Just Between Us Page 12

  “Wow,” Mick said. “Mags, you better get this on film, three movie stars were in our house June 2003.”

  “Mick.” I laughed.

  “We do look good.” Ashley nodded.

  “Right, come on, I want some pictures anyway, get together all three of you in front of my busy lizzies.” She was crazy about her flowers in the garden, and so we posed by her prized possessions.

  “Kyle!” Mick shouted, seeing two tuxedos shadow through the kitchen.

  “Come out here and get your picture taken.”

  “I’m late,” he grunted. We all turned to see him grab a bottle of Jack Daniels off the counter.

  “Get out here and have a picture for God’s sake!” Mick shouted without a hint of question in his voice.

  “Fine.” He stalked outside, holding the bottle, and David followed behind. He was his usual cheery self.

  “Hi Mr and Mrs Hanson.” He grinned. “Lovely evening.”

  “Yes, David.” Mum nodded, giving Mick a glare, perhaps angry at his ability to make the situation turn dark by bossing Kyle around. “Now, all in.” She said breezily as the five us stood before her flower bed. Kyle and David stood either side of us, and we all smiled. As soon as the camera flashed, Kyle was on the move.

  “Come on Dave, we gotta go,” he grunted.

  David followed and nodded goodbye to my parents. “Another one, girls.” Mum smiled to us, ignoring the uneasiness.

  Later, we filed outside to Mick’s four-wheel drive. Mum was going to prepare dinner for when he got back, so it was just the four of us. Kyle’s car suddenly screeched back into the driveway just as we were inside the car. Mick launched out of the driver’s seat, and I ran behind him.

  “What the hell are you doing?” he ranted, “you drive around in that thing like a lunatic.”

  “You’re supposed to drive BMWs fast,” he drawled spitefully at his dad, “not like a geriatric.”

  “You’re spoilt,” Mick spat, “and it’s my bloody fault. I hope you haven’t had any of that whiskey before you drove, and why are you even back?”

  “None of your business,” he shouted. Mick took a step towards him and I tugged his arm.

  “Come on, Mick,” I said encouragingly, “we’re going to be late.”

  “Don’t do me any favours, princess,” Kyle shouted.

  “You’re a mess.” Mick shook his head.

  Kyle took a deep breath and glared at me, “She’s going to be late,” he said wide-eyed with an uneasy smile. We both turned to walk back to the car, and I exhaled the breath I didn’t realise I was holding.

  “Oh Soph?” he shouted, and I turned. “I’m sure you’ll get a fuck tonight, I mean that’s the look you were going for right?”

  “Kyle!” Mick raged, and I tugged him away again.

  “Leave it,” I said through clenched teeth as my face burned red. “He’s not worth it.”

  When we got back in the car and started to reverse, I sat in the passenger seat and Ashley placed her hand on my shoulder from behind giving it a gentle squeeze.

  “I am afraid my son is a nasty piece of work,” Mick said as we pulled away, but I couldn’t stop seeing the tortured look on Kyle’s face or miss the fact that Mick had a lot to do with the way his son behaved. Neglect took many different forms, and money couldn’t buy happiness. Kyle had learned that the hard way, and despite how he had used me, it was him that deserved pity not me.

  The summer ball was electric, the DJ played all the songs that we requested, and the room was just big enough for everyone, so it was crowded, but not overly so. Everyone laughed and danced and reminisced about our years together. People that I hadn’t ever really spoken to approached me to sign their leaver’s books. Kathryn, Ashley, and I stayed together, buying bottles of wine and mixing with different groups of our friends. I couldn’t help but notice that Kyle and his cronies were nowhere to be seen, and by ten I was fairly drunk and Tim Anyon had found me.

  “Dance?” he asked, holding his hand out for me. “You look amazing tonight, Sophie,” he crooned. I accepted his compliment and reached out to him, as he led me to the dance floor.

  He took my hand and spun me around him as we laughed. I felt free for the first time that night, and deep down I was glad that Kyle hadn’t turned up to ruin the last night of my school career. Tim dipped me as the song ended and then pulled me to him as he slowly slid me back up.

  “Do you want a cigarette?” he asked.

  I nodded. “I’m trying to quit.”

  “Tomorrow.” He grinned.

