Eddie told her about the vote of no confidence in her headship. He was not sure whether she could even hear him, but he knew he could not keep something this big from her. At his request, the school community had rallied. She felt ashamed of the letters of support that he read out to her, from the staff and parents. She wished she could ask him to stop, but she could not, and so he continued. Whilst it made her cringe inside, she did find it gave her some hope. She went from believing her teaching career was over, to seeing a glimmer of hope that maybe she could continue not only as a teacher somewhere, but as headteacher of Waterloo Road, the school that had got under her skin. The things that she thought made her unlovable, were the things that some people seemed to like and respect her for. The people who mattered anyway: the staff and the pupils. But it was not them who would make this decision about her future. That was down to the LEA. And they might see things differently.

The one thing that Eddie never read out to Rachel was his own speech. "Are you sure about this?" asked Rhea Cheetham, head of the LEA, "Eddie you could walk right into your first headship here at Waterloo Road."

Eddie was sure. Yes, he had ambitions to be a headteacher one day, but not here, not now, and definitely not like this. Rachel deserved this headship, and this school deserved a head like Rachel.

"You know Eddie, this vote probably isn't going to go the way you want it to. People are going to question your support of Rachel. You will both end out of a job."

"Look Eddie, we all know you're attracted to her, but we can see things more objectively. Don't put your job at risk for a former prostitute."

Still, Eddie was sure. It was more than his feelings toward her personally, which they had so crassly used against him, made it sound like he could not be objective. Rachel had done wonders for this school. The letters of support were only part of the evidence that backed this up. Truancy was down, the mock exam grades were up, behaviour was improved. But it was also about what was morally right. He could not betray her, not for a promotion, not for any reason. Rachel deserved to be headteacher of this school, and this school deserved a headteacher like Rachel. Defending her was the right thing to do.

By the end of the day, when he joined his colleagues for a celebratory drink, it was Rachel he wanted to get back to. She had to know the news. He was unsure whether she would even want to return to Waterloo Road after everything that had happened, but at least that decision was hers to make now. It was about much more than just keeping her job and defending her from criticism. It was about respect, professionalism, and most of all, the children. Now Rachel could return to Waterloo Road and make a success of this school.