones. I promise Pretty Girl. I promise you that one day, one day things won't always seem as overwhelming as they do now.

The family said goodnight once they reached the villa, Shelby laying Lily in her bed as Rachel went to get changed into her pyjamas. It didn't take long for Shelby and Rachel to get ready for bed, Rachel tucking herself into Shelby's side as soon as her Mom joined her in bed.

"You know you could have told me that you needed new underwear" Shelby said softly after a few moments, running her fingers through Rachel's hair as they laid together.

Rachel was surprised, she knew Amy had said she'd be discrete when she spoke to Shelby but she'd been with both women all evening and hadn't noticed her Aunt saying anything to her Mom. "I…"

Shelby kissed Rachel's temple as she felt Rachel rolling the bottom of her top between her thumb and index finger, "we'll go to the mall in the morning, Jimmy was talking about driving over anyway to stock up on groceries, we can see what we can find, we'll just get you a couple for now and buy some more when we get home."

"Thank you" Rachel nuzzled closer to Shelby.

"There's nothing to thank me for Rach, I'm your Mom, it's my job to get you whatever you need and I want you to be comfortable, so if you outgrow anything in future, come tell me, text me, leave me a note, tell your Aunt and get her to tell me, whatever you find easiest, I will never get angry with you because you've outgrown your clothing okay?"

"Okay Momma" Rachel nodded.

"Now" Shelby continued to play with Rachel's hair, "do you want to talk about what else is buzzing through your mind?" she asked softly, "or would you rather leave it for another day?"

Some days Rachel was sure Shelby could read her mind and she sighed quietly as she tried to process her thoughts. As always Shelby didn't push her, continued to hold her close and play with her hair, giving Rachel time to think about what she wanted to say. "Tonight" Rachel finally spoke, "you had wine, so did Aunt Amy, and Uncle Jimmy had beer."

Rachel was confused. The three adults had all had alcohol that night, her Aunt had made her one glass of wine mixed with sparkling water last all night in between glasses of water and fruit juice. Her Mom had had the remainder of the bottle and, although she seemed a little cuddlier than usual, didn't seem too different. And she'd seen her uncle drink two bottles of beer yet he'd been laughing and joking with Max as he'd carried him home, the pair playfully bartering over how many bedtime stories Jimmy would read his son, Max had gone straight in with a request for seven, Jimmy had wanted two and they'd finally compromised on three bedtime stories and a breakfast story the next morning.

"We did" Shelby nodded, encouraging Rachel to continue.

"Nobody was angry" Rachel whispered, "nobody got mad… nobody got hurt."

"Oh Darling" Shelby kissed Rachel's hair, "that's not… when they got like that, they'd probably had more than a couple of beers or a few glasses of wine. And, even when they're really drunk, most people don't get like that at all, Amy gets really loud and giggly..."

"And you get cuddly and over affectionate." Rachel smiled as she thought back to Shelby's birthday celebrations with Amy.

"Only with you" Shelby laughed, pulling Rachel closer. "But what I'm trying to say is, how they were, that's not 'normal' that's not an example of someone having a reasonable amount of alcohol. And I suppose that's one of the reasons I gave you the choice to have wine with your dinner."

"I, I don't understand."

"I know legally you're not old enough to drink, but I know what happens at parties, I know what teenagers are like and I, I want you to learn that, if you want to, it's okay to drink alcohol, that it's possible to just have one or two drinks then stop, and that having one or two drinks won't turn you, or most other people, into a monster. Nana and Grampy let us have alcohol with meals on special occasions when we were around your age and, we all had our moments at parties and things, but I think that, because it was never taboo, we knew we could have a beer and watch a football game with Grampy or whatever, we never really felt the need to go mad."

"I, that makes sense" Rachel nodded, but I, I don't think I want… " she shrugged, tucking herself back into Shelby's side.

"Rachel, Rachel look at me Darling." Rachel slowly lifted her head to look Shelby in the eye, "if you don't want to drink alcohol, now or ever, that is absolutely okay. And nobody should make you feel bad about that decision or pressurise you into changing your mind okay." Rachel nodded. "Amy's asked that we go somewhere with alcohol free cocktails tomorrow night, they'll just be mixed fruit juices and things, you can try some of those if you like."

Rachel nodded again, "I think I'd like that."

"Good" Shelby kissed Rachel's temple, "and I want you to know that if me, or anyone else we're with, drinking alcohol makes you feel uncomfortable then please, say something Rach, if it'sme, I'll stop, if it's someone else, I'll talk to them or we'll leave, just promise you'll say something."

"I will" Rachel nodded, letting out a yawn as she settled back down against her Mom.

Shelby heard Rachel's yawn and decided to let the subject drop, "lean over and grab your book for me" she said softly, "I'll read to you until you fall asleep."

Rachel's face lit up as she rolled over, grabbing the book from beside the bed before, once again, settling herself into Shelby's side. "I love you Mom."

Shelby kissed Rachel's hair and opened the book at the marked page, "I love you too baby, so much more than you'll ever know."