I’ve hit the nail on the head, thought Elle, he’s got a secret. Considering there was no more information on him now than there had been when he had first been picked up, it was good work.
‘Lastly, please stop calling Jake “pissy-pants”. We know he wets the bed on occasion, but he’s having enough trouble at school without coming home to it, as well. Right, it’s your turn now.’
Elle sat back in her chair. She wasn’t sure if Antony would open up to her, she had a feeling he wouldn’t, not yet, so she took a sip of her tea and waited.
Antonias wasn’t sure where to start, no one had ever spoken to him like that before. He was even tempted to tell her about his mother, but he stopped himself. All this was going through his mind and there was a long silence between them, then he started.
‘I feel free on the streets. I lived there a long time, I have mates there, I like to go and see them sometimes.’ He felt that was a good enough explanation. Then he mumbled under his breath, ‘Sorry about your purse, did you report it?’
He waited for Elle’s answer; she shook her head.
Antonias felt strange in Elle’s company, it was as though she could see straight through him.
‘I’ll pay you back.’ To be fair, he didn’t know why he’d stolen it, either – habit, he supposed. Elle gave both boys an allowance, and although Jake put his in the school bank after buying his favourite comics, Antonias’s money burnt a hole in his pocket and he spent it all at once.
Then a thought occurred to him; it was a strange one, but Elle had brought it up, so he asked.
‘Would you really drive me round the streets? I could show you where we light a fire in the oil drum and stand around it getting warm.’ He sounded excited about showing off. ‘And, yes, I will stop calling Jake “pissy-pants”.’
Elle felt this was a great triumph, and that she had made real progress. He had told her as much as he was prepared to, for now, and the rest would come in time, when he felt he could trust her more.
‘When you want to go for a drive, Antony, we will all go together. I promise I won’t interfere, you can stand with your friends, alone. I’ll go and have a coffee somewhere, with Jake. You just let me know when. Oh, and one last thing – you have to go to school, and stay there all day. I’ve spoken to Mrs Anderson and she’s prepared to give you another chance, even though she feels you may be better off in some special school.’
Elle thought the idea of going to some ‘special school’ would shock him; he was far from backward and didn’t want a stigma like that attached to him, his vanity wouldn’t allow it.
‘What kind of special school? One for weirdos or something?’ Then it occurred to him, this woman had fought his corner, done his fighting for him; yet again, this was something he wasn’t used to.
‘Not weirdos, Antony, just children with learning difficulties and problems, that are better off there than in mainstream schools. They get one-to-one teaching to help them.’ She knew this grim description she was giving him made it sound much worse than it actually was.
The school was actually excellent and helped children develop their social skills and talents. Elle knew, because she had worked in schools like that, but she smiled to herself; no way would Antony have a one-to-one teacher keeping an eye on him.
Elle stood up; enough had been said, and she had given Antonias a lot to think about for now.
‘Well, I’m going to have a bath. Or would you like to have one, first?’ She looked at his dishevelled appearance; again, she was giving him freedom of choice.
Antonias laughed. He pulled his shirt nearer to his nose and smelt it. ‘Phew! I think I’d better go first,’ he said, and ran up the stairs. Elle sat back and finished her tea; that hadn’t been as hard as she’d feared it might be.
***
The next morning, Elle was surprised when Antonias came downstairs in his school uniform, but she didn’t comment; it was still early days, although she was pleased he was showing willing.
During the lunch break, Antonias stood in a far corner of the playground. He could see Jake from afar, and watched him as he sat on one of the wooden benches, reading his comic.
Antonias saw a gang of four or five other boys circle Jake and start mocking him, then the ringleader pulled his comic from his hands and tore it up. Jake sat there and said nothing; he didn’t even raise his head.
Antonias saw them throw the torn comic into the air, then he watched as they made Jake empty his pockets and hand over what spare change he had in them. Finally, they walked away, laughing.
