‘Yeah, I like Lance. Course I do. We don’t have much in common but he’s a tidy bloke,’ said Ant.
‘Can you say that to Dad?’ Her voice was going squeaky. ‘Please? Next time you speak to him. Tell him you don’t mind? Tell him we’ll leave as soon as he gets back. I tried to explain but he just wouldn’t listen.’
‘Shush, course I’ll tell him. It’ll be fine.’ Ant stroked his sister’s hair and hoped he’d be able to talk their dad around.
‘Hey, I’m sorry for having a go at you.’ Lia tried to smile. She rubbed Ant’s knee. ‘It’ll be great when we get that flat. It’s lush. The kitchen window overlooks the Dell. There’s loads of birds to spot, even a woodpecker, the old man who lives next door told me. You can come and stay whenever you want, Ant. We’ll have so much fun together.’
‘Thanks, Lia. I’ll look forward to it.’
That evening, Ant rang Snoz.
‘Sorry, son, I can’t stay on for long. Death Spanners are due on stage in twenty minutes.’ Death Spanners was the name of the band. As well as driving them around, Snoz helped set up the equipment and acted as security during each show, standing in front of the audience with his arms folded to prevent over-enthusiastic, sweaty fans from climbing up on stage.
‘Lia is really upset,’ said Ant. ‘Honestly, Dad, Lance living here isn’t a problem. It’s only until you get back, anyway.’
‘She should have told me. There isn’t enough room in that flat to swing a cat.’
‘I know, but Lance’s landlord sold the house he and his mates were living in. He had nowhere else to go. You’ve met Lance. He’s an all right bloke. You wouldn’t want to see him homeless, would you?’
‘I suppose I should be grateful his mates didn’t move in too,’ said Snoz. Ant heard someone in the background yelling his dad’s name. Snoz yelled something back then came back to Ant. ‘All right, he can stay as long as he behaves, but any trouble and I’ll be catching a plane straight back, understand?’
‘Understand.’
‘Now, did you get your share of the money I transferred to Lia’s account last Thursday?’
‘Yes, Dad, thanks.’
‘And you’re doing your homework?’
‘Course I am.’
‘How’s the table tennis?’ Ant belonged to a local club and played regularly in competitions.
‘Great. I’m through to the next round in the tournament.’
‘That’s fantastic, son, well done. How about your gaming? You got that under control?’ Snoz sounded concerned.
‘Sure. An hour in the evening on weekdays, two hours on Saturdays and Sundays. There’s too much to do for school in the week, and on weekends, you know, I want to practise table tennis and meet up with my mates.’
When Ant had first got into Kismet Cosmos, he had become pretty addicted, playing every moment he could. One day, Snoz had sat him down and talked to him seriously about addiction and how it can ruin your life. They’d come up with the one-hour/two-hour rule and Ant was still sticking to it, most of the time.
‘What do I always say?’ asked Snoz.
Ant chipped in quickly, ‘You’ve got to be bigger than the game.’
‘Cor-rect,’ said Snoz. ‘Last question: are you eating properly?’
‘Shepherd’s pie this evening. I helped Lia peel the spuds.’
Snoz chuckled. ‘Good lad. I’ll text you tomorrow then, yeah? Send you a photo of the gig?’
Ant got a photo of every Death Spanners concert and they all looked the same: blue lights, dry ice and four leather-clad pensioners with long curly hair, posing with their guitars and drumsticks. In a way, it was quite cool to still be doing that at their age.
‘Great, Dad. Don’t worry about us, we’re fine. See you in two weeks.’
‘Love you, son. Tell your sister I love her too.’
Snoz ended the call. Ant knew his dad didn’t like being away from home, but this was the only job he could get that paid decent money. They really needed it, especially since Snoz had volunteered to help Lia with her college costs. Lia’s dream was to work with animals and she was studying to become a veterinary nurse. Even if money was tight, Ant reckoned he was lucky to have a family that always helped each other out.
When Ant told Lia what their dad had said, she hugged him and made loads more promises about the great times they were all going to have in the new flat.
Lance started making more of an effort too. His new job was working in the games shop in the Parade. Lance started talking to Ant about the kinds of videogames he’d been into when he was younger, some Ant had never heard of like Speedster Valley and Blobber Dungeon. For the first time, he and Ant were hanging out together properly and having really interesting conversations.
A few weeks into the job, Lance came home with a large carrier bag. He placed it on the table next to Ant, who was doing his maths homework. Lance had a massive smile on his face. ‘Present for ’ya,’ he said and stood waiting for Ant’s reaction.
Ant pushed aside his books and delved into the bag. A suit unfolded into his lap. The headset stared at him with weird bug eyes.
‘No. I mean no! Never!’ Ant goggled at Lance.
‘Ray-Chay,’ said Lance. ‘You must want it. All the kids are talking about it.’
‘Wow, thanks!’ Ant didn’t know what to say. He was too polite to ask the obvious question: how on earth could Lance afford a Ray-Chay suit? Lance guessed what he was thinking.
‘The shop’s been sent these cheaper samples to try out before we start stocking them,’ he explained. ‘They’re not made-to-measure like the expensive ones. Looks a lot cheaper, doesn’t it? Not so superhero-y. It plays just as well, though, apparently. They sent us three, but this one didn’t fit anyone: too small. I thought you’d appreciate
