Hollow Pike

by James Dawson

  ‘No, really?’ Sarcasm rolled off Lis’s tongue. She mentally checked herself. This was a dangerous game. No matter how much she fancied Danny, this could all get back to Laura.

  ‘Plus, Cam is still madly in love with her,’ Danny went on.

  She sat up straighter. ‘Seriously? I didn’t even know they’d been an item.’

  Danny nodded. ‘Yeah. She wanted to keep it quiet for some reason. He still likes her, so I’m staying well clear.’

  ‘Fair enough. Bros before hos!’ As soon as the words were out, Lis dearly wished she hadn’t said them, but Danny laughed, revealing a beautiful smile. Lis beamed back.

  ‘So what about you? Do you like Hollow Pike so far?’ he asked.

  She sighed and leaned her head back against the wall. Aside from her chats with Sarah, this felt like the first real conversation she’d had since arriving in the leafy town. ‘Well, I’ve barely slept a wink because I’ve been having horrific nightmares, and then I crawl out of bed to go to school and hang out with a group of girls I don’t really like, so it’s not been a great start, no. Oh, and it hasn’t stopped raining.’ She had no idea why she was telling him these intimate details, but she couldn’t stop herself. There was something about Danny that made her feel like she could be herself, be real.

  ‘Well, that’s no good!’ He grinned. ‘You know, sometimes I’m not that keen on all my friends either. Don’t tell anyone . . . it can be our little secret!’

  ‘Then why hang out with them?’ she asked curiously.

  ‘It’s just easier.’

  ‘Easier than what?’

  ‘Easier than before. Back when I was Daniel, and not Danny, school used to be fairly rubbish. I’m not going to use the “B” word, but it was pretty crap. Then I joined the rugby team and all of a sudden I’m cool or something . . . I’m not going to argue, am I?’

  Lis chuckled. ‘Sell-out!’

  ‘Totally!’ He smiled once more. ‘But it’s true. I’m not going to complain that people aren’t giving me grief any more. Anyway, you’re one to talk – how are you finding being Laura’s newest minion?’

  He was dead right – she was no better than he was. She did relish the status Laura brought her, while at the same time being fully aware of what a bitch her friend could be. ‘Tell you what: I’ll ditch Laura if you ditch Cam!’

  ‘Not that easy.’

  ‘Tell me about it. The whole popularity contest thing. It’s all crap. Why do we do it to ourselves?’ She stood to leave, almost disappointed with him, and hating herself a little at the same time. Neither feeling outweighed the urge to crawl into his arms.

  A commotion outside the bedroom turned both their heads.

  ‘Who let the circus in?’ came a cruel screech, unmistakeably Laura. ‘Where did you park your broomstick?’

  Danny bounced off the bed and headed for the landing, closely followed by Lis. They stepped out into a small congregation of classmates gathering to see a face-off between Laura and Kitty Monroe, who had seemingly forced Laura out of the bathroom.

  Lis caught Laura’s eye, very aware that she’d just emerged from a dark bedroom with Danny. Laura looked momentarily puzzled before turning back to Kitty.

  ‘Well? Who let you in?’ Laura repeated.

  ‘I invited her,’ offered Danny. ‘We have English together. Back off, Riggsy.’

  Kitty smiled innocently at Laura. ‘Excuse me, I’m going to use the bathroom now if you’d be so kind as to move aside.’

  Laura purposefully stretched her arms across the door frame. ‘I’m sorry, Kitty. There’s a no-dyke policy in this toilet.’

  Lis groaned and tried to move forwards, but Nasima stopped her.

  ‘Don’t get involved,’ she whispered. ‘It’s funnier to just watch.’ She flipped open her mobile and started filming the altercation.

  Kitty again smiled sweetly, although with the thick, black make-up, her grin had a twisted, manic edge to it. ‘Laura, I’m not the one who’s just come out of the toilet with another girl.’

  Some members of the audience dared to giggle. Laura’s deathly glare soon shut them up. She moved closer to Kitty, invading her personal space.

  ‘Oh, I’m sorry, Kitty. I know how much you want me and everything, but I’m not a dirty lesbian like you. You’ll have to stick with that gypo, Delilah.’

  For the first time, it seemed that Laura’s blow had hit Kitty. She gave Laura a short shove that sent Laura stumbling back amidst gasps from the crowd.

