Kimberley Chambers - The Schemer

‘You OK?’ Barry asked.

‘Yeah. Can I put some more music on now? The record’s stopped,’ Steph replied, desperate to get away from the feel of her boyfriend’s rock-hard penis. Part of her wanted to see it and touch it, but she would be far too nervous to do so in case she did something wrong.

‘I’m just going a toilet,’ Barry said, as he bolted out of the room like a racehorse. His hard-on was sticking out like a flagpole in his loose-fitting tracksuit bottoms and he was embarrassed to let Stephanie see it in all its glory. He could tell how edgy and inexperienced she was, and even though he had been sexually active for the past year or so himself, he didn’t want to put his new girlfriend under any pressure, or make her feel uncomfortable in any way.

Stephanie sorted through Barry’s record collection. She had noticed the big bulge in his tracksuit bottoms when he had darted out of the room and was relieved to see it had disappeared on his return.

‘Can I put some Spandau Ballet on?’ she asked him.

Barry nodded and lit up another two cigarettes. ‘Tell me more about your family, Steph. I’ve heard you mention your aunt lives with you, but I haven’t seen her yet. Is she your mum’s sister?’

Stephanie sat on the sofa next to Barry and felt contented as she snuggled up against his chest. She told him all about Linda and made him laugh over her love for alcohol and some of the hilarious stunts she had pulled. ‘I think my mum worries about our Lin more than she does about me and me sister. No wonder she’s started to find grey hairs on her head.’

Barry chuckled. ‘She sounds a right case, your aunt. I’ll have to meet her one day – you know, when me and you are out in the open.’

‘I reckon my mum will still be wanting me to be single when I’m twenty-one. Does my head in, she does,’ Steph joked.

‘You shouldn’t be too hard on your mum. She only worries because she cares about you and she loves you. My mum has never worried about me or my sister. She just tends to think about herself.’

‘So, what’s this new boyfriend of your mum’s like, then? Whereabouts they gone on holiday?’

‘His name’s Jake and he’s short, old and loaded. He’s taken her to Spain, but I dunno whereabouts, she didn’t say.’

‘So, has she gone for a week? Or two?’ Steph asked.

‘Supposedly a week, but you never know with my muvver. About two years back she was seeing this geezer called Quiet John. They called him that ’cause he was a right loudmouth bastard. He took her to Spain an’ all. She left me and me sister indoors in our old house on our own. She only left us a score for food and then didn’t come back for a month. She fell in love with a waiter while she was out there, dumped Quiet John and stayed out there on her own for three weeks.’

‘Oh my God! What did you and your sister do? Did you go and live with your dad, or what?’ Steph asked, appalled. All of a sudden her own mother seemed like the best in the world.

‘Me dad was in nick at the time, but me and Chantelle got by. We both had to go out thieving just to make ends meet and a few of our old neighbours cooked us dinners and stuff. We couldn’t tell ’em where mum actually was, though. Me and Chantelle were worried that they’d tell the Old Bill and we’d get put in care. Mum weren’t that popular in Bethnal Green either, you see. The neighbours would have loved to have seen her banged up for abandoning us. They all liked me and me sister, though. I think they felt sorry for the pair of us.’

‘Poor you,’ Stephanie said, wrapping her arms around her boyfriend’s neck.

As Spandau Ballet’s ‘True’ started to play, Barry stood up, grabbed Steph’s hands and pulled her off the sofa. ‘Let’s have our first dance together, shall we?’ he said, laughing.

Stephanie grinned when Barry began singing the words to her. ‘You’ve got a great voice and I really love this record,’ she whispered in his ear.

Barry stared intently into his girlfriend’s eyes. ‘And I really love you, Steph. One day, me and you will get married and, when we are, we’ll dance to this as the first song at our wedding. Deal?’

Feeling a happiness inside her heart that she had never felt in her life before, Stephanie was stunned. Unable to answer Barry’s question because her voice seemed to have deserted her, she smiled and nodded at the same time. For the first time in her young life, Stephanie Crouch was completely and hopelessly in love.

Pamela Crouch’s right hand shook like she had a bad case of the DTs as she put the phone back on its receiver. ‘Oh, Cath. I’m at my wits’ end, I really am,’ she shouted, as her friend let herself in the house.

‘Whatever’s the matter? Is it Lin? Have they taken her back into the hospital again?’ Cath asked, alarmed.

‘No, Lin’s upstairs asleep. It’s my Stephanie. She’s been bunking off school to spend time with that old slapper’s son. I’ve just had her head of year on the phone. She ain’t been in today or yesterday. I’m gonna kill her, Cath. I will march her into that school of a morning and wait outside and walk home with her if I have to. Say she’s in his house now? They could be up to anything. I’m going over there. I’ll murder that little bastard if he’s laid one finger on my baby, I swear I will.’

Cathy had never seen her best friend in such a distressed state. ‘Calm down, and whatever you do, don’t do nothing rash. Good job I treated us to a bottle of Liebfraumilch from the offie. I thought you might fancy a glass because of the performance you had with Lin last night. You go and sit in the lounge and keep an eye on the house while I pour us a glass. We can have a drink and discuss things properly.’

Pam walked over to the window and stared at Marlene’s house. Marlene had recently replaced the sheets she’d had up at the windows with what looked like cheap heavy curtains, but they were always closed as she had no nets up. ‘What am I gonna do, Cath?’ she asked her friend.

Cathy handed her pal her drink, then sat down on the sofa and sipped her own. ‘Do you want my honest opinion?’

Pam nodded.

‘The more you try and stop Steph seeing that boy, the more she’s gonna want to see him. If you hadn’t forbade her to have contact with him, and grounded her, she wouldn’t be bunking off school, would she?’

‘So, what you trying to say? That it’s my fault?’ Pam asked, in a narky tone.

‘I’m only being truthful with you, Pam, so don’t get your knickers in a twist with me for trying to bleedin’ help you. I know you don’t want your Steph seeing that boy and I don’t blame you, but they’re only kids and it will soon fizzle out if you just let ’em get on with it.’

‘What’s going on? Can I have a glass of that wine?’ Linda asked, walking into the lounge still half asleep, with her dressing gown on.

‘No you bleedin’ well can’t! If you’re thirsty go and make yourself a brew. You’ve only just woken up, for Christ’s sake,’ Pam said.

‘I’ll make one in a minute. What’s up?’ Lin enquired, raising her eyebrows at Cathy.

Cathy explained all that had happened and her opinion on the matter.

Linda listened intently, then turned to Pam. ‘I think Cath’s spot on. By stopping Steph from seeing this boy, you’re just pushing her away. You need to just let it run its course. I bet you any money you like, if you allow them to see one another, it’ll all be over within six weeks.’

‘But how can I? I mean, didn’t you say Lairy Mary said he was a right cocky little bastard?’ Pam asked Cathy.

Cathy laughed. ‘How can Mary call anyone cocky when her own nickname’s Lairy? Means the same thing, don’t it? Actually, Mary popped in the café again yesterday, and ’cause I knew you were worried about Steph, I asked her some more questions. She was actually quite complimentary about the boy. Said he was a rough diamond, but had a heart of gold. She said he was streets above that mother and sister of his. She reckons the sister is a complete wrong ’un, just like her mother.’