It was 6AM when Eddie opened his eyes again. He didn't remember falling asleep, but he knew it must have happened not long after Rachel had. He had planned to stay awake and keep an eye on her in case she couldn't sleep. But, given that she had managed to fall asleep, he had relaxed and had fallen asleep too.

His hand skimmed across her side of the bed. As he expected, it was empty. She was always up before him, even on the weekends. He hoped that, physically, she was feeling better. The events of yesterday would take a while to recover from. Not just for Rachel, but for everyone.

Eddie was still having trouble digesting the fact that Maxine was dead. He didn't know how they were going to handle things at school today. How were they going to tell everyone? Eddie had never dealt with anything like this before, and he was sure Rachel hadn't either. He'd never imagined he'd have to. He didn't know how they were going to do this today. He and Rachel needed to come up with a plan.

With a heavy sigh, Eddie clambered out of bed and over to the ensuite.

When he turned the bathroom light on, he heard a small whimper. He frowned, squinting around the bathroom. That was when his eyes fell on Rachel. She was curled up in a ball on the floor beside the toilet, shivering. Eddie dashed over to her, crouching down beside her. He dreaded to think how long she'd been there for. She definitely wasn't feeling better. In fact, she looked worse than before. She was white as a sheet, her skin hot and clammy to touch. She was shaking and shivering violently, her eyes clouded with fatigue.

"Rach?" Eddie whispered softly, brushing the hair out of her face

Rachel lifted her head to look at him, instantly covering her eyes with her arm as she groaned. The lights were causing the pain in her head to increase.

"Please can you turn the lights off?" she requested, keeping her arm over her eyes

"Of course" Eddie nodded, standing up

He turned the lights off, hearing Rachel sigh in relief. He kneeled down beside her again.

"How long have you been in here, love?" he asked

"I don't know. I woke up feeling sick, so I came in here and... I was sick. I felt lightheaded, so I just... stayed here" she explained

Eddie sighed, lifting her gently into his arms. He carried her back to bed, wrapping the covers around her.

Rachel gagged, sitting up immediately, a hand flying to her mouth. She grabbed the bin, heaving and retching. Eddie sat beside her, rubbing her back in slow, soothing circles.

Once it was over, she groaned, resting her head on Eddie's shoulder. She really didn't feel well at all.

She turned her head over to look at the clock. Her heart practically leapt out of her chest when she saw it was 6:30AM. She threw the covers off, placing the bin on the bedside table. Eddie frowned at her sudden change in demeanour.

"Rach, what's the matter?" he questioned

"It's 6:30AM, Eddie. I need to get dressed" she told him

Eddie lay her back down gently. Rachel frowned at him.

"Eddie, I need to get ready for work!" she huffed

Eddie scoffed.

"Rach, you're not well enough to go to work!"

Rachel glared at him, sitting up again.

"I don't care. I have to be there to support the kids and staff. We have a lot to arrange and organise"

"I will sort it! You need to rest, Rach. I can handle things today" he told her, laying her back against the pillows

"No, I'm fine, Eddie!" she snapped, pushing his hands off her shoulders

Eddie raised an eyebrow at her.

"Look, I'll prove it" she added

Slowly, she got out of bed. She shrugged triumphantly at him as she stood on her own two feet, almost as if to say 'I told you so'.

When she took a step forward, it all went downhill. The room started to spin and the nausea swashed around in her stomach. Before she knew it, she was falling, the carpet getting closer and closer to her.

Eddie lunged forwards, catching her in his arms just in time. He carefully put her back into bed, thankful that she didn't push him away or attempt to get back up. He did, however, feel concerned that she just lay there. It wasn't like her. She definitely wasn't well.

"Right, here's the plan, Rach. You're going to stay at home and rest, and I'm going to deal with everything else, ok?" he informed her

"You can't do it by yourself" she mumbled tiredly, rubbing her forehead

"And you can't be at work when you're feeling so ill, love" he pointed out

Rachel sighed.

"Eddie we... Maxine... A student has died. I have to be there for the kids. They'll need all the support we can give, the staff too. I can't take the day off"

It was now Eddie's turn to sigh.

"Rach, look at yourself! You're not well! I know you want to be there for the kids and the staff. But they don't need their Head Teacher fainting on them in assembly, and you don't need that either. I will handle everything while you rest, ok?"

She nodded reluctantly, too tired to argue with him.

Eddie sighed in relief, kissing her forehead gently.

"Everything is going to be fine" he reassured

She glanced at him tearfully. She wished she could believe his words. Maxine was dead, and it was her fault. Everything was far from fine, and she wasn't sure it ever would be again. Maxine's death would follow her wherever she went. It would haunt her for the rest of her life.

"I'm going to call the Doctors and get you an appointment for this afternoon" he told her

"Ok" Rachel mumbled, closing her eyes

"Ok?" Eddie repeated, raising an eyebrow

Rachel opened her eyes.

"Yes. You're not going to let it go until I go, are you?" she questioned

"No, I'm not" he nodded

"Exactly. So I'll go, just to put your mind at rest" she told him

Eddie smiled softly.

"I'll give them a call now" he decided, grabbing his phone

Five minutes later, Eddie hung up the phone. Rachel stared at him expectantly as he sat on the bed beside her.

