It was the following week and Grace had her review tomorrow. Maria had also been invited and they decided that Grace would get her hair down the day before. Maria had received permission from Rachel and Grace was really excited. She could not wait to see what her mother came up with.

Grace went straight to the salon after school.

"I'll be about half an hour before I can start your hair. I have brought some snacks so you can get them from your bag. Make sure you finish your homework too" Maria said as Grace came in. Grace nodded and sat down in the waiting area.

"Are you excited?" Audrey asked and Grace nodded.

"I can't wait. I wonder what mum is going to do" Grace said excitedly, and Audrey smiled.

"Now, can I get you anything to drink?" Audrey asked.

"Oh, a coffee would you lovely" Grace said, and Maria made a face.

"You've never had a coffee before; you can have water or a cup of tea" Maria stated, and Grace made a face at her mum.

"Fine then, I'll have a cup of tea" Grace said, and Audrey nodded. Maria rolled her eyes and carried on working on a client's hair.

Half an hour later, Maria was ready to move onto Grace's hair.

"Right sweets" Maria said as she encouraged Grace into the seat.

"I was thinking a good couple of inches off the edge, some highlights and shaped around your face?" Maria suggested and Grace nodded.

"What colour of highlights?" Grace asked.

"Just light brown to get some shade in your hair" Maria suggested, and Grace nodded. Maria started to put the colour on her daughter's hair. They spoke about Grace's day at school and had a general conversation before Maria told her that she had to cut another customer's hair and would come back to her once the dye had been on long enough.

"Can I get you anything?" Maria asked.

"Can you get me my book from my bag. It's for English" Grace said making a face.

"Sure sweetie, if you need a hand just give me a shout" Maria said as she received the book and handed it to her daughter.

"Thanks" Grace replied before sitting back quietly and reading the book.

Maria continually checked Grace's hair and once she was happy. She took the girl over to the basin and took the foils out of her hair.

"What are you going to do now?" Grace asked.

"Now I'm going to wash it" Maria said, and Grace nodded. She carefully put her head back and Maria started washing her hair. She checked that the temperature was okay and then shampooed and conditioned the girl's hair. She noticed how relaxed Grace was and it made her feel good.

Maria was rinsing out the conditioner when something happened, and the water went freezing cold. Grace screamed and jumped away. Maria thought this was a slight over reaction.

"Maria, keep her quiet" Audrey complained, and it was then that Maria looked at the girl's face. Tears were streaming down her face and something was not right.

"Grace, come and sit back down. It is okay. It was just an accident. Sit back down and I'll get the rest of the conditioner out of your hair" Maria said kindly, but firmly. Grace was biting her lip but did as her mother asked. As she sat down, she put her head back but would not dare close her eyes. Her whole body started shaking and tears were subconsciously slipping down her face.

Maria made quick work getting the conditioner out of her hair and then moved to dry her hair. Grace remained silent throughout it all. She did as Maria asked but only answered questions with single word answers. Maria cursed at herself, how had one small accident had this much effect on the girl.

The girl did perk up slightly when she saw the end result of her hair. She loved what her mother had down and smiled when she noticed that Maria had curled it for her. She could not wait to show it off at school tomorrow.

"Do you want to stay for tea?" Maria asked and Grace shook her head. She was still shaken from the incident.

"No, I'll go to Tabby House" Grace said as she started to get everything together "Thank you for doing my hair and I'm sorry for being such a hassle"

"You weren't a hassle; can you stop so we can talk?" Maria asked but Grace continued to grab all her stuff.

"I only have £25 but I'll pay the rest tomorrow at the meeting" Grace explained.

"Oi, I'm paying for it. You are my daughter" Maria said as she tried to step closer to her daughter.

"I need to go" Grace said, and Maria sighed wondering what she had done wrong.

The Following Day

The review meeting was taking place at Grace's school and she would also be attending. Maria met Rachel at the school office.

"How did Grace's hair appointment go?" Rachel asked excitedly.

"Okay, I think. She seems to like it but she like totally freaked out at one moment" Maria said.

"Oh really. What happened?" Rachel asked.

"Something happened with the hot water and it went really cold which I understand is not good, but she was like crying and shaking but she was trying to hide it from us" Maria explained.

"Grace hates cold water. I don't fully know the reason, but I understand it's something to do with Mr Freeburns" Rachel explained, and Maria nodded.

"Ah okay, she wouldn't speak to me about it" Maria said.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure she'll be back to normal today" Rachel said, and Maria nodded. She really hoped so.

They were taken into a room which held a table with about 8 seats at it. Currently there was Maria, Rachel, Grace's guidance teacher, Joyce from the care home, Rachel's manager, and an independent reviewing officer, Richard. They all sat down and then Grace appeared. She instantly ran into her mother's arms.

"Hey sweetie" Maria said running her hand through her daughter's hair.

"I'm loving your hair, Grace" Rachel said, and Grace smiled and took a seat right next to her mother.

"Are we expecting anyone else?" Richard asked and Rachel shook her head. They went around the table and introduced themselves saying who they were in respect to Grace. Grace always found her reviews slightly nerve wracking as they were all about her.

