i've always been there for you.

~one~

Charlotte Evershed walks through the corridors of Kingshill Boarding School towards the Headmaster, Mr Abney's office. She's wearing most of the school uniform, shirt untucked, skirt hitched too high up her legs, top button undone, tie loose and the red blazer tucked under her arm. Charlotte's also sporting a white hoodie over her shirt, knowing it'll rattle Mr Abney.

She walks up to the office, adjusts the strap of her bag and knocks on the door.
"Come in." Mr Abney shouts.
Charlotte sighs, opens the door and walks in.
"Evershed." Mr Abney says, angrily.
"Sir." Charlotte shoots back cheerily.
"Sit down." He says sternly.
Charlotte does so and drops her bag onto the floor. She looks down at the desk and sees a piece of paper lying there. Charlotte looks up at Mr Abney and he looks down at the paper then back up to Charlotte.
Charlotte rolls her eyes and takes the paper.

"I'm expelling you, Evershed, with immediate effect." Mr Abney says, "You knew your last stunt was the last straw."

Charlotte shrugs and smiles a little as she looks at the floor. Mr Abney clears his throat, looking at Charlotte's hoodie and sighs.

"I'm calling your father to pick you up." The Headmaster explains.
At this, Charlotte's gaze meets Mr Abney's.
"My father?" Charlotte scoffs, "Why? Haven't seen him for years."

The Headmaster sighs and leans forward, clasping his hands together on the desk.
"Charlotte, there's no easy way to say this but your mother passed away a few days ago."
Charlotte looks at the floor, fiddling with the necklace her mother gave her a few months ago for her 15th birthday.

"She, um, she what-?" Charlotte asks, sniffling.

"I'm so sorry, Charlotte," The Headmaster says, "I wish there was something I could've done."

Charlotte sniffs and wipes her eyes. "Yeah, there would've been something," She retaliates, "You could've told me the day it happened."

The Headmaster sighs and picks up the phone, dialling Ackley Bridge College reception.

Charlotte vaguely hears what's being said, her mind's in a different place, thinking of the last time she saw her mother, Louise, remembering how happy she looked.

"Yes, hi Lorraine," The Headmaster says, slightly muffled, "Yes, that's right, put him through. Thank you."

The Headmaster doesn't notice Charlotte putting her hand into her skirt pocket, untangling
her earphones and pressing play on some music. The music is slightly too loud and can be heard through Charlotte's earphones in the room so Charlotte doesn't hear the conversation.

She doesn't want to anyway.

The line crackles and Martin Evershed's voice can be heard on the other end of the phone.

"Hello," Mr Evershed says in a grave voice, "It's Mr Abney from Kingshill, isn't it?"

Mr Abney smiles. "Yes, yes, that's right. Do you have a spare moment?" Mr Abney continues, "It's about your daughter."

——————————————

Martin Evershed is sitting at his desk at Ackley Bridge College, his head in his hands. He'd just got off the phone with Kingshill School, the boarding school he'd sent his daughter to when she was 5.

The idea was a mutual decision between Martin and his first wife, Louise. He hadn't been in touch with either Louise or Charlotte when Charlotte had been sent to Kingshill.
Once again, he didn't tell them when he left them both for another woman, Gaynor.

Charlotte was 8 when he did that.

Now, Martin's in a seemingly happy relationship with Jules Perry, who he found out was the mother of Kayla and Marina, who are students at the school. He found out through a dating app he signed up to a few months ago.