by E. V. White
All of a sudden, a shout came from the park. A girl was screaming her head off.
“Help! Help me!” Emily screamed as she ran towards the alley.
The three louts who were pummeling someone on the ground now turned towards her. A shiver of fear went down her spine. She was afraid they would hurt her as well. A couple of people were leaving the club as she reached the chap on the ground. One of the three men who was beating him grabbed his jaw and turned him over to face him.
“Keep fucking my girl in that loo and I swear Iʼll kill you. Do you hear me?” She heard him threaten.
The three lads went off rapidly and the one on the ground curled up even more, coughing and struggling to breathe. His long blond hair was scattered between his face and the dirty pavement. Emily knelt beside him and recognised him as the person who had given her food a few hours earlier. She turned back towards the entrance of the bar and shouted again.
“Help! I need help,” she cried.
Three people came running and rushed to rescue the boy. It looked like they knew him. In the commotion, they had inadvertently pushed her away. They did not do it to be malicious or disrespectful; they had simply had to find the quickest way, in the heat of the moment, to help him. Emily stood up with tears in her eyes, feeling her chest narrowing and finding it hard to breathe. She looked at the blond victim for one last time; he almost seemed dead. She knew he wasnʼt but still, fear made her run as far as she could without so much as knowing if he was all right or not.
Matt was knocking furiously on the door of the toilet at the Underbelly. He was tired and just wanted to go on stage and end the evening. Working as a system’s administrator for a large company was not easy and, as much as he liked doing it, the energy it required left him completely exhausted in the evening. He had worked all day and ran like crazy to get there in time for the concert and Alex, as usual, was locked in the loo with a girl.
“Do you really want another jealous boyfriend to beat you up again?” He mouthed off without receiving an answer.
The previous night had been unnerving, to say the least. When the cries of a girl attracted their attention, they found Alex on the ground and thought he had been killed. They had kicked him so many times to the chest that he unquestionably had some broken ribs. Obviously, they were not certain since he had refused to go to the hospital, stubborn as he was. That made Matt even more furious but when his friend set his mind on something, it was impossible to reverse it.
“Please, get your ass out here!” He shouted in exasperation before going out and joining Jaden and Jordan.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” Alex asked the brunette with whom he was locked in the bathroom.
She was the girl who had offered him the lunch that he had then given to Emily. When he saw her again, a number of not so pleasant emotions resurfaced, making him remember how much he felt humiliated. Then alcohol performed its magic and, suddenly, the only thing in front of him was her beauty and all the rest remained in the background.
“You should have asked me that before fucking me in the loo, don’t you think?” She smiled.
Alex moved a lock of brown hair that covered her face. He had no desire to play around, being roughed up once a week was more than enough.
“Seriously, have you got a boyfriend?” He repeated.
“No, what are you talking about? You’re behind me with your... penis... between my legs and you’re asking if I have a boyfriend? Are you serious?” She asked irritably, turning around to face him.
Alex ran a nervous hand behind his head embarrassed: he had never had that kind of talk with a girl before. Usually he gave them a compliment or two, flirted with them and then ended up in the washroom. There was no need to talk.
“I’m sorry, terrible experiences, I think,” he justified.
The girl started to put her clothes back on and Alex looked at her quizzically.
“What are you doing?” He asked her.
“A small piece of advice: asking a girl while you’re fucking her if she has got a boyfriend is definitely a turn off,” she told him off before leaving the toilet infuriated.
Alex, not even aroused anymore, pulled up his trousers and walked out of the loo after her, joining the others behind the stage. It was the first time he did not score with a girl and did not know how to feel about it.
Emily was sitting on the park bench. She had spent the entire day mulling over about what she should do: go back there or not. The night before she had run away without even looking back. Seeing that lad beaten up on the ground had scared her and she did not have the courage to go back there for the night. She had walked for several hours before finding a sheltered spot in front of a supermarket to sleep for a few hours.
She had decided, in the end, to go back there because she needed to know if he was all right or not, just that. She had waited for at least an hour sitting on the bench before realising that the only way to find out was to go inside and ask. Merely the thought of walking into a place where everyone would look at her with disgust embarrassed her, but the alternative was to remain in the dark and she did not want that.
However, the very chap she was worried about relieved her from the embarrassment of deciding. The blond boy had in fact appeared with a guitar on his back, just as she was about to get up and go inside. He had stopped in front of the club, with the hood of his sweatshirt covering his face as much as possible. He seemed sombre and pensive but Emily did not know him, so she could not tell if it was a normal attitude for him or if it was because he was not feeling well. He stopped there, lit a cigarette, smoked and finally entered. Emily was relieved when she saw that at least he was standing on his two feet so she laid down again on the bench, her heart much lighter.
“That didn’t take long for once,” Jordan ribbed him.
“Shut up!” Alex hissed, taking a beer from the table and drinking it.
