‘You took the coat off his dead body?’ Jeremy was appalled.

‘Don’t be stupid, Beany. I had me ma do it. Who gets buried in a bleedin’ coat? It’s ridiculous.’

‘True,’ Rave said.

Dave took another gulp of vodka. ‘And, besides, he had a top-notch suit on him … so I know where to go if I ever need it,’ he joked. Dave was always joking, even about a recently deceased grandparent.

Rave laughed and everyone joined in.

The three girls were waiting for them under the Hanging Tree, which provided the only cover from the rain. Mel was smoking a cigarette, looking nonchalantly past the boys as though something in the far distance was of greater interest. Casey appeared really pissed off; Deirdre just looked happy to see Jeremy. He felt a tiny bit sick in his stomach when she grinned, but he smiled back.

‘We’ve been standing here for a fuckin’ hour,’ Casey moaned.

‘Sorry, we got held up.’ Rave took her hand and pulled her into him. When he kissed her neck she giggled and pushed him off but he pulled her back and wrapped her in his arms again. She relaxed against his chest. They were a beautiful couple: she was blonde, he was jet black; her eyes were green and his were grey. They were both pale but it was winter. They were poster-campaign gorgeous. Jeremy psyched himself up to move towards Deirdre. She wasn’t as pretty as Casey but he wasn’t as handsome as Rave. She had the best smile, though, the kind that made him smile back even if he didn’t feel like it. ‘That’s a gift,’ he’d told her once.

‘Shut yer face.’ She’d gone red but was still smiling that smile.

‘Seriously, it’s a gift.’

Sometimes his face hurt from smiling when he was around her. She didn’t smile as much as she used to, though. He hoped it was just a winter phenomenon.

They all sat in a circle on the damp ground sheltered by the tree, Rave in the centre. Jeremy often wondered how he managed to do that, but people just gravitated to him. When Rave talked, everyone listened. He was the glue that held the group together. Jeremy and Rave had been best friends since they were four years old. Jeremy couldn’t remember a time without Rave.