In Any Event 9
A/N- Hey folks, so this has been sat on my laptop for a couple of weeks waiting to be finished and now I have a slightly different idea for the ending so, lets get on with it.
"Caroline? Are you alright?" Kate asked as she stood just inside the doorway.
"Hmmmmm? Yeah fine. I was just thinking, remembering." Caroline's smile sparkled and Kate took that as an invitation to join her.
"What were you thinking about?" Kate asked as she sat close on the sofa.
Caroline slipped an arm around Kate and pulled her closer still, dropping a kiss on her temple.
"I was thinking about the first time we kissed." Caroline revealed.
Kate smiled, she had wrapped both arms around Caroline's middle and pulled her socked feet up behind her onto the sofa, getting comfortable, her head resting against Caroline's chest. "You remember it then?" She asked.
"Of course!" Caroline exclaimed, giving Kate a light squeeze. "I remember the week that John left. I was a bitch all week, I was awful to the staff, the pupils, I suspended one boy for two days because I overheard him calling his mate a shitbox. I think that by Wednesday the whole school had run for cover and when I left my office the corridors I walked were suddenly deserted., like a ghost town."
"You were hurting." Kate excused. "You were just lashing out."
Caroline smiled fondly at Kate's defence of her even now, she ran a hand over Kate's hair.
"Then you came to my office, Friday afternoon. Do you remember?" Caroline asked.
Kate nodded at once, smiling at the memory.
"I was just about to tell you to shove the 18 members of the staff choir up your arse and then you sat there and you looked at me so sweetly and you asked me if I was alright, really asked me, like you really wanted to know. I couldn't belive it." Caroline recalled.
"And you cried." Kate said softly. "You sat there and a tear rolled down your cheek." Kate placed a finger tip carefully to the corner of Caroline's eye and traced the path that that tear might have taken.
"I had something in my eye." Caroline dismissed.
Kate's mouth hung open. "You cried." She insisted. "And I made you some tea... But that wasn't when we had our first kiss." Kate said.
"No." Caroline agreed. "That was a few weeks later."
"I wanted to kiss you then." Admitted Kate. "Before then, for a while before then I'd wanted to. I sat there wanting to hold you, but I knew if I did, you would have ...freaked out." Kate surmised.
Caroline chuckled softly. "I would have, then. I hadn't thought of anything like that, well not really. I mean, I had noticed how beautiful you were of course and when Lawrence had mentioned that you were a lesbian...I had filed away the information. But I didn't think you would look twice at me. I mean, I wasn't thinking of anything like that anyway, I was still so cut up over John, well the rejection, the betrayal. I felt old and useless and drab..."
"Let's get back to the kissing part." Kate teased with a pout.
"So, we went for a drink that night and then we talked on the phone on the Sunday." Caroline recollected. "For over an hour, you were so easy to talk to and I hadn't talked to anyone in so long." Caroline kissed Kate's lips quickly.
"And then you realised I was only after one thing." Kate winked, repeating the kiss they had just shared.
"When you told me.." Caroline agreed.
"You didn't suspect before that? You hadn't noticed the looks I was giving you? The way I let my arm brush against your's as we walked side by side in the corridor? The fact that every time we were together, it was just the two of us."
"No, I didn't think that was... I thought that was normal female friend behaviour."
"All the compliments I paid you?" Kate continued.
"You were trying to make me feel better about myself, and it worked. Friends do that." Caroline argued.
"So you had no idea until I told you...how I felt?" Kate checked doubtfully.
"No." Caroline confirmed. "I believe you said you had a bit of a crush on me."
"Understatement of the century!" Kate chuckled at the memory. "I thought you were going to put me in detention."
"I was...surprised." Caroline said. "I remember when you said it, It was like all these feelings that had been there somewhere since we started talking, suddenly made perfect sense, it was terrifying." Caroline admitted. "Not just because you were a woman, but because of school, the boy's, everything. I remember, I started thinking that perhaps that was why John had left me in the first place, maybe he knew that I wasn't ... Normal."
"You always told me that you had a good marriage, before John cheated?" Kate said curiously.
"Yes, it was good, for a long time...but it wasn't the same as the way I felt with you, I never felt... out of control with John, I never felt derailed, enthralled..." Caroline broke off self consciously.
"I know what you mean...Richard and I were good friends for years, I loved him, he was my family. Maybe if we had been able to have children, that would have been enough for me...I don't know." Kate mused. "But he was never really in the same league as you." Kate's eyes seemed to glow as she looked into Caroline's.
"Do you think you could ever be married again?" Caroline asked, trying to sound casually curious.