  ‘Laura, cut it out, please!’ Danny pleaded.

  But Kitty was on the offensive now. ‘Laura, I wouldn’t go near you if you were the last girl, no, human, on the planet. You’re rancid. Toxic. Poisonous. People might be scared of me, but they loathe you.’

  Laura flushed a deep red colour, scrambling for a comeback, but Kitty continued. ‘If you don’t believe me, ask anyone. They talk about you more than they talk about me and that’s saying something. Ask Lis London. Better still, ask Danny!’

  At that, Laura flew into a wild rage, expletives tearing from her lips. Her hands tugged at Kitty’s hair, grasping her head and swinging her body into the wall. Danny shot forward, but it was impossible to intervene as Kitty responded by grabbing Laura’s face in one big hand and pushing her down to the floor. Lis thought she saw Laura spit at her rival before slapping her squarely on the side of the head.

  Kitty fought like a wildcat, scratching at Laura’s hair and face, although Laura seemed to be the tougher fighter, curling her hands into fists and striking at Kitty’s torso. Danny, and now Bobsy, stepped across the girls, trying to pull them apart, but it was no use as Kitty bombarded Laura with slaps.

  Lis saw too late what was going to happen. As Laura advanced on Kitty, the top of the stairs grew dangerously close. Sure enough, Laura launched another frenzied attack and both girls teetered over the top stair. The following fall, rather than a television-style tumble, was more of a cringe-worthy bounce down the stairs for both girls. The pair rolled to an embarrassing halt, Laura’s underwear clearly on show to the entire party.

  Jack and Delilah ran from the lounge into the hallway.

  ‘Bitch!’ yelled Delilah when she realised what had happened, her voice the only sound other than the music as everyone else stared in stunned silence.

  ‘Nice one, Riggsy!’ Cameron’s shout broke the silence.

  A throaty scream exploded from Laura as she stood. Blood gushed from a split lip and she inadvertently smeared it across her face with the back of her hand. Without any further comment she marched out through the front door, a bewildered Harry trotting close behind.

  Lis and Danny raced down the stairs to where Kitty was now sitting, her concerned friends at her side. Giggling and whispering, observers returned to the party, delighted with the night’s entertainment.

  ‘Kitty, are you OK?’ Lis reached down to the taller girl.

  ‘Yeah, I think so.’ She checked herself for wounds. ‘God, what a total bitch!’

  ‘Well that’s hardly headline news,’ commented Jack in a shy voice.

  ‘Let’s go, this party was a bad idea.’ Kitty hauled her lanky frame up.

  Danny shrugged his shoulders as if the whole thing had somehow been his fault. ‘I’m so sorry, Kitty.’

  ‘You don’t have to apologise for Laura Rigg,’ Delilah stated simply. ‘She’s her parents’ fault. They should have drowned her at birth.’

  Kitty and Jack were already at the door.

  ‘Wait!’ Lis said, her heart in her mouth. ‘I wanna come with you.’

  Kitty turned back, a smile on her lips. ‘Really? Defecting so soon? What would Laura have to say about that?’

  ‘I . . . I don’t care.’

  ‘I think you do. We’ll be in touch.’ Kitty blew her a kiss and swept out of the front door. Delilah followed, leaving Lis on the stairs with Danny, but wishing more than anything that she could depart with Team Kitty. Lis couldn’t ignore it any more, there was . . . something about them and she
wanted a piece of it. As she watched the trio walk away into the night, they seemed so . . . free. Lis didn’t want to be on Laura Rigg’s leash for a second longer.

  Aftermath

  By the following Monday morning, the novelty of a new start in Hollow Pike had completely worn off and Lis felt school-sick. She’d lain in bed well past her alarm and was now running considerably late. She toyed with the idea of trying to convince Sarah she was ill, but knew her sister would only call upon her to make the mature, adult choice as to whether she was well enough to attend school, and then she’d only end up feeling guilty if she stayed home.

  Cornflakes formed a dry, pulpy mass in her mouth, impossible to swallow.

  Sarah shrewdly regarded her across the kitchen table as she fed Lis’s little nephew, Logan. ‘What’s up, kiddo?’

  ‘Nothing.’ Automatic response.

  ‘Don’t believe you . . .’ Her sister smiled.

