In the cooler, Rachel was getting nowhere with Earl. He'd caused so much trouble for everyone and he just didn't seem to care, and it frustrated Rachel. It was like a domino effect with the Kelly's. Once one of them got into trouble, the others weren't far behind. That's why Sam was in the cooler too.
"Do you know how much trouble you're in, Earl? How much trouble your whole family is in?" Rachel questioned as she paced up and down the cooler
Earl didn't answer. He just sat there, in a daze, rocking backwards and forwards in his chair, humming to himself. It only spurred Rachel on.
She crouched down, her eyes locking with his.
"Is there even a fragment of common sense in that brain of yours?" she snapped angrily
Earl glanced at her smugly, continuing to rock backwards and forwards. Rachel scoffed, shaking her head in disbelief.
The cooler door opened, revealing Eddie. Rachel stormed over to him. She'd sent him to get Rose. The fact that she was nowhere in sight wasn't a good sign.
"Where's Rose?" she asked, lowering her voice
Eddie sighed
"She's just walked off the job"
Rachel groaned
"This is a disaster, Eddie!" she hissed
Eddie nodded, placing a hand on her arm.
"We'll sort it" he promised
She glared at him, eyes filled with tears as she pushed his hand off her. She stormed out of the cooler.
Eddie threw his head back in frustration.
"Trouble in paradise, sir?" Earl smirked
Eddie shot him a glare
"Stay here" he demanded, following Rachel out of the cooler
...
Rachel stormed into her office, slamming the door behind her. She walked over to the window, staring blankly at the playground, taking some deep breaths. This day couldn't have gone anymore wrong.
Things had finally been starting to settle with the Kelly's. They'd been making real progress, not just with Earl, but with Rose, Sam and Marley too. She really thought they stood a chance here. But now, because of Ralph Mellor, it had all gone down the drain. She didn't know why she even bothered sometimes.
She'd had a feeling in her gut that this Drug Awareness event would cause trouble. And she'd been right. She'd lost the whole Kelly family in one day. What kind of Head Teacher was she?
Her mind wandered back to her first day back, when she'd encountered Ralph. His words from that day were playing on repeat in her mind.
"It takes a leader to run a place like this. Someone who sets a good example. I'm beginning to wonder if that's you, Miss Mason. Time will tell"
Maybe he was right.
Eddie opened the office door quietly, stepping into the room and closing it behind him.
Rachel had her back to him. He approached her slowly, placing a hand on the small of her back. She didn't even flinch, her eyes remaining glued to the window. Eddie saw the angry tears brimming in her eyes.
"Rach, I'm sorry. I feel like a total idiot" he sighed
"You are" she mumbled, moving away from him
Eddie stared at her, a little taken aback.
"What? If it's sympathy you're after, Eddie, don't look at me! You made us all look like hypocrites!" she snapped
Eddie scoffed
"I meant what I said, Rach! I AM anti-drugs! I just... I was a little... misled back then" he argued
Rachel rolled her eyes, shaking her head
"You know, I think I might have to start an 'Idiot Jar' for you soon" she grumbled
"What?" Eddie frowned
"Yes, any time that you, Eddie Lawson, says or does anything stupid or idiotic, you put at least 20p in there, more depending on just how idiotic the statement or action!" she snapped
"Oh, come on, Rach! Have you never done anything you regret?" he shot back angrily
Rachel shot him a death stare, her eyes filled with hurt and rage. Eddie quickly realised what he'd said, instantly feeling guilty.
"Rach, I'm sorry! I didn't mean for it to come out like that!" he apologised, attempting to move towards her to comfort her
She backed away from him, putting her desk between the two of them as she sat down.
"I think, under the circumstances, you should help on the Drugs Awareness classes. Offer the voice of experience" she said bitterly
Before Eddie could reply, there was a knock on the door. Rachel huffed angrily.
"What!" she snapped
Flick entered the room, followed by Ralph.
