The tension lingering in the air in Rachel's office was suffocating.

Marley and Rose sat on the left side of Rachel's desk, whilst Bolton and Candeece sat on the right. Rachel had deliberately placed the two sets of chairs as far away as possible from one another. The last thing she needed was Bolton lashing out at Marley again

Marley's face was a mess. Rachel had been expecting it to be bad, but she hadn't expected it to be that bad. His nose was swollen, there was a large cut on his lip, and a black eye was forming around his left eye. It was her fault this had happened. Letting the Kelly's come back had been a mistake. She should have known something like this would happen. Her faith and trust in her students not to do something like this had blinded her. She'd been naive, again. Just like with Earl Kelly. That was why Maxine was dead.

Bolton was quietly stewing in his chair, staring at the floor as he bounced his knee up and down.

"Right, I won't pretend that I don't know what this is about. But I need the facts," Rachel started

She turned to Marley.

"Marley, did you do anything to provoke Bolton?"

Rose scoffed.

"Oh, so he gets beaten up and it's his fault, is it?" she huffed, glaring at Rachel

Marley put a hand up to silence her.

"I was breathing. That was enough" he mumbled

"Miss Mason asked you a question, Marley" Eddie cut in

Marley sighed as he shook his head.

"No, I did nothing"

"Is that right, Bolton?" Rachel asked, turning to look at him

Bolton shrugged, staring blankly at the wall.

"You're in trouble, lad, don't make it worse" Eddie warned

"Well, what's the point? You all saw what I did. He's a skank, they all are" Bolton grumbled

"Bolton!" Candeece hissed, shooting an apologetic glance around the room

Rachel sighed.

"Ok, Marley, thank you. It's obvious you're not to blame. You can go. Rose, I'll speak with you later, ok?"

Rose nodded. Marley smiled weakly as he stood up from his chair, both of them leaving the office.

Once the door had closed, Rachel leaned forwards slightly in her chair. She was determined to get through to Bolton. He was hiding something and she needed to know what Paul meant.

"Ok, Bolton. What did Paul mean by 'keeping it quiet'?"

"Nothing" Bolton answered immediately

"Bolton, I'm not stupid. Is there unfinished business there?" she shot back

"Earl is out of reach, so you have a go at his brother?" Eddie chimed in

"Or maybe attacking Marley was just for starters? I mean, you've been going on about no-one wanting his family here. Maybe you're driving them out to impress your mates?" Rachel added

"I don't need to impress anyone" Bolton answered plainly

Rachel raised an eyebrow. She was hoping throwing some accusations at him would get him to crack and for him to get defensive and tell her the truth. Not on this occasion.

"Fine. Will you wait outside please, Bolton?" she requested

Bolton rolled his eyes as he grabbed his bag, stomping out of the office. Rachel sighed, putting her head in her hands.

"Look, let me talk to him, I'll get the truth" Candeece reassured

"We can't let this lie. It's up to us to find out what's going on" Eddie said, more to Rachel than to Candeece

"Well, what does that mean? What's going to happen?" Candeece questioned

"I'll try talking to him. But I've got to be honest, there's really not a lot I can do about it now" Rachel shrugged, standing up from her chair

"And you're still set on going?" Candeece asked

Rachel nodded.

"So, there'll be a new Head Teacher, and new punishments?" Candeece huffed

Rachel sighed. Candeece was the third person today to question her decision about leaving. She really didn't need it.

"I'll leave a detailed report, describing how I'd deal with it"

"Oh yeah, that's going to do a lot of good isn't it?" Candeece shot back, rolling her eyes

Rachel headed for the door.

"Wait!" Candeece called after her

Rachel turned around.

"Look, please, Miss Mason, Bolton listens to you"

Rachel nodded quietly, unsure of what to do with Candeece's words. It was true; there wasn't much she could do for Bolton now. She couldn't solve this in the next few hours, not with Bolton being a closed book. He needed time, something she didn't have on her side. She was clinging onto the hope that Eddie would change his mind and would step into the role of Head Teacher once she was gone. She knew that he knew how she would deal with it, and he would do it fairly.

The door closed again, leaving Rachel and Eddie alone. Rachel turned around, leaning her back against the door as she closed her eyes. When she opened them again, Eddie was looking at her.

"Don't look at me like that" she huffed

"Like what?" Eddie frowned

"Like I'm making a mistake"

"That's because you are making a mistake, Rach! You are about to make the biggest mistake of your life by leaving this place! You might not think it now, but you'll regret it later down the line!" he argued

Rachel shook her head.

"Rachel, these kids need you. They need a Head Teacher that listens to them, someone that cares and gives them the time of day. You do that! Look at Bolton; you've turned his behaviour around by just supporting him! Everyone else had given up on him, but you didn't!"

"Eddie, he just punched Marley! That's not 'good behaviour'!" she pointed out

"Ok, yes, he did do that. But there was a reason, we just haven't found out why yet. Before, he was doing things like this for no reason at all. You helped him, Rach, whether you think so or not, you have! He was about to drop out of school before you stopped him, and now look at him! He's got his GCSE's and is in his first year of A-levels, he's doing really well! He'll soon be off to University or doing an apprenticeship! You did that, Rach!"

"It doesn't change anything, Eddie" she sighed

"Rach, the new Head Teacher will eat Bolton alive! You know they will! Bolton needs you, he trusts you and he listens to you. The new Head Teacher won't be so nice and will probably expel him! Do you really want that for him?"

"Of course I don't, Eddie! But I can't stay just for Bolton!"

"You won't be staying just for him. All the kids need you! They need stability right now, a Head Teacher who is there for them. They don't need a new one coming in, setting new rules and consequences for behaviour!"