  ‘I’m fine. It’s just early.’

  ‘Is it school?’

  ‘Nope.’

  ‘That Laura girl?’

  Yes. ‘Nope.’

  ‘Your teacher . . . Mr Gray, is it?’

  Lis let herself laugh. Sarah wasn’t going to let it go. ‘Good lord, Sarah, everything is fine! Mr Gray is lovely! Satisfied?’

  ‘He seems nice . . . quite a looker too! Maybe I’ll bob along to his adult Spanish classes . . .’

  ‘If you do, I’ll emancipate myself from you!’ Lis grinned. Sarah guffawed loudly as Lis ditched her soggy cereal in the sink and turned the tap on, squashing the cornflakes down the plughole.

  After a second of processing the image before her, she took a step back. ‘Sarah?’ she said.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Look at this.’

  Sarah heaved Logan onto her hip and shuffled over to the sink. ‘What is it? And please don’t put food down the sink, the drains get blocked.’

  ‘OK, but look.’ Lis motioned at the gurgling water.

  ‘I’m looking. There’s nothing there.’

  ‘The water is going down the plughole the wrong way! It should be going anti-clockwise.’

  Sarah looked at her with sisterly disdain. ‘Ha! That’s an old wives’ tale. Or maybe it’s magic!’

  Lis’s head snapped up at that. ‘What?’

  ‘You know – the whole Hollow Pike witch thang.’

  ‘Did you just say thang?’

  ‘Yeah, I’m still down with the kids.’ Sarah winked. ‘When Max and I first moved here, we went on this witch tour one Halloween. It’s true, you know, there were witches in Hollow Pike. The town’s supposed to be cursed or something.’

  ‘But years and years ago, right?’

  ‘Well, obviously. The tour was so naff, it was hilarious. We should go on it this year.’

  Lis had dismissed Harry and Laura’s talk as nonsense, but coming from her sister, the witchcraft legends were suddenly real. And fascinating. Sarah left the kitchen with Logan, leaving Lis to ponder the swirling water, spinning the wrong way down the drain.

  Lis had missed the bus by a mile, so Max kindly offered to drop her at school and now the silver Transit van pulled up outside the main gates. She breathed deeply, adoring the smell of the van: varnish and wood chips.

  ‘Are you sure you’re all right?’ Max asked, his big blue eyes prying for information.

  ‘I’m fine. Promise.’ She managed a feeble smile.

  ‘OK. Have a nice day.’ Her brother-in-law gave her a kiss on the forehead before she flopped out of the vehicle.

  Once again the school was wrapped in a veil of fine drizzle guaranteed to turn her hair into a frizzy mess by the time she reached the safety of the corridors. She murmured a solemn farewell to Max and dragged her feet towards the entrance.

  The huge ancient clock that dominated the main hall told her that at eight fifty-five she’d probably already missed the warning bell that prompted students to get to their form rooms by nine. She swung her bag onto her shoulder and wearily started for G2.

  Her spider sense flickered. Something was not quite right. It was exactly the same feeling that had blighted her first day of school. But this was odd. The new-girl sensation should have left her by now, so why were people staring at her? Her hair couldn’t be that frizzy! She’d left the party on Saturday night soon after Laura and Kitty had fallen down the stairs, so she was certain she hadn’t done anything to embarrass herself.

  Increasingly aware of others pointing her out or whispering, she hurried to G2 and settled herself into her seat next to Harry. To her horror, the hushed voices and sideways glances continued. Lis turned to Harry, who seemed to be masterfully avoiding eye-contact. The paranoia boiled over.

  ‘Harry, what is going on? Do I have something weird on me?’ A sense of dread rose in Lis’s gut and she started to wish she’d played sick for Sarah.

  ‘Nothing, babe.’

  ‘Then why is everyone staring at me?’

  Harry shrugged and tried to pull an innocent expression. The effect was cartoonish and fake. ‘I have no idea, babe. People must be talking about what happened at the party.’

  Lis scanned the classroom. In their usual spots at the back of the class sat Jack, Delilah and Kitty, who sported a nasty yellowish bruise under her eye. No one was paying them any more attention than normal. This was ridiculous.

  ‘Harry, nothing happened at the party! I was there for the fight, but that’s it.’

