We're Not Strangers Anymore

Chapter Six - Walking Home

'Thank you for having me, Mrs Broomer, and thank you for tea.'
'Oh you're very welcome Jamie, nice to meet you son.'
'You too, see you later.'
The backdoor was pulled to, and both boys were in high spirits.
A friend, Charlie Broomer thought, finally, a real friend.
He made sure he locked the back gate, as he always ritualistically did, and for a good minute or two Jamie was speechless. Charlie turned to face him and placed an arm round his shoulder.
'Jamie? You alright?'
A tear rolled down Jamie's cheek, but he did his best job to attempt to hide it.
'Yeah, everything's fine, it's just..'
'Go on?'
'Well, I've just.. I don't know, it's stupid. I guess I've just never had a proper "friend" before, you know?"
Charlie looked down at the floor and smiled.
'I do. I do know. Thank you for coming round today, it means a lot. I just can't believe we've never spoke before, y'know, before today.. It's mental.'
'Well, you've got a friend in me buddy. And thanks for offering to walk me back, too. You didn't have to do that, you know.'
'I know I didn't - but I wanted to. Besides, I wouldn't let my cat out in this town alone, never mind my best friend.'
Jamie laughed and said, 'is that what we are now, best friends? God, we'll end up like my Mum, drinking white wine round the kitchen table and crying by the time we're forty. Also, you don't even have a cat!'
Charlie laughed too, and soon enough they were both in a fit of hysterics.
Five minutes later they reached walked the local corner shop; Charlie carried on walking, but Jamie stopped.
'What are you doing?' asked Charlie, now stopping himself.
'Relax,' Jamie replied, one foot already in the shop's door. 'Just getting you a little present, that's all.'
Charlie was confused: what could he possibly be going in there for?
Two minutes passed and Jamie emerged, clutching a brown paper bag with a cheesy grin plastered onto his face. He reached into it and pulled out a small white box, much to Charlie's confusion.
'What's that?' he asked, genuinely unaware and bewildered.
'Fags,' said Jamie, 'don't you smoke?'
Charlie stood completely still for thirty seconds, trying to wrap his head around the reason why Jamie bought them for him.
'Erm, no? Why would I smoke, I'm fourteen?'
'Oh come on, don't be such a spoilsport. Look, I'll show you how it's done.'
He took one out and examined it, before eventually popping one into the corner of his mouth and lighting. The lighter was a dull shade of green, a somewhat vintage looking piece, and after the cigarette was successfully lit Jamie put it back into his left blazer pocket.
'All four of The Beatles smoke, didn't you know?'
'Do they?'
'Yeah, of course, it's rock and roll man! My Dad told me, he said that they all smoke something called "weeds"!'
'What, like from the garden?'
'How am I supposed to know? Anyway, do you want one or not? It's cool if you don't, I'll just give the rest to my Dad. That's the only way I get served, if I tell them the fags are for my Dad.'
'Your Dad seems to have a lot of stories for someone who "doesn't talk much".'
'Well he raised me on good music, I know that much. And for that I have to thank him, I guess.'
Charlie stopped dead in his tracks, noticing a familiar face a few yards away; it was none other than Jack Hodges. For a minute he was frozen, unable to move.
Jamie spotted him too, and said, 'man, I hate that guy. Always beating me up and calling me fat, I wish he'd just die.'
'That's a bit far, Jamie. I don't like him either, but don't wish death on someone, that's not cool. Is your house far from here?'
Jamie re-lit his cigarette and coughed, desperately trying to stifle it before he ended up attracting unwanted attention.
'Nah,' he replied, covering his mouth, 'it's just a couple of roads away. What are we going to do?'
'We're gonna have to walk past him. On the count of three we move off, you ready?'
Jamie pulled the waist of his trousers up and nodded.
'Yeah, I'm ready.'
At first they began to move slowly, before eventually picking up pace. Jack Hodges was doing circles on his bike, a mountain bike painted with what appeared to be a shade of chrome red. Charlie felt his stomach do a front flip, and Jamie looked as if his already had.
They picked up the pace again, quickly realising that their tormentor would be able to catch up with them in a split second if he ever clapped eyes on the pair of them.
Nearly at the end of the road, said the voice in Charlie's head.
The voice in Jamie's head spoke near enough the same sentence: Thank fuck that this is nearly over.
Suddenly, the echoed voice of an all-too-familiar face penetrated their eardrums.
'Hey, I know you too! Get over here, now, let me show you what happens to little freaks like you!'
The two boys bolted away as fast as they could, but it was no use. They tried to run, but they couldn't; their legs simply wouldn't carry them. Soon enough the sound of a mountain bike's front wheels caught up with them, and in that very moment it was a truly haunting sound.
Sccrrreeeecchhh.
They froze on the spot, blissfully unaware of what to do next.
'So, what are you two arseholes doing round here, huh? You see all of this, here, this nice little area? This is my fucking town, these are my fucking streets.'
Jack Hodges stepped forward slowly but quickly at the exact same time, his trainers slapping the ground with an almighty force as he walked.
'I'll ask you again,' he continued, this time hitting a deeper and far more sinister tone of voice. 'What the fuck are you doing round here?'
The Adam's Apple in Charlie's throat grew both sharp and painful. He gulped, clenching his fists.