Chapter 5
Chapter Five
SILAS
It was bitterly cold this winter, not that it mattered much inside Kai’s garage. His dad had set up several heaters, keeping it warm for our band practices.
Band practice. Like we might one day be something. It was a dream that was a million light years out of reach but one we clung to anyway.
A ticket out of the estate? That was something we couldn’t ignore. Other than Kai, none of us had a reason to want to stick around.
It was more than that for me though. It was another escape.
Throwing myself into music was a distraction from the shit heap that was life at my house.
Kai’s parents had offered for me to live at theirs while finishing the final months of my A-Levels.
But they already had four kids in a three-bedroom house.
I couldn’t put that burden on them. It was one thing to crash on Kai’s floor as often as I did, but I couldn’t expect them to put up with me full-time.
Although I was rapidly rethinking this decision given recent developments. Frank had a new girlfriend. It’d been a long time since I’d called him Dad in my head. He sure as shit didn’t deserve the term.
I had no fucking clue how he kept managing to ensnare these women, but one after the other, they seemed to get drawn into his sticky web of lies.
It didn’t take them long to see the light.
This one had been around for six weeks so far. Unfortunately for me, she was one of those people who believed family was important.
Don’t get me wrong, I thought the same. But Frank wasn’t my family. Family didn’t beat you until you couldn’t breathe. Family didn’t lock you in a cupboard for days on end as a small child. Family didn’t hurl abuse at you for something as simple as treading on a creaky floorboard.
But, thanks to Karen—the new girlfriend—my presence had been required at home more often. Frank liked to parade me around in front of her, pretending to be the model father.
It was all an act. One that he dropped the second the door closed behind her.
Thankfully, I knew how to play him. It wasn’t something I did often because there would always be a price to pay…but I couldn’t not see Kai. It was the only thing I refused to budge on, no matter what Frank did.
Normally, he didn’t give a fuck where I spent my days or nights. But since Karen had entered the picture, all that had changed.
So, I’d made sure to bring up band practice in front of Karen. Sung Frank’s praises, gushing over how happy I was that he supported me in my dreams. Lied through my teeth about how he made sure I never missed a rehearsal.
Frank had no choice but to send me on my way with a gritted smile.
I’d pay for it later. Of course I would. But it was worth it. I needed this. I needed Kai. Only knowing I’d be seeing him for practise kept me sane during the hours I was trapped with Frank and Karen.
There was a gentle tap on my shoulder like the world knew I needed a reminder of my true family. Kai’s mum, Di, was there, holding out a cup of tea. “Here you go, hun. This’ll warm your bones.”
“Thanks, Di.” I accepted the mug, offering her a grateful smile, ignoring the pull in my ribs.
Frank had got smarter over the years. It seemed to have clicked how protective Kai was over me.
Seemed stupid that he was scared of an eighteen-year-old, but he never left marks where Kai might see them. “How are you feeling?”
“Right as rain,” she said, her lips thinning as they often did when any of us dared question her health. We couldn’t help it though. She’d been in remission for a year now, but we still worried. “As is to be expected.”
“I’m glad.”
She squeezed my shoulder. I hid my wince, grateful Kai’s gaze was fixed on his guitar.
I didn’t want him to know I was still too afraid to stand up to Frank.
And I didn’t want him doing it on my behalf.
Frank would have no problem calling the police and spinning a web of lies about Kai. He’d threatened it often enough.
That was my other reason for not just walking out the front door and never looking back. If I left before my education was complete, Frank’s dole money would take a hit. He wasn’t above blackmailing me about bringing trouble to the Parker’s doorstep if I walked.
“Right, who else wants a cuppa?”
“Me please, Mrs Parker,” Arlo called from behind his drum kit. Like me, he preferred to escape his house as often as possible. Kai’s parents had agreed to let him store his kit here, encouraging him to stop in as often as he liked.
I didn’t know much of his story, but I knew a beaten kid when I saw one. It was there in the shadows in your eyes. The tense way you held yourself, like one wrong word would lead to pain.
The band was our safe space. An escape. A hope and a dream.
“Luca? Kai?” Di asked.
Kai shook his head as Luca shot her a charming grin. “No thanks, Mrs P.”
Di rolled her eyes, her hands going to her hips as she glared at our drummer and singer. “How many times do I need to tell you to call me Di?”
Kai and I locked eyes and smirked. Arlo and Luca would learn sooner or later that she always got her way.
“Si, door!” Mike, Kai’s dad, shouted through from the front of the house. I jumped up, my heart racing as butterflies exploded in my stomach.
“Hey.” Kai grabbed my hand as I rushed past, pulling me to a halt. “You invited someone over?”
“Umm…” I rubbed at my hair sheepishly. “Yeah, Sarah. That’s cool, right?”
Sarah and I had been dating for a few weeks now. She was one of the popular kids—always in short plaid miniskirts paired with fishnets. With dyed bright-red hair, a lip ring, and dark-lined eyes, she was way out of my league. But by some miracle, she liked me back.
Kai’s face darkened, making me frown. “Shit, should I not have invited her here? I didn’t even think to ask. I can’t invite her to Frank’s place…”
Kai still wasn’t speaking, just staring at me woodenly like I’d whacked him over the head with something.
Di’s hands fell on my shoulders before she spoke. “Of course it’s okay, Silas. This is your home too. You’re very welcome to have your friends here.”
Kai found his voice. “She’s not his friend. She’s his girlfriend.”
Arlo and Luca exchanged a confused look.
“We can leave,” I blurted out. “I’ll take her to the café, and we can hang out there. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overstep.”
“No, wait.” Kai leapt to his feet, towering over me. Even with my growth spurt, I still hadn’t caught him up. “Sorry, I’m being a dick.”
“Language, Kai,” Di snapped. But she patted his arm as she passed, shooting a worried look at us both.
That was…weird.
“She can come in,” Kai said gruffly, shifting on his feet. “Mum’s right. It’s your house too.”
But it wasn’t. Not really.
“I don’t want to make things uncomfortable…” Why was Kai looking so…angry? What had I done?
“You aren’t,” he said, shoving me on the shoulder. “Go get her before she freezes on the doorstep.”
I hovered for a second, torn between pushing Kai on what was wrong and greeting Sarah.
“Silas! You lost?”
Mike’s booming call made the decision for me. With a final confused look at my best friend, I tore out of the garage to meet Sarah.
I couldn’t wait to show her our stuff. She might be the only person outside Kai’s family to hear our music, but it was a start.