"So we will start with Joyce, how has Grace been getting on at home since the last review?" Richard asked.

"Grace's behaviour has improved dramatically since the introduction to her mother. She does still have the occasionally disagreement or fight with a couple of the girls at home but that is not always Grace's fault. Though she could find other ways to control her temper" Joyce explained, and Richard nodded.

"Well done Grace, has there been any injuries, hospital visits or appointments?" Richard asked making his way through the questionnaire.

"Not with myself, but I do know that Grace went to an appointment at the hospital with her mother" Joyce said sheepishly.

"Oh, are Rachel aware of this?" Richard asked.

"There was a bit of miscommunication and Grace told her mother I had given her permission, but Maria didn't actually know what appointment she was taking Grace to until they were there" Rachel said defending Maria instantly.

"Okay, I'm slightly confused. What was the appointment anyway?" Richard asked and Rachel looked at Grace knowing that this would cause her to kick off, but she did not know any other way to prevent this.

"Sexual Health Clinic" Rachel admitted "Information was given but no treatment was required"

Rachel noticed Grace's face getting red with anger and she grabbed the first thing that was in front of her and threw it. It happened to be a plate of biscuits. Grace picked them up and threw them on the ground in rage. This was the first time that Maria had witnessed an outburst from Grace. Grace then went to pick up a cup.

"Grace, put that down" Maria said grabbing a hold of Grace's hand "Now take five deep breathes"

Grace did as her mother asked and calmed down considerably.

"Can someone get me a dustpan and brush" Maria asked and the teacher nodded receiving the cleaning product and returning.

"Do not touch the plate but brush the big bits into hear" Maria said sternly and Grace did as asked. Maria quickly brushed up some of the smaller pieces before they all sat down.

"Grace, how would you feel if you lead the conversation?" Richard asked and Grace nodded.

"So I think we covered Joyce, now onto your schooling" Richard said.

"I think I am better now at school and I'm trying a lot harder" Grace explained.

"I agree" Her guidance teacher put in "Grace is doing a lot better at school in her classes and is trying a lot more. She still has some catching up to do but she is aware of this and is trying. There is always the difficulty of having your friends which aren't always showing you the best example but your behaviour in class is a lot better than previously"

Grace smiled and nodded. The guidance teacher spoke for a bit longer before being excused.

"Now Rachel" Richard said.

"Well my mum is here now" Grace cut in. Richard had said that she could lead the review. Richard laughed noticing that Grace was taking charge.

"I started seeing my mum at the family contact centre with Rachel twice a week and now I can see her whenever I want. I see my mum at least 3 times a week and spend a lot of time with her. We are going to court or something this month and I want to live with my mum" Grace explained, and Richard smiled. Rachel quickly took over and spoke in more depth about the plan.

"Maria, do you have anything to add?" He asked.

"I don't think so. A lot has been covered. I am just really happy with the improvements Grace has made recently" Maria explained, and Richard smiled.

"Rachel do you have the forms with you?" He asked and Rachel nodded.

"I do, I wanted to ensure I had them with me if you required to see them" Rachel explained.

"In honesty, do you have any concerns as to why this might not go through?" Richard asked and Rachel shook her head.

"There is no reason as to why not" Rachel explained.

"I will take the plan and see if I can get it pushed forward. Do you have an ideal time for settlement?" Richard asked Maria.

"I'm off work not next week but the week after but I am aware that will probably be too soon" Maria explained.

"No, that gives me an excuse to try and get this pushed forward. I will do what I can" Richard said and Maria and Grace both smiled at each other.

They concluded the meeting and started tidying up.

"Say thank you" Maria encouraged her daughter and Grace nodded. She walked over to Richard.

"Thank you for trying to rush this for me and listening to me when I said I wanted my mum" Grace said.

"It's no trouble, seeing the difference in you since the last time as made it all worthwhile. I know you will be very happy with your mother" He said, and Grace smiled. Unexpectedly, she jumped forward and gave the man a hug. Richard smiled and put his hand on her back.

Grace then pulled away and went over to her mother again.

"Shall we just have a quick next step meeting while we are all hear?" Rachel asked and both Maria and Grace nodded.

"So the court, it's not like a witness court, it is just a judge and some lawyers. They review the case and decide if you should live with your mother or not. Its not a full court order so we do not need to be there unless it is refused for some reason then it will go to full court order" Rachel explained, and Grace nodded.

"Will you tell me straight away?" Grace asked and Rachel nodded.

"Of course I will, don't I always tell you straight away" Rachel said and Grace nodded.

"Do you want to tell me and your mum about yesterday with the cold water?" Rachel asked and Grace shook her head.

"Sorry, I will tell my mum but not just now" Grace explained, and Rachel nodded. Grace snuggled up with her mother. They spoke for a while before leaving the school.

Maria drove herself and Grace back to the flat and they made the most of one on one time. They snuggled up on the sofa and put a TV show on.

Thank you for all the reviews :) I really appreciate them :)