“Ahem,” Freya said.

  “OK.” Jacob smiled. “Sisters, too!”

  *

  We sat up until 2 a.m., talking and telling stories. When at last we got into our sleeping bags, I was still thinking about what Jacob had said. I lay staring into the darkness. What a weird day.

  Like Jacob, I’d never really had any close friends. Now, all of a sudden, I had two. My life felt like it had changed. It felt different, but great too. Like things were all shiny and bright.

  But that feeling didn’t last very long.

  11

  The Dark Knight Falls

  Just two days later, the shiny brightness wore right off. One minute I was eating my lunchtime sandwich, the next Jacob rushed me. His eyes bulged with fury as he grabbed my school jumper. I had no idea what was happening, but it felt like I was being manhandled by a gorilla.

  “It was you!” Jacob screamed. “You must have told them!”

  “W-w-what?” I said.

  “You lying little shit!” he yelled, and he clenched his free hand into a fist.

  Mr Ahmed and Ms Jenkins rushed in before he could punch me. He was swearing like mad as they dragged him away.

  “Think you’ve upset chav boy,” Anu Patel sneered. “He thinks you told everyone.”

  “Told them what?” I asked, my stomach churning with fear.

  “About scrounging at a food bank …”

  My heart sank. I hadn’t told anyone.

  “Hate to be you when Jacob comes back from exclusion,” Anu added.

  I grabbed my stuff and stormed to the library where Mrs Collier was sitting behind her desk. Her kind face creased with concern.

  “What’s happened, Cal?” she asked.

  “Jacob went for me,” I told her. “He thinks I told everyone his secret.”

  “What secret?” she asked.

  I shrugged and dumped my bag on the floor.

  “Doesn’t matter now.”

  I sat in a corner, and pulled a random book from the shelves. But I couldn’t focus because I was so wound up. Then Freya found me.

  “Have you heard?” she asked.

  “Yes,” I told her. “Jacob attacked me in the hall.”

  “But it was Myles Granger – not you!” Freya said.

  “Huh?” I said. “How do you know?”

  “Because I heard him tell everyone,” Freya replied. “But why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Jacob made me promise,” I told her. “I couldn’t break his trust.”

  “Fair enough,” she said. “So what now?”

  “We find Jacob,” I said. “Come on, let’s go.”

  The exclusion room was in the admin corridor, and out of bounds to pupils without permission. But for once I didn’t care if I got into trouble. Jacob needed to know the truth.

  “Are you sure?” Freya said.

  “Yeah, course. He’s our friend and we have to help him.”

  The admin corridor was deserted, but we waited a moment, just in case. When no teachers appeared, I opened the door and whispered.

  “Jacob …”

  He was sitting on a chair with his head in his hands. He didn’t look up, so I tried again and Freya joined in.

  “Hey!”

  This time he did hear. He frowned when he saw us.

  “It wasn’t me!” I whispered.

  “Yeah right.”

  “He’s telling the truth,” Freya said.

  Jacob stood up and I couldn’t help but feel scared. After the way he’d been in the dinner hall, I didn’t know what to expect. But I saw that his face was more sad than angry now.

  “It wasn’t me,” I said. “Honest.”

  “It was Myles,” Freya said. “He told everyone.”

  “Get lost!” Jacob snapped. “Like Myles would know!”

  “Freya heard him,” I said. “Myles’s dad owns a restaurant by St Margaret’s. He saw you.”

  Jacob didn’t say anything.

  “Why would I tell anyone?” I asked him. “We made a pact, remember?”

  “We’re telling the truth,” Freya said. “I promise.”

  Jacob thought about it. “Myles?” he said.

  “Yes,” Freya insisted. “You know he hates you.”

  Jacob nodded.

  “I’m sorry I grabbed you,” he told me. “I wasn’t thinking. I was just –”

  “We have to stop Myles,” Freya said, and I remembered something she’d told me.

  “Yeah,” I added. “He might be tough, but the harder they come …”

  “The harder they fall!” Freya finished. She beamed a smile at me.