  He led me to the nearest table and gave me a cigarette, leaning in to light it before lighting his own. I had my back to the door, but Ashley sat opposite me. When I saw her face light up and she rose from her seat, I knew it meant Vinnie had arrived and with him, Kyle. Kyle walked passed me, and I didn’t even glance his way, but I could feel his glare. I knew he would be drunk by now. I couldn’t help myself, and so I leaned further into Tim whilst I smoked, to prove to Kyle that I was over our situation. After I finished my cigarette I looked up to see Kyle seated at a nearby table with Jennie Miller positioned on his lap. My heart froze, and I tried to hide my stare. He turned slightly, caught my eye and smiled.

  “Ignore him,” Kathryn said, taking Tim’s seat whilst he went to the bar. “He loves to goad you, come on let’s dance.” Kathryn had no idea just how much.

  She took my hand and led me to the floor. We danced to our favourite songs and requested some old favourites. Tim brought my drink to the dance floor as I had no intention of sitting down, and it was obvious. Ashley joined us as well as a crowd of other girls from school, but through the craziness I could still see Jennie tangled up with Kyle. He snaked his arm around her and threw his head back in laughter. I stalked to the bar and ordered some tequila shots; Kathryn tottered behind me.

  “Are we getting trashed?” She laughed as I paid.

  “We certainly are.” I held up the shots and she took one; we chinked and downed the burning liquid.

  An hour later we were completely drunk. Ashley was draped over Vinnie, and Kathryn was next to her chemistry friend, Lee, who she had fancied for some time. Tim was buzzing around me, but I was too drunk to feign interest and instead chain-smoked and glared at Kyle. Eventually, I snapped and decided that this no good waste of space wanker was going to have a piece of my mind. So I rose unsteadily to my feet, and anonymous amongst the drunken students, I stumbled to his table.

  “Kyle,” I barked. He didn’t even look at me, but Jennie who was now sitting to his left looked my way.

  “Can we help you?” she said cattily, laughing a little.

  “I was talking to my brother.” I emphasised the word brother. “Kyle,” I barked again.

  He turned his head to me slowly, and amusement lit his eyes.

  “Fuck off,” he said and Jennie burst into fits of hysterics. I glared at him incredulously and at that second I couldn’t have hated myself more. I shook my head slightly and fought tears. He turned away from me and back to his table who all watched me for any sort of reaction. I turned and tried to walk away quickly with grace, however it was probably more like a stampede.

  I made it into the hallway and fell back against the wall, taking deep breaths. He was such an arsehole, and I had no idea why I was clamouring for his affection just like every other girl that he had screwed over. I was pitiful and he was a monster. It was all a con, it was all a game, and I was finally realising that.

  I whimpered and attempted to save myself the shame by making my way to the ladies. However, all of a sudden the alcohol, the shoes, and my emotions all became a factor in me taking a tumble. It all happened in slow motion. I stumbled and couldn’t recover myself. I knew I was falling, but I still tried to steady myself to no avail. Eventually I just held my hands out to stop my fall, and as I landed I heard it – SNAP. “Shit!” I yelped. “Shit.”

  Just then, out of nowhere, Kathryn appeared. “Soph?” she said, stunned. “Soph.” She tried to h
elp me up. “Are you Okay?”

  I made it to standing. “No.” I shook my head, “Kathryn, I need you to call my mum. I think, I … my arm snapped. I think it’s broken.”

  “Shit,” she said, looking around the hallway and desperately searching for help.

  “Get me to the bathroom,” I groaned. “I’m going to be sick.”

  We made it to the ladies room, and I slumped over the toilet, my bad arm tucked into me as I threw up. It only seemed like a minute but must have been a half hour before my mum was there. She rubbed my head as I cried and hugged her.

  “I’m so embarrassed,” I cried.

  “Don’t be,” she soothed, “no one will see us. Come on, get these jogging pants and top on, we need to get to A&E.” Somehow the sickness and the seriousness of the situation sobered me up, and I sipped a diet coke that she had brought. “Mick’s outside.” She sighed. “We decided to have a night off the booze and it was a good job.” She hugged me to her. “Come on.”

  We made our way back out to the corridor, and luckily there weren’t many people around, so I just walked out briskly with my head down as Mum pulled me to her. Mick had pulled into the loading bay directly outside of the hotel. He was talking to Kathryn as we neared the car and looked to me with concern as we pushed through the revolving door.

