January 5th 1992 – Parkwick Road, Hotten, Yorkshire, UK

Gordon Livesy was taking the rubbish out when he saw Cain sat on his wall waiting for him. He'd expected this moment to come at some point, but he thought Dingle was at a Young Offenders' Institute. His heart quickened its beating as the other teenager approached him slowly.

"Cain, I thought…"

"No you didn't" Cain interrupted as he got so close to him he could feel his breath on his face when he spoke, "you didn't think at all did you, going with a thirteen year old, my sister?"

"I never…" he was going to deny it, but he never got the chance because Cain grabbed him by the throat and pushed him against the wall.

"You'd better not be about to call my sister a liar, because I swear…"

This time it was Cain who wasn't able to finish his sentence as both boys' ears were grabbed from behind and they were dragged into the house.

January 5th 1992 – Hotten General Hospital, Yorkshire, UK

Cain watched Chas like a hawk through the window as she spoke with the older woman. Chas kept glancing at him, checking he was still there, that he'd not left her alone again. The woman was perched on the end of her bed, talking very seriously to her, Chas scowling as she listened. She asked a few questions, to which Chas nodded. He wished he knew what they were saying to each other, but he'd been warned to stay out of the room.

He wasn't sure quite what had happened. He'd gone to Parkwick Road to beat the crap out of Gordon Livesy and ended up being scolded by Evie Livesy, his more than formidable mother, who had demanded to know exactly what was going on. And Cain found himself telling her everything he knew, which wasn't much, as she made him a cup of tea. Gordon had made himself scarce and Cain had wanted to go after him, but Evie told him it sounded to her like they had far more important things to do at the hospital.

So here he was, watching as Evie brushed the hair out of Chas's eyes, held Chas's face up to the light, hand under her chin, inspecting her injuries. Simple things that mothers seemed to do instinctively with their kids, but that neither he nor his sister had ever experienced. Chas's scowl started to slip, her chin started to wobble, and she completely crumbled into tears. Evie held the girl in her arms, rubbing circles on her back, and speaking words of comfort in her ear. Cain could no longer just stand outside and watch, he opened the door and coughed to make his presence known. Evie didn't let go of Chas, just turned her head and said, "Be a love and get us a coffee. Milk two sugars, purse is in my bag"

Cain hesitated, "Is she alright?" he asked. He'd never seen Chas cry before, not since she was a baby, and certainly not like that.

"She's fine love. Hormones" Evie said, and Cain backed out of the room straight away. "Works every time" she told Chas softly.

Chas pulled away and wiped her eyes, embarrassed that she'd broken down on a complete stranger, annoyed at herself for being so weak. But there was something about this woman that made her feel she could be a bit more open with her feelings.

Evie let the girl compose herself and went to take a proper look at her grandson. She'd been shocked and appalled by the day's events - learning her teenager had fathered a child was bad enough, but with a thirteen year old girl, she was ashamed to call him her son at that moment. And meeting the poor thing, all skinny and small and covered in bruises with no one but that hoodlum of a brother to look out for her, her heart ached for the child. She picked Aaron up out of his cot and cradled him gently. He was a beautiful, bonny lad and he was her flesh and blood. She knew she needed to sort this mess out for his sake if no one else's.

She brought him round and sat back on the edge of the bed. She noticed Chas was eyeing him warily, like she was scared of him. She saw that she was still in shock from the birth and just needed a bit of encouragement, a bit of teaching. First though, she needed someone to trust.

It was an hour later when the two finally finished their talk and Cain was allowed to speak to Chas again. Evie gave Aaron one last hug and kiss and put him back in his cot, then surprised Chas by giving her a kiss on the cheek, squeezing her hand and saying "you're gonna be fine Chastity, you're a capable young lady, and we'll do this together, I promise".

Chas smiled at her, ignoring Cain's questioning look until Evie had left the room and the door was closed.

"What was that about?" Cain asked, flopping down into the seat he'd occupied before.

"That was Evie" Chas replied, yawning. She was tired before and the last hour had zapped the last of her energy.

"Yes I'm well aware of who she is, my ear still hurts from where she nearly pulled it off my head"

Chas scowled, "you shouldn't have got caught then. I think that was the last thing I said to you, wasn't it?"

Cain scowled back, "I never meant to".

"No, you never do, do you."

"So what did she want?"

"She wants Aaron."

"Eh?"

"And me. To stay with her."

"I hope you told her where to stick it" Cain scoffed.

"Actually, I said yes" Chas replied.

"What did you say that for? You can't seriously want to…"

"What? Live in a clean house that has electricity and heating all the time? Yeah, sounds good to me"

"But you don't know her. And you'll be living with that idiot, Livesy. What are you going to do, marry him?"

"Don't be stupid. I'm thirteen."

"I'm stupid? You're being ridiculous. This is against Dingle code, this is."

"No Cain, the alternative – going into care, letting Aaron be taken into care, that's against the code. I'm doing what's right, I'm looking after family. This is what's best for Aaron, to live with his grandparents, his mum and dad, Evie showed me that".

"She's brainwashed you. I'm not gonna let you do this. I'm gonna ring Auntie Colleen, tell her what's happened and she'll let you stay with them."

"They've got enough mouths to feed. Everyone has. Evie's husband's loaded, they can look after us, it's fine. And she said she can look after Aaron while I go to school, so that's good".

"What about Shadrach?" Cain was clutching at straws now, he didn't like the idea of his sister going to live with strangers, but he couldn't argue with her, she was too smart.

"What about him? When he turns up, I'll tell him he's a granddad and he'll probably go on a bender and bog off again. Cain, you're looking at this the wrong way. I'm sorted now, I've found a family that's stupid enough to take me in and pay for me to live with them in a posh house. Why argue with that?"

Cain was mostly appeased by this. He saw that she was falling asleep so he left her to get some rest. "Fine, have it your way" he said, "one less thing for me to worry about. See you tomorrow" and then he left.

Once he'd gone, Chas sagged into the bed in exhaustion. She'd tried to make Cain think she was confident about her decision, but really, she was completely petrified about what she'd signed up for. Evie had been as affable as her son, full of grand ideas and promises of safety. But Chas knew she couldn't trust anyone, as much as she'd love to believe that Evie was as nice as she seemed. She'd never met her husband, and how would it work out living in the same house as Gordon?

Evie had talked sense, planned it all out, saying she'd make sure she'd be able to finish her education, that she could secure a good future for both Chas and Aaron, keep them safe and together. How could Chas refuse that kind of offer, an assurance that her son would be looked after like she'd never been? And if she had to make some sacrifices, so be it. She'd put up with Gordon if it meant her baby was safe and happy.

She sat up and took Aaron out of his crib, the first time she'd done so since she'd given birth to him. He started to fuss, so she stroked his head and shushed him. The soft down of his hair made her smile. She still couldn't believe she'd made this perfect being, with his little hands and smooth skin and bright blue eyes. She kissed him on the cheek and whispered to him, "we're safe for now, you and me. Nothing's going to split us up. Nothing"