“Seriously Alex?” Jordan challenged irritated, looking at his beer.
Alex shrugged, put on the hood of his sweatshirt to cover at least part of his black eye and looked at the others sardonically.
“Shall we start?” He spurred.
The lads stood up at once and followed him on stage.
That concert for Alex was not like the others. It was different, not awful, but much more detached. Every single bone in his rib cage hurt. He could hardly breathe because of the kicks he had received the night before. No one in the audience seemed to notice, it appeared to be part of the show, but Jaden, Jordan and Matt seemed quite worried. They asked him if he wanted to stop a couple of times. He looked at them angrily and continued playing, asking the bartender across the room for more alcohol. When the concert finished, he was drunk and mumbled his words. People thought it was a very rock attitude and urged him to continue drinking but the other band members seemed disgusted and worried at the same time. He had never behaved like that on stage and, at that moment, he did not even realise what he was doing.
They finished their last song and literally jumped off the stage. Alex was not even able to stay up on his feet. Matt helped him take a seat on the couch in the back room. Abigail joined them and was petrified seeing Alex collapsed.
“Jesus Christ! He’s a bleeding wreck,” she exclaimed.
”No shit, Sherlock!” Jordan murmured.
Abigail gave him a cross look that he didn’t even notice as he himself was quite furious.
Matt was silent and bloody serious, Jaden was drinking his beer and watching Alex with apparent indifference.
“Can you do me a favour, Abigail?” Matt asked after some time, breaking the silence.
“Sure,” she replied.
“Can you help him get home?” He pleaded.
The girl stared at him with her eyes wide open. Clearly, she was not sure she could take on Alex under those conditions taking two different buses.
“Are you seriously asking me? Why?” She asked flustered. It was obvious that she was rattled.
“Becau
se this could be the night I rip his head off,” and there was no irony in his voice.
Abigail looked at Matt first, then at Alex. She glanced briefly toward Jaden and Jordan but got nothing but a hard, almost indifferent look.
“You got a point,” she sighed.
She went up to Alex and helped him to stand.
“Put him under a cold shower and make sure he works all the alcohol off before going to sleep. He has to write two songs and I want to be sure that tomorrow he’ll be able to do it,” he demanded.
“Anything else?” She asked ironically.
“Thank you,” Matt smiled sincerely.
Abigail rolled her eyes and led Alex toward the back door with difficulty.
“Do you think she can do it? I mean, he really is pissed,” asked Jaden looking at his friend in the eye.
“I don’t care,” Matt said as he jumped on the stage and started to put away his things.
Jaden and Jordan looked at each other perturbed. They had just realised that the situation was no laughing matter. Matt had never left Alex alone. They were like brothers since they had first met as children and this was the first time that Matt was infuriated by his friend. They had always covered each other’s back their entire lives. Matt was there when Alex had left home at eighteen, cutting all ties with his family, in the same way Alex had been there for him when his mother died when he was only fourteen. Something in their relationship was crumbling and the situation looked bleak and hopeless.
Emily was on the bench again after coming back from Bobby’s getting her dose. That day she had managed to scrape together more than usual and had even enough to fork out something for the man who supplied her oxycodone. She was still lying there when the blond boy left the club in the arms of a girl. It did not take her long though to figure out how plastered he was that evening.
The girl with him was visibly struggling to keep him up. It took them five minutes just to get to the street from the club door. He was staggering and would not have been able to walk if it was not for her.
Emily wondered what could have possibly led him to get himself so rat arsed that badly; then she remembered the night before, how he had got beaten up, and recalled how hard it was when it had happened to her and how she found comfort in oxycodone. It was probably the same thing for him: he needed not to feel anything, neither emotion nor pain. With that thought she felt her eyes closing, weighed down by the drugs that began to relax her.
The cold air took Alex by surprise and woke him up a bit. He looked around, focusing his attention on what was around him and noticed a warm arm wrapped around his waist. He threw a look towards the person who was supporting him and discovered Abigail. She seemed angry and tired. Alex stood in the middle of the road.
“Please, Alex, move your ass,” she said in exasperation.
Alex looked offended.
“What do you want? Why are you being so mean to me?” He asked her.
“Because I have to get you home and have got no idea how to get to the bus stop if you keep stopping every five steps,” she answered abruptly.
Alex looked at her confused. He never said he wanted to leave or, at least, he did not remember saying it. He was not even sure he had played that night.
“Why are you taking me home?” He asked her.
“Because you’re pissed!” She yelled losing her patience.
Alex did not move. He tried to touch his face but failed the first two times. A wave of nausea overtook his stomach.
“I’m not pissed,” he said one second before throwing up on Abigail’s boots.
The girl jumped back in vain trying to save her shoes. Alex continued throwing up, kneeling on the asphalt in the middle of the road.
“You know what? Screw you, Alex. I’m done with you,” she shouted. “I’m really done with you,” she repeated as she left.
