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abandoned them for a boy.’
    ‘Hey, who are you calling a boy?’ I playfully flex my muscles in a macho pose and Rhonda pushes me away.
    ‘But don’t think this is the last dance we’re having, mister!’
    ‘Of course it won’t be.’ I wink at her and she turns away in search of her friends.
    I wander around, looking for Mike. I head into the men’s toilets and call his name. There’s no answer but Brenton’s there. When he sees me, he leans against a cubicle with his arms folded.
    ‘Hey, Kelly, I see you’ve been dancing with Rhonda.’
    ‘Yeah. She’s a good dancer. You should ask her yourself.’
    ‘Don’t tell me what to do, poofter!’
    ‘OK.’
    ‘It makes me sick to see scum like you with a girl like that.’
    I stand there staring at Brenton, waiting for his flow of insults to stop. I realise that I don’t give a shit about him. He can say anything he likes to me. He can call me every name under the sun. It’s not going to change anything.
    He already looks defeated anyhow and, judging from his next words, I think he realises this. ‘Now fuck off out of here, scumbag!’
    ‘Sure.’
    I walk out of the toilets and continue searching for Mike. I finally find him, seated in a dark squash court, cradling a bottle of Scotch.
    ‘Mike, what the hell are you doing? Where did you get that?’
    ‘Steve had some bottles hidden under a bush outside. He gave me one when I asked him nicely.’
    ‘Why are you getting drunk?’
    ‘Because I hate this fucking place! I hate this fucking town. Don’t you hate this town? Don’t you feel like you’re being swallowed up by ordinariness?’ Mike gets up. It takes him a while to steady himself and he uses the wall for support. ‘It’s like the streets around this town are the rim of a black hole and we’re in the middle. We’re stuck in a big mass of nothingness.’
    ‘Nice analogy, Mike.’
    ‘Thanks. And why are you suddenly Mr Cool? Who gave you permission to progress? I thought every inhabitant of this town was doomed.’
    ‘Well, we are, aren’t we? I agree with you. This town has nothing to offer us and that’s why we’ll all eventually move away.’
    ‘You’re not leaving me, are you? You can’t go!’
    ‘No, I’m not leaving. Not yet, anyhow. My parents would kill me! Jesus, can you imagine that?’ A scared little laugh escapes me.
    ‘No, I can’t. I can’t imagine much at the moment. I don’t even know what I’m doing here. What was I thinking? That I’d come along to a school social and have a grand old time? Who am I kidding?’ Mike takes another swig from the bottle.
    ‘Hey, stop that.’ I pull the bottle out of Mike’s hand. ‘Anyway, you’ll probably leave this town before I do, so what the fuck are you worried about? Your rich parents will send you to a private school in the city.’
    ‘No, they won’t. They’re pissed off about my grades. They reckon I’ll be staying in Middleton for Year’s 11 and 12. Fuck! And, meanwhile, I have to pretend that I’m some sort of upstanding, moral citizen!’
    ‘Oh, come on, Mike. It’s not that bad. Let’s get rid of this bottle and I’ll walk you home.’ I help Mike out of the squash court. It’s a bit of an ordeal getting him through the Perspex door. On the way to the exit, we pass Strickland, who smiles at us sadistically.
    ‘What a fucking freak!’
    ‘Mike, shut up, please .’
    The night is warm. I lean Mike up against a brick wall. ‘Just wait here, OK? I’ll be back in five seconds. Don’t go anywhere!’
    I go inside to say goodbye to Rhonda. I pull her aside from her group of friends.
    ‘What’s up?’
    ‘I’ve gotta go. Mike’s drunk. I’ve gotta walk him home.’
    ‘He’s drunk?’
    ‘Yeah. I wish I could stay. I’d really like to dance with you again.’
    ‘That’s OK. We can dance anytime.’ Rhonda raises herself up on to her toes and kisses me on the cheek. ‘I’ll see you at school.’
    ‘You sure will.’ I almost dive in, right