Kate didn't fall for it. "I don't know...perhaps...if the right person asked me...for the right reasons..." She went on.
The sound of Mia calling out sleepily for Kate, sounded on the baby monitor, which Caroline had insisted on purchasing despite the fact that with the door to the room open the women could hear the child's voice from above without it. The moment disturbed, Caroline gripped the arm of the couch with her hand.
"I'll go." She told Kate.
Kate got up quickly. "No it's okay, you can go next time." She promised as she left the room and quietly made fast work of the stairs.
Caroline heard Kate trying to settle her daughter. "Hushhhhhh baby girl, what's the matter?"
"Mummy...hmmnn" Mia moaned.
"It's alright sweetheart, we are here, in your room, with eleflump, look!"
Caroline listened to the words and pictured Kate comforting Mia with her stuffed elephant toy.
"Caline!" Mia mumbled sulkily.
"She's just downstairs sweetheart, she's not going anywhere." Kate assured.
Caroline smiled at the simple statement and hoped that Kate really believed that. Caroline had known for a while now that she never wanted to be separated from Kate or Mia ever again, that she'd do anything to ensure that. She wanted to give them both some more security but she was all too aware that she had screwed up things in the past by rushing ahead, by not properly considering Kate's feelings and they had agreed that this time they would take things more slowly. So Caroline pushed the burning question down in her throat again and promised herself that soon she would arrange something suitably romantic, a weekend away somewhere or even a little holiday, they could take Mia to the beach, perhaps spain, they had talked about it in the past.
As Caroline pictured the scene, Kate rejoined her.
"Is she okay?" Caroline asked.
"She's fine. I think she is trying it on, being that someone brought her into bed with us last night." Kate said disapproving.
"Oh, but she'd had a bad dream, she was shaking like a leaf, I couldn't leave her alone." Caroline defended guiltily.
Kate raised a brow. "I've seen you turn a classroom full of unruly school boys into quivering wrecks and yet somehow a three year old little girl has you exactly where she wants you!"
"She is very clever and irresistibly cute, what can I do?" Caroline shrugged helplessly.
Kate curled up beside her once again, taking one of Caroline's hands in both of her own.
"I'm so pleased that you get on so well." Kate admitted. "Well...not just that you get on, it's more than that...she loves you." Kate told her sincerely.
"And I love her." Caroline said. "The same way I love the boys, she's my little girl."
Kate didn't doubt this and she smiled softly, it was all she had ever wanted and it seemed strange that now, after everything, it had happened so easily, so naturally. "What were we saying before Madam interrupted us?" She asked innocently.
"Oh." Caroline said, her mind having wandered upstairs to a now sleeping toddler. "We were just talking about the good old days."
"The first kiss?" Kate played along.
"Yes." Caroline replied.
Kate had finished choir practice and was, as usual, the last person to leave the hall, almost everyone wanting a quick word with her before they left. As she had finally trudged out to the car park she had spotted her bosses car, she almost continued on her way, but her mind flicked back to Caroline's eyes when she had passed her in the corridor earlier in the day, the steely blonde had barely registered her which was not in itself unusual, yet since they had been spending a little more time together lately it had seemed strange, as if Caroline had seen her and was hiding something from her.
Kate turned back into the school and headed for the Headmistress' office.
"Caroline?" She spoke as she knocked and only a second later popped her head around the door.
Caroline was standing at the window, gazing out, her arms folded in across her chest and her shoulders sagged. As Kate slowly crossed the room Caroline turned toward her and she saw the raw redness of recently shed tears, of angrily rubbed at eyes. Caroline blinked rapidly, as if she felt what Kate could see.
"Is there a problem?" Caroline asked quickly reverting to headmistress mode.
"No." Kate smiled. "I was just leaving, I saw you were still here."
Caroline looked over her shoulder to the desk, considering moving behind it to safety, back to Dr Elliot.
"I wanted to check you were alright." Kate said quickly. "Caroline? You've been crying." She didn't ask, that would only reap denials.
Caroline shook her head. "I'm fine. Just being silly." She dismissed.
"I can't imagine that." Kate shot back the tease. "Tell me about it?" She begged, looking only slightly hopeful. "Please?"
Caroline looked at her feet as she felt the light from the setting sun, shine through the window onto her face, for a moment illuminating the small space between she and Kate.
"I was just thinking about being alone. I'm no spring chicken but 45 years old seems a little young to be consigned to the scrap heap." Caroline tried to keep it light.
"It is. What makes you think you have to be alone?" Kate asked carefully.