"I got you an appointment for 1pm, today. If you don't feel well enough to drive, call me and I'll sneak out of work to take you, ok?"

"I'll be fine. I'll book a taxi if I don't feel well enough. The kids and staff will need you" she insisted

Eddie nodded simply, not wanting to get into another argument with her. He kissed her forehead gently.

"You feel better, ok?" he whispered

She smiled weakly, closing her eyes as she relaxed into the pillows. Eddie tip-toed out of the room, closing the bedroom door behind him. He had a long day ahead of him. It was a day he wished wasn't happening.

The school would get through this, as would Rachel.

...

Steph sat at her kitchen table staring blankly at the door. She wasn't entirely sure how long she'd been sat there for, but she knew it had been at least a few hours, considering daylight was starting to peer through the blinds.

She hadn't slept a wink. How could she? Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Maxine lying limp and lifeless on the living room floor.

Her phone had gone off a few times in the last few hours. A text from Tom, as well as a missed call and voicemail from Matt. Both were to offer their condolences. 'If there's anything I can do, just give me a call'. Both of them had said that.

Both Tom and Matt were two kind-hearted gentleman, who would do anything for anyone. But what Steph needed right now, no one could give her. Nothing anyone could say or do would bring Maxine back to her.

As her 6:30AM alarm started to screech at her, she got up from the chair. She couldn't stay in the house, she was going to work. She wanted to hear what Rachel Mason had to say for herself. It was partially her fault Maxine was dead. She'd let the Kelly's into Waterloo Road, she'd ignored the warning signs of Earl Kelly's violent behaviour. And now it was too late. She knew Rachel would feel guilty and would offer Steph apology after apology. But it was never and would never be good enough for Steph.

She walked slowly along the hallway, sighing in relief when she saw that the living room door was closed. She couldn't bring herself to go in there. No room in the house felt liveable for Steph to be in anymore, but that room was the worst of all of them.

The silence of the entire house threatened to drown Steph completely. It shouldn't be like this.

Just 24 hours ago, the house had been filled with noise. Yes, she and Maxine had been arguing, and Steph had felt like putting her head through a wall because of Maxine's attitude. At that moment in time, she'd wanted there to be silence. She wanted the arguments and the screaming matches with Maxine to stop. But she hadn't wished for Maxine to be taken from her permanently in such a brutal way. She'd have never, ever wished for that.

As she reached the top of the stairs, her eyes fell on Maxine's bedroom. The door was ajar. Steph found herself walking into the room, hundreds of memories flooding back to her as she looked around.

She remembered the day she'd first shown Maxine this room and had told her it was hers. Steph would never forget the smile that lit up Maxine's face as she jumped into her arms to hug her. She finally had a stable home after so many years.

A few weeks later, Maxine had spent the entire half term break painting and re-decorating the room to make it her own. She had proudly shown Steph the final product the day before they were due to go back to school. Steph couldn't deny it; Maxine had done a good job. The walls were a soft lilac, with white furniture dotted around. The double bed had been made neatly, stacked with a mixture of cushions and bedding that matched the paint on the walls.

Maxine's bedroom had once been full of life.

But now, it felt empty.

Everything in the room was set out as though Maxine was going to return. Her bed hadn't been made, her make-up brushes were scattered across her desk. There was an empty glass on her bedside table. Even her shoes were waiting by the door.

That was just it, though. Maxine had been planning on returning. She'd never been given the chance. Her life had been cut short, brutally ended by a single bullet to her abdomen, shot by a psychopathic 16 year old boy, who was now in prison.

Why? Why Maxine?

Steph didn't understand. She never would.

She wandered over to the desk, tidying away Maxine's make-up. Her hand instinctively picked up the bottle of perfume that Maxine wore every day. It was her favourite. Steph unscrewed the lid, breathing in the scent of vanilla. The scent of Maxine. It was the only physical thing left of her. Tears welled up in Steph's eyes, the painful ache in her heart returning.

She put the perfume bottle down, wiping the tears from her eyes as she continued to tidy away the make-up.

As she opened the desk drawer to put the make-up products away, her eyes fell on an envelope. It was addressed to her. Steph paused, unsure of what to do.

Her curiosity got the better of her in the end. She picked up the envelope, opening it carefully. There was a folded up piece of A4 paper inside. Steph unfolded it. The date in the right hand corner told her Maxine had written this last year, on the day of her 17th birthday. She took a deep breath before reading the words on the page:

"To Steph,

I don't get soppy very often, and I know you don't either. And I'm not good at expressing my feelings, and I know you struggle with that too. So that's why I'm writing this.

It's my 17th birthday today. I've lived with you for nearly a year now, and I just want to say, it's been the best year of my life! And that's because of you. You've given me a fresh start, and I'm so grateful, Steph. You've been like a Mother and a friend to me. I hope you know how much I love you. You make me smile every day. You make me want to get out of bed in the morning and be happy. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I just wanted to say thank you, Steph.

Love,

Maxine"

Steph's heart broke in two all over again as she read the letter. She hugged it close to her chest as she sank to her knees. A strangled sob escaped her lips.

"Oh, Max" she whispered painfully