* * *
Pete Cook was trying to avoid Tucker Pyles. He hadn’t been able to resist tipping a drink over the fat moron and claiming it was an accident. Tucker wasn’t too bright, but he was smart enough to know it wasn’t an accident.
Pete had shot out the front entrance to get away from the homicidal bully and had since made his way around to the back of the building. He had to remain inconspicuous in case the duty teacher saw him. He particularly didn’t want Mr Harris to catch him AWOL.
He was going to slip in through the back entrance, where he could sit near a teacher or parent helper. That way Tucker wouldn’t be able to do anything to him. He was surprised to find Holly Robinson sitting alone on the stairwell leading up to the back entrance. She cradled her head in her hands, but on Pete’s arrival peered up at him in a cold manner. Her eyes were red like she had been crying.
‘You okay?’ Pete asked.
‘Yes,’ she said in a monotone voice.
Pete sat on the stairs next to her, not waiting for an invitation of any kind. It was not like him to be so bold, but this was an excellent opportunity to talk to her without the interfering Jacqui about. Besides, he hated seeing someone looking so sad, especially not the girl he was in love with. He felt he had an obligation to try to cheer her up. Perhaps it would even have the added bonus of getting in her good books.
Holly humphed. ‘Look, everything's sweet, all right? I’d just like to be alone.’
‘Hey, I saw what happened. I hope that Mav didn’t upset you too much.’ When he thought about Rick Maverick, his blood boiled a little. He didn’t quite know why he was so embittered towards him, after all, he had not got into any trouble over the tuck shop robbery. Mav and Wal had obviously not revealed he was part of it and it certainly wasn’t Mav’s fault that Holly liked Mav more than him.
Holly spoke coldly, ‘Whether he upset me or not is no concern of yours, is it?’
‘Well, you know, I hate to see anyone depressed. I’m pretty good at cheering people up. I think that Mav’s slime, treating you like this. Fancy two timing you like that. That’s typical of Mav. He doesn’t give a shit about anyone but himself.’
Holly turned to face Pete with a look of hostility on her face. ‘And what the hell do you know about Mav? How long have you known him… a few weeks?’
Pete froze. He realised that he might have made an error in judgement. He was so keen on getting back at Mav that he didn’t think about the words he said. He had forgotten that Holly probably knew Mav better than anyone.
‘You don’t know Mav,’ she said in a more gentle tone. ‘He’s a really nice, caring guy. What do you know about him?’
‘Sorry, I...’
‘Aren’t you supposed to be his friend?’ The hostility that was there before started to return.
‘Well...’
‘Some friend, back stabbing him like that.’
‘But why are you defending him? He’s probably in there with Sam, dancing right now.’
Her voice softened a little and her eyes saddened. ‘Is he?’
‘Well, they were talking when I came out here.’
‘Oh...’ She turned her head away and lowered her gaze.
‘He shouldn’t be allowed to get away with this you know. Look Holly, I mightn’t have known the guy for long, but I know that he’s bad news. We were friends, but not anymore. I don’t like the way he treats people and I don’t think he can be trusted. I’m not surprised that he has no friends.’
Holly turned towards him with a frown on her face. ‘What do you mean by that?’
‘Well, you know. I’ve spoken to a lot of guys from Akato in the last few weeks. Guys like Ryan Ellis. It’s common knowledge that nobody liked him at Akato.’
‘Yeah, but that wasn’t his fault.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Didn’t he tell you?’
‘Tell me what?’
‘He’s only fourteen years old. Pete.’
The news hit him like a brick and he dropped his jaw. ‘Fourteen? He never told us that! But why would that make any difference?’
‘He skipped year nine. He’s a pretty bright guy you know and they put him straight into year ten. A lot of people didn’t like that. The kids his age, because they were jealous and the kids older than him, because they felt threatened. Guys like Ryan Ellis and others used to try and make his life a misery. They were always hassling him.’
Pete fell silent for a moment and stared at Holly as the news sunk in. It dawned on him that he had made a big mistake. ‘But, but you know sometimes I really get the impression that he can’t be trusted. All his riddles and jokes and everything.’
‘That’s just Mav. He’s always been like that. He’s the... he’s the most honest guy I know...’ Her voice trailed off and she gazed away into the distance.
Pete began to feel very small. All this time, he’d believed that Mav was a schemer. He’d been foolish enough to take what guys like Ryan Ellis and others had said seriously. Poor Mav. He had probably come to Te Arawa College hoping that he could finally make some quality friends. When he finally thought that he had managed to make some, Pete had made all those accusations about him. How could he have been so closed-minded? He had been so obsessed with his own self that he had taken offence at all that Mav had done. Mav had only been trying to help him all along, but just because he happened to be having success with the girl Pete was after, Pete got all defensive. ‘I’m sorry. I might have been mistaken about Mav.’
‘He’s often misunderstood.’
‘Some friend I’ve been.’
Holly turned back to him. ‘You’re a nice guy, Pete. No matter what girls like Jacqui say, you’re a decent sort of a guy, even if a little infantile at times. You’ll sort things out with him.’
That meant a lot to Pete, an awful lot. For a moment, he felt that maybe he was back up to the ‘possible date’ stage with Holly again. However, that’s where it was going to stay - A possible date. He had to put things right with Mav and if it meant giving in and accepting Mav and Holly as a couple, then so be it.
He rose to his feet with a new purpose, a purpose to track down Mav and apologise for the way he had treated him in the last couple of weeks.
A voice boomed from down one end of the building. ‘Cook! You are dead meat, ubbhead! I’ll teach you for spilling your drink on me!’
Pete’s head spun to the left. Tucker walked along the path, a homicidal glare on his face. His first instinct was to run, but when he turned to the right, Joe was there and advancing swiftly in his direction. Pete was about to spin around and dart back the way he came but ran smack bang into Colin.
Colin grabbed him roughly by the shirt and pushed him past Holly onto the path beyond. Pete was trapped. There was nowhere to run.