"I can't start all that again, I wasn't very good at it the first time round and now it's all online profiles and speed dating. I wouldn't have a clue and I don't think I want to learn." Caroline admitted.
"You don't have to." Kate assured. "Some people still like to do it the old fashioned way."
"Maybe, but I don't know how, or when I'd have time to find someone like that and to be honest, look at me, who would want to be with a bossy, uptight, overworked, opinionated..." Caroline was on a roll now and Kate reached out and gently took hold of her wrist to stop her.
"Me?" Kate jumped in. Two feet in at the deep end. Splash.
Caroline frowned and studied Kate's face, was she joking? Kate's cheeks flushed and her eyes flicked away and back again, self consciously.
"I...you?" Caroline asked in a whisper, suddenly noticing Kate's lips and the way that the stray whisps of her hair had come untucked from behind her ear and had fallen against her cheek.
"I've had a crush on you for... forever." Kate said with a slight cringe. "I can't be the only one, you're amazing, confident, clever, witty and...well, you're sexy." Kate said bluntly with a shrug.
Caroline stood with her mouth open, staring at Kate and going over what she had just heard in her head, looking for the possibility that she may have misunderstood.
Kate became more nervous as the silence continued. What was Caroline thinking?
"Kate..." Caroline said and stopped.
Kate frowned, one thing she had never witnessed or expected to see, was a speechless Caroline. There was only one thing she could do. If she was about to get the sack or even worse, be pushed back to the status of merely employee she would make it worth it.
Kate closed the gap between them and tilted her head as she moved her lips to Caroline's, pressing them tentatively upon hers and raising her palm gently to cup Caroline's face.
She felt the unmistakable pressure returned as the blonde responded and then as Kate pulled away Caroline kissed her back, quickly, sweetly, briefly, before pulling fully away.
"I'm sorry." Caroline blurted, putting her fingers to her lips as if she could still feel the kiss there. "I shouldn't...we shouldn't."
Kate put up a hand. "No, Caroline! I did it, it's fine, I'm the one who should apologise, I just, have been wanting to do that for such a long time and I thought I could make you feel better, make you feel wanted, I had no right to take it that far...I hope you'll forgive me, it won't happen again, I swear."
Caroline's eyes were wide and she cleared her throat. "No. I just meant that we shouldn't do that here." She explained. "It's not very professional of me to be kissing a teacher in my office, like that." She went on, not looking Kate in the eye.
"Oh." Kate replied. Was she saying what she seemed to be saying? "So, outside of school...would be a different matter?" Kate checked.
"Well, what I do on my own time, as they say..." Caroline replied, moving to the coat stand and unhooking her coat, playing for time, willing her heart not to thump out of her chest.
Kate couldn't contain the grin. "So, do you fancy a drink then?" She tried quickly.
"Yep." Caroline said certainly, her hands on her hips and some of her usual swagger returning.
Kate had crept closer to Caroline as they had each been caught up in the memories, it was only now that they were back together that they could really think about the astounding array of feelings they had sparked in each other in the beginning, without thinking about all the heartache and turmoil of the time.
Kate crawled up into her girlfriends lap, to straddle her there and wrapped her arms around Caroline's neck, leaning in and littering Caroline's throat, down to her chest with delicate little kisses. Caroline's hands came possessively around to grab onto Kate's waist and Kate moved her lips to Caroline's in a deeper kiss.
The shrill ringing of the phone cut into the sensually loaded atmosphere and Kate reluctantly broke their kiss as Caroline reached over to snag the phone and accept the call.
"Caroline? Is that Caroline?" A familiar voice asked shakily.
"Yes. Is that you Raff?" She asked curiously. She hadn't spoken to the young man in weeks, since she had seen him at her Mum's with Calamity, she couldn't imagine what he would be ringing her for, unless something had happened...
"Yeh, Its me Raff. I just didn't know...She said to call you, Mum, She said, Ring Caroline, before they took her." He went on anxiously.
Caroline was immediately alert, her body tensing and Kate removing herself from her position as she sensed the shift. "Who took her Raff?" What happened?" She asked firmly.
"The police." Raff managed. "The police, they arrested her, just now, they took her down to the station, said they were charging her...they said they were charging her with murder." Raff said in disbelief, clearly distressed, Caroline knew well the sound of a frightened little boy.
"Raff. I'll meet you there. Don't worry. She'll be okay. Does she have a lawyer? No matter, I'll get her a lawyer. I'll be there within the hour."
xxxx
A/N- Thanks to everyone who is still reading, back soon to finish this one off. x