"Come on." Zia's pulling at my collar. "Luke, enough."

I'm up on my feet. My eyes on Leia the whole time. I feel the bridge between us burning.

"Lukey! Come on!" Zia's pulling harder.

I walk backwards, out of the scene, eyes on her, flames between us, watching her fear subside, and disappointment take over.

INT. NIGHT Black.

The beep of a heart monitor.

A sigh.

Cut.

INT. CAR NIGHT Close-up: Fingertips trace the bloodied knuckles of a fist.

YOUNG MAN fights to control his breathing.

Cut to open dual carriageway through windscreen, carpet of amber light. Dark sky.

"Stop the car."

Neither of them respond. None of us has spoken since we pulled off. The air thick with mistakes. The hot throb of my knuckles.

"I said stop the car, Tom." My gut's churning. We're not in town yet.

Tommy pulls over in front of what looks like a care home. The forecourt security light clicks on as I open the passenger door, lean out and puke.

"Jesus, Lukey!" says Tommy. "How much d'you drink?"

I could tell him a lot. I could say I had more punch than I can remember. Maybe that'd make this better. Easier. But I've never felt this sober.

"There's a petrol station in a bit," says Zia from the back seat. "We can get some water."

"I'm fine," I say, wiping my mouth, staring at the puddle of chunky red on the pavement. That just happened. What are they doing now? Is Simeon OK? What about Leia?

"That was so stupid," I say, closing my eyes, squeezing my eyelids together until I see white. Then I can see her face.

"We showed 'em, eh, Lukey?"

"Shut up, Tom." I sit back in my seat, the door still open. The tone of her voice.

Tommy carries on. "Pricks. You see that ginger kid's face?" He's almost laughing. I think of Marc. Would he have gone so far if Donna had been there that night? If he'd heard her voice? Seen her face?

"I said shut up, Tom."

"What?" He genuinely doesn't get it. I look at him. My oldest friend.

"You're an idiot." I make every syllable of the sentence clear and I know Zia's watching from behind us. Don't blame Tommy.

Tommy frowns. "What you talking 'bout? He started on me, Luke. He was gonna hit her."

"No he wasn't."

"Yeah, he was. He was off his face." He takes out his cigarettes. "You sorted him anyways, eh?" He goes to pat my knee.

I block him. "They're twins. He was just looking out for her."

I can taste sick.

"Whose side you on?" Tommy says, sparking up. "She was fit though. I swear we were gonna do it, right in the car."

I get out.

"Where you going?"

I start walking. Dual carriageway stretches out. Oncoming headlights.

"Lukey?" Tommy's opening his door. "What you doing?" He leans between the door and the roof. I stop, but don't turn round.

"You pulled a knife, Tom."

I can hear him exhaling smoke. I turn round. He laughs it off. "Shut up. I wasn't gonna use it, was I? Just wanted to shit him up."

"You shouldn't have pulled the knife."

"He's right." Zia gets out through the passenger side. The three of us are a triangle with the car in the middle, lit by the stark floodlight.

"Calm down, will ya? Both of ya. Nothing happened!" says Tommy.

"Is that what you think?" I step towards him. "Nothing happened?"

I'm picturing Leia's face. I think I might throw up again.

"Look," says Tommy, "we had a laugh, it went a bit funny and we sorted it out. End of. Now, can we go please, it's cold." He folds his torn T-shirt to cover his bare chest.

"Why d'you have to ruin everything?" I stare straight at him.

Tommy's confused. "Me?"

"You couldn't just leave it, could ya? You couldn't just take it easy and not cause some kinda fuckin' scene."

Tommy looks at Zia, then me. "Don't blame me, Lukey. It's not my fault if your new mates are all dickheads."

"I knew you'd mess it up."

Why you blaming him?

"Shut up, Luke. You sticking up for them over me?"

"I'm sticking up for anyone over a dickhead."

"What d'you call me?"

"You heard, Thomas."

"Easy, man." Zia's arms are out. "Let's just get back in the car, yeah? Go get some food or something. Who's hungry? I'm starving."

"Nah, Zia, let him speak. Let him get his little speech off his chest. You've got a little speech coming, right, Lukey? Sitting there planning it in your head, were ya? Something tragic?"

My shoulders tense. He knows what he's doing.

"Leave it, Tom." Zia's shaking his head.