Antonias wasn’t all that fond of pissy-pants, but he felt sorry for the boy. He walked slowly over towards the gang. They knew of Antonias’s reputation, and so never gave him any grief.
‘Hey, Antony.’ The ringleader who had torn up Jake’s comic laughed and threw some of Jake’s money at him. ‘Do you want some of this?’ They all thought this was great fun and were laughing.
Antonias looked at Jake; he could see he was frightened, and he thought Antonias was going to join in because he didn’t like him.
Antonias bent down and picked up some of the torn comic, then scrunched it up in his hand.
‘No, thanks,’ he said. He was very calm and very polite. He grabbed hold of the ringleader’s hair and yanked on it, hard. ‘But do you want some of this?’ He pulled the lad’s head back and stuffed the paper into his mouth, making him gag, and then he turned around to one of the others and punched him hard in the face.
His blue eyes turned a darker blue and he looked at them all with a smirk on his face.
‘Anyone else want some?’ he said, and he pulled his fist back ready to strike another blow to any one of them.
The ringleader was pulling the paper from his mouth. Antonias had pushed it so far down his throat, he was nearly being sick.
The school bell rang and they all started to back away.
‘Saved by the bell,’ Antonias murmured.
‘What’s it to you, what we do to him?’ one said, as they retreated. ‘I thought you didn’t like him.’
‘I don’t.’ Antonias smiled, and nodded to Jake to follow him. ‘But he’s my brother and I’m stuck with him.’
THE HARSH TRUTH
That was the start of a very strange friendship. Jake idolized Antonias, and was never bullied again – apart from by Antonias, of course, but he didn’t mind that.
A couple of months later, Elle had to go in front of the social services review panel. The members, alternatively flicking though the various reports they had and eyeing Antonias, all seemed to feel that he would be better off back in a children’s home. Even though his behaviour had improved a little, they still thought he was too much trouble for Elle to cope with on her own.
Antonias also had to sit there while they argued over him like dogs scrapping over a bone. He was alone at one end of the long oval table they all sat at, the distance between him and Elle making it seem even larger than it was. He hung his head.
This is it, then, he thought to himself, I’m leaving Elle’s house and going back to the home.
‘No!’ said Elle, forcefully. ‘Antony can stay with me. Have I ever complained about him? He’s going to school, he doesn’t run away anymore. Okay, he still fights at school, but that’s boys for you, isn’t it? Anyway, why don’t you ask him what he wants?’ She looked towards Antonias. He looked very young all of a sudden, and vulnerable.
They all turned and looked at Antonias, and he felt the weight of their eyes on him. The panel members hadn’t actually considered what he might want.
‘Antony,’ said his social worker, ‘what would you like to do?’ She crossed her fingers under the table, hoping he would say the right thing.
‘I’d like to stay with Elle and Jake, if they want me, too,’ he said, sullenly. He looked up briefly, then back down at the table.
Antonias had grown quite fond of them, in his own way; he even called Jake by his name now, and talked to him. He didn’t tell anyone that on
occasion Elle had kept her word and driven him around ‘cardboard city’, where he used to live. He had shown off a little, pointing out where they had fires, and doorways he had slept in, and he even said ‘hello’ to the local prostitutes and alcoholics they met.
Elle hadn’t been sure whether he had done that to shock her. As much as she was squirming inside, she didn’t show it to Antonias. She smiled and laughed with him; after all, this was his home, his roots.
Elle, the social worker and Antonias were all left sitting at the table while the review panel left to make their decision.
No one spoke; the air in the room was tense, as the three of them waited.
One by one, the members of the panel all came back in and sat down. Their faces gave no indication of their decision.
The chair addressed Antonias. ‘Well, Antony, it seems, Elle, your foster mother, has fought your case well, and if she is prepared to carry on for now, we are prepared to let you stay with her. You’re a very lucky young man, having someone who cares about you as much as she does. We’ll review this in six months’ time, unless we have cause to before that.’ They all stood up to leave. They figured if this woman wanted to keep the boy, so be it. They were pushed for places, as it was.
