SEPARATED

NINE

GABRIEL:

Friends look out for each other; it's what they do no matter what. It doesn't matter what problem you've got, you can always count on your friends; your real friends. Even when you shut them out of your life, as Jacob had shut me out, they know when your troubled and they hung around waiting for that moment when you'll finally need them. And so when I received a text message from Jacob late one Sunday night, asking me to meet him at the old train station, I didn't hesitate one second.

I had known something was going on with him. It wasn't like him to miss school. He loved class, and soccer. And now he was off the team. All this had begun that day he tried to punch me. From that day he hadn't been himself at all. He would hung out alone, and he appeared to think a lot too; I mean like all the time. He was often caught absent minded; in class, on the pitch, in gym class, even when just speaking to me...

I had tried to get him to talk, but he just got pissed and stopped talking to me all together. He wouldn't answer my calls, or reply to my texts. He had even begun choping classes that we shared, like Art. The last time we had spoken, he had mentioned 'trying to protect me'. I didn't know what he meant. Is this why he had locked me out of his life?

When I got to the station, Jacob sat on a bench by the reception building. The place was as quiet as a grave, quiet enough to hear yourself breathing. And so Jacob immediately noticed my presence and looked up. I could barely make out the smile on his face through the darkness. He rose and we embraced each other like old friends that hadn't seen each other in a decade.

"Thanks for coming" he said.

"I've got you bro" I replied.

I began to question the place of our meeting. The old train station was deserted, and dangerous. It was barely illuminated buy an old blinking floodlight. It's where you'd find bad people; people like thieves, gangsters, drug addicts, and the like. There was a faint scent of marijuana in the air. Marijuana was illegal in our country.

Whatever Jacob wanted to tell me, it must have been a big secret. It must have been something he wanted nobody else to know about. I mean; couldn't he just have told me at his place, or mine. I feared for the worst; maybe he had started doing drugs. Maybe he wanted me to join him or something. But it was like he read my thoughts.

"Gabby, I know what your thinking. I'm not doing drugs" he said.

"Sorry... it's just that.... this place" I explained.

"I know your uncomfortable. I just couldn't find any place better. Let's just get this over with. Gabriel, I've called you here tonight because I need your help...."

I nodded then he continued. He told me everything; from the cottage, to the foul breathed man, Paulo, to his new Job, to the mansion, to Sarah. He even told me about his kid bro and the blackmail. At last he explained to me how he wanted to please his father and at the same time keep his job at the mansion.

And so I came up with a plan. It involved a lot deceit and trickery, but anything for a friend. First we would get Jacob back on the team. This we would do with the help of the other players. All you had to do is promise these guys a party with hot chicks and alcohol and they'd do anything you wanted. My parents were out till the weekend so we'd do this at my place. The players would then strike demanding Jacob back on the team.

Next, Jacob would fake an injury so that he wouldn't have to attend training sessions leaving him free to take care of his job at the mansion. We would also have to make sure that Jacob's father did not talk to the coach.

This would be a bit tough because Jacob's father spoke to the coach daily. So we decided to hire a fake coach, and Jacob would convince his father that the old coach was fired. For this, we used the janitor. He would do anything for money. Jacob's hundred dollars finally came in handy.

Why we had to get Jacob on the team is so that it would reflect on his report card. The janitor could impersonate a new coach, but he couldn't sign on Jacob's report. The real coach would do this, even though Jacob wouldn't appear for training.

With the plan layed out, all that was left was implementation. Of course this had to wait till the following day. We grinned at each other like old times. It felt great to have my friend back.

"Jacob, please don't ever shut me out like that again" I said.

"Sorry bro, I was just afraid something might happen to you. But I promise, I won't."

"Okay. I just hope now you believe; that I've got your back."

"I do bro, and thanks. Now let's get outta here before my little bro finds out I'm not in and scores more points for blackmailing me."