Bolton watched as his opponent, Johnny Hayes, lay motionless on the floor in a neck brace. Two medics were crouched either side of him, assessing the situation. Bolton could only stand in the corner of the ring and stare blankly.

He wasn't entirely sure what had happened. There was more power in his punch than he had expected. From the second he had stepped into the ring, he felt a huge surge of energy hit him. It would probably sound stupid, but he felt invincible.

Now, looking at the damage he had done, he started to feel guilty. The punch he had thrown had knocked Johnny to the floor. Bolton had expected him to bounce back up after a few seconds. But he hadn't. Had he punched too hard? Evidently, yes. Medics didn't enter a Boxing Ring to place someone in a neck brace with a stretcher on standby for no reason, did they?

What had he done?

"That was the best punch I have ever seen! You're a fantastic fighter! You're gonna go all the way, mate!" Mr Cleaver told him, slapping him on the arm

Bolton couldn't stop staring at the scene in front of him. He'd wanted to win, but not like this. Mr Cleaver seemed completely oblivious to the fact that Johnny was hurt.

"Sir... look" Bolton mumbled, his eyes still fixed on Johnny as the medics rolled him onto the stretcher

Mr Cleaver glanced briefly over at the boy on the floor, who was now being strapped onto the stretcher. If he was honest, he really didn't care. Bolton had won fair and square, that was the main thing. They had both come here to fight, and that was what they had done. All of Bolton's training had led up to this moment. This is what he had been trained to do.

But, to be respectful, and to stop Bolton worrying, he thought he should show some concern towards the boy.

"Is he going to be alright?" he asked the medic

"It's just a precaution" one of the medics reassured

The other medic looked to Bolton.

"Congratulations. I don't think anyone was going to get in your way today"

Jasmine was watching quietly next to Rob. She knew what he had done to Bolton, and she was furious. She hadn't wanted to believe Davina when she had shown her the bottle of pills she'd found in Rob's bag. But, after being on the receiving end of Rob's defensive behaviour and seeing the way Bolton had thrown that punch, she knew her friend was right. Rob had been giving Bolton performance enhancing drugs without Bolton knowing. It made her feel sick.

Unable to keep quiet any longer, she tugged on Rob's sleeve so he was forced to look her in the eye.

"Are you going to tell him, or shall I?" she hissed, nodding to the medic

Rob glared at her.

"Keep your voice down! You don't know what you're talking about!" he spat

Jasmine scoffed in disbelief.

"The boy has been INJURED and YOU have been giving Bolton these pills!" she snapped, shoving the bottle at him

The medics looked over at the arguing couple suspiciously.

Rob eyed Jasmine angrily. He moved to snatch the bottle out of her hand, sighing when she pulled away from him.

"I told you. They are vitamin tablets"

He turned to the medics, who were still watching.

"She's an English teacher, she doesn't know what she's talking about" he reasoned

"Can I have a look at those please?" the younger medic requested

Rob sighed, handing over the bottle.

"They are just vitamin tablets, I swear" he insisted

The younger medic examined the tablets carefully, showing them to the other medic for a second opinion. They whispered something to one another before turning to make eye contact with the referee who was stood nearby.

"Send everyone out" the older paramedic mumbled to the referee

...

Eddie and Rachel followed Philip back into the building. Both were confused by his lack of explanation as to why they were needed so urgently. They had asked him what was going on at least five times now. Their questions had been ignored. Both knew that whatever it was, was serious; Philip wouldn't have come to get them otherwise. But why the secrecy?

The room was filled with chatter, the Boxing Ring holding a scene that Rachel wouldn't forget for a long time. Johnny Hayes laid on a stretcher in a neck brace.

Had Bolton caused that?

She looked up at the screen to see that Bolton had won the match. She desperately wanted to jump for joy and to feel a huge sense of pride wash over her. But something didn't feel right. There were hushed whispers coming from Rob, the medics and the referee.

"Why haven't they announced Bolton as the winner?" Eddie questioned, looking at the screen too

"I don't know" Rachel mumbled

She looked at Bolton, who was still in the ring, watching the scene in front of him. He was in a frightened daze, his eyes fixed on the stretcher. Something had happened, that was why Philip had sent for them.

"I need to find out what's going on" she told Eddie

She walked over to Jasmine, who looked distraught.

"What's going on?" Rachel asked

Before Jasmine could even open her mouth, Rob moved to stand next to her.

"Everything's fine. Bolton threw a good punch and knocked Johnny backwards. He's fine, it's just for precaution" he explained

Rachel nodded, unconvinced.