  “Thanks, Kathryn,” Mum said.

  “Let me know how you get on,” she said to me, giving me a hug, “How does it feel?”

  I looked down to my arm. “It kills,” I winced. Mum opened the back door of the car for me to climb in just as Kyle burst through the doors.

  “Hey!” he shouted, walking to the car. Mick was in the front seat with his window rolled down.

  “Go back inside, son.” he barked.

  “What’s going on?” he asked, looking to Kathryn and then pulling the back door open that Mum had just closed.

  “Kyle,” she yelped, “go back inside, honey, enjoy the rest of the party.”

  “Where’s she going?” He looked to me, but I wouldn’t return his stare.

  “She’s hurt her arm, Kyle, we’re going to the hospital.” Mum tried to close my door again.

  “I’ll come,” he said, “move over, Soph.”

  “No,” Mum pulled him away, “Kyle you’re drunk, honestly, go back inside. Kathryn, take him,” Mum urged her. “Go on … we’ll be home before you.”

  “Soph …” he shouted. I swallowed and tears filled my eyes again, damn him. I couldn’t let him see me. “Soph …” he said again, and I turned my head. He stood inside the open door, his eyes boring into me as Mum stood behind him pulling him away. “What happened?”

  “I fell,” I squeaked.

  “She slipped,” Kathryn said from behind him, “come on Kyle, let your parents take her.” He receded, and his eyes remained on mine.

  “I’m sorry.” He sighed as the door closed.

  Mick jumped out of the car. “Stop making a scene, Kyle, did you have something to do with this?”

  “No,” Kyle squared up to Mick, “why would I?”

  “Because you’re a nasty little shit, that’s why.”

  “Mick,” Mum scolded, “get in.”

  Kyle backed away and looked to me through the window. A few people had gathered to see the spectacle, including Jennie Miller. Kathryn stood next to Kyle as the car pulled away, and I began to cry.

  “Don’t be embarrassed, sweetie.” Mum said, “no one will remember this tomorrow.”

  “I will,” I wailed, “I always will.”

  Twelve – Just Kyle

  I had broken my wrist. We waited an hour and a half at A&E and after three diet cokes and a packet of hula hoops, I felt relatively sober. I had a temporary cast applied and was told to return to the fracture clinic the following day for a permanent cast. I felt hollow. Thank God I didn’t have to return to school after that, the hideous memories were replaying in my mind like a slapstick comedy, and I was sure I could never face any of those people ever again.

  We arrived home around one am, and Mum helped me into my pyjamas and removed all the grips from my hair, tying it into a bobble.

  “Night, Sophie,” she said, kissing my head. “You scared me tonight,” she whispered.

  “Sorry, Mum.”

  “Oh, it’s fine, I don’t think you’ll be getting that drunk again any time soon.” She laughed.

  She turned out the light, and I tried to get as comfortable as I could with the cast on. The memories wouldn’t leave me alone, and I cringed as I recalled the way I marched over to Kyle.

  “Soph?” Kyle croaked from our bathroom doorway, I sat up in bed and stared at him.

  “Kyle,” I said harshly, “please just leave me alone.” I sighed, “You’ve done it, I’m a fool, there’s nothing more you can do.”

  He walked to my bed and sat down, facing away from me, his head in his hands. I lay back down, exasperated, and turned away from him. I couldn’t fathom what he wanted to say or what drunken state he was in to be here, but sex was the last thing on my mind. He was there for almost ten minutes, and I tried to force myself to fall asleep. I felt him move, but instead of leaving he climbed inside my covers.

  “Kyle,” I turned to him, “get out,” I shouted at him through whispers, “I’ll scream.”

  “Soph,” he said again, his eyes locking with mine, and I imagined that I saw sorrow there. “I’m sorry,” he gulped, edging towards me.

  I put my good hand out to stop him. “No more, Kyle, no more sex, Okay? That’s it, you’ve had all you’re gonna get.”

  “Just let me hold you,” he said softly.

  I laughed sarcastically. “Who are you all of a sudden, Johnny Castle?”

  “Dirty Dancing?” he asked, an eyebrow raised, and I shook my head, contempt in my eyes.

  “I hate you Kyle,” I said as tears fell onto my cheeks without permission.

