Conflicted Emotions

Chapter 21: Half term nightmare

**

Danny pulled up into mum's house and we all stepped out. Amy ran to the door while Danny and I got the bags. We heard the door open and our mother's voice as she greeted her youngest child. I shut the boot while Danny headed up the garden path, and mum smiled as she saw us.

"Hello, kids. How've you been?" she asked, taking Amy's bags and leading us upstairs.

"Good thanks mum. Made new friends in uni," Danny said, locating his room and dumping his stuff on his bed. I shared my room with Amy because there was no other room and Danny as sure as hell wasn't sharing with either of us.

"That's good! How about you, Jess?"

"Good. This term's been great," I said, lying through my teeth. My mum didn't really know me well enough to know I was lying though. However, I saw Danny narrow his eyes at me. Before he could say anything, I dived onto my bed and sighed, looking forwards to a Spencer free week.

"So, mum," said Danny, as we all headed downstairs after our death hugs from our mother. "Where's the boyfriend?" he asked in a teasing voice. I smiled and mum just raised her eyebrows in a jokingly threatening way.

"He's at work, he'll be back later," she said, sitting in the kitchen. We followed suit. "So, how's life been?" I was tempted to let loose all my anger over Jamie but decided it would be best not to. Instead I lied again - this time a little less convincingly. Danny scrutinized me closely, then jerked his head towards the door. Getting the hint, but grimacing at him, I said,

"Hey, mum, I think I might have left something in Danny's room, can I go look for it?"

"Yes, of course!" Danny followed me out and the moment I closed the bedroom door he rounded on me. He opened his mouth to speak before a loud crash came from downstairs. We both turned towards the door and headed onto the landing, peering into the hallway below.

I saw a man, about my mother's age, staggering down the hallway. Behind him lay the wreckage of the hall table, and he was muttering and swearing as he walked into walls and kicked doorframes.

"Aarghh, fuucking heell woomaan, wheere's me vodka, I neeeed me alcohol..." we glanced at each other and nodded, but before we'd taken two steps Amy appeared before the drunken man.

"It's not nice to swear," she said as reprovingly as she could at her age. Obviously she knew how to swear from our arguments. I was swearing myself in my head - ah shit Amy, get out of the way, he's drunk, move, he doesn't care, get the fuck out of the way!

"Doo yoou thiiink I give a shiit, little giirrl? Whoo're you, anyway?" he slurred, sagging against the wall. Me and Danny were halfway down the stairs at this point.

"I'm Amy, and you must be mummy's boyfriend." She said, looking up at him innocently. I opened my mouth to speak when he raised the empty Smirnoff bottle in his hand and yelled;

"WHAAT?! YOOU TOOLD MEE SHE WOULD BEE OLDEER, WOMAN! WHERE'S THE SEVENTEEN YEEAR OOLD? I DOON'T WAANT THIS MISERABLE MIDGIT IIN MYY HOOOUSE!!" he roared. Then he smashed the bottle over Amy's head. Amy screamed. I screamed. He hit her again in the head and she staggered back. Danny ran forward and wrestled with him. Mum appeared in the doorway, looking appalled. Amy was bawling her eyes out, and I was helping Danny but the boyfriend was very wiry and tough. He aimed the bottle at my head and missed, and it flew out of his hand and smashed in mum's face. She too screamed and I kicked him in the balls while Danny grabbed the phone. There was one thing for sure - Mum's boyfriend was definitely not what I expected.

**

"Danny, please, stop pacing," I begged, looking up at him with tired eyes. We were in the waiting room of the hospital, and he was pacing, thinking. He looked at me for a moment and then collapsed into the seat next to me.