Antonias felt like crying. It would have been so easy for Elle to send him back to the children’s home, but she had argued his case and fought for him to stay with her. He liked her and, clearly, she liked him. For the first time ever, he knew what it must feel like to have a mother figure protect you.
Elle ran to him and hugged him. Antonias put his arms around her, but he couldn’t speak, because of the lump in his throat. However, he somehow knew that Elle knew what he was thinking.
‘Let’s go home, Antony.’ Elle picked up her bag, shook his social worker’s hand and they left.
By the time they got to the car park, he felt he could speak again. ‘Home?’ he said, as he was getting into the car. ‘Yes, Elle, let’s go home. Can I have fish fingers for dinner?’
‘You, Antony,’ Elle pointed at him, ‘can have whatever you want. You’re my boy, now, and we’re never going to go through that again, not if I have anything to do with it.’
Elle knew there would be regular meetings with the social worker – that was part of being a foster carer – but, hopefully, he would never have to go through a meeting like that again. For all his faults, and believe me there were many, she loved this young man.
He was like a feral cat that didn’t trust anyone, and he never let his guard down for fear of rejection. She and Jake had got through his defences, though. She vowed to herself that she and Jake would always be there for him, and she wouldn’t part with either of them. And, as she was a long-term carer, she couldn’t see why she would ever have to.
***
Antonias seemed to settle down more, after seeing how Elle fought for him in the meeting. He still asked for a drive around the streets now and again, and Elle would take him, as she had promised she would.
His visits became shorter, a couple of hours at most, and didn’t happen nearly as often. Clearly, whatever he had been looking for wasn’t there, although Elle never asked any questions.
Antonias’s birthday party seemed to come as a surprise to him. He had presents, Elle got him a cake with candles and some friends from school came round to help him celebrate. This time he had let the tears fall, claiming he had something in his eye.
Antonias couldn’t remember ever having anything like that arranged for him. He had almost forgotten he had a birthday, but Elle and Jake had made a big fuss over it.
Elle had paid a subscription at a local boxing club for Antonias and Jake. She thought it might be a way Antonias could let out his frustration. He could punch that bag all he liked, and Jake would be at his side, as always, watching him and learning from him.
Antonias loved it. He enjoyed the discipline of boxing and learning how to fight properly. Elle had been right again, this was a vent for his anger. Instead of running off, he would pick up his bag and head for the boxing club. At least she knew where he was.
The next year, the anticipation of celebrating his seventeenth birthday with Elle and then the promise of a party with his friends, later, was exciting. He had a fantastic day.
Since Elle had begged for a second chance for him from the head, Antonias had made sure he attended school regularly, because he didn’t want to give the social services a stick to beat him with. He liked life with Elle and Jake. As a bonus, he had discovered that girls liked him.
His first speedy rough and tumble had been with a sixteen-year-old girl, at the school disco, when he was still fifteen. She had come over after watching him with his friends.
‘You’re Antony, aren’t you?’ she had said. She sipped on the straw in her glass of Pepsi. ‘I’m Ruby.’ She took a water bottle from under her dress. ‘Vodka,’ she said, and poured some into his glass.
Antonias knew Ruby had a bit of a reputation around the school, but he thought she was okay. He felt a little nervous, as she stood too close to him and then danced even closer. He was starting to feel his body tense, and to experience feelings he hadn’t felt before.
After a while, she led him into a cubicle in the school toilets and got her friend to keep lookout.
Fortunately, Ruby knew exactly what to do, although it was all over in seconds. Antonias felt embarrassed.
‘Don’t worry, Antony, you’ll get better. You just need to learn to take your time,’ she said, and with that she left him in the cubicle and went back outside to join her friends.
She had been right, though. Antonias had seen Ruby a few times after that, and she became his girlfriend. Many was the time he smuggled Ruby into Elle’s house and up to his room during their lunch break, while Elle was doing volunteer work at the local charity shop.
