The next morning, Eddie got dressed and ready for the day as quietly as he could do not to wake Rachel.
Before leaving, he poked his head round her bedroom door.
Her bedside lamp was still on, but Rachel was sleeping peacefully, a book resting awkwardly in her lap. Eddie smiled to himself. She'd gotten into a habit of falling asleep whilst reading recently; he'd caught her a few times now. They always laughed about it.
He tiptoed over to her bedside, carefully closing the book and putting it on the bedside table.
It didn't feel right, him going back to work without her. He should have been waking her up right now, waiting for her to get ready, before heading into work together.
But this was her choice, he had to respect it. He left the room quietly.
Once he'd gotten into his car, the nerves began to set in.
Could he do this without Rachel?
Did he want to?
Rachel was the best Head Teacher he'd ever worked with. Going back to Waterloo Road without her at the helm felt wrong.
The only reason he'd agreed to be the temporary Head, was so that Rachel could take the job back when she was ready. He didn't want some random person hired by the LEA to take over.
He made the familiar drive to Waterloo Road, parking his car in his usual parking space. Steph waved to him from across the car park. At least she looked ready and raring to go for a change. He sighed, closing the car door, waving back at her.
"Good morning, Mr Lawson!" Steph chirped as he approached her
"Morning Steph, ready to go?" Eddie replied
"Oh yes! Maxine on the other hand... well let's just say she's not overly impressed at being woken up at 6:30AM this morning" she laughed
Eddie chuckled
"What student would be happy about that?" He pointed out
"That's true. I see you haven't parked in the Head Teacher's space. Changed her mind her mind has she?" Steph questioned
The staff had been made aware of Rachel's decision a few weeks ago. Eddie wasn't looking forward to answering their questions.
"No. It's just habit for me to park where I usually do" Eddie sighed with a weak smile
"Right" Steph responded, unconvinced
"She's not coming back Steph. I hoped she'd change her mind, but she hasn't" he blurted
"So you'll be Head Teacher until Christmas. Then what happens?" Steph asked
"Honestly, I don't know. That's up to Rachel" he shrugged
Steph nodded with a sigh
"Wow, you seem to have given up hope completely" she observed
"I respect her decision, that's all" he corrected
"But you don't think it's the right one?" She questioned
"Of course I don't Steph" he huffed
There was an obvious solution here, in Steph's opinion. Someone could easily change her mind and persuade her to come back. That person was Eddie.
"So, find a way to change her mind"
"I can't Steph, I've tried" he sighed
"Well, try again" she shrugged
"How? What can I possibly do to change her mind?" He questioned, frustrated
"You'll find a way. God knows, we need her. Rachel Mason was the best thing to happen to Waterloo Road"
"Don't tell her I said that" she added
Eddie sighed, walking away from Steph and up to Rachel's office.
When he got there, he was surprised to see that the place had been redecorated. The cream walls were now a dark shade of purple. A new carpet had been installed. The place looked immaculate compared to the last time he'd been in there. Whoever had been given the task to re-decorate had done a good job of making it look like nothing had happened in here at the end of last term.
No matter how many layers of paint covered the walls, Eddie would never forget what had happened in here. And Rachel certainly wouldn't.
Pushing his thoughts to one side, he put his bag down on the chair, before heading back outside to welcome the students.
Seeing all the students filing in through the gates made Eddie feel more at ease. Even though he was gutted about having to take over Rachel's job, he still had a duty to look after the kids. Of course he felt he'd never be able to do as good of a job as Rachel. But he was determined to try.
"Morning Sir!"
Eddie looked over to see Bolton Smilie striding over to him. He smiled
"Morning Bolton, ready for a new term?" Eddie smiled
"Yeah man!" He responded enthusiastically
"Good, that's what I like to hear!" Eddie nodded
"Where's Miss Mason Sir?" Bolton frowned
"She's..." Eddie hesitated; he didn't know how to approach this
"Has she left?" Bolton questioned, looking worried
"Uhm... yeah" Eddie stuttered
Bolton's eyes widened
"Are you joking, man? Why? Is it because of that scumbag Stuart Hordley? Because she don't need to worry about him no more, everyone knows he's scum! And if it's about her past, we don't care. We want her back sir, she's a great Teacher. Will you tell her that?"
Eddie was touched by Bolton's words. He just wished Rachel had been there to hear him. Out of all the kids at Waterloo Road, Bolton had been impacted the most by Rachel. She had turned his behaviour around, his life too, in some ways. He respected her massively and was the only teacher he listened to.
"I'll tell her Bolton. But I don't think it will change her mind about coming back"
Bolton frowned
"What will?" He asked
"Something bigger than what any of us can do" he sighed heavily
"Go on Bolton, get to registration" he instructed
Bolton walked away. Eddie didn't know Bolton had already come up with a plan to get Rachel to come back to Waterloo Road.
YOU ARE READING
I'll keep you safe
FanfictionWhen Rachel goes through a horrific trauma at the end of the school term, will Eddie be there for her? (Set at the end of series three of Waterloo Road)
