Rachel was in her office, proof reading her email to the LEA for what felt like the hundredth time. She had to get this right, they needed these security measures put in place, even if it was only temporary. Persuading the LEA to give up the cash was the biggest challenge.
Once she was somewhat satisfied with the email and couldn't physically look at it anymore, she sent it. That was one less thing to worry about. She'd worry about their response when the time came.
The time on the clock read 1:20pm. She remembered she needed to be at Eddie's classroom at 2pm so he could take her to the hospital. If she was honest, she was anxious about going on her own. She hadn't been back there since the miscarriage. What if it was too much?
Of course, she didn't want to rely on Eddie for everything, she wanted her independence back. But she really wished he was going with her and not just dropping her off and picking her back up again. Even though she knew it was necessary, the thought of going made her feel sick. The nightmare she'd had in the early hours of the morning had really shaken her. The sight of the blood that had once been a baby wouldn't leave her mind.
She stood up abruptly, in need of a distraction, something to do.
There were some documents on the desk from yesterday that needed photocopying. She picked them up, deciding to walk down to the printer next to reception rather than using the one outside her office. The walk and a small change of scenery would do her good. By the time she was finished, she could just come back up to her office, grab her bag and go and meet Eddie.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she frowned. There was an odd banging noise coming from somewhere down the corridor. She walked along, following the noise in the hopes she would find the source.
And she did.
Her heart plummeted when she saw Bolton, punching the life out of one of the school lockers, causing the metal to dent and contort out of shape. He was angry, she could see it on his face, and why else would he be punching a locker?
She wanted to know why. It wasn't like Bolton to get angry like this, not anymore. His temper had calmed significantly, or so Rachel had thought.
She leapt into action as Bolton started to punch the locker even harder in his rage.
"Bolton! Bolton, stop!" She cried, walking toward him at a brisk pace
Bolton had heard her, but had chosen not to acknowledge her. She couldn't help him. He continued to punch the locker, ignoring the searing pain in his knuckles.
Rachel finally reached him, putting herself between him and the locker. Bolton huffed, punching the locker next to her.
"Oi! That's enough, Bolton! Calm down!" She scolded, pushing his arms away from the locker
"Leave me alone, man!" He growled
"No, Bolton, I won't!" She protested
Bolton rolled his eyes
"Get up to my office, now!" She ordered
Bolton stormed off ahead of her to her office. Rachel sighed. What had made him lash out like this?
She was about to find out...
They headed into Rachel's office, Bolton slamming the door behind him. Rachel flinched.
"Sit down, and calm down" she instructed firmly, sitting down at her desk
Bolton slumped into a chair, refusing to look at her. He was trembling with anger.
"Are you going to tell me what all that was about downstairs?" She asked calmly
"Nothing, Miss" he mumbled
"No, Bolton. It wasn't 'nothing'! You don't go round punching lockers for no reason!" She argued
Bolton stared at the floor, refusing to answer her. But Rachel wasn't giving in. Something was going on and she was determined to get to the bottom of it.
"What's happened, Bolton? Come on, talk to me!" She pleaded
Bolton remained silent, keeping his eyes glued to the floor. He trusted Miss Mason, that wasn't the issue. She was the only Teacher who he felt understood him. But he couldn't tell her about Earl, or Paul, or anything that had happened in the last 48 hours. He'd only land himself in more trouble.
"It's nothing Miss, I told you" he mumbled
Rachel sighed
"Bolton, I thought we agreed this morning that you were going to stay out of trouble!" She huffed
"Yeah....well.... that was this morning!"
"Well, what's happened between then and now to make you punch a locker? Hmm?" She shot back
"Nothing, Miss!" He snapped
"Bolton, this isn't like you! Why are you acting like this?!" She questioned
"It's none of your business, Miss! Just leave it, yeah?"
"No, Bolton! I can't 'Just leave it'! You're going to tell me what's going on, and you're going to tell me now!" She demanded
Bolton looked away, refusing to answer her questions.
Rachel scoffed
"Fine Bolton, you win. You can think about what you want to tell me in the cooler" She decided
Bolton growled angrily, storming out of the office. Rachel was hot on his heels, calling after him.
The shouting in the corridor had caught Eddie's attention, as well as the rest of his class. He saw Bolton flying passed his classroom, Rachel not far behind him. He shot up from his chair, instructing the class to stay put as he shot out into the corridor after Bolton.
"Bolton!" He called
He moved in front of him, but Bolton didn't stop. He pushed passed him angrily.
"Whoa! Oi! Just calm down mate, alright?" Eddie instructed firmly, pushing Bolton backwards gently
Rachel finally caught up with them. Eddie could tell she was furious.
"Bolton, go to the cooler, now!" She demanded
Bolton scoffed, stomping away. Rachel put a hand to her head, sighing deeply.
"What was all that about? Are you ok?" Eddie asked, stepping toward her
"I'm fine. I found him punching a locker to death. I don't know what's got into him!" She huffed
"I think I do" Eddie admitted
Rachel looked up at him, surprised, urging him to continue.
Eddie sighed
"Look, there was an incident at lunch between Earl and Bolton at Rob's boxing club. Earl and Bolton were having a match and... Earl took it too far and kicked Bolton in the nuts" he explained
Rachel closed her eyes, sighing deeply.
"Sorry, I should have told you, Rach. But we had it under control at the time" he shrugged apologetically
"No it's ok. I'll give him a chance to cool down. I need to get the first aid kit to sort his hand out anyway"
She moved to walked passed him when he stopped her, turning her back round to face him.
"Rach, why don't you let me deal with it later? I'm supposed to be taking you to A+E in 15 minutes" he suggested
She shook her head
"It'll have to wait till later, Eddie. Bolton is the priority. We'll go after school. I'd feel more comfortable if you came with me anyway"
Eddie nodded. If he was honest, she was glad she'd said that. He'd wanted to go with her too.
"Go back to your class and I'll see you later, ok?" She said, smiling at him reassuringly before walking away
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)
