Author Note:

Hey guys! Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews - I appreciate them so much. Thank you also, especially to my newest reviewer Hailey who's in depth reviews made me so happy. I'm glad you're enjoying this as much as I am writing it.

Here is the next part for you and I want to apologise for how long it's taken me - a combination of both technological problems and motivational issues if I'm honest.

Anyways, I hope you like. Please read and review - feel free to offer me constructive criticism because it helps me tremendously.

Leanne xx

Disclaimer:

Still don't own Waterloo Road. Everything you recognise is property of Shed TV.

Half Alive

Part Eight

"Here," Rob passed Jess a box of tissues and she gave him a watery smile in return. "Do you want to talk?"

Jess seemed to be considering it for a minute, eyeing him intently as though working out if she could trust him. She thought she could. Every time she'd seen him and her mum together, she couldn't recall ever seeing her that at ease when she was at home. It could have been that Jess was imagining it but at least on Rob's part she was sure she wasn't. She'd caught him watching her several times now, but what she also knew was that neither of them had realised what was staring them so obviously in the face. She doubted her mum would act on it, even if she did. "Do you like my mum?" She asked frankly, surprising them both; whatever Rob had been expecting her to say it wasn't this.

"I care about her a lot," He answered after reflecting on the question, and handing her a glass of water which she accepted gratefully. "She's a good friend, why do you ask?"

Jess was silent for a while and Rob watched as she twisted a wet tissue in her hands, before tearing it to shreds and piling it neatly on the corner of his desk. "Why didn't you want me to fetch Karen?" He asked, probing gently for the source of her daughter's discomfort.

The young girl looked up at his question and she couldn't help but wonder if her mum had confided in Rob. "Because she doesn't need to know," Jess replied finally, a trace of irritation lacing her words, "She has enough on her plate at the minute and I don't want to add to that."

From the knowing look Rob gave her, Jess knew that he had to know something about what was going on in their home even if he didn't say anything in response to her comment, and she felt somewhat reassured about the prospect of talking to him. "Well if you do want to talk about anything, I'm a good listener." He sensed her reluctance, and continued, "I won't pretend I understand what it's like for you, but sometimes it helps to talk."

Jess' face closed up at the reminder of why she was there. She didn't want to talk abut it because she didn't think she could bear the sympathy but at the same time there was this irrepressible desire to spill everything she'd been carrying around with her recently. Rob watched her having a silent inner battle with herself, and reached across the desk for some maintenance forms. Neither of them spoke as he started to fill them in and Jess watched him for a few minutes before getting up the courage to speak. It seemed strange; mouthy Jess Fisher afraid of talking? It wasn't a word usually associated with her, but there was nothing else other than scared, or downright terrified which could describe how she was feeling now. "Our lesson was on domestic violence," She spoke so quietly that Rob had to lean forward to be able to hear her clearly. Her eyes had misted over, and she traced her fingers over the raised up surface of the desk. "I couldn't handle it."

Rob put his pen down, unsure what to say at first; whether to bring up what he knew about their home situation or – now that he knew it was in relation to that – to suggest that Jess spoke to her mum about it. It turned out he didn't need to say anything though because the young girl continued to talk, "There were all these statistics, and the percentage of unreported cases of domestic abuse should have shocked me, but it didn't because – because –" Her voice trailed off and she muttered something incoherent. It had been one thing suspecting it and something completely different actually knowing the truth. Just as there was a difference between knowing and being forced to put a label on it.

"Because you know your Mum has become one of those statistics,"Rob supplied for her, dully choosing his words carefully, warily surveying the vulnerable teen.

Jess nodded wordlessly because she couldn't have put it any better herself. "You already knew didn't you?" She said finally, "Mum told you what he does to her."

The words made them both feel sick to the stomach and haltingly Rob started to speak, "I figured it out," He admitted, "I've known for a couple of weeks now." There was an awkward pause, "When did you find out?"

Jess leaned forward in her chair, her long red tresses falling in front of her face and shielding her from his enquiring eyes. "If feels like I've always known something wasn't right between them," She admitted softly and Rob gathered she'd picked up on the atmosphere between her parents. Jess was a clever girl and if things at home were as tense as he'd witnessed on Friday, it really wasn't difficult. "But I just assumed it spelled out divorce," She continued, "It wouldn't surprise me; they don't know I know but Dad, he – he's been seeing other women for years."

