IN THE PUB KEV got the first round in. Jay and Francie played a game of pool and Davey sat watching them with Louis.

‘Do you ever think about Kitchen Sink now that you’re in the big leagues?’ Louis asked.

‘All the time,’ Davey said.

‘Yeah, right, we were just stupid kids who thought we knew everything. Jesus, we knew nothing.’

‘We knew enough.’

‘I’m sorry I left when I did.’

‘Why?’ Davey asked.

‘Feel like I abandoned the ship. Johnny was sick, we were going nowhere. I had a girlfriend and a kid on the way.’

‘You don’t need to explain,’ Davey said. ‘You did what you had to do.’

‘Anyway, they got to trade up,’ Kev replied, putting down the beers on the table.

‘Yeah, right,’ Louis said. ‘As if they weren’t handicapped enough with a disabled singer, they get a guy in a boiler suit on guitar.’

‘Ah right, calm down, Captain Synth,’ Kev said. ‘I loved that boiler suit.’

Francie beat Jay two sets to one; they came over and picked up their pints. ‘What are we talking about?’

‘Louis is slagging Kev over his boiler suit, Kev’s slagging Louis for playing the synthesiser,’ Davey said.

‘Don’t mind them, Louis. It was good enough for Nik Kershaw, and look where he is now,’ Francie said.

Kev looked up. ‘Where is he?’

‘Fucking nowhere,’ Jay replied.

The lads laughed.

‘Here, Louis, did I tell you about me balls?’ Francie said.

Jay shook his head. ‘Ah no, don’t start about your bleedin’ balls.’

‘What happened your balls?’ Louis asked.

Kev winced. ‘He got the snip. The end.’

‘The size of fuckin’ turnips and the same fuckin’ colour,’ Francie said.

‘You should sue,’ Davey muttered. It was the second time in a week he’d heard the story.

‘I should sue, I’m the one that has to listen to it all the bleedin’ time,’ Jay noted.

‘Jaysus, maybe I should sue. Fuck, I knew I should have taken photos,’ Francie said. ‘The missus wouldn’t let me, she said me balls would end up on the cloud and I’d be open to exploitation.’

Jay laughed. ‘Who the fuck would exploit you and your balls?’

‘Mad yokes,’ Francie said. ‘In case you hadn’t noticed, they’re everywhere.’

‘Speaking of, no sign of Sheila B today?’ Jay asked, and Francie nodded, grateful his ex-girlfriend from back in the day hadn’t shown up and made a scene. ‘Thank God for that, me nerves were gone.’

Later Davey joined Francie outside while he smoked. Francie offered him one.

‘Better not,’ Davey said. He liked a smoke every now and then when things got stressful, but seeing as his baby sister died of cancer . . .

‘On a warning?’ Francie said. Marjorie and Grace had threatened to kick him to death if they saw him smoking again.

‘Yeah, something like that.’ They meant it – they were vicious.

‘Fair enough.’