Authors Note: This is the first draft and is raw at the moment - when I have completed all Parts I will start the editing process. (All critiques welcome) 

Charlie ruffled his scruffy black mane, pushed his black-rimmed glasses back onto his nose and settle back into his big black chair. 

"What was he like, Lord Niall?" Said Charlie gently stroking his chin.

At first, Lord Niall was just what I thought he would be, a cold fish. I knew Lord Niall was marrying me because of a very neatly tied up business transaction that really I knew nothing about. It was between our fathers and was about what they wanted and what they would get from us being together. Niall's father had pushed him into marriage with a nice well-born girl just like my own darling Mama and Papa  were doing to me.

 They were worried about me because of my activist ways, that was part of it, it wasn't all about money, I was a suffragette and it didn't look good in society Mama would say, I think they were afraid they would never marry me off I just wasn't very good at being told what to do and in came Lord Niall with his father with their deep pockets and voila, I was sold. 

 At lead up to the wedding I was trying to spend as little of my time with Lord Niall as possible, I suppose I was in denial, but he had practically told me I was going to marry him and had given me very little say in the matter which made me stubborn, like an old mule. 

 So my good friend and I Lady Penny also a suffragette (Mama of course hated her, thought her a bad influence) which of course made me love Lady Penny all the more. Penny had just got married to an Irish Socialist so in her home votes for women was just the tip of the ice burg.

 Living in the country -side didn't provide us with the greatest opportunities for defiance but naturally we did our best. Penny and I traveled to our local country club which happened to be men only and it seemed like the perfect place to ruffle a few dusty old feathers as they didn't allow women to enter the building. We both wore our sashes defiantly and held our votes for women signs above our heads with the up most pride running across the gravel shouting "Votes for women, Votes for women" at the top of our lungs.

 By this time, of course, our adrenaline was pumping and we, without thinking ran through the country club still chanting our mantra. By now we were being chased by a significant number of men one being my elder brother Jimmy and his friend Will Gilbert, although Will seemed to be laughing more than chasing he kept up the pretense and continued to follow us across the club grounds. The others in the chase were elder men who we knew we could happily out run. 

Penny, Jimmy, William and I ran through the country club lounge and across the golf course until we knew we were safely out of site, Penny and I couldn't contain our laughter and fell into an embrace. We felt as if we had done something wonderful, we were full of defiance and outrage, our right to vote, but in the grand scheme of what was about to happen to us, we achieved nothing at all. 

"What the hell did you think you were doing, Papa will go spare" shouted Jimmy

"Let him" I shrugged still revealing in my defiance.

"Oh come on Jim bob" winked Lady Penny

Will could not contain himself and let out a big laugh causing Jimmy to soften.

"I'm sorry Jim, but that was the funniest thing I've seen in a while, you dragged me to that ol' dusty club and then these two run in and liven the place up a bit. Cracking afternoon I say!" Said William who smiled at me shyly.

"Oh Will trust you to see it like that," said Jimmy.

~

Lavinia leaned back in her chair and looked at Charlie who was once again stroking his face.

"Aren't you going to say something?" Said Lavinia

"No Lavinia I am not going to say anything, not today, except, you should go home, George and Anna might wonder where you have got too"

Lavinia nodded at Charlie, pulled up her hood and he politely showed her to the door, watching her for a moment as she walked away.

 Charlie ran back into his office grabbed his wallet and briefcase and, in no more than three steps sped from his office locking the door behind him. He drove to the local hospital and when he had parked his dented old green Audi, and with a grumble paid the extortionate price for a parking ticket, he ran to reception and asked for Doctor Franklin at the same time sending him a text.

"He's busy at the moment Sir, my name is Charlton, Doctor Charlton, I must speak with him it's very important."

"Is it regarding a patient, Doctor..?"

"Charlton, and no it's not Doctor Franklin is an old... friend" Charlie was rubbing his eyes in exasperation beneath his glasses. 

"Charlton".  Charlie repeated 

The receptionist had bright red lipstick, dirty blonde hair and was chewing gum, and didn't look like she cared whether Charlie or anything of the people in the waiting room saw a doctor 

"Of course, he is Sir; you are going to have to wait. Please take a seat." Said the receptionist making smacking sounds on her gum. 

Charlie wrinkled his face in annoyance but before he even had time sit down Doctor Franklin jogged towards him still in his scrubs fresh from surgery. They embraced for a moment but Doctor Franklin knew when Charlie needed to talk and ushered him towards the hospital cafe. Doctor Franklin ran back towards reception. 

"Gia" the dirty blonde receptionist looked up at him with a bright, white grin. 

"Spit out the gum for christ sake" Gia went bright red and quickly lost the gum. 

Doctor Franklin ran after Charlie who had just walked into the hospital cafe. 

He bought them both two watered down coffees as if that was the queue for all confessions.

"I have a patient," said Charlie not even bothering with niceties.

"Good, I'm glad you're working again March," said Doctor Franklin

Doctor Charlton looked into his coffee like it would solve all his problems; Doctor F. Franklin as his name badge described him took a quick glance at his watch while Charlie wasn't looking he had to be in surgery soon.

"She has red hair my patient and these big green eyes," said Doctor Charlton

Doctor Franklin's expression went from understanding to cross in an instant.

"The first patient you have since coming back to work is a red head, how can you hope to be objective March really? For months you have been crossing the road to avoid women with red hair, we left a restaurant because a baby, a frickin' baby had red hair and that school boy do remember who sat down next to us in the theatre and you started hyperventilating? You expect me to believe you are happy to sit in a room alone with this woman who has red hair and green eyes? March... I do not understand you." Said Doctor Franklin

"I'm afraid you are right Franklin, I'm afraid I'm not being objective," said Doctor Charlton

"If you feel you can't treat this girl, then you must transfer her, it's the only right thing to do, promise me March." Said Doctor Franklin he slapped his right hand down onto the coffee table as if satisfied with a job well down. Doctor Franklin had a swagger about him and he had a swagger because he was ridiculously handsome, tall and dark and eyes that could burn through even the harshest of women, yes Franklin knew how to get what he wanted and most of the time he would only have to batter his long eyelashes to do it.

 As he left the people in the café whether they be staff or visitors they could not help but glance in his direction, this made Charlie smile, for this is the way it had always been, every woman who had ever seen them together had always only ever seen Franklin, every person but one, his Alice, his wife, the original woman with the flaming hair.

The posting schedule for The Girl Who Fell Out of The Ocean is Wednesday, and Sundays!