Rob could feel himself becoming angered by her words, but found he wasn't surprised either. If Charlie could hit her, then he could certainly sleep with other woman without thinking anything of it. Though how he could possibly want anyone else when he had Karen to go home to was beyond him.

"The other morning I noticed that she had a black eye," Jess said, bringing Rob back to the conversation at hand, "I asked her about it and she told me she'd caught it on a cupboard." Rob nodded understandingly, "I might have believed her if she hadn't completely covered it up. I didn't understand why she'd do that if it was an accident." The words caught in her throat and she began to cough so Rob refilled her drink. Taking a sip of water and a moment to compose herself, she continued her explanation, "I couldn't prove it so I was going to watch and see how they behaved, but Dad wasn't there. He spent the weekend shacked up with one of his whores!"

There was a startling amount of venom in her voice; her fist angrily made contact with the wooden desk and Rob winced, hearing a loud crack. Tears spilled impassively down her cheeks and she forced herself to continue, possibly knowing that if she didn't, she wouldn't be able to finish. She stood up and began to pace around, agitated and unable to sit still anymore, "I got up early this morning though and I thought mum had overslept because I couldn't hear her downstairs, so I went to wake her. I was outside their room and I heard a slap," Jess shook her head to clear it of the unpleasant mental imagery her words conjured up – as if it was really that simple – and she had to fight down a wave of sudden dizziness. "When I opened the door, he – she – he had her pinned against a wall, I couldn't do anything." Her voice rose hysterically and she sank back into her chair as the brave façade crumbled. "How could he do that to her?"

Rob couldn't answer that question, because he didn't have the first idea what possessed anyone to behave that appallingly towards someone they'd once promised to love unconditionally, "There was nothing you could've done Jess," Rob said into the silence. For a while neither of them said anything, the quietness of the room only broken by the sound of the teenager crying. "Does your mum know what you saw?" He asked eventually, once her tears had subsided; there were lines of worry etched on his face, and not even a glimmer of the usual sparkle in his eye.

Jess looked up from the desk shamefaced, and slowly shook her head, "I had to hide in the bathroom until Dad had gone, and then I went to check on her, but she'd locked herself in." She absentmindedly toyed with the many bracelets looped over her wrist. "I left the house before she came down. I wanted to stay but – but I didn't know how to face her because I knew she'd just act as though nothing had happened." There was a pleading note in her voice for Rob to understand and it was clear she blamed herself.

Rob reached out to lay a hand on her arm but instantly retracted it, thinking better of his involuntary movement. "I haven't known Karen long," He hesitated briefly before continuing, "But it seems to me that this is her way of dealing with what's happening."

"But she's not dealing with it," Jess replied pointedly, running a hand frustratedly through her hair. "That's the point."

Rob sighed; as much as he didn't want to have to involve Karen he knew he didn't have a choice. Her daughter was in pieces and instead of speaking to him; her mum was the one who she should be saying this to. Although Jess had confided in him, Rob still felt as though he was intruding on a private conversation. "Jess, I know I said I wouldn't but –"

"You're going to fetch my mum," Jess finished for him, biting her already short black nails. At least she didn't sound angry.

"I really think you need to be having this conversation with her," Rob explained. "I know you think you're a grown up now," He gave her a small smile, "My Aiden's the same." At his words Jess gave him a weak grin in return. "But you're too young to have to cope with something like this on your own." She didn't reply, but she did understand what he was saying was right, and that he only wanted to help them. Somehow talking to the site manager had lifted a weight from her shoulders, "Okay," She answered finally.

Rob sent her another reassuring smile, "You can stay here. I'll go and speak to her first, okay?"

Jess nodded gratefully incapable of speaking, and he got up from his seat. "Thank you," She said, suddenly finding her voice again, "For this and – and for being there for my mum."

Rob gave her a casual shrug, swallowing the beginnings of a lump that had formed at her words, "You're welcome," He said, choked, "If you ever need anything-" He left the rest of his sentence unfinished, disappearing out of the office.

Jess watched his retreating figure disappear through the double doors at the end of the corridor and sighed, pulling her bag towards her and retrieving her science work. With the heavy feeling in her chest somewhat eased, she began attempting to understand their latest homework. The last thing she needed was another lecture.