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Chapter 21: At The Finish Line

The guilt was more than beginning to set in the following morning when Rachel found herself sitting adjacent to Melissa in a hospital bed. She couldn't help thinking that things could have taken a different turn if she'd ran after her sister the previous day.

Alcohol poisoning was what she and Philip had been told, something to be expected given the nine hours straight Melissa had spent drinking. Not to mention the consistency of her alcohol consumption in recent weeks.

Rachel couldn't even think about work as she watched her sister sleep, something which she had gotten very little of herself.

Following on from a four am call from Philip, she had managed to persuade Eddie to stay in bed, with the knowledge that he would most probably be holding the fort at school, for the following morning at least.

Despite that, Rachel found herself wishing that very man was by her side now, holding her hand and whispering assurances that would undoubtedly make her feel as though everything would turn out just fine. Rachel shook herself mentally, questioning when she had become so dependent on another human. It was just a mark of how far her and Eddie had come, how much she had let him in these past months. And Rachel wasn't about to put that to a halt now, she realised.

She took a final glance at Melissa as her phone began to ring, grin widening upon realising it was the person who had been gracing her thoughts for the past ten minutes or so.

"Eddie," Rachel answered in a hushed tone once she'd reached a relatively spaced out area of the corridor, fully wishing she was anywhere but here.

"Hey, thought I'd check up on you before I face the masses."

The pure thought and sentiment of that had emotion swelling in Rachel's heart as she huffed out a laugh, "I'm okay. Tired though."

He hummed in agreement, "I'm not surprised. Listen, you take the morning off at least Rach, I'll hold the fort."

"Are you sure Eddie, I…"

"Absolutely. I know you'll be wanting to check on Philip. Plus, you'll be falling asleep on the job if you don't grab an extra few hours."

Rachel couldn't help but chuckle at Eddie's shot of feeding some light heartedness into the conversation. He would always know her, and exactly what she needed to hear.

"Thank you, Eddie. Really. I don't know what I'd do without you more than half the time."

"You don't need to thank me. And you just know that the feeling is mutual."

Although unseen to Eddie, she smiled, all of a sudden wishing she was buried in his arms.

"Is Melissa any better?"

"Not much. She is going to be fine though. I just don't think this whole fiasco reflects particularly well in terms of the trial. Which is what… just over two weeks away?"

"I did think that. You've done all you can, Rach. Paid for a bloody good lawyer, stuck by her side."

"You know me, always questioning if I could have done more."

"You're doing brilliantly."

"I love you, Eddie."

It was Eddie's turn to grin now, silently hoping that his contentment would be evident in his tone, "I love you too, always."

A goodbye spoken, Rachel sighed as the ending of the phone call brought her crashing back down to reality with a bump. She took several moments to compose herself, watching as multiple people passed by, some in a hurry, some not.

Glancing at the clock, Rachel realised Eddie was very much right, she would have to catch a few hours of sleep before heading into work. Running off four hours of it wasn't exactly appealing.

….

Eddie shut the door purposefully slowly, wishing he had done the same when emerging into the office, having spotted Rachel on the sofas, curled up and asleep. He froze for a few moments, a soft smile etched into his lips as he placed down the sandwich and apple he had brought for her.

Eventually sitting down beside Rachel, Eddie now regrettes not persuading her to have the afternoon off too. Her exhaustion wasn't a surprise given that she'd spent the majority of the night by Melissa's bedside. Rachel was too selfless for her own good sometimes, yet still, Eddie loved her for it and would never change that part of her for the world.

He intended not to wake her as he brushed a lock of hair back from her eyes, yet Rachel was a relatively light sleeper, lids fluttering open as she drank in her surroundings.

Initial thoughts were of Melissa, Philip, the drink, the bigamy - and it felt as though the world was caving in on her. Yet then Rachel saw Eddie, knew without looking in the mirror that her features had softened, aware that her heart rate had returned to its normal pace.

She reached out for his hand as she sat up, not hesitating to lean into him. Unbeknownst to Rachel, Eddie smiled, loving how open she tended to be with him now.

