Thank you for the reviews... I suspected that you would all enjoy the last chapter... And the countdown is on before Adam leaves as well... Not that I think he is actually featured a lot from now on... Bit like the show really... only turned up to cause some sort of drama for Rachel... I'm not bitter (I am extremely bitter).

The title of this one really gives away what this chapter is about. But it is only half of Series 4 Episode 11... saving the other half for the next chapter... You will see why. But Kim is back (without Grace because as self-righteous Kim was, I think she would still think that trafficking a child (even from a bad situation) was wrong.)

Chapter Twenty Six
Kim's Return

Rachel sighed as Philip walked off into the school. There was no denying it. He was taking Melissa's abandonment hard and it only led to her blaming herself more for letting it happen. She knew that she should have told Melissa from the start that she fancied Eddie and she was certain that Eddie fancied her but she knew that she had never been good at telling her sister things that she was meant to tell her. The thing that striked her most about the argument was how bitter Melissa still was about everything. She knew in time that she would be able to convince herself that Philip was better off without Melissa about but it didn't help her or him in the meantime.

"Stop it will you," Eddie said as he stopped beside her.

"I can't."

"It isn't your fault."

"If I hadn't confronted her or told her those things, then she wouldn't have left him."

"She shouldn't have abandoned him over something that you said. And what she said to you was way worse than anything you could have said to her."

"Still doesn't help does it?"

"Is he still taking it badly?"

"Of course he is. I think he is scared that I am going to do the same thing. I just can't work out what is going through his head."

"You need to show him that you aren't going to leave him."

"Easier said than done." She sighed. "Although I think we should probably go and welcome our new Head of Pastoral Care, or should I say returning."

"I wouldn't see the appeal of coming back."

"Maybe if it needed saving again."

She shared a smile with him as they walked over to the car that had just parked up. Rachel knew that she needed someone in charge of Pastoral Care that she knew could do a good job at it. It wasn't that Tom didn't do a good job, but there were things that maybe should have been picked up on. She hoped that with an old hand coming back, someone who knew the school well, it might help her relax and hand out more of the responsibilities, mainly so she could focus on Philip.

"Morning Kim." Rachel said as the other woman got out of the car.

"Morning," Kim said as she got herself sorted before she shook Rachel's hand.

"Looking forward to being back?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Well from what I gather, the staff room hasn't changed too much. There are still some familiar faces." Rachel found herself placing a hand on Eddie's arm. "This is Eddie Lawson, my deputy."

They exchanged pleasantries but Rachel could already tell that there might be a clash of personalities between them.

"Right, we had better let you get settled in again and meeting in my office at the break." Rachel said.

"Sounds great," Kim said.

Rachel allowed Kim to walk a few paces before she nudged Eddie.

"Don't be an awkward sod." She said to him.

"I'm not."

"Good. Because we need to be on the ball this term."

"Yes, Miss."

"I mean it, Eddie." She said smiling up at him.

"And there she is."

"What do you mean?"

He leant over to whisper in her ear. "There is the Rachel Mason I love."

"If you're lucky, I might buy you a drink later."

"I might hold you to that."

Rachel always knew that they wouldn't keep their relationship from Kim for long. Firstly, one of the first people who would want to catch Kim up with everything that she missed, would be Steph and Rachel knew that her and Eddie's relationship would be high on her agenda. Secondly, Adam was still about and as jealous as ever. And thirdly, it just seemed obvious that they were together.

There was also the small point of Kim walking into her office while Eddie's arms were around her waist, kissing her neck.

"Steph caught me up," Kim said as they jumped apart.

"We weren't going to keep it from you." Rachel said.

"I doubt that you were."

"Right, shall we start?"

Eddie gave her a smile while she shook her head. Rachel wanted to be mad at him but she couldn't. Not for very long.

"So the main point of today is working out how we are going to contain the return of Denzil next week?" Rachel said.

"Why? What did he do?" Kim said.

"He was given a gun by his brother."

"What?!"

"The worst part was that he was convicted for the gun and has spent since October in a young offenders. The Kellys have been rather… unwelcomed many times since their arrival." Eddie explained.

"Which means we have to handle this well. We will have to get Jasmine back on trying to help him with his reading and writing as well." Rachel said.

"Sounds like a typical Waterloo Road student," Kim said. "I didn't mean that in a bad way."