"Miss Mason? My Dad has got something to say to you" Flick announced
Rachel stared at Ralph expectantly. His eyes were looking everywhere but at her.
"Erm... there may have been a mistake with the tests" he mumbled
Rachel and Eddie frowned
"A mistake? I thought they were fool-proof?" she questioned
"Well, the tests are, but it seems the young lad, Marley Kelly, managed to swap his test with Felicity's" he explained
Rachel stared, open-mouthed. She was speechless. Thankfully, Eddie spoke for her.
"What, so Flick's test was positive, not Marley's?"
Ralph nodded in confirmation
"Marley took the blame because I was scared of my Dad finding out" Flick explained
"This one's been an idiot, Miss Mason. She's the guilty one" Ralph said, nodding to Flick
Rachel sighed heavily, placing her head in her hands.
"My Dad's a really good man because he's against drugs" Flick mumbled
"Well, I should hope so too! What kind of example do you think you're setting? You know how stupid it is to take drugs, let alone dangerous!" Rachel snapped, her head shooting back up
"Yes, Miss" Flick nodded
Rachel turned her attention to Ralph.
"And if we were doing what YOU wanted us to do, she'd be excluded!"
"Yeah, well, maybe I should be! It's only fair, isn't it, Dad?" Flick interrupted, turning to her Father
Ralph looked away
"Or is it that you've got it in for the Kelly's and you wanted rid of them?" she added angrily
"I hope you're going to apologise to Marley?" Rachel questioned, glaring at Ralph
Ralph scoffed
"For something the lad did to himself?"
"Oh for god's sake, stop lying! Why don't you admit what you've done?" Flick exclaimed
Ralph stared at Flick for a few seconds. There was no way he was going to tell the truth.
So Flick did it for him.
"My Dad deliberately swapped Marley's test result and mine" she admitted
Rachel stared at Ralph in disbelief. Just when she thought it couldn't get any worse!
"I let the Father in me rule my head! I'll apologise to the lad of course" he snapped defensively
Rachel scoffed. Something stronger than an apology was needed to fix this.
"And?" she questioned
Ralph sighed
"And, naturally, I will resign as a Governor of Waterloo Road" he spat
Eddie scoffed
"That's the least you can do, Ralph! We should report him!"
Rachel sighed yet again.
"Eddie, I'll handle this" she mumbled
He nodded, walking out of the office.
She stood up, her attention turning to Ralph.
"Ralph, I trust you'll formalise that in writing? Then we can put this whole matter to bed"
Ralph nodded reluctantly, leaving with Flick.
...
Eddie walked back up to his classroom. He groaned as Philip approached him.
"Hello, Philip" Eddie spat
Philip immediately retracted a few steps. His eyes darted from left to right. He knew exactly why Eddie was so angry with him.
"I didn't know Michaela was going to show the whole school, Eddie! Honest!" he promised
"What's your excuse? Do you just enjoy violating people's privacy? I thought we were friends" Eddie grumbled, storming away angrily
...
Two hours later...
It was finally the end of the day. Rachel was packing her bag. She was planning to leave early to visit the Kelly's. She owed them an apology.
Eddie knocked on the open office door, glancing at Rachel awkwardly. He could tell she was still angry with him. And, honestly, he didn't blame her.
"I have to go and see the Kelly's" she told him simply
"I'll give you a lift" he offered
"No, I'll go in a taxi" she insisted
"Rach, I know you're angry, but I can give you a lift" he reasoned
"I've already booked a taxi. It's coming in twenty minutes. Besides, you're not the one who owes them an apology. I think it best that you don't come" she huffed
Eddie sighed
"Well, I'll wait with you until the taxi turns up" he decided
"No, Eddie. Just go, I'll be fine. Go to the supermarket and get something for dinner. I'll see you at home" she told him firmly
Eddie nodded reluctantly, leaving the office.
Rachel felt guilty for being so harsh and cold towards him. But until she sorted things with the Kelly's, she couldn't even think about her and Eddie.