"Did everything go smoothly here this morning?"

"Perfect. Other than Michaela White winding up in the cooler within ten minutes of the first lesson. But what's new?"

Rachel chuckled lightly, finding herself realising how much she'd missed the school even if it had only been half a day.

"And you?" Eddie spoke softly, holding her hand that little bit tighter, "how are you?"

Rachel stilled for a moment, mulling over the question. It wasn't herself she was concerned about, she realised, "I'm worried about Philip."

Eddie sat up a little, quashing his instinct to put Rachel first and press more about her feelings. But this mattered to her, and it mattered to him too.

"He's taking it badly?"

Rachel's single nod spoke volumes, her eyes darting, "he… doesn't want to live with Melissa. Now that she's spent the night in hospital, at home again, he hates the thought of… watching her get drunk all hours of the day. Doubts her pact to get help this time."

Eddie retook her hand instantly, shifting himself closer so that their sides were practically pressed together, "you know I meant what I said the other day. I'd be more than happy to have him around."

Rachel was teetering on a line between elated and heartened, already knowing that Eddie would support her no matter what, but not denying how amazing it felt to hear those words.

"You wouldn't?"

She was sure her voice was shaking, eyes wide as she tilted her head. Eddie broke out into half a chuckle, reaching out to brush a thumb across her jawline, "of course I wouldn't," he hesitated for a moment, and Rachel was sure that her heart stopped in anticipation of what he may say next, "he's… family."

The lump in Rachel's throat was impossible for her to ignore, the sense that she hadn't realised Eddie could get any more perfect almost overwhelming her.

For Eddie, he couldn't do anything other than engulf Rachel in his arms as she launched forwards, burying his face deep in her hair as he inhaled the scent he loved so much.

She pressed a kiss to the side of his neck, the only place reachable, "you're the best thing that's ever happened to me."

Eddie didn't think he'd ever stop grinning, that very comment causing his heart to soar. It was a feeling he knew he could relate to, "ditto."

It must have been the best part of lunch time before the pair parted from one another's arms, still choosing to maintain a close proximity as they ate.

"Although, I'm not too sure how thrilled Melissa is going to be about all of this," Rachel broke the contented silence, glancing across at Eddie as she did so.

"Maybe it'll be the wake up call that she needs. Not having Phil by her side might persuade her to get help, go to an aa meeting."

Rachel hoped so, for her nephew's sake more than her own, "perhaps. I do think it'll push her and I further apart. I think Melissa's exact phrasing yesterday was 'I wanted to ask how my son is. Seen as he's spending more time with you than me at the moment'"

Eddie couldn't hold back his wince, knew it wasn't misdirected, "after everything you've done for her, Rach. Melissa shouldn't be doing anything other than praising you."

Rachel sighed, wishing wholeheartedly that that was the case. Wishing that Melissa and Stuart were never connected, that her sister hadn't hidden what she knew of the fire. Maybe then this whole scenario would be marginally more straightforward.

"Melissa doesn't work like that I'm afraid. Well, not where I'm concerned. She's only ever been able to see the bad."

Eddie started at her intently for what seemed like forever, feeling a smile twitch at his lips, "there's nothing bad about you."

Rachel just knew her cheeks had pinkened under his gaze, "you're biased," she grinned and nudged him playfully.

It was a moment or two before Rachel glanced back towards Eddie, to realise that his gaze very much remained upon her.

"What about you?" He questioned lightly, "do you think… having a relationship with Melissa is on the cards? After everything."

Eddie waited with patience as Rachel considered his words, knowing that what he'd posed wasn't an easy question.

Rachel huffed out a long breath as she tilted her head backwards, realising this was something she was still trying to comprehend herself. Did she want to reconcile with Melissa? Her little sister above all else, but someone who'd manipulated, lied and crushed Rachel's heart more than a handful of times.