  As the 9 a.m. bell sounded, Laura and Nasima sauntered into class in their usual catwalk formation: Laura slightly ahead, flanked by her sentry. On passing, Laura gave Lis the most hateful look she’d seen in a long time.

  Lis was baffled. What had she done to upset Laura? The strangest part was, despite the way Laura had behaved at the party, Lis hated the idea of Laura being mad at her. A tiny, residual desire to belong, to fit in with the popular girls still glimmered within her. Lis pushed that thought out of her head; she was so over that crap.

  ‘Look, Lis,’ hissed Harry. ‘Laura told me what happened with Danny.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Lis demanded. ‘Literally nothing happened! I talked to him for, like, a minute.’

  Harry scowled at her and turned away.

  ‘Jesus, Harry,’ Lis whispered emphatically, ‘it’s not my fault if Danny Marriott doesn’t fancy Laura!’

  With a sharp flick of her hair, Harry whipped around to face Lis, a nasty grimace on her face. ‘Whatever. You’re a liar and a slag and I don’t like liars and slags. Now could you please stop talking to me or I’ll tell Mr Gray you’re bullying me?’

  As Harry pushed her chair back to seek counsel with Laura, Lis felt herself gawping. What on earth had she done to deserve that?

  Throughout Maths, Lis desperately tried to motivate herself by pretending she was some sort of future scientist who would one day need to know trigonometry. It didn’t work. She still couldn’t shake the feeling that the whole class was talking about her. She’d tried so hard since arriving in Hollow Pike, genuinely thinking she hadn’t put a foot wrong, and now Harry’s comments proved that she may as well not have bothered.

  As her teacher spoke, she fought to hold back both tears and swear words. Was this what she’d moved away from Bangor for? More of the same? At least in Wales she’d held her head high right up until the end.

  Slipping her homework into her bag, she rushed out of class the second the bell sounded. Following instinct, she ducked past Fiona and Nasima and headed straight for the outside quad, no longer caring about the rain’s effect on her hair. She cursed her earlier vanity as if she’d somehow been infected by the values of Team Laura.

  A new determination burned in her chest. She’d gone beyond feeling tearful and just wanted to know what the bloody hell was going on. She spotted her target under the shelter and marched over to where Jack Denton was sitting next to some of the other ‘geek’ males, peeling a satsuma.

  ‘Hi, Jack,’ she said, smiling broadly despite her rising fury. She reminded herself t
hat Jack hadn’t done anything wrong. Jack eyed her suspiciously and conversation in the group ceased entirely.

  ‘Hello,’ he replied, gentle as snow.

  ‘Where are Kitty and Delilah?’

  ‘I dunno. Loo maybe?’

  She’d barely chatted to Jack. His softly-spoken nature made him almost impossible to read. Could she trust him? Something about his huge chestnut eyes reminded her of autumn and suggested a warmth inside. She looked around, only to see Harry coolly observing her as she moved across the quad.

  ‘Could I have a word, please?’ she asked Jack, unsuccessfully trying to keep a pleading tone out of her voice.

  ‘A private word?’

  ‘Please.’

  The pair moved to the farthest corner of the rain shelter, and Jack continued to eat his satsuma as Lis explained her morning of paranoia. When she’d finished, Jack smiled and sat her on a damp wooden bench.

  ‘OK,’ he started. ‘Well, the good news is you’re not completely paranoid.’ He had a light, almost musical voice and an accent, though, like hers, it wasn’t a Yorkshire accent. Maybe he was from Newcastle? She wasn’t sure, but she could see where the gay rumours had originated. Jack’s voice was different enough to cause comment.

  ‘Why not?’ Lis asked.

  ‘And if it’s any consolation, it’s all clearly made-up crap . . .’ Jack continued.

  ‘What is?’

  And then he told her . . .

  Exactly two minutes later, Lis stomped to the edge of the trees. Although her shoes sunk into the mud of the rugby pitch, her single-mindedness blinkered her. She smoothed back her hair, readying herself for a battle. Voices raged in her head, telling her to turn back, to avoid a confrontation, to seek the help of Kitty or Mr Gray.

  Regardless, she powered on. They were sheltering under the trees, although none of the boys were there as far as she could tell, which suited her fine. It was just the four nasty bitches who weren’t going to get away with it this time. She’d already left one school, and she wasn’t about to let history repeat itself.