"You leave it." Tommy's blood's up. "You said it yourself, he's not fussed about us any more. Blanking calls and that."

I look at Zia. Zia shrugs. "That's not what I said, Luke, I just ... we haven't seen you much. Shut up, Tom!"

"You shut up! Ooh, big Lukey, running with the posh kids, doesn't wanna be seen with his proper mates any more. Thinking he's the leader. 'Just stay cool, boys. Don't embarrass me in front of the Princess'."

I step towards the car bonnet. Tommy closes the driver door.

"What? You want it with me now, Lukey? Finally got some balls off slapping a rich kid and now you want it with somebody real?"

Closer.

"Fuck you, Tom."

Closer.

"No, Luke, fuck you!"

We're toe to toe. I'm bigger. I'm stronger. He knows it. He doesn't care. Tommy doesn't care. Tommy's real.

"Stop being pricks!" Zia's trying to break us up, crow barring his arms in between us. My hands are fists. I wanna hurt him. I really wanna hurt him. It's all gone wrong.

Tommy's shark eyes don't leave me. "Why don't you run back to your new mates? Snuggle up and watch a film?"

Then I say it.

"You're nothing, Tom."

Three words that cut to the heart. That slice through the bravado and the anger and the hype, just like they did from the teachers at school. His eyes soften, and something in my gut snaps. I look at Zia. Confusion. Why would you say that?

And I walk away.

Not looking back, as everything behind me blurs out of focus.

Nan said: It's hard to hate what you know well.

Nan said a lot of things. Growing up, everybody did. All the time. Spewing pearls of wisdom.

Pretending to listen.

I don't know what happened. Things got out of control.

Send.

It wasn't my fault. I was trying to stop them Send. Re-read. Regret.

It was my fault. I don't know. I'm sorry x Send. Wait.

Please say something Send.

By the time I reach the high road, it's just after one.

No reply from Leia.

I've spun the same ideas in the roundabout of my head the whole walk back and now I'm dizzy. I turn down towards the petrol station. He pushed her. I had to do something. Exactly. I couldn't just stand there. Course not. I went too far. No, you didn't. Yeah, I did. I messed up. She thinks I'm a thug. I hurt Tommy. He's an idiot. I'm an idiot. She called Marc stupid. No, she said violence was stupid. I am violence. I am stupid. I should call. Don't you dare call. It's burned. I burned it. She burned it. My hand hurts. Her face. Shit.

I look right. Empty road. I look left. And I see the car.

It's turning in from the high road, slowly.

It's him. It's Craig Miller.

If he's come to me again he wants something. This is bad.

I feel my stomach trying to climb up into my chest.

And I run.

The engine growls behind me and I reach the other side of the road and dart straight on to the petrol station concourse. Dad's coat is heavy and I get a flash of a broad figure in the glass, as I dart past the kiosk and jump up on to the fence, hearing the car mount the kerb and the screech of a skid.

I pull myself up, swing my legs over and drop down into a garden. A knife of pain stabs through my foot as I look up at the dark house. I hear car doors opening and slamming as I hobble to the front gate.

"Luuukeeeeey!"

He's shouting after me, his voice snaking round corners into my ears. My whole body has a pulse as I'm up and over the locked gate, trying to lower myself but still feeling like my foot is broken. The car screeches. They must be driving round to head me off.

I cut across the road almost dragging my leg, looking for people, anyone, but it's empty. Then the car headlights are on me and the engine growls again and I'm in front of the flats and panting. The coat feels like I'm carrying someone. I look back across the road and see Craig climbing over the gate. He lands and just stares at me, smiling that smile.

Focus. Just get home. Get to Marc.

I try to sprint down the alley, but my foot's killing, and I'm not fast enough. I can feel him behind me. I look back and he's there, not running, just walking, like he knows he's got me. I need to get on to the road, but then the growl, and the car's there, blocking me off. I'm reaching for my phone. My hand's shaking as I try to push buttons and scroll through, and it's like my fingers are asleep and then I drop it. I watch it hit the floor, but don't hear any sound, just the thump of my heart against my ribs and the throbbing in my foot and they're getting out of the car.

There's three of them and I don't recognise any of their faces. My jaw's clenched. I picture Marc, sitting in the dark, staring out of the window. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Shut up. Focus.