Bolton stepped out of the ring, heading toward the changing rooms. He looked completely mortified and scared. As he approached Rachel, she stood in front of him.

"Bolton, is everything ok?" she asked gently

"Fine, Miss. Can I go and get changed?" he mumbled

Rachel nodded, moving out of his way. She frowned as the referee, one of the medics and Rob followed behind him, both discussing something.

"Let's go and find out what's happening" Eddie suggested, leading Rachel in the same direction as the referee and Rob

"I'm sorry, Sir, Miss, its officials only in here" the referee informed them as they approached the small office

"I'm Rachel Mason, Head Teacher of Waterloo Road. This is Eddie Lawson, my Deputy" Rachel explained

The referee nodded apologetically, instantly moving aside to let them in. Rachel watched as Rob's face paled at the sight of the two of them. It only confirmed Rachel's suspicions about there being something wrong. That and the way Bolton was trembling violently in his seat.

"What's going on?" Eddie asked, breaking the silence in the room

"Have I won the fight, or what?" Bolton questioned

"Hang on, mate" Rob scolded

"We've just got to be satisfied that everything is above board" the referee explained

Eddie and Rachel shared a look of confusion.

"How's the other lad? Is he ok?" Bolton asked

The medic pulled out the bottle of pills, showing them to Bolton. Rachel felt her stomach drop at the sight of them, her gaze shooting over to Rob who was staring at the floor.

"How many of these did you take, Bolton?" the medic asked

"It doesn't matter how many he took! They're harmless!" Rob snapped defensively

"I'm not asking you" the medic shot back, returning his attention to Bolton

"Six" Bolton admitted

"Why were you given them?" the medic asked

"Mr Cleaver said that they'd help me concentrate on the fight" Bolton explained

"And there's nothing wrong with that!" Rob cut in

"Did he say they'd help you win?" the medic asked, ignoring Rob completely

"You are putting words in his mouth! You don't have to answer that if you don't want to, Bolton!" Rob interrupted, his tone becoming increasingly agitated

"No, Bolton, you do need to answer that" Rachel cut in, shooting a glare at Rob

There was silence for a moment.

"Er... yeah, he did" Bolton mumbled

The medic finally turned his attention to Rob.

"Do you have any medical training, Mr Cleaver?"

"Sorry, hang on. What's going on here? Are those pills illegal?" Eddie asked

"Of course not! They're a health product!" Rob scoffed

"So what happens now?" Eddie questioned, looking between the medic and referee

"There'll be an investigation, and we'll have to take a urine sample" the medic explained

Rachel sighed, putting her head in her hands. She couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. Of all the outcomes she had expected to come from today, this hadn't been one of them. The thought of one of her own members of staff giving a child in their care illegal drugs (or drugs of any kind) made her feel sick. How could you take advantage of someone's vulnerability like that? And more importantly, how had she missed it? Bolton had been training with Rob for weeks and they hadn't suspected a thing.

"So, have I won, or not?" Bolton asked nervously

The medic looked to the referee.

"It's your call"

"I think I've heard enough to put this result on hold" the referee announced

"What? I won that fight clean out!" Bolton snarled, standing up angrily

"Bolton, just calm down, ok? It's no good arguing now. Just do what they say, yeah?" Rachel soothed

"Go and wait by the coach with everyone else, please" she added

"No, I'm going back with Cleaver" he grumbled

"Bolton, just go" Rob snapped

Bolton huffed angrily, storming out of the office. The medic and referee followed behind him.

Rachel and Eddie turned to Rob, demanding an explanation. When he finally looked up at the two of them, they could both see he was about to list off a thousand excuses and lies.

"There's been a mix-up here" he told them

Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"A mix-up?"

"It's Davina! She's got it in for me! Nothing happened, this is a joke!" Rob hissed

"Let's continue this back at school" Rachel decided, desperately trying to keep her anger and frustration from lacing into her tone

Eddie led Rachel away and out into the car park. She was too angry to talk. If she said what she thought, it would open a floodgate and she wouldn't be able to stop herself from ranting. She couldn't rant, not here. She had to wait until they were in the safety of their home, or in her office.

Eddie sighed as they got into the car. Rachel's silence said everything he needed to know about how she was feeling about the situation. He was just as furious as she was.

"Let's get back to school and sort this mess out, yeah?"

"Can we stop off at home first and get my tablets please? I'm starting to feel sick again" she requested, sipping on the bottle of water she'd taken out of her bag

"Of course" he nodded