  Jacob’s face grew stony.

  “You’re right,” he told me. “We have to bring Myles down.”

  I heard the doors open behind us.

  “Calloway! Freya!”

  Ms Jenkins didn’t sound too happy. We turned and trudged towards her.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked us. “Do you have permission?”

  “We’re just trying to help Jacob, Miss,” I replied.

  Ms Jenkins’ face softened.

  “Come on, Cal,” she said with a half-smile. “I know you mean well, but you must obey the rules.”

  “But Jacob didn’t do anything!” I protested. “It’s that Myles Granger, he’s nothing but a bully and a trouble-maker.”

  “Leave that to me and Mr Ahmed,” Ms Jenkins said. “Neither you nor Freya should be here without permission.”

  “But you can’t punish him!” Freya insisted.

  Ms Jenkins sighed and led us away.

  *

  Jacob stayed in isolation, and Anu and the others were nasty about him all afternoon. It was hard to ignore them and for the first time ever I wished school would end early. Not even Mr Ross could keep my attention and I love History.

  I rushed out with Freya when the lesson ended. But, in the main corridor, we knew something was wrong. The word “Fight!” hung in the air and people were pushing and shoving to get out of school fast.

  “I’ve got an awful feeling that it’s Jacob in trouble,” I said to Freya.

  “Me too. Come on, run!”

  We ran out to find Myles by the school gates, with two other Year 10 lads. They were holding Jacob tight by the arms, and they were laughing at him as he struggled.

  “STOP IT!” I shouted without thinking.

  “Stop it! Stop it!” some older kids mocked.

  I didn’t care. I dropped my bag and ran over. I didn’t know what I was going to do. But I had to do something.

  “Leave him alone!” I said, and I tried to pull Jacob away.

  “Piss off,” Myles’s mates jeered.

  “Get lost, you little shit!” Myles warned, as he punched Jacob full on the mouth.

  Jacob struggled but Myles’s two henchmen were too strong even for him.

  “Get a teacher!” I heard Freya scream.

  “You dirty little scrounger!” Myles yelled. “Think you can have me?”

  My heart was racing and I was almost sick with fright, but I had to help Jacob. I grabbed Myles and tried to push him away.

  “Stop!” I shouted. “Leave him alone!”

  But Myles just shoved me to the ground and I heard laughter ripple in the crowd. Then someone shouted “TEACHERS!”

  I saw hand after hand holding phones in the air, recording everything. Jacob was struggling and shouting, like he was in a kind of blind rage.

  “Please!” I begged as I jumped to my feet. “Just let him go.”

  Myles grinned at me.

  “I warned you,” he said.

  I saw his fist flying through the air. I heard Freya scream my name. I heard gasps from the crowd. All in a split second …

  Myles’s fist caught me hard under my chin. I felt my head snap back and my body start to fall.

  And then my world went black.

  12

  Batman Forever

  I woke up in hospital, with a nurse staring at me.

  “Hello!” he said. “Welcome back.”

  “Cal!” I heard my mum’s voice say.

  She appeared from my right, and started kissing and hugging me.

  “Mum …!”

  “I thought you were seriously hurt,” she sobbed. “I didn’t know what to do.”

  “Give the boy some space, Jas,” I heard Dad say.

  His face appeared from my left with a

  too-bright grin.

  “Hey!” he said. “Sore?”

  I smiled and tried to nod, but my whole head throbbed.

  “Owww!” I croaked. “Why am I here?”

  “You had a nasty fall,” the nurse told me in a soothing Caribbean accent. “You banged your head on the ground.”

  “I don’t remember that,” I said. “I just saw Myles’s fist and then –”

  “SSSHHH!” Mum said. “Forget about that. Just get some rest.”

  “Where’s Freya?”

  “She’s here – she went to get a drink.” Mum smiled.

  My head hurt, my jaw hurt, my legs felt like jelly. I tried to sit up, but I sank back down again, dizzy.

  “Was Jacob OK?” I asked.

  “Everything’s fine,” Mum said, with a look over to Dad. “Just rest.”

