Playing the Feild

Authors notes: me again, oh the horror





Authors notes: me again, oh
the horror! I spent the weekend at the beech (ya for me) and was filled with
visions of piratical men carrying off young well to do lads to plunder upon the
high seas (any reasonable plot to this would be greatly appreciated as I know
have the desire to write about this strange pair)

Thank you to Zhou for perhaps the longest review I
have ever got. Nope I’ve never seen the movie (not that I can remember I may have
at Christmas but I tend to watch a hundred ane moe movies at Christmas so all
the plots and characters get all mixed in my mind) but I did understand what
you meant by the rest of it and a lot of it was how I had imagined Andy to look
so I was quite pleased we where on the same wavelength there.

 

And Lori, it’s not a finished story but it ie nee next chapter; is that
good enough?

 

I am sorry for the tedious
introduction of some new characters in this chapter; it has to be done because
they all play important parts along the way.

*****

 

Oscar collected his things
and left after the disastrous kiss, he didn’t quite now how to explain to Kath
what had possessed him to do what he did, but she seemed to understand better
then he did.

The photo of Andy laughing
had been tucked into his pocket before he let himself out and when he’d reached
his house he’d taken it out and feeling about on the top of his wardrobe pulled
free the little metal box he kept hidden up there away from his parents and
older brother.

 

Delving into the empty
goldfish bowl that lived besides his bed (he’d never brought any gold fish for
it, it had been a gift from a friend when he moved who thought another friend
was buying fish) Oscar came up with the key for it.

Fiddling for a few minuets
with the stiff lock Oscar was reworded by it snapping open and spilling his
treasures onto the floor.

“damn” he swore getting down
on his knees and gathering them together, the old movie tickets, half-chewed
pencils, Christmas cards, sweet wrappers each with their own distinctive story
and each precious to Oscar.

And with them he now placed
Andy’s picture, locked the box up securely and hid it away.

He didn’t want anyone to find
his treasures they might not understand what had made them treasures in the
first place.

 

******

 

Oscar was late to school that
morning, so late in fact that he missed registration and first lesson. He said
he’d over slept, it was a half-truth.

He’d made a detour to the
hospital and had missed his bus so had meandered his way to school.

Some threats where made to
phone home if he was that late again but Oscar ignored them and went to his
second lesson, maths and didn’t bother to listen or do the questions which
meant he had to stay in for brake which meant that in he didn’t end up seeing
Kath until lunch time.

 

She was holding caught on one
of the picnic tables talking earnestly to a tall, stick thin girl with
sunglasses and a bad hair cut, the girl was scowling seeming to be put out
about something, sitting with them was the plump girl from the protest, a girl
Oscar already knew to be Alison Banks who was in his history class and a
nervous boy who was nibbling at his sandwiches.

 

“Hi” Oscar said, rubbing his
suddenly sweaty palms on his trousers. Kath turned to look at him with a small
smile and waved, while Alison bounced up from her s

“Oscar! Do you want to sit
with us?” the others winced as if Alison had said something unbelievable and
Oscar felt unwanted.

“Sure” he said, bravely he
thought and sat down beside the envious boy who, pressed against him was
trembling.

“So Oscar, you already know
me” Alison said with enthusiasm “But this is Kath” she pointed to Kath who gave
a rye smile.

“We’ve already met” she said,
winking at Oscar. He was pleased she hadn’t denied knowing him; Alison scowled
slightly and then turned to the plump girl.

“This is Danny” the plump
girl put down her can of coke and offered a hand.

“It’s Danielle actually” she
said softly with a wide smile, Oscar found himself smiling back at her.

 

“Madeline” the tall girl gave
him a long look down the end of her nose that suggested Oscar must have stepped
in something disgusting.

“And Tate” the boy trembling
beside him squeaked quietly refusing to meet Oscar’s eye.

“Hi” Oscar said again, realising
he didn’t know how to reacted around these people, He got up and grabbed Kath’s
arm “you don’t mind if I borrow her for a moment”

“Nah, keep her!” Danielle
laughed, Kath pulled a face at her and allowed herself to be pulled away to a
deserted spot of the courtyard where Kath sat herself down back against a tree
and Oscar passed pensively up and down.

 

“I’m sorry…for kissing you”

“Its okay, I’d like to say it
happens all the time but unfortunately that would be the first time” Kath
grinned at him, when he didn’t grin back it faded into a f “I “I know you
didn’t mean anything by it”

“Yes…I gathered that” Oscar
said distractedly “it…was nice to meet your friends” he turned around and made
a start at walking away.

“Is that why you came to find
me? To say sorry?” Kath called to him, he stopped walking and turned to look at
her confused.

 

“Why? Should I need to say
anything else?”

“Aren’t you going to ask
about Andy? How he is?”

“I saw him this morning,
missed the bus” Oscar said.

“Is he awake yet?” Kath asked
“I wanna take him something if he’s awake”

Oscar shook his head.

“No he’s still out, do you
want to go in and see him after school?”

“Sure, why not” Kath grinned
again “I’ll meet you by the school gate”

“It’s a date” Oscar said, and
grimaced when Kath laughed.

 

***************************

 

The hospital was nosy and
bustling as ever so nobody stopped them as they headed down the hall to Andy’s
room. Stella was asleep in the chair next to Andy’s bed; the vivacious woman
Oscar has met yesterday didn’t seem to exist just a small, tired n cun curled
in a chair, she seemed to have aged over night with worry for her son and her
pink hair was out of place with this new person before him.

Oscar turned away and looked
out the window, it was strange but he felt always as if he was watching a movie
when he was around these people, he was glimpsing their lives, standing besides
them but not really being there.

“I…I have to go” he said and
started for the door.

“What are you doing here?”
the voice that spoke was drained and did not belong to Kath or Stella; Oscar
turned and looked at the bed.

 

Andy was staring not at him, but
at Kath confused and delighted.

“Andy” he whispered, the boy
turned his head quickly wincing at the sudden movement but then fixing Oscar
with a steely glare.

“What are you doing here” he
said again all the happiness gone from his voice replaced by anger, the slender
man pushed back the covers a scowl on his face and tried to crawl out the bed,
Kath lunged at him.

“Your sick” she cried forcing
him back into the bed, Andy started to yell, cursing his name and Stella woke
up looking around herself bewildered.

Oscar froze; in hall of his
half dreamt fantasies he had never expected this; that Andy would hate him.

 

He fled the hospital as it
dawned on him he had no real idea who Andrew David-Lloyd was.