Running into Trouble by Elle Spellman

Author:Elle Spellman [Spellman, Elle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781409191551
Publisher: Orion
Published: 2020-04-01T18:30:00+00:00

21

Malika

‘Let’s get these down us, then!’ Dean yelled, over the noise of the busy bar.

He appeared at the table to a collective cheer and began to distribute the array of shot glasses from a small tray. Malika took hers, hesitantly inspecting the green concoction. At the count of three, they all knocked back their shots. Malika grimaced as the liquid hit her throat.

‘Whoop!’ yelled Roz, raising her little glass to the air. ‘Happy belated birthday, guys!’

The others swiftly joined in, clapping and cheering as Malika and Dean stood to take a bow. Since their birthdays were a few weeks apart, they’d gone out on a boozy joint night out ever since Malika had started living with the group.

‘Thanks, guys. You really didn’t have to do this.’

‘Shh,’ Dean pretended to whisper. ‘Yes, they did. We deserve to be spoilt.’

You really didn’t, she thought, trying not to think of her cosy bed, the lure of her little sanctuary that was waiting for her in their empty house. Instead, it was half past ten, and she and her housemates were spending their Friday night working their way through the many pubs and bars of Gloucester Road in celebration of Malika and Dean’s birthdays. Malika hadn’t particularly wanted to go out ; she thought she did, thought it would do her good to spend time with her friends again, but as they’d walked into their third bar, Roz already tipsy, the unending noise, the heat of so many bodies crammed into one space was starting to make Malika feel uneasy.

She still hadn’t thought it right to celebrate, to have the big night out that they usually did, where Roz, Dean, Kath, Andrea, Abbie and a couple more of their close friends who could make it would go out on the town to celebrate.

Yet for the past month, the urge had vanished, slipped away into a breezy night along with her yearning to do anything social that wasn’t race prep. When she wasn’t running, she was usually in her room. Running made her feel free, took her away from the harshness of life, fended off her anxiety even just for an hour or more. When she was out, her feet hitting the pavement, she was someone else ; someone with a goal, a purpose. Someone who could put the regularity of her life behind her, if only momentarily.

She hadn’t expected to meet Cassie and Hannah in the park that day. But since she had, her life had become that little bit better. It made her feel strange to admit it, but when she was part of the club, she felt … different. Like she didn’t have to pretend. As though they understood.

Running had helped her. Just by being outside, she felt better. Her body felt better. And sometimes, it was as though she felt Abbie beside her, telling her to keep going. Keep going, it’ll all be OK if you keep going. We can do this together!

Malika found solace in the rhythmic sound of her shoes, or the feel of the sun against her face.

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