Stacey’s friend, sensing that she might be needed, was now wobbling her way across the floor to her side like a second in a duel. I felt Marlon stand a little straighter next to me. He was a good head taller than I was and he was strong, despite how geeky his red hair made him look.

My heart was working overtime. Any second now this was going to get out of hand. I’d been in enough arguments over the years to know the signs. I should just back off and let the whole thing fizzle out. I was mad to provoke Stacey and risk her telling everyone what Craig and I used to get up to when Clio and Marlon were there to hear her.

I wasn’t proud of any of my past with Craig but one time stood out as a real low point. With me drunk and him high, he’d nicked a car from a garage forecourt and driven it round town like a bat out of hell. It had been such a laugh at the time, us like Bonnie and Clyde with no worries about consequences. But then out of nowhere a blue flashing light appeared behind us, reflecting off the rear-view mirror and bouncing round the inside of the car, like in the movies.

‘We should stop,’ I told him, but I knew he wouldn’t. We were in a stolen car, he had no insurance and he was as high as a kite. And on top of that his stash was in the glove compartment. If they’d caught us, he’d have gone down for sure. And so we ran! Craig put his foot down and we pulled away from the police car, me giggling as I felt the power of the engine beneath us. Even though I knew it was wrong and that Dad would have killed me if he’d known what I was up to, I couldn’t help myself. It was just so exciting.

It must have been a squad car over from Newcastle rather than the local lads because it was obvious that Craig knew his home patch a lot better than they did and it didn’t take us long to shake them off. But Craig was taking no chances. As soon as we had some clear space between us and them he screeched the car to a stop.

‘Get out!’ he yelled at me. ‘Now!’