(Reddie) half a heart

Christmas eve, 1989

Seven staff members came stumbling out of the pub,clinging onto each other,singing and dancing. All except Eddie who had stayed slightly sober. Eddie chuckled to himself as Rachel clung onto his arm,trying to keep herself stable. "Miss Mason I do believe you are drunk."

"Yyyyyeeeeepppppp. I thiiinnnk I ammm!" Rachel slurred burying her head into Eddie's arm as he led them to the mini bus and lifted Rachel up onto it. Eddie instructed the bus driver to start. Plonking himself down next to Rachel in the process. Eddie looked behind seeing Steph still drinking,Grantley passed out,Matt and Jasmine singing abba and Davina sleeping on Tom's shoulder. Suddenly Eddie felt a weight on his shoulder,when he peered down Rachel's head was resting on his shoulder,trying to keep her eyes open.

An hour had gone and they were only half way home when the bus broke down. The engine clogged out,slowly bringing it to a stop in the middle of nowhere. The bus driver turned around seeing Eddie the only one awake,"I'll got to the petrol station that's a couple of miles back. Keep an eye out." He said throwing Eddie the keys as he nodded trying not to wake Rachel up. The bus driver soon left,zipping up his jacket as he made his way back down the road.

Eddie looked around him and sighed,he didn't know how he's put up with this lot. Eddie then looked down at Rachel sleeping on his shoulder. Her hair was covering half of her face,her hand resting gently on his chest and her eyes tightly shut. The alcohol obviously gone to her head. Eddie smiled slightly,before bringing his free hand up to move the strands of hair off of her face. Tom then begun to stir slightly,waking Davina up in the process. "Why have we stopped?" Was Tom's groggy question.

"Bus broke down,mate. Drivers gone back down the road," Eddie replied,cursing himself as Rachel woke up.

"Aw...my head," she groaned placing her hand to her forehead as everyone else begun to wake up. Rachel lifted her head off of Eddie's shoulder,rubbing her forehead as Eddie watched Steph start to drink straight away. Typical. Eddie explained to everyone what had happened as they all groaned annoyingly in response.

"Ok...game time then!" Matt exclaimed still not been able to sleep the alcohol off.

"Yay games!" Steph cheered bringing out the two other bottles of whiskey she stored in her handbag and placing them on her lap and one on Eddie's.

"What game?" Jasmine asked taking two aspirin before smiling questioningly.

"I have never?" Davina asked hopefully,this was the only game she would be wiling to play.

"Ok but every time you have done it. You've got to take a swig form the whiskey bottle," Matt explained as everyone nodded;Steph nodded a bit too eagerly as Eddie started.

"I have never stabbed someone," was all that he could think of as Rachel and Tom took a swig. Everyone's eyes on them questionably.

"It was self defence," Rachel exclaimed raising her hands up in defence as everyone giggled.

"I did it by accident," Tom said," I have never cliff dived."

Only Grantley took a swig.

"I have never had sex in a car," Jasmine exclaimed not knowing that she could have said anywhere and Rachel would have to take a swig,which she reluctantly did and it was a large swig at that as Eddie looked at her sympathetically.

"When?!" Steph exclaimed not believing that the sensible headmistress did that.

Rachel bowed her head before mumbling,"it was a very long time ago."

Matt took that as a hint and spoke," I have never been in a relationship with my boss." At this everyone embarrassingly took a swig,trying to avoid eye contact as Matt who had a questioning look in his eyes. Eddie reluctantly answered to this,"my last school;head of department."

"Jack,as you all know. Well most of you," Steph answered.

"My first job when I was twenty and in uni;Coffee shop owner," Jasmine explained.

"The same as Jasmine," Davina explained.

"Uh...shop manager...the head of tesco...deputy head...head teacher...another head teacher...and another..." Tom started,counting his fingers as Davina cut in.

"We get the picture Tom," Davina raised her hand as Tom kissed her on the cheek as an apology.

"Ffleur was my manager when I worked in an office," Grantley explained as everyone 'awwwwed.' Matt turned to Rachel as her head was bowed,Eddie noticed this and secretly took hold of her hand.

"Ummm...when I was seventeen in a job I'd rather not talk about..."she trailed off at the end. Everyone seemed to accept this answer and carried on with the game. Eddie squeezed her hand tighter as Rachel gave him a weak smile.

"I have never...slept with one of my teachers or ex teachers," everyone looked around the room. Rachel sighed dejectedly before taking a swig hoping the alcohol would brighten her mood a bit;assuming she had drank at nearly every I have never. Everyone's eyes were on Rachel as she dipped her head ashamedly. Eddie looked at her before grabbing the whiskey bottle and taking a swig for himself hoping to turn the attention from Rachel;which it did,as everyone was now rising their eyebrows at him.

"What can I say?" Eddie said nonchalantly,shrugging his shoulders and smirking like a little boy. Next it was Rachel's turn.

"I have never...never...shit what haven't I done,"she mumbled as she tried to think. "I have never...sky dived." That was all she could think of as everyone took a swig.

"I have never been to strip club,"Grantley slurred as everyone took a swig.

"I went with my partner at the time," Jasmine and Davina exclaimed.

"Stag dos'" the boys exclaimed.

"Just for the fun of it," Steph said happily.

"Because I had to," Rachel defended. Steph was the last one and as Steph was drunk Rachel was really dreading this and she had a reason to as Steph said the next one.

"I have never met a prostitute knowingly," Rachel gulped as Eddie took a swig,then Tom and Rachel finished the rest of the bottle;Dutch courage as they say. Eddie was going to end the game here,Rachel would have to answer a lot of questions if this carried on.

"Who wants to explain first?" The rest of the group questioned as their eyebrows raised. Rachel's head was bowed,Eddie looked ok and Tom just looked embarrassed. Rachel spoke first.

"When I was younger...a lot younger. Some of my 'friends' were prostitutes'. They had bad home lives and when they ran away that's what they ended up doing," she explained hoping this would be efficient enough. Tom was next to speak and Rachel wasn't expecting this,neither was Eddie.

"When I was about seventeen,eighteen. One of the lads paid one to sleep with me. She went to the same school,I'm not proud of it. They kind of forced me to do it,"he looked down embarrassingly and guilt ridden the next bit not being expected to come out of his mouth,"I think her name was...Amanda Fenshaw."

Rachel tried holding back the tears as Eddie looked at Rachel. He kind of guessed that that was her name and she had slept with Tom. Rachel looked at Tom and saw the guilt there,she didn't blame him. It was her job at the time and then she remembered him;oh god please don't let him find out. That's all Eddie saw was red until Rachel gently placed her hand on his arm and he instantly calmed down. "What about you Eddie?" Steph questioned.

"I was twenty one at the time. I met the same one as Tom,Amanda. She was sitting in the park alone,drenched through. She was seventeen at the time,hated what she was doing,hated her life," he begun not daring to look at Rachel. "I helped her. I gave her money,she ran away from it and changed her name. I believe she's a teacher now," he said grinning finally taking a glance at Rachel who smiled weakly back.

"When was this?" Grantley pushed wanting to learn all of this as blackmail material should he need it to secure his job. Instantly Eddie answered.

"Christmas Eve,1989." Rachel took a sneaky glance at her wrist which only two people caught Davina and Eddie.