Suddenly Alex started to realise what was happening. He was getting back to consciousness very quickly after vomiting and got up without assistance. Someone smoking outside the club was staring at him with a grin that seemed more like mockery. He felt embarrassed. He did not want to go back in the club, yet he could not remember how he got out in the first place.
He was staggering towards the park when he saw Emily lying on the bench. He tried to open the gate but it was locked so he tried to jump over the fence. He miserably failed four attempts before succeeding. He landed on the other side on his hands and knees, cursing in pain. Finally, he got up and tottered towards the girl.
Emily jumped in surprise when she saw him. She sat up and looked at him suspiciously.
“What do you want?” She asked him.
Alex did not answer. He did not know why he had gone to her. He sat down beside her and just stared at her.
“You smell awful,” she complained.
Alex chuckled in amusement. At that moment, he felt the smell and had a disgusting taste in his mouth but he was not sure that everything came from him.
“You, too,” he said without any intention of offending her.
“I’m living on a bench in a park, what would your excuse be?” She taunted him with a bit of malice, which Alex did not notice. He smiled in amusement.
“I’m rat arsed,” he said.
“So? Is this your punishment? Freezing out here with me?” She mocked him.
Alex looked at her and realised she was wearing her usual ripped jeans, a dirty sweatshirt and a sleeveless jacket.
“Are you freezing?” He asked her.
Emily looked at him with a mixture of surprise and indignation.
“Are you serious?” She scoffed.
Alex did not notice the sarcasm in her voice and nodded vigorously.
“It’s December, we’re in London and I’m sleeping on a bench in a park. What do you think?” She asked seriously.
Alex was not able to tell if she had said yes or no, but his mind determined that she was cold so he took off his leather jacket and put it on her shoulders.
“I don’t want your stupid jacket,” she said angrily, but not taking it off her shoulders either.
“Neither do I,” he uttered, standing up with difficulty and heading to the fence he had trespassed earlier.
“That gate over there is broken. It can be opened if you want,” she suggested pointing to a small gate near the bench.
Alex smiled and headed towards the easier way out, disappearing shortly after.
Emily looked at him astounded, wondering whom that lad really was and what he wanted from her. She put on his jacket and smelled his perfume, which reminded her of soap and aftershave. She smiled and laid back on the bench. She struggled to regain that state of calm she had just before he intruded. She felt more awake than ever. Normally, he would have bothered her and she would have been angry with him, but at that moment the heat his jacket provided made her overlook what she should have been feeling.
A drunk approaching her at night in the park should have scared her, but his eyes insinuated the contrary. They were so sad and almost resigned that she could not have been afraid of him. Maybe she was wrong and perhaps, the next time, she should run away as soon as he got close, but the boy seemed lonelier than she did. He had so many people around him but, in the end, she was the only one who remained despite the fact that he smelled awful and was going to pieces. The girl he had left the club with abandoned him as soon as things had become more challenging than she had expected.
Emily laid back on the bench and turned on her back to watch the trees that towered over her. Normally they instilled fear in her, but that night they felt like a protective roof over her head. It was then that, between the effects of the dose and the latest events, she realised she was starting to get used to that park, it felt almost familiar to her now. That awareness crept its way into her mind and, even if she did not notice it, made her collapse into a peaceful sleep, and not that kind of sleep that makes you twitch at the slightest noise but rather a dangerous kind of sleep for those who live on the street
.
Alex was sitting on the bus. He was freezing without his jacket but had a big smile on his face. He did not know whether to blame alcohol or Emily, but he was feeling good that night. He was fighting to stay awake. The driver had stared at him for a long time when he got on, as he could not understand if Alex was drunk or not because the latter made every effort to look sober so as not to be thrown out. He needed to go home but had no money to pay for a taxi.
He looked out of the window when the bus stopped and realised he had arrived home. Alcohol was giving him a break, his head felt clearer and he was glad since he needed to rest a bit before dealing with Matt the morning after. He could not remember what had happened that night at the club but he was sure that Matt was livid with him. Otherwise, he would have certainly taken him back home.
*
Alex woke up in the morning on his couch. Strangely, he had set the alarm and written a note on the phone the night before – although he did not remember doing it at all – so he could get ready for that horrible job at the car showroom. Perhaps he had set that alarm on the same day in which he had failed to pay for Emily’s lunch at the fast food, he did not remember. He was so embarrassed that he had immediately called the chap who claimed to be the photographer and arranged an appointment. He was convinced that it was still money and certainly would not have been a bad thing.
Alex got up from the couch. His head was throbbing, his bones were completely destroyed and his mouth was dry. He walked to the kitchen and drank a glass of water. He was starving. He walked over to the fridge knowing that he would find nothing inside. He vaguely remembered Abigail’s rumblings about ketchup and lemon. He opened it anyway and surprisingly found it full of food.
“Matt,” he breathed with a smile. He was the only one who would have cared enough to do something like that.