  I gave her a glare, but Mum refused to say any more. She and Dad went to get some coffee.

  “You need an X-ray,” the nurse said. “Just to be safe. It was a nasty fall. Now, hush, and let me get that sorted for you.”

  *

  They let me go just after 9 p.m., but I was still groggy.

  “Where’s Jacob?” I asked Freya.

  “He beat Myles up,” she said. “Then the police came and arrested him.”

  “Why?” I was shocked. “Myles started it …”

  The rest of the trip home passed in silence. At Freya’s house, she gave me a peck on the cheek.

  “I’ll see you after school tomorrow,” she said.

  At home, I couldn’t sleep. I was sore and I was angry. Myles had picked on Jacob, then punched me. So why was Jacob in trouble? When I asked Mum, she shrugged.

  “That’s the law,” she said. “Apparently Jacob went berserk.”

  “Have you spoken to his mum?” I asked.

  “No,” she said. “Janice won’t answer her phone.”

  And so I lay awake until 3 a.m., fretting about Jacob.

  *

  “It’s freezing out there,” Freya told me when she came over the next day. She took off her woolly hat and blew on her hands. “How’s Batman?”

  “I’m fine,” I said.

  “Apart from the bruises and the sore head?”

  “Never mind that,” I said. “What happened with Jacob and Myles?”

  “It’s all rumours,” Freya explained. “But Jacob’s been excluded. Mr Gossage told us –”

  “We need to see him,” I said.

  Mum appeared at the living room door.

  “I’ve spoken to Janice,” she told us. “Jacob is fine, but the school won’t have him back.”

  “This is all so wrong,” Freya said. “Horrible and wrong.”

  “Perhaps,” Mum said, “but that’s not the point. Jacob has … issues.”

  “No!” I snapped, so loud I shocked Mum and Freya, and myself too. “Jacob doesn’t have issues. It was Myles! Look what he did to me.”

  “Cal,” Mum soothed, “I know you’re looking out for your friend, but it’s up to the school – there’s nothing you can do.”

  I knew she was right. I knew it, but I hated it. After she’d gone, Freya sat down beside me.

  “Are you OK?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” she said. “I’m here with my best friend. What could possibly be wrong?”

  I smiled.

  “Is that what I am?”

  “Yes,” Freya said. “And maybe something else, too.”

  I gulped, all nervous again. Did she mean …?

  “You’re Batman,” she said. “The way you took on those lads. You were really brave.”

  “Oh – that,” I said.

  “Cal!” Freya insisted. “You stood up for Jacob. You tried to save him. Never mind superhero powers and all that rubbish. You’re a real hero.”

  “But …”

  She leaned over and kissed me. It was so sudden, and so fast, that I didn’t have time to react. Her lips were soft and I could taste strawberries. It was lovely – as if she’d just eaten some sweets.

  “But …”

  “Oh Cal, shh,” she said. “Say nothing.”

  *

  I was in a much better mood that night. I took my painkillers, read a comic and fell asleep thinking about Freya and that strawberry kiss. I felt older somehow, more like a proper teenager. It was like I’d stopped being a geeky kid. I’m sure I fell asleep with a great big smile on my face.

  But then the house phone rang, and woke me up right in the middle of a dream. It was 4.03 a.m.

  13

  Nightrunner

  Jacob had run away.

  “I heard him banging about,” Janice said. “But I just thought he was in a strop.”

  “When did you realise he was missing?” Mum asked.

  “I woke up around 2 a.m.,” said Janice. “I went into the kitchen for a glass of water and I found his note on the table.”

  Mum nodded. It was now 6 a.m., and I couldn’t stop yawning. The kitchen was cold and flecks of snow were falling outside. Janice’s hands shook as she held her tea, and there were dark bags under her eyes.

  “I didn’t know what to do,” she said. “I mean, I called the police but –”

  “You were right to come here,” Mum said. “You shouldn’t be alone.”