"We know you didn't. But are we okay to hand this over to you? Being Pastoral Care and all."

"Of course."

"Good. When did Rob say the boxing club was going to be?"

"Boxing? Rachel, you can't be allowing that."

"Rob has been going on about it since the first gun. I can't deny that I don't have my own objections to it but I would rather them punching the living daylights out of each other than bring in knives and guns."

"Anything to stop Rachel from looking down the barrel of another gun," Eddie said.

"And it is a trail anyway. We will have to see how it goes."

"I just hope you know what you are doing," Kim said.

Rachel didn't say anything else. Not when she wasn't fully on board with the idea yet.

Eddie sighed as he saw the look on Rachel's face as Rob walked away to get the kids to move around the little circuit that he had created to try and show her what a good idea the boxing club was. It had been popular, with quite a few of the 'problem' kids being there.

"Right, can I have worried panicked Rachel now rather than later?"

"I want to believe that this is a good idea and that Rob is right and it will help with the discipline and their behaviour. Maybe I just wish that he didn't want to do full-contact boxing."

"Is it getting Kim on board as well?"

"When Tom said that she was opinionated, maybe I didn't believe how strongly she held onto her beliefs."

"Look, we have discussed the boxing many times. Especially after what happened last term. As you said this morning, I would prefer to rip apart a fight with fists than them having knives. If this reduces the possibility of that happening, then we can keep the students safer."

"Maybe I need to get her to come down and see."

"Plus it is a trail and you have the final say."

He watched her as she smiled. It was still the most beautiful part of her and Eddie was impressed at how far she had come since her first day back. She still continued to amaze him every day and he was so glad that he could call her his.

"Why don't you come round tonight? After the pub?" Rachel said. "I could do with some company that isn't a teenage boy whose mother has just abandoned him. Although I don't really blame him for sulking."

"It will get better Rachel."

"I know. I just worry."

"I know you do."

She nudged him. "At least one of us does."

"Everything will be fine in the end. You know that."

"I know. But in the meantime…"

"In the meantime, you have a school to run and I have a lesson that I need to get to." He said with a smile as he saw what the time was.

"Better not be late Lawson."

"Of course not Mason. You're the boss."

Eddie was glad that he could leave her smiling. He wondered whether he could have the chance to talk to Philip man-to-man. Maybe just to see what he could do to help them both out.

"Welcome back Kim." Rachel said as she held up her glass.

There was a cheer from most of the staff and it was nice to see them all so happy. She realised how relaxed she was as Eddie placed a kiss on her temple and the way that Adam glared at them didn't bother her one bit. There was no denying it. She had a group of teachers that she was proud to call her own. They could still achieve everything that she wanted to achieve by the end of the year.

"I'm guessing Melissa isn't coming back," Steph said.

"Steph, if I knew where she was, I would be dragging her back to apologise to Philip. I don't care what she says about me. She had no right to abandon him like that." Rachel said

"She'll come back," Adam said.

"How can you be so sure? Unless you know something about my sister that I don't."

"Maybe I just know her better."

"No. You're right. She might come back. Just I know the longer she leaves it, the less likely Philip is going to forgive her."

Rachel knew that Eddie had probably shot Adam a look so that he didn't reply to that. Not that she needed him to try and win her battles, just the pub wasn't really the place to have that argument. Steph was as good at reading a situation as ever and turned the attention to Kim, asking what happened in Rwanda and what happened to Andrew.

"I've told you that everything will be fine in the end," Eddie whispered to her.

"What if he does know where she is?"

"Then he is an idiot for keeping that information from you and Philip. But from the few months that Melissa has been here, I don't think she cares. She has no sense of responsibility. Philip might hate her now but maybe it is a good thing in the long run."

"Maybe." She sighed. "I just…"

"Look, let me talk to Philip. Maybe I can work out what is going through that head of his or he might feel a little more comfortable talking to me than his auntie. Let me do something to try and help."

"Just try not to make it seem like you are doing it for me. The last thing I want him to feel is ambushed."

"I'll be discrete."

Rachel smiled as she leant into him slightly before turning back to the rest of the staff. For once, she wasn't second-guessing herself or her decisions. She knew that everything would be okay because Eddie told her so. It was something she had to believe or otherwise, she could feel herself doing something stupid, like trying to push the one person she wanted away.