As well as Ruby, Antonias noticed some of the other girls also showed an interest in him and so as not to disappoint them, he showed them all the interior of his bedroom, while Jake sat outside the front door, in case Elle returned. After that first time with Ruby, Antonias never looked back; he liked women and they liked him.
Jake was going out with a girl, too. He had dated her properly, took her to the cinema and brought her round to meet Elle, and he did everything Antonias didn’t.
As they sat in his bedroom one night, Antonias telling Jake of his latest conquest, a thought occurred to him.
‘Hey, Jake, what’s your girlfriend like?’ he said. He was grinning, waiting for all the sordid details.
‘She’s really nice, you know she is, you’ve met her. Why?’ Then the penny dropped and he realised what Antonias was asking.
‘No, Antony, she’s my girlfriend. You have loads to choose from, leave her alone.’
‘Oh, I don’t want her, she’s yours, Jake. I mean, what’s she like? You know, sex-wise.’ Antonias was laughing at Jake and trying to goad him into telling him about his sex life.
‘She’s not like the girls you go out with, Antony, she wants to wait.’ Jake looked down at the bed.
Antonias burst out laughing; he threw his pillow at Jake, and gave him a playful punch in the arm.
‘You’re telling me, you’ve spent your allowance taking her out, and she hasn’t even given you a grope of her boobs?’
Again, Jake looked down, then he raised his head defiantly. ‘I’ve kissed her loads of times,’ he said.
‘But you haven’t …’ Antonias left it hanging.
Jake shook his head.
‘Well, Jake, we’re going to fix that right now. You tell me which girl takes your fancy, and I’ll chat up her ugly mate. All good-looking girls have ugly mates, and that’s a fact!’
Jake just laughed at him. ‘Anyone I want, and you can manage that?’ This was a challenge for Antonias.
‘You pick her, Jake, and I’ll work my Italian magic on her. You’re getting pretty good at Italian now, use it mate; all the girls love it.’
Antonias had taught Jake to speak Italian. They
had used it as a code when they were at school, when he didn’t want anyone else knowing his business.
Jake had shown an interest when Antonias had started shouting in Italian, and asked him what it was. Antonias had taught him all the swear words first, and then got him into trouble with the language teacher, by getting Jake to call her a fat pig.
Poor Jake thought he was asking when his homework was due in.
Jake had been put on detention and Elle knew why. She thought it was funny, but didn’t let those two mischievous monkeys know it.
Antonias thought what Jake had told him about his girlfriend was the funniest thing he had ever heard; he never spent his money on any girl that wasn’t a ‘sure thing’.
Jake was like a brother to Antonias. He always did his homework for him, when Antonias forgot to do it, and he’d become a pretty good fighter, too.
Antonias had set him up with a few fights at school, and although Jake had been scared to fight, he was more afraid of disappointing Antonias, and so had given it everything he had, punching and kicking, the way Antonias had shown him.
Sometimes he won, sometimes he didn’t, but Antonias had been proud of him and it had boosted Jake’s confidence. Jake had really come out of his shell under Antonias’s guidance.
Elle hadn’t been all that pleased when Jake had gone home with a black eye or a cut lip, but Jake assured her he wasn’t being bullied, he had just had a fight.
Elle knew Antonias was behind it, and smiled to herself; Antonias had been good for Jake.
***
Life with the boys was fun. They were typical teenage boys, always hungry, noisy, and full of bad jokes, but they were hers – for the time being, anyway.
Antonias and Jake came home one day, threw down their bags and walked into the kitchen to see what Elle was cooking.
They were surprised to find she was in the lounge with Antonias’s social worker. He knew he hadn’t done anything wrong; well, not much, anyway, and Elle always covered for him, and made excuses for him.
The social worker looked pale and nervous, unusually so. Normally she smiled and greeted him, but not today.
Dangerous Games Page 6