She couldn’t even bring herself to tell Alice and Larry. She told herself that she was ‘doing the right thing’ by not wanting to involve them, but closer to the truth was that she didn’t want to admit her stupidity. Who was thick enough to leave a bag of weed and pills on the bus? They’d think she was a total moron. Every time she opened her mouth to tell them, her tongue became immediately paralysed at the thought of how much they would laugh at her. And if there was one thing Georgia hated even more than being skint, or having to do homework, it was being laughed at.

Plus, she was afraid that if she told Alice, Alice would do something insane like telling someone, the police or her dad, and then they’d all be even further up shit creek. It would be bad enough if anyone ever found out they were behind the movie.

Georgia managed a brief smile of pride at the thought of her movie brainwave. It was unlikely to raise anywhere close enough to the amount of money she needed to get Jerome off her back, especially when it had to be split three ways, but it was shaping up to be a nice little earner. Everyone at school was talking about it, speculating as to who the shaggers were – before the video had even gone live! There was a special secret Facebook group set up to discuss it, and over three hundred kids had already joined, all of whom seemed completely willing to hand over the ten quid it would cost them to join the Facebook group, watch the movie and place their bets on the identity of the faceless participants. It had been a genius idea. Coerce two gullible kids from the Kennedy into getting high, getting naked and putting paper bags over their heads, and then film them having clumsy embarrassing sex, promising them a share of the profits. Georgia was sure that apart from charging kids at school to view it, they could sell it to some big porn site, maybe in America, and make more than enough to wipe out her problems in one stroke.

Larry had spent ages editing the footage. Alice had done the marketing and PR, anonymously of course. Georgia had been the creative director.

‘Total shame we can’t submit this for our Media portfolios,’ Alice said. ‘We’d get straight A’s. I can’t believe we’re ready to go live! Kind of exciting, don’t you think?’

Larry nodded. He kissed Alice’s cheek and snaked an arm around her neck and down her front to caress the side of one of her practically non-existent boobs.

Georgia felt sick. ‘Oh, get a room, you two,’ she snapped. Her bottom vibrated with yet another text. Jerome wasn’t going to leave her alone.

She was a dead girl.