The Journey: Chapter Thirteen SONG LYRIC CREDITS 13: Let It Rain (Amanda Marshall)

Chapter 13

"Hungry?" Rachel asked, as Sophie appeared from the bathroom.

"Starving," Sophie admitted, grinning.

"Indian Butter Chicken," Rachel announced as she spooned a generous amount onto Sophie's plate.

"Sounds yum," Sophie remarked, digging in.

"Oh, well, it's just a packet job," Rachel laughed, "But it's not bad."

They ate in silence for a few minutes before Sophie spoke.

"I did well, didn't I? When it comes to parents, I mean."

"Soph," Rachel admonished. "Jack's just too good at hiding his feelings."

Sophie shrugged. "Maybe. But what about my mother? She doesn't even want to set eyes on me."

Rachel took a deep breath, knowing this needed to be handled carefully. "Maybe she has her reasons."

"Yeah, Jack says she has a family. Other children. She doesn't want me disrupting her life," Sophie said, bitterly.

"Maybe she feels guilty."

"Guilty? What for?"

"For giving you up. Maybe the only way she can deal with it is to shut it away. And maybe she's afraid her other children won't forgive her. Then she would have no one." Rachel sighed. Some of this was hitting a little too close to home.

"But why did she give me up in the first place? I mean she didn't even tell Jack about me at all."

Rachel shrugged. "You'd have to ask her that, but I imagine she felt there was no other choice. I think most mothers who give their babies up do it so the children will have better lives than they would otherwise. Maybe she couldn't afford to keep you, or maybe she wanted you to have two parents. You can't know unless you ask her. Things aren't always black and white."

Sophie was silent for a minute, thinking. "You're a single mother, Rachel," she said finally. "Did you ever think about giving up your baby?"

Rachel shook her head. "But I'm not your mother. I'm a lot older, and I already have a son. I knew what was involved, and I had a lot of things your mother probably didn't."

Sophie shovelled several more forkfuls of rice into her mouth before she worked up the courage to ask the next question.

"So did you choose to do it on your own?"

Rachel considered backing away from the issue, but she decided it didn't really matter. The whole station knew about her own personal drama, and Sophie would probably hear about it eventually anyway.

It isn't easy to be kind
With all these demons in my mind
I only hope one day
I'll be free

"No, I didn't," she admitted.

"So he... Ali's father... didn't want to know?"

Rachel shook her head. "He doesn't know. Frank was my partner before Jack, and he took his long service leave almost two years ago. I didn't find out until after he'd gone."

Sophie's eyes widened. "Is he coming back?" she asked.

Rachel nodded. "He sends me the odd postcard, but most of the time he's out on the open sea."

I do my best not to complain
My face is dirty from the strain
I only hope one day
I'll come clean

"So, I guess Ali and I have something in common, then," Sophie commented.

Rachel shrugged. "I hope Frank takes it as well as Jack did."

A thousand more questions crowded into Sophie's mind, but she decided it would be impolite to ask them. It had given her something to think about, if nothing else.

~~ * ~~

The next day, Jack took the morning off. He finally showed up to work at about half past eleven, seeming like he was back to his usual self.

"Sorted it out?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah," Jack smiled. "Gabrielle finally decided to meet with Sophie."

"That's great! How did it go?"

"Well, I stayed in the car, but I think they made a good start. Sophie's back at your place, packing her stuff up."

"When's she going then?"

"As soon as her dad comes to pick her up."

"You will keep in touch, though, won't you?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah, I hope so." Jack smiled.

Rachel put her arm around his shoulders and squeezed. "Wanna go and have a beer later? I can get Dad to look after the baby."

"Yeah, why not?"

~~ * ~~

"Thanks so much for letting me stay with you, Rachel."

"Come back anytime you want, ok?" Rachel ordered, giving Sophie a hug.

Sophie nodded, smiling. "Give Ali a kiss for me? Jack," she said, turning to him. "You will come and visit me in Coffs Harbour, won't you?"

Jack grinned. "Try and stop me."

Sophie and Jack embraced, and then Sophie picked up her bag.

"You ready?" her dad asked, and she nodded.

Rachel and Jack waved as the car drove away.

"Well, *Dad*, how 'bout a beer?" Rachel asked, grinning.

~~ * ~~

"So, how does it feel?"

"What, having a kid? I thought you'd know that by now."

Rachel laughed. "Well, having a baby and watching her grow up is a bit different to suddenly having a grown up daughter, don't you think?"

"I guess."

"Well there you go."

A few mouthfuls later, Jack said, "It's weird. She's really fascinating in a way. She looks a bit like Gab, and I s'pose she must look a bit like me too. But she's a totally different person. She's so..."

"Independent?" Rachel offered.

"Yeah."

"You'll get used to it, Jack."

"I doubt it," Jack answered wryly.

Rachel laughed.

~~ * ~~

Chapter Fourteen, por favore

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