Strike (Sphere of Irony 2)

I tense up, squeezing with my arms, which causes Adam to hiss in pain. “Danny did this?”

Adam can’t respond. He passes out, his head dropping forward and his body becoming slack in my arms. Lucky for me Adam is fairly thin and I’m fit, or else I wouldn’t be able to manage. It takes almost half an hour, but I get him back to his flat and into his bed. I can’t keep him at my place, my parents would insist on going to A&E. They’ve known Adam forever and care about him as if he were another Davies.

By the time I get him home, get to the all-night chemist

to retrieve some supplies to clean his wound, and get back to Adam’s flat, we’re both drenched with sweat —me from exertion, Adam from shock.

Shaking, I sit on the edge of Adam’s bed—just a dingy mattress on the floor—and hold my head in my hands. My best mate was almost killed tonight. Something has got to change.

Kate

I watch ruefully as Dax and Ellie walk away from school together, threading my fingers through the end of my braid. Never in my life did I think I would hate football, but today I do. I’m stuck at practice, in the freezing cold, while Ellie gets escorted round town by the boy I want more than anything in the world.

“Oi. What’s that about?”

I turn to see Tasha staring at Dax and Ellie, her brow wrinkled in confusion.

Shrugging, I play it off. “Don’t know. He’s been walking her to Adam’s flat every day. She said it has something to do with Adam being out of school. He takes her to visit.”

“Adam? Adam Reynolds?”

“Yeah.”

Tasha gives me an incredulous look as if she doesn’t believe their story. That it’s a cover for some sordid affair between Dax and my best mate.

“Ellie’s not with Dax, Tash.”

“Hmph. What does a god like Dax Davies see in a boring little mouse like Ellie?”

I startle, not realizing Willa had joined us on the edge of the pitch. Both Tasha’s mouth and mine fall open at Willa’s rudeness.

She takes note of our shocked expressions and sneers, curling her lip up in disgust. “Well, it’s true. Didn’t you see all the girls at the DK waiting to get a piece of him? They were all way better looking than her,” Willa sniffs, tossing her hair over one shoulder.

Annoyed, I defend my friend. “How can you say that? Ellie’s flat out gorgeous, Willa.” God, I could slap that condescending look off of her face.

Jealous cow.

“Is she? Then how come it was me sucking him off after the concert and not her?” She arches one of those perfectly groomed eyebrows of hers, shoving her superiority in my face.

My heart crumples in on itself and nosedives right into my hollow stomach. “You… you…” I can’t manage to finish my sentence. All at once I’m feeling humiliated, jealous, and seething with anger. Despite the cold, my face is burning up. My gaze flicks over to Tasha, catching the look of sympathy she’s giving me. It’s clear she already knew about Willa and Dax.

Willa smirks as I take off across the pitch towards the street. Screw practice. I can’t look at that bitch without wanting to kick her teeth in, and I certainly don’t want anyone to see me break down and cry, which is exactly what happens the minute I get out of sight.

My throat is tight and my tongue feels thick as I run in my footy boots. Past broken down cars, past abandoned buildings, past the shoddy cornershop where filthy dossers try to scam you out of your money—not that anyone round here has any.

I hate bloody Hackney! Living in London’s worst, most crime-ridden neighborhood can suck the life out of you if you let it. Mine’s not been sucked out. It’s been hoovered out by Dax Davies and his man-whore ways.

By the time I reach my dingy flat, my lungs are burning and tears cover my freezing cheeks. I might be hurt, but I’m also determined. I head straight for a pile of scholarship applications with a singular purpose.

To get the hell out of Hackney so I can forget all about Dax Davies.

“What?”

I literally can’t believe what I’m hearing. When I look into Ellie’s large blue eyes, I know she’s not lying

“Adam was stabbed, Kate.” She sniffs and tries to hold back tears. How did I not notice that my best friend was falling apart? Her eyes are swollen and red-rimmed. There are dark circles beneath them telling me she hasn’t been sleeping well. Her nails are chewed down to stubs, and frankly, she just looks exhausted.

“How? I mean why? Hell—I have no idea what to say, El.”