Kieran.Stories

He saw gold flakes swishing around inside the Grey Goose. Alicia poured what looked like a lot into his cup. She opened a new litre bottle of Coke. It fizzed. He drank, tried not to wince.  

He was early to the party. Mum had dropped him off on her way to collect Chloe from Brownies. 

‘So, that’s it then. Show’s over.’ 

‘Did you enjoy yourself?’

He felt patronised. They had spent a lot of time together, but always as part of a group, rehearsing.  

‘I like your charm.’ On her bracelet, Alicia had a ruby slippers charm. 

‘It’s cheap.’ She touched her wrist. ‘My parents gave it to me when I got the part.’ 

They went through to the living room, sat on the settee with their vodka and cola. 

When Sam arrived, it was a relief. Alicia took Sam into the kitchen. He heard them laughing, then Alicia put some music on. He felt more than a little self-conscious on the settee, like his drink would magically spill without him even moving. He noticed he’d chewed the edges of the cup, like a child. All he wanted now was to get rid of it. 

In the kitchen, the girls were pouring jet black liquid into shot glasses. 

‘Tin Man, have a shot.’  

‘Actually, could I have one of the beers?’

Mum had warned him off shots.  

‘He’s so polite, isn’t he?’ 

‘Such a charmer.’ 

After seven, there was a steady flow of people into the house. He was pleased to see Stephen, the Scarecrow. But he had a different aura outside school. It was obvious that Stephen was operating on a different level. He had brought his girlfriend, who went to Newman College. 

He wondered if the friendships he had made during rehearsals were friendships of convenience. He hovered between kitchen and hallway, trying not to get in anyone’s way. 

Mum had agreed to pick him up at ten. 

Sam called everyone into the kitchen for a drinking game. She made a point of standing next to him. When the game was over – and it went on forever – one of the Flying Monkeys asked if he was going into Preston later. 

‘Everyone’s going Warehouse.’ 

‘Sounds great.’ 

The Flying Monkey punched his shoulder. 

He didn’t see Miss Green come into the house, but he heard raised voices in the living room and went with everyone else to see what was going on. 

She was wearing baggy bottoms. He could see that she wasn’t wearing a bra. She was looking at the carpet. 

‘Can we have the room?’ Alicia asked. 

Sam closed the door to the living room. He stood in the kitchen with everyone else.

People saw Miss Green leave through the front door. Alicia asked Sam to set up another row of shots. 

Two taxis arrived outside Alicia’s house. He followed the Scarecrow, Stephen. Alicia had changed into the gingham dress, the same one she’d worn for the show. Sam and Alicia had glitter on their cheeks and below their eyes, like the gold flakes in the vodka bottle. He was barely registering the conversation in the taxi. He stared out into the blackness. 

‘Wasn’t your mum picking you up?’ Sam asked. 

‘Don’t be a dick,’ Alicia said. 

‘We’re off to see the Wizard,’ he said, and Alicia laughed. 

‘You know Miss Green fingered her in the drama studio.’ Sam was pointing at her friend. ‘So, don’t be, like, cute.’ 

The taxi was at the corner, near Kirkham Prison, when the driver swerved. They turned over into the field, landing on their backs, like beetles.    

The feeling of his jaw hanging to the right. His cheeks came in from the cold. The rest of his body had the heating on. Dad stood by the thermostat. Chloe in her pink dressing gown. He turned over to be sick onto the grass. There were cows. It wasn’t clear whether the cows could see him, or had any idea what was happening. He sausage rolled over to Alicia. Tumble Tots over here. He squeezed her arm and thought he saw the skin turn white. The Mede was over there. He heard Miss Green telling him to stiffen. You haven’t been oiled – you’re a metal man! He put Dorothy over his shoulder. It was easy, like carrying Chloe. At the edge of the Mede, people were out. Before he reached them, he saw rows and rows of poppies. Feeling drowsy, he dropped onto the floor. 

He was in hospital for two nights. The nurse asked if he wanted to be pushed in a wheelchair on his way out, and he would have said yes if his mum hadn’t answered for him. When they were back home, he thought Chloe might have made him a banner, or something, as a welcome home from the hospital, but the house looked like it always looked. He hobbled up to his room, and Mum came up to tell him that they would talk about it later.