Rotten to the Core (3 page)

The toilets were packed
.
“Why is it that the women’s loos always have a really long queue even though we have more bogs than the men?” Emma moaned impatiently
, as they
wait
ed
for
the
cubicle
s
to
become free.
             
“Probably
be
cause we
’re
all so busy standing around in here talking about the
fellas
and doing our make-up
,
” laughed Kate.

She was right though you could hardly move in here for
there were so many
girls hogging the mirrors and gossiping about so
-
and
-
so being pregnant and so
-
and
-
so cheating, it was wors
e
than a playground
:
girls can be so bitchy
, Kate thought
. Just then
,
right on cue,
a
big feisty girl w
earing
a dress at least two sizes too small for her came marching up behind them, shoving Emma so hard in the back that she went flying and landed in a heap
on the floor
.
             
“
Y
ou cheap little slag, I hear that you think you have a chance with my
Jake,
” the girl snarled.
             
Everyone was watching
.
Kate glared at her friend, unsure of what was going on
.
Emma seemed to be a magnet for trouble, what had she got herself involved in now?
             
Emma picked herself up
from
the floor
,
trying to look at least a little bit dignified
.
Jake
, she thought,
oops
. She knew she had a chance with him, or had already had her chance
,
she thought
,
remembering the
drunken shag they’d had last Friday. He had been well up for it
,
she had recalled. She had been out with the girls from work and had bumped into him in a bar in the
h
igh
s
treet. He invited her to join him and a few of his mates at their table and they had
bought
her drinks all night.
Jake
was quite a giggle
,
she had thought at the time
,
and flattery had got him literally everywhere. He had put his hands up her skirt and whispered in her ear
,
telling her how hot she was making him. He told her how much he wanted her as he had slid his hands higher up her thigh and she had felt his fingers probing inside her knickers
;
he had made her feel so horny that she hadn’t cared if he had a girlfriend. They didn’t even make it back to her place, she thought
,
remembering how hard he had taken her
 
on the back seat of his car and how he had kept groping her breasts like they were his brand new toys. He was a good
-
looking fucker too
,
she remembered, but he didn’t really do it for Emma, too busy getting his own pleasure she recalled, all four minutes of it. It had all been a bit disappointing
,
really, and not worth this amount of shit.
             
“Oh
,
so you
’
r
e
Jake
’s girlfriend
,
” Emma smirked
,
as she smoothed down her skirt.
“Listen
:
I don’t know what you’ve heard
,
but let me tell you
–
I wouldn’t touch
‘
your
’
Jake
with someone else’s fanny, let alone my own
.
”

There were a few shocked giggles and a now-confident Emma took that to mean that she had the
upper hand
.
S
he
also
had centre stage
, which was
just how she liked it
.
I
f this girl wanted a
ru
ck
, Emma wasn’t going down quietly
.
             
“
Jake
isn’t
picky
,
love
,
let’s face it, I mean
:
look at the state of you! He’d probably shag his own
nan
if
the room was dark enough
,
”
Emma
continued.
             
“
You nasty bitch,
” shrieked the girl
,
as she once more lunged for Emma, dragging her down on the floor again. The girl began r
a
ining blows on Emma with her fists. Kate tried desperately to pull the girl off of Emma, but the girl was too heavy and too
angry
, she was still walloping Emma.

Kate jumped on the girl
’
s back
,
trying to do anything to make
her
leave Emma alone
.
S
he had the girl
’
s greasy hair in clumps in her hands and got a slap herself in the process. Luckily at that moment two bouncers came in and dragged the girl off Emma, who now looked awful
, h
er face red and puffy where the girl had
repeatedly hit
her
.
H
er top
was
ripped and a whopper of a fat lip
was
just beginning to show
.
S
he managed to get off the floor
, shouting to the girl who was being led away:
“
H
e was
a crap
shag anyway
,
love, don’t know why you
’
r
e
so bothered
.
”

T
he girls who had been standing around watching were now going off to do their own thing, the entertainment was over
.
Emma looked in horror at her battered face in the mirror
. Then she grinned.
             
“Fuck it!” Emma grinned as she turned to Kate
, as she
wip
ed
the dripping blood from her nose
,
“
s
he’s only gone and smudged my bloody makeup
.
”
             
“You’re not funny
,
Emma
.
” Kate was fuming
.
“
S
he was going to bloody batter you, you’re lucky that those guys pulled her off you. I think
we should leave
,
too
;
you look like shit and I’ve got a thumping head from that slap she gave me
.
”
             
They got their coats
.
Kate was glad the night was over
.
S
ometimes you just have crap ones
,
she thought, what a waste of a new dress.

As they walked to the door
,
to leave
,
Kate noticed one of the bouncers that had come to her friend’s aide earlier
;
he was definitely giving
Kate
the eye. She smiled at him
,
wishing that she wasn’t so shy when it came to blokes. It was her brother’s fault
that
she never had any confidence with men. No man wanted to know her once they found out who she was related to, and if anyone did let on they were interested
,
they were soon warned off
when
Billy found out about it.

She didn’t really have any experience with men
;
not unless one sloppy kiss with a boy at
a
school disco four years ago counted. Back then
,
at sixteen
,
she was the only girl she knew that hadn’t even slept with a boy
,
let alone had any sort of relationship
with one
. Oh well, she
had
thought
then
, I’m going to save myself for somebody special, and so she had. She wasn’t short of offers, but they were all the same, little clones of her brother, wannabe thugs. She could see them coming a mile off and had no interest in that kind of life
:
s
he wanted more.
             
“You off then?” the bouncer asked
.
H
e was looking at Kate close up now and liking what he saw, appreciating the beauty before him.
             
“Yeah, I’m really sorry about all that trouble, thanks a million for helping us out
,
” she said
,
feeling herself blush
;
this guy was gorgeous, and Kate couldn’t help but notice how his eyes roamed her body as he spoke
to her.
             
“You
’
r
e
welcome
,
sweetheart
,
” he smiled
.
“I’m Jay
.
”
             
“Hi…
I’m Kate…
.
”
H
er cheeks were burning, she felt like an
embarrassed
little kid.
             
“See you again
Kate,
I hope
.
” Jay gave her a wink
,
as he turned back to the long queue of people waiting to get in.
             
“Oh…
m
y…
God!” exclaimed Emma
,
linking arms with her mate
,
as they tottered down the road towards the taxi rank
.
“
Y
ou’ve only just gone and bloody pulled
,
Kate
.
”
             
“Really
,
do you think so?” Kate asked
.
             
“
D
uh
:
h
e was practically dribbling over you
;
he was well fit too, you jammy cow
.
”
             
Maybe tonight
hadn’t been
such a waste
,
after all
,
Kate thought
,
as she lent her head back onto the seat in the warmth of the taxi, daydreaming about the man that had made her heart beat louder than a drum.
 

3
 

Tanya couldn’t sleep
;
s
he had been lying in bed for over an hour tossing and turning
, unable to
switch off. She was used to being on her own
; she was an only child who
ha
d been left
alone
by her parents all the time when she was growing up. It
was
a pattern in her life, and she had grown to enjoy her own space.

She could stay in
her
house
for days and see no-one and it wouldn’t bother her. Although she had been feeling a bit lonely lately
,
she admitted to herself. She had wondered a lot over the last few weeks what it might be like to be part of a proper family. She wasn’t particularly maternal, but she guessed that that would be something that would come to her naturally if and when she ever did get pregnant. She wondered what it would be like to have someone call her mummy, to wake up in the morning and have someone to tend to, other than herself
,
for once.