The morning air was crisp and breezy as Lydia strolled through the town to meet Dris. She'd opted for jeans and a jumper leaving the school uniform behind. It was Friday anyway, she wouldn't miss much bunking off for one day.
As Lydia approached the group she noticed Sully and Dushane had already arrived.
'When Kamale shows, that's when we make our move innit?' Sully continued his conversation. 'All right you two, you go down the shrine.' Pointing over to two younger kids Sully gave his orders.
'What?' A boy said. Lydia thought his name was Andre but she couldn't be sure.
'Go to the shrine. Keep a lookout.' Sully instructed once again, this time with a more forceful tone. 'Anyone comes you make sure you call one of us. Fucking hurry up.'
'Find a good spot, bruv.' Dushane added onto the end as Chantelle and Andre huffed and puffed before doing what they were told.
The only problem working with the teenagers was their attitude problems. Hormones flying everywhere.
'Make sure no one can see you lot!' Dris shouted after them before they left out of sight.
Two boys on bikes, probably around the age of 13 rode past.
'Oi! Where you lot going.' Dushane hollered clearly recognising the two of them.
'School.'
'Nah you're not. You got the day off. I want you to do me a favour, go down to London fields for me.'
'What? That's E8, that ain't my bits.' One of them bravely protested.
'Shut up bruv, don't worry about that.' Dushane said taking his wallet out of his pocket and pulling out several notes. 'Just go down there, keep your eye out. If you see Kamale or Ninja then bell me straight away, yeah?'
Handing over the money the boys seemed satisfied with their payment as they rode away.
'Don't leave till you see them.'
They shouted their 'yes's' as they rapidly sped away.
'Right, hello to you all too.' Lydia finally spoke up, annoyed that she'd been ignored this whole time.
'Hey Lyd. You okay? My mum said you didn't stay long.' Dushane stood beside the much smaller girl.
'Yeah I'm fine, just school work yeah?' They all seemed satisfied with her answer so they left for Dris's house to await the phone call of Kamale's wear abouts.
'Is it considered grooming, you know how you pay kids to do your dirty work?' They all outwardly sighed at her comments but they were used to it happening regularly.
At this point in life she'd become compliant with being a wind up merchant.
'You want breakfast Lyd?' Sully asked her avoiding the previous question as she made herself comfortable on the couch.
'Are you making pancakes?' Her eyes dazzled with the question.
'Fuck off, cereal? Toast?' He chuckled at her cheek.
'Mhm. Toast is fine.' Lowering her breakfast standards she shrugged her shoulders.
'I'm telling you now, if man don't deal with Kamale, Raikes is coming after man.' Dushane broached the subject again.
'Mhm hear that still, but yo. There's the other thing - the snake.' Sully responded.
Someone must of told Kamale where the house was the other day for them to rob, meaning there was a snitch around them.
'Bruv, we ain't got time for that now.' Dushane pointed out. They'd already lost money and food, Dushane needed to focus on getting his property back from the thief.
'Fuck. Can't put this off no more you know, if it weren't for that snake, the house wouldn't have got licked down in the first place! Man wouldn't even be in this mess right now. You know someone's talking man, it's that gem kid.' Sully continued on as he handed Lydia a plate of already half eaten toast, the evidence of crumbs littered his cheeks.
'You're going on like you want it to be him or something, bruv.' Dushane defended the young lad. 'I'm saying I don't think it's him, just fucking leave it man.'
Lydia knew that his words would've lit Sully's short fuse. Remember that testosterone fight, it happened often.
'What? What you saying?' Sully rose his voice.
'What?' Dushane asked innocently.
'Why you giving me orders?'
'I ain't giving you no orders.' Dushane cleared his throat.
'You just said leave him, no?' Sully didn't take any orders from anyone, that much was clear.
Dushane sighed at him making his annoyance grow with the man.
'That sounded like an order fam. Why you giving me orders?'
Lydia jabbed the closest man to her in the ribs, hoping the action would make them shut up.
'Bruv! I ain't giving you no orders. I just said we ain't got no time for this shit.' Dushane lunged forward in his seat trying to make the other man listen.
Lydia began to wish she actually went to school instead of hearing the two of them bicker all morning like an old married couple.