"Melissa's my sister. But I…"

"The fire," Eddie spoke with understanding, all of a sudden wishing this topic wasn't something he'd brought up, given the pained expression evident in Rachel's features.

She nodded, "but it's not just that, Eddie. There's so much more to it. I've lost track of times when Melissa hasn't considered anyone aside from herself."

He could only imagine, and it broke Eddie's heart to think about what Rachel had been through. He just knew he'd be there for her no matter what, for the rest of their lives if she'd let him.

"I understand. And I'll support you whatever you decide."

Rachel couldn't be more grateful for that, knew she would never take Eddie or his unwavering care for granted.

….

"Mum, it's just till you get yourself back on your feet, get some actual help, alright?" Philip chose to keep his eyes anywhere but his mum as he packed, throwing whatever clothes he could find into a holdall.

"Phil love, I'm ill! And what, you're just going to leave me?"

Philip refused to feel guilty, closed his eyes as he reminded himself that this was no one's fault but his mother's.

"Yeah and why are you ill? That's why I'm going. Because… you need help."

"Need help? Don't do this Phil," she lurched forwards to grab his jacket, preventing him from leaving, "I don't know what Rachel's been telling you about me…"

"Rachel? This has got nothing to do with Rachel mum. For god's sake, take some responsibility."

Melissa was glaring at him as though he was a stranger, eyes wide and for one terrible moment, Philip thought she was going to slap him.

The doorbell rang and he had never been more grateful for an interruption, especially when knowing exactly who was waiting for him. A much needed escape route.

"Oh that'll be the doting auntie," she sneered, hot on his heels as he ran down the stairs.

"Mum, god's sakes," Philip inclined his head as he opened the door, keeping his voice at the lowest volume possible, "will you just leave it."

"So, Rach. You didn't think to tell me, did you?"

No, of course his mum couldn't just leave it.

"Tell you what, Melissa?"

His aunt's voice was painfully soft compared to Melissa's, not a single trace of spite or anguish as she took a step into their home. The realisation suffocated Philip, the atmosphere caving in on him, knowing he had to get out of there.

"Look, I'm waiting outside."

"See what you've done?" Melissa jumped straight back on the defensive, approaching Rachel with fury almost exploding from her demeanour.

"Calm down Mel, let's talk about this properly, rather than having a shouting match."

Rachel had not expected for one moment that her words would work, yet they did, to a certain extent anyway. Melissa visibly slumped, body relaxing as she almost collapsed on the bottom step of the staircase.

"He hates me," her voice cracked, hands coming to rest on her head, and despite everything, Rachel's heart shattered as she took a step closer.

"Oh, Mel. He doesn't hate you. Philip just… he wants you to get help, go to an aa meeting. You and him just need some time apart, that's all."

"I've got my first aa meeting tomorrow." The response was almost inaudible, mumbled into the palm of her hands, but Rachel heard it, and hoped like hell it was the truth.

"Well that's excellent."

"But the court case, the bigamy. I'm going to go to prison, aren't I?"

Rachel sighed, lowering herself to Melissa's level, "you don't know that, not yet. If you can just… show them that you're making an effort? Then you have a leg to stand on, they'll take you seriously. And you can start... by following through with your plans to go to that meeting tomorrow."

The silence was excruciating as Melissa nodded, raising her eyes for the first time. Rachel wished that she could see something other than her little sister, wished she could see just how terribly Melissa had treated her in the past. But… she couldn't, and didn't think she ever would, even if they never spoke again.

It was odd how, for once, Melissa seemed to read Rachel's thoughts, tilting her head as she began to speak, "getting back in touch with you wasn't just about Hordley. I meant it when I said that… I've missed my big sis."

"Melissa…"

"No, I know, I know. I know what you're going to say."

"I just… I don't think things are going to be the same again, are they? Maybe one day, I can see myself being able to move on from everything, and be your sister again. Just, not now. Not yet."

"Not now, not yet is better than nothing."

Rachel managed a smile, even as she knew it was anything but wholehearted, "you've always been the optimist."

"Look after Phil?"

"You already know I will."