"That's why I'm recommending you for the job, Eddie! You know these kids, you know the school and how it works. You're a fantastic Deputy, and you'll be an even better Head Teacher!" she reasoned

"I've already told you, I'm not taking the job! No one other than you is meant to be Head Teacher of Waterloo Road!"

"Well, then, a new Head Teacher will be appointed. And they'll deal with Bolton how they see fit" she shrugged

"And you're really ok with that?" Eddie challenged

Rachel nodded.

"It'll be out of my hands. For all I know, I could deal with him and make another mistake, just like I did with Earl"

Eddie closed his eyes as he sighed.

"I'm taking Bolton to the cooler" she added, leaving the office

...

Steph sighed as Grantly sat down next to her in the staffroom. If she was honest, she just wanted to be left to read her magazine in peace. It was her free lesson and she was hoping the staffroom would be empty. She'd been wrong. Grantly, Tom, Jasmine, Davina and Matt seemed to all have free lessons too.

Great.

She wouldn't have minded Grantly sitting next to her normally. But today she had a feeling he was going to tease her about the same things the kids had been teasing her about this morning. And she wasn't in the mood for it.

"You could have taken a sicky! I can smell the fumes ten feet away!" he whispered, wrinkling his nose in disgust

Steph scoffed.

"I had a drink last night, so?"

"Yeah, and the night before that, and the night before that too probably! You probably had one this morning to give you the courage to come into this hell hole!" he huffed

"Do you know something, Grantly? Until I have a nose like yours, I'd think twice about giving lectures" Steph retorted

Grantly rolled his eyes.

"I take it the kids have been teasing you?"

"Nothing I can't handle" she mumbled

"Did you think they wouldn't notice? Pack of hyenas that lot. They see a weakness, they go for it. It's the same as those pictures of Jasmine" he grumbled

"The kids didn't mind, Grantly, they were having a laugh" she shrugged

"Oh and that's what you want, is it, to be a figure of fun? Yeah well, we get that without giving them ammunition"

Of all the people Steph expected to be nagging at her, Grantly was at the bottom of her list. If she was honest, she had expected him of all people to be on her side, not eyeing her with a look of concern and pity like everyone else. There was no doubt in her mind that he hadn't had a drink at work before, or had at least thought about doing it. Why did everyone have such an issue with it?

"Why are you going on about it? It's no big deal! All it is, is that the house and Matt's flat are too quiet without Maxine to boss around. What else am I going to do?"

"Take a mint for a start" Grantly mumbled

Steph rolled her eyes.

"I don't believe it!" Jasmine cried as she stood in the middle of the staffroom, holding a piece of paper

All eyes turned to her, including Steph and Grantly's.

"Have you guys read this?" Jasmine continued, realising she had everyone's attention

"More 'Ra-ra!' from Miss Mason?" Grantly guessed, shaking his head

Jasmine glared at him as Tom took the piece of paper off her to read the contents. His eyes widened in shock.

"Er, hardly 'Ra-ra', Grantly. She's quit!" he breathed

"What? That must be someone playing a joke!" Matt cut in, walking over to read the letter

"I know some of our kids have got a sick sense of humour, Matt, but none of them can spell quite as well" Tom pointed out

"Well someone has to talk her out of it!" Matt huffed

Tom sighed. He hadn't exactly been on the best terms with Rachel the last few weeks, but he didn't want this. Maxine's death wasn't Rachel's fault. Yes, he'd had his concerns about Earl Kelly, and now, looking back, he realised that Rachel had too. But, like everyone else, his concerns went as far as him worrying about Earl injuring someone. Like everyone else, he hadn't thought Earl would murder someone, even if he had killed those birds. If anything, this was his fault. He was Head of Pastoral; he should have done something sooner, regardless of the fact that Earl had succeeded at taunting him. This wasn't Rachel's fault. She couldn't give up her career for this. Waterloo Road needed her.

"Look, I'll talk to her, but what do I say?" he sighed

"Say what you think, or what we all think, that we want her to stay" Davina told him

"I hope that doesn't include me. No, the King is dead. Whoever is sat in that chair, they all act the same" Grantly grumbled

"That's crap and you know it" Matt snapped

"Yeah, come off it, Grantly. She's pulled you out of the fire more than enough times" Tom scolded

Grantly scoffed.

"Yeah, not just you" Matt added, looking at Steph, who was keeping quiet

Steph wasn't keeping quiet because she didn't have an opinion on this. She did have an opinion. And she did want to say it aloud. In Steph's view, she was glad Rachel was resigning. Maxine's death was her fault. She had let Earl Kelly into this school. If she hadn't, Maxine wouldn't have met Earl and the mess that she was currently in wouldn't be happening. Rachel and Eddie had both ignored the concerns of the staff and students in regards to his behaviour. They had both been ignorant. And look what had happened. Rachel was getting what she deserved.

Still, she hated the way Matt was looking at her. She couldn't stand the sympathetic glances, the whispering and the looks of concern. She was sick of people telling her how sorry they were about Maxine and what had happened. She was sick of people telling her that if she needed anything to call or text. She was sick of people telling her how amazing, brave and lovely Maxine was. She was sick of all the staff standing in the staffroom right now, planning how they were going to stop Rachel from resigning, like she was some hero. She was sick of it all.

"For god's sake, will you just get over it? You'll want to give her Sainthood next! Well, I for one am glad she's going!" she snapped

"Rachel has really put this school on the map" Jasmine argued

"Yes, as somewhere that accepts all the dregs maybe... it's a shame she didn't do it before. Maxine might still be alive"

Steph had, had enough. She got up from her chair, wiping the tears from her eyes as she walked out of the staffroom.