I'll keep you safe

Chapter 121

It was 6AM when Eddie opened his eyes again. He didn't remember falling asleep, but he knew it must have happened not long after Rachel had. He had planned to stay awake and keep an eye on her in case she couldn't sleep. But, given that she had managed to fall asleep, he had relaxed and had fallen asleep too.

His hand skimmed across her side of the bed. As he expected, it was empty. She was always up before him, even on the weekends. He hoped that, physically, she was feeling better. The events of yesterday would take a while to recover from. Not just for Rachel, but for everyone.

Eddie was still having trouble digesting the fact that Maxine was dead. He didn't know how they were going to handle things at school today. How were they going to tell everyone? Eddie had never dealt with anything like this before, and he was sure Rachel hadn't either. He'd never imagined he'd have to. He didn't know how they were going to do this today. He and Rachel needed to come up with a plan.

With a heavy sigh, Eddie clambered out of bed and over to the ensuite.

When he turned the bathroom light on, he heard a small whimper. He frowned, squinting around the bathroom. That was when his eyes fell on Rachel. She was curled up in a ball on the floor beside the toilet, shivering. Eddie dashed over to her, crouching down beside her. He dreaded to think how long she'd been there for. She definitely wasn't feeling better. In fact, she looked worse than before. She was white as a sheet, her skin hot and clammy to touch. She was shaking and shivering violently, her eyes clouded with fatigue.

"Rach?" Eddie whispered softly, brushing the hair out of her face

Rachel lifted her head to look at him, instantly covering her eyes with her arm as she groaned. The lights were causing the pain in her head to increase.

"Please can you turn the lights off?" she requested, keeping her arm over her eyes

"Of course" Eddie nodded, standing up

He turned the lights off, hearing Rachel sigh in relief. He kneeled down beside her again.

"How long have you been in here, love?" he asked

"I don't know. I woke up feeling sick, so I came in here and... I was sick. I felt lightheaded, so I just... stayed here" she explained

Eddie sighed, lifting her gently into his arms. He carried her back to bed, wrapping the covers around her.

Rachel gagged, sitting up immediately, a hand flying to her mouth. She grabbed the bin, heaving and retching. Eddie sat beside her, rubbing her back in slow, soothing circles.

Once it was over, she groaned, resting her head on Eddie's shoulder. She really didn't feel well at all.

She turned her head over to look at the clock. Her heart practically leapt out of her chest when she saw it was 6:30AM. She threw the covers off, placing the bin on the bedside table. Eddie frowned at her sudden change in demeanour.

"Rach, what's the matter?" he questioned

"It's 6:30AM, Eddie. I need to get dressed" she told him

Eddie lay her back down gently. Rachel frowned at him.

"Eddie, I need to get ready for work!" she huffed

Eddie scoffed.

"Rach, you're not well enough to go to work!"

Rachel glared at him, sitting up again.

"I don't care. I have to be there to support the kids and staff. We have a lot to arrange and organise"

"I will sort it! You need to rest, Rach. I can handle things today" he told her, laying her back against the pillows

"No, I'm fine, Eddie!" she snapped, pushing his hands off her shoulders