  “He’s done it before,” Janice said. “But this time feels different. He was so upset yesterday – the worst I’ve ever seen him. He’s had such a hard time, what with his grandparents and my troubles …”

  Mum nodded, and told Janice that she understood. Then she looked at me. “Cal, are you well enough for school?” she asked.

  “I’m fine,” I told her. “But I want to stay here. The police might find Jacob.”

  “No,” Mum said. “Sitting around won’t help. I’d rather you went back today.”

  *

  Freya gave me a huge smile when I got to school.

  “Yay!” she said, but then we both shut up as Mr Gossage walked into class.

  “Ah, Cal,” he said. “Great to see you! Could you and Freya stay behind please?”

  I sat down, wondering what Mr Gossage wanted. Behind me, Anu Patel was sneering as usual.

  “Great to see you, Geek Boy,” she said. “You back, then?”

  I turned to face her. Something inside me had changed and, for the first time, she didn’t scare me, not one bit.

  “Yes,” I said. “And I’m sure you’re thrilled …”

  “Ooh,” she said. “Snarky and brave after your little beating.”

  Before, I would have cowered, but not today.

  “I’m bored of you.” I turned to face her. “Bored of your stupid games and your bullying. Please stop it.”

  “Ha ha!” she mocked. “Geek Boy fights back. And there was me thinking we had an understanding.”

  “Not any more.” I shook my head. “You can do your own homework from now on.”

  “I don’t think so,” Anu said. “Since when did you tell me what to do –”

  “Oh, shut up!” Freya snapped. “You’re such an idiot!”

  “Anu!” said Mr Gossage. “Enough!”

  “But, sir, I …”

  “I said enough!”

  When everyone had gone, Mr Gossage came and sat by us in the empty classroom.

  “I need you to tell me what’s going on,” he said. “I know what Myles did that day, but is there more?”

  “More what, sir?” Freya asked.

  “Bullying,” Mr Gossage said. “Miss Spargo and Mrs Collier are particularly concerned and both have named Anu Patel. We’ve also had incidents posted on social media –”

  I looked at Freya. Neither of us did social media, so we hadn’t seen anything.

  “Anu bullies Cal,” Freya blurted. “I’ve got evidence.”

  “She’s just –” I began, but Mr Gossage held up his hand.

  “Hang on, Cal,” he said. “What evidence, Freya?”

  Freya showed him the videos she’d recorded on her phone and we both watched Mr Gossage’s face grow darker as each incident played out.

  “There’s more,” Freya told him. “Anu forces Cal to do homework and projects, and she sells his work to other pupils –”

  “What?” Mr Gossage said. “Is that true, Cal?”

  I nodded, too embarrassed to speak.

  “Right!” Mr Gossage said. “Don’t look so worried, Cal – but both of you get to your lessons now. I need to speak to Mr Ahmed and Ms Jenkins about this.”

  On our way to Science, I managed at last to tell Freya about Jacob.

  “What do you mean he’s missing?”

  “He ran away,” I explained. “Last night. His mum is at my house and the police are looking for him.”

  “Oh, no,” Freya said. “Poor, poor Jacob.”

  *

  Jacob was still missing when Freya and I got home. Things weren’t looking good. Mum had called a doctor for Janice, who was asleep in our spare bedroom.

  “The doctor gave her something,” Mum said. “To help her sleep. I’m dealing with the police for her –”

  “What have they said?” Freya asked.

  “Nothing, really,” Mum said. “They might do an appeal for information on tonight’s local news.”

  “On the telly?” I asked.

  “Er, yes. Where else?” Mum said. “They need to find him. He’s young and vulnerable. Plus, the forecast is for snow. Imagine if he’s on the streets somewhere.”

  That was when I realised. I had been so stupid. I looked at Freya and moved my eyes up to the ceiling.

  “What?” she said.

  “Books.”

  “What books?” she asked, confused.

  “The ones we need for the project about rivers.”

  “Pardon?”

  “Badgers build dens by rivers, remember?”

  At last, her eyes lit up.

  “Oh,” she fibbed. “For that project …”

  We dashed up to my room, and I shut the door.

 

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