'You know what, you go down the school. Tell that kid I wanna talk to him. Yeah?' Sully told Dris who was more than happy to comply. That was why Dris was mostly Lydia's favourite, he was the most easy going one out of the three.
Lydia's phone rang in the back of her pocket as 'unknown number' flashed up on the screen, straightaway she knew it was the prison.
'Oh it's my brother calling, I'll be one second. By the time I get back can you two have sorted your fucking arguing?' Lydia scrambled over the sofa and stood on the balcony to take her call.
'Hey Lydia, you okay?' Ryan's voice always warmed the girls soul, she loved to hear from her brother.
'Yeah I'm good. You're calling earlier than usual.' Her brother usually called around tea time.
'Yeah I know, I figured since you're not at school you'd be able to answer hey?'
Fuck. She forget she was meant to be in school hours right now.
'I am at school.'
'Don't fucking lie Lydia.' His tone made his younger sister roll her eyes to the high heavens.
'I can hang up you know Ryan.' Lydia threatened.
'Look Lydia, just know that I find out everything yeah? No matter if I'm on the inside of these four walls or not. What are you even doing today? Why didn't you go in.' The questionnaire began.
'Just felt a bit under the weather. Cough and all that.' Another lie spilled out of the young girls mouth.
'I don't hear you coughing right now.' He sassily replied. Lydia hated how he always had an answer to every single thing.
Spluttering down the phone she made a big point of putting on a coughing fit.
'Just stay away from anything you don't need to be near okay Lydia? The streets are not for you, look at where I've ended up. It's not where you wanna be.'
His brotherly advice went in one ear and out the other as usual but Lydia kept the conversation civil. They chatted about nonsense until his time ran out and they had to say their goodbyes.
Lydia was happy to hear that the bickering had ceased once she went in and the television had captured both boys attention more than each other.
'I've just gotta sort something. I'll be back soon innit?' Dushane left the house swiftly leaving the other two to chat amongst themselves.
'Hey Sully?' The girl attempted to grasp his attention away from the TV.
'Mhm?'
'That Gem, he's a good kid. I don't think he'd do that.' Even though Lydia didn't know the younger boy well at all she didn't want to see a child getting hurt.
'Aw come on Lyd not you too.' Sully shook his head as he spoke, making eye contact with the girl.
'I'm just saying. I think you should just leave him.'
'Fine whatever I'll leave it. What's everyone's obsession with this kid.' Kissing his teeth with annoyance Sully shuffled about agitated in his seat.
Lydia seemed satisfied with his submissive nature and hoped he would actually leave the situation alone like he promised.
'He's got a dog' The revelation didn't seem to impress Sully in the way she wanted it to. He asked what her point was. 'I'd quite like a dog, maybe a pug'
The two of them sat it silence with the television playing loudly to distract their thoughts. Jeremy Kyle kept the young girl entertained but Sully constantly jittered about the room as if something was playing on his mind. Lydia continued to ignore his movements, knowing that asking wouldn't get her very far with an answer anyway. She'd remain in the illusion that he was thinking of how to buy her a dog.
'Oh shit I forgot, I'm going to see Tash tonight. You can stay here and wait for Dris if you wanted to Lyd?' Grabbing all of his property Sully scrambled around to leave and go and see his daughter.
Tash was about 3 or 4, Lydia had met her a small handful of times.
'Oh. No I'll go home it's fine.' Lydia was disappointed that another boring day had resulted in her being alone.
'Come on, I'll drive you on the way.'
Lydia didn't talk throughout the car journey and Sully took the hint not to make conversation.
Watching the world go by out of the window Lydia took note of all the sights she saw. Making a note in her head to visit all the nature reservoirs they passed. It sucked that her block of flats didn't even have so much as a garden, the young girl always found peace in nature. The stillness of the air as the fresh breeze caressed your cheeks was comforting to her.
'I can come check on you later on if you want?' Sully parked up on the front of the dump Lydia had the pleasure of calling home.
'No I'll be fine. Like always.' She didn't mean for the end statement to sound as bitchy as it did but she couldn't help but to feel sorry for herself.
Each of them had places to escape it all. Whatever Lydia was feeling or not feeling, she wished her head would sort itself out sooner or later.