‘Oi, muppet, give us your money,’ Trevor repeated, snarling, but still Donny didn’t reply. He could feel Trevor’s pent-up anger making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He swallowed hard and shot a look at Bethany. She was watching intently, and slowly shook her head at him. He’d let her down, the shame was there for everyone to see. He was a coward just like she’d said. But then the adrenaline kicked in. The large vein at the side of his neck started pumping like a beating heart. Was he really going to do this? You could have heard a pin drop. The colour drained from his face. His mouth was dry, and the words seemed trapped behind his lips. He swallowed hard.

‘You’re not getting any money from me so leave me alone,’ he stuttered. The words came out quieter than he’d intended, but in the silence, everybody was listening. Even the geek squad – who never got involved in anything – were hanging on his every word. Had the quiet Donny, who’d never say boo to a goose, really stood up for himself or what?

Trevor’s eyes were wide with surprise. He laughed out loud. ‘A challenge, eh? This is going to be fun. Did you really just say I’m not getting anything? Think about it, dickhead, before I do something you’ll regret, here, in front of everyone. You’ll be begging me to stop. Hand over the money, wanker, or I’ll flatten you.’

Everyone’s eyes were on Donny; was he mad? They’d all seen what Trevor could do. He was a total headcase. The light was on, but nobody was in. Donny licked his dry, cracked lips. Small beads of sweat started to form on his forehead. He swallowed again as his fists began to curl into two tight balls, his knuckles turning white. He couldn’t back down now; it was too late.

Donny watched his opponent carefully as the seconds ticked by. When was the right time to make a move? Should he cast the first blow? In the end it all happened so fast no one was quite sure how Donny did it; his arm flung back and the punch connected with Trevor’s nose. Bright red blood sprayed around the room. But he didn’t stop there. The years of frustration, sadness, humiliation that this prick had caused him were there for everyone to see. He wasn’t going to stop, not now, not ever. Every blow dug deep into Trevor’s flesh; every kick made sure he wouldn’t get back up in a hurry. Donny was in the zone, could hear nothing but his heart thumping, thumping, like the beat of a drum.

‘I’m not a coward, I’m not a pissing coward,’ he ranted through gritted teeth. Trevor lay still, his arms shielding his face.