Splintered Memory - By Natascha Holloway Page 0,76

he, Ben, and Nick, had made Rich drink a series of disgusting concoctions, and had made him with each drink put on more pieces of what would when it was complete be a fairy outfit. They’d then headed into town and had ended up in a strip club, where they’d each paid for Rich to have a lap dance.

Unfortunately as the four of them stood outside a takeaway shop, eating chips and waiting for a taxi, the evening took a dip. Rich began reminiscing about their school days, and his time spent dating Charlie. Matt ignored him at first because he knew he was drunk, and it was his stag night, and also because the rational side of him knew that it didn’t matter. It was all from a long time ago and Charlie wasn’t a part of his life anymore, but as Rich went on and on he could feel his temper rising.

“I loved Charlie first you know,” Rich said drunkenly to Ben.

“Yeah we know mate, but it all turned out alright in the end didn’t it? Cus on Saturday you’re marrying Bex, and she’s the real love of your life isn’t she?” Ben asked Rich, and it was clear that he was trying to get Rich to change the subject and talk about Bex rather than Charlie.

“Yeah, Bex is the love of my life. But we all know that she wasn’t my first,” Rich said slurring his words quite badly. “How sad am I though? I’m marrying the second girl that I ever slept with.”

Matt turned to scowl at him and said irritably; “fuck off Rich.” He then walked across the street to see if he could see anything coming towards the taxi rank, but the road was empty.

Rich laughed and said to Ben; “your first times supposed to be shit isn’t it?”

Ben didn’t answer, and it was clear that everyone was trying to ignore Rich at this point.

“Mine wasn’t. I’m telling you,” Rich said laughing again; “Charlie knew what she was doing.”

Matt turned to walk back over to him, knowing that he wanted to punch him in the face, but Nick and Ben stood in front of him.

“Come on Matt, he’s too drunk to hit now it wouldn’t be fair. Hit him in the morning when he’s got a hangover,” Ben said.

“Taxi,” Nick said looking over Matt’s shoulder. Yet when it stopped and they all piled in, Matt noticed that Ben and Nick deliberately sat in between him and Rich.

“Do you know where mine and Charlie’s first time was?” Rich asked Ben.

“No one cares mate,” Ben said.

Matt leant forward resting his forearms on the tops of his thighs by his knees. He put his hands together, kept his head down, and said; “you did it in the school games shed Rich. It lasted about two minutes, and she was thinking about me the whole time. Well according to her that is.”

Everyone looked at Matt, including the cabbie who’d glanced at him through his rear view mirror.

“You know about the games shed?” Nick asked sounding stunned.

“Guessing Claire told you?” Matt asked Nick.

Nick nodded, and Ben smiled and said; “Rach told me.”

This time Matt smiled at Ben and said; “no secrets between any of us then is there?”

“I wouldn’t bet on it,” Rich slurred. But Matt simply ignored him.

The cab pulled up outside of Rich’s house, and it took all three of them to navigate Rich inside. Once he was on the sofa in his living room Matt went back outside to pay for the taxi, and when he went inside again he could hear Rich’s snores coming from the living room. Nick and Ben were already in the kitchen opening up a couple of bottles of beer.

“Want one?” Ben asked Matt as he walked in.

“Yeah why not,” he said.

“I can’t believe you know about Charlie and Rich in the games shed,” Nick said handing Matt a beer. “When Claire told me I was sworn to top level secrecy, like on my life and everything.”

“You too,” Matt said to Ben.

“Yeah,” Ben answered smiling.

“Charlie told me about an hour before we got married. She rang me up and scared me half to death. I thought she was calling to say that she couldn’t go through with the wedding, that she’d changed her mind or something. But she just said that she couldn’t marry me with this secret between us,” Matt said.

“What did you say when she told you?” Nick asked.

“I asked her if she was still coming to the church