  “I’m sorry.” He sighed again and inched closer despite my hand that made a pitiful attempt at stopping him. He pulled me into him arms and breathed me in. “I’m a fuck-up, Soph.”

  “I know.” I sobbed.

  “I … You just … I’m a selfish prick.” I wiped my tears and tried to regain myself. “I didn’t mean what I said, I was jealous, I wanted you, and I wanted you to look like I’d had you, too.”

  “What?” I shook my head, I was exhausted from his games, and this day needed to end really soon because I couldn’t take much more.

  “I wanted to know that I’d had you before that ball, that you were mine and you … you didn’t want me, and I lost it.”

  “Kyle this changes nothing, what you said, you can’t explain that, it was poison. No one has ever made me feel so small.” I tried to regain my voice, but it was too far away to reach.

  “I’m a fuck-up, Soph, I don’t know how to be like this.”

  “Like what?”

  “Close.” He sighed.

  “You’ve got friends, you know how to be civil for God’s sake, I can’t feel sorry for you, Kyle. I’m worth more than this.”

  “I know.” He buried his head in my hair again and squeezed me to him. “You are, I know that, I know that, Okay? And now you’ve hurt your arm ‘cause of me.”

  “Oh, don’t flatter yourself, Kyle, I fell, I was pissed, it was an accident.”

  “Please don’t end it with me, Soph.”

  “There’s nothing to end!” I snapped.

  “You’re all I’ve got,” he whispered.

  “You’re drunk, Kyle, you’ve got everyone eating out of the palm of your hand as usual, every girl wants you and every guy wants to be your friend. Don’t bullshit me just to get one last shag.” I tried to pull away from him, but he held me tightly.

  “They’re not friends, Soph, that’s not a life, I don’t give a shit about any of them, and that’s why they all like me so much ‘cause they all know they’re replaceable.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “I need you, Soph. I’ve been a dick.”

&nbs
p; “I don’t believe a word you say, Kyle.”

  He nodded. I was comfortable in his arms, and my body was a traitor to my common sense. Everything about him soothed me. I found comfort in his warm arms, his smell, and his unwavering strength even as I fought to get away. We fell asleep just like that, and the pain in my arm was soothed a little by sleep. When I woke he was still there, and as the memories flooded back in, Kyle held me, and I wondered how much of a struggle it was going to be to rid myself of this dangerous carnival ride of a relationship. Kyle was Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and I was a deer caught in the monster’s headlights.

  Now - Kyle

  Everything about Sophie King surprised me. Everything about her was an oxymoron when we were growing up. She seemed cold at school, and yet she was so warm at home with her mum and friends. She seemed so perfect and wholesome, yet in bed she’d been like dynamite from one touch. She’d seemed so innocent, and yet she completely gave herself to me and left me wanting more. I knew she hated me back then, but what she gave me when we had those hot moments, wherever and whenever we could find the privacy, blew me away and made me question even that.

  Sophie King was a diamond and every guy’s fantasy, and she more than fulfilled that when you had her cornered. The best decision I ever made was kissing her on that holiday as I always wondered what it would feel like. She never left you wondering or starved. She gave 110% in everything, and she had me hooked. I’d never had sex with someone who didn’t shy away, she let me do whatever I wanted, and in return took me to places that I’d never been. She gave in to my every whim and trusted me, something no one had ever done before. Sophie was so much more than the shy, pretty blonde girl that people hardly noticed at school. She was the shy, pretty blonde girl who suddenly had all of my attention and who gave me every single thing that I could ever need. It was crazy.

  I knew it couldn’t last, knew that I never should have started something with her as it would have to end eventually, but the time we had was worth it. I’m not a romantic; I’m not mushy or nostalgic. I’m a realist and what I got from Sophie was the fulfilment of my male animalistic needs and a good old rub to my male ego. On paper she was girlfriend material, and had a bright future, but in real life she was a hedonistic animal who bubbled with life and made you want more and more of her time like a desperate drug addict. The fact that she gave this to some boring sales rep of a fiancé who ripped her heart out makes me want to kill someone. He hasn’t ruined her, but he tried and damn near succeeded. I know men like him. They are the ones who want to dull their shiny conquest so that their women don’t know how amazing they are, so that they’ll always stay. The problem is you can’t dull Sophie, and somewhere along the way he realised that and finished it to save face, setting her free.