Broken Heart Surgery

"What are you up to you little devil?"

"Well, you saw the pictures, what do you think?"

"What do you mean?"

"About Ray. Don't you realise she's hung up on you? No, you don't. All you see is the girl next door. I was rather hoping you'd see how pretty she is."

I went bright red. Ali obviously knew me better than I thought.

"Has this been your plan all along you devious child?"

"Actually I just wanted you to find someone to start with, but when I saw how Rachel looked at you I decided to do something for both of you." The smug grin wavered for a moment, as she gauged if I was really angry with her.

"I ought to tan your hide young lady." I sighed.

The grin came back.

"Why? My plan worked didn't it?"

I went red again.

"I think you should go to your room Alison. I need to discuss this with Rachel."

"See! I knew this would work."

"ALISON! Your room please."

"Oh all right, spoilsport."

I went to find Ray in the kitchen. She had just finished making Ali a sandwich. She turned as I came in.

"I thought I heard Ali come in? Her snack is ready."

"You did hear her Rachel. She's up in her room at the moment."

"I'll take her the sandwich then."

I put my hand on her arm.

"It can wait a while. I've just had a serious talk with her, before I sent her upstairs. We need to talk now. It appears she has been trying to manoeuvre us both, but with the best of intentions I'm sure." I sighed, not sure how to ask what I knew I had too. "She took some pictures of you last week?"

"Yes. I think she wanted to show them to someone. It was a bit of a dare, posing for someone I didn't know."

"I'm afraid you do know them. She tricked me into looking at them."

"YOU!? But why?"

"She seemed to think that... No, that's wrong. She knew that I only ever looked at you as the girl next door."

"I knew that too."

"Ali wanted me to realise how beautiful you had grown up. I'm desperately sorry I never noticed before, but those snapshots showed me what I had been missing. You are stunningly attractive."

Rachel blushed deeply.

"Th....thank you." She stuttered. "But how is that Ali manipulating me? I was happy to do those poses. I'm happier that they were for you."

"That's the point. Alison thinks you have a thing for me. I can't see it myself." Rachel went an even deeper shade of red and hung her head. Another insight hit me. "You do have a thing for me?" She nodded. "It's not just because I teased you about having to ask you out if all else failed is it?"

"No. No, it started after Jenny had died. I felt sorry for you, and I wanted to help you and those feelings grew into something more." There were tears starting to roll down her cheeks now.

"Don't cry Rachel. It's not your fault I've been living in the past, blinded by grief, unable to see a helping hand when it's offered. That was all my own doing, nothing at all to do with you."

"Still, I'm sorry about all this. I think it would be best if I left." She turned and opened the backdoor.

"Rachel, don't..." I started to say, but it was too late. She had gone.

"DAD! What are you doing? Get after her you idiot!!" Alison shouted from the doorway.

Galvanised by her words, I ran out into the garden after Ray.

"Rachel! Ray! Wait a minute please." I caught up with her. "Don't go Rachel, please. I don't know if Ali is right, and we do need each other, but I'd like to find out. So please, stay. At least until your parents get back."

Rachel looked up with tear-stained eyes.

"What if she is wrong? I don't know if I can cope with that."

"Won't it be better to try and fail than be left wondering if she was right?"

"What about Jenny?"

"Jenny's gone and I'll always love her, but you know that anyway. And one thing Alison was right about was that her mom would want me to be happy too." I smiled at her. "And I think I would very much like to try and be happy with you."

Rachel wiped her eyes.

"I think I'd like to try too."

"Goody. Now kiss each other." Alison called out from the kitchen door.

"Aren't you supposed to be in your room young lady?" I said.

"Tell me off later. Just kiss her you idiot."

"Who..?" I started to say when Rachel smothered my mouth with a kiss. I relaxed and kissed her back. Eventually she pulled away. "How come you could never keep a boy if you can kiss like that?" I asked jokingly.

"Because I never kissed anyone like that before." She smiled. "Care to try again?"

"I think so." The second kiss saw us wrap our arms around each other, holding each other close. I saw Alison grinning like a maniac out of the corner of my eye. "Don't think I've forgotten you miss." I said, making to move towards her. She squealed and ran back inside.

"Can I have a word with her first?" Rachel asked.

"Sure. But don't go easy on her, just because she's right." I grinned. Rachel skipped inside after her. I watched her go. She was truly a beauty.

I lifted my head skywards and muttered.

"I can't help feeling you had a hand in this Jenny. Thank you." I followed the girls into the house.

*********

Maybe the beginning should be in the past tense?