Page 33 of A Long Way Back
“What? My ice cream?”
Tay just glared.
Ink concentrated on his cone. Did Tay blame his friend for what had happened? He could see how he might, but without knowing all the details, he wasn’t going to jump to conclusions. Evenwithall the details because things weren’t always as they seemed. Ink told himself not to ask any more questions. He didn’t like to be pressed, so why should he do it to Tay?
Tay’s phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket. “It’s my mother.”
Ink stood and moved away, though not so far that he couldn’t hear what Tay was saying.
“Hi, Mum… Yes, I’m fine… Yes, he’s fine too… Yes, and the dog’s fine… We’re at the Barbican eating ice cream… Yeah…it’s okay… No, I won’t… I promise. Okay… Have a good time… Bye.”
Ink went back to his side, his ice cream finished. “Ready to go?”
“Yes.”
Dog jumped onto Tay’s lap and Ink pushed them both back to the flat. Every attempt Ink made to engage Tay in conversation stalled. Eventually he stopped trying.
When they were near the flat, Ink said, “Why don’t you walk the rest of the way?”
“Why don’t you just fuck off?”
“After you told your mum I was fine?”
“I was talking about Dog.”
Ink chuckled.
“Fine.I’ll walk.”
Ink stopped pushing, put the brake on, and handed Tay the crutches. Dog jumped down and Ink grabbed his lead. Tay’s gait wasn’t good, but it wasn’t any worse than it had been earlier.
But by the time they were all back in the flat, Tay was breathing heavily. Ink followed him to his bedroom and only exhaled when Tay was sitting on his bed. He looked drawn and exhausted.
“Like me to take off your shoes?” Ink asked.
There was a pause before Tay answered. “Please.”
Ink pulled them off and put them where Tay could get them on again. When Tay struggled to lift his legs onto the bed, Ink hesitated.
“Wait. I have an idea,” Ink said.
He fetched a towel from the bathroom, looped it at the back of Tay’s knees and lifted his legs onto the bed. Tay rolled over away from him.
“Is there anything else I can do?” Ink asked.
“Pack your stuff and leave.”
“The bed’s coming tomorrow.”
“I’ll cancel the delivery.”
“You know when I last slept in a bed?”
“I don’t give a fuck.”
Ink sighed. “I’m not leaving. I want to sleep in a bed, have a shower, and I need the money. So you can be a total arsehole, but I’m not going.”
“I’m not going to pay you.”
