Oh Danny boy, the summer’s gone and all the flowers are dying.......
In the darkening twilight of a September evening two young men are walking home from school. Along a path that takes them up and out of the city centre away from the river towards the West End where they live. Behind them is the River Tyne with its bridges and dark water reflecting the lights of the city of Newcastle.
The path follows the edge of roads, building sites and wasteland, occasionally crossing a railway line or ducking under a motorway. Orange streetlights illuminate their faces. High rises and rows of terraced brick houses. A few sycamore trees with their leaves beginning to turn yellow, orange & brown & some already falling. They have travelled this path many times before and as they walk one of them is talking animatedly.
His name is Danny. Most of his friends call him Dazzle. He is the eldest of the two, in his mid teens. Tall and thin with dark spiky hair. His bright brown eyes move fast as he speaks. A handsome face that reflects certainty and determination with a full sensuous mouth. His clothes are smart and worn with a casual and contemptuous air as if he would rather be naked. Designer blue jeans and white trainers, a red hooded top with the logo Surf Time on the front partially covered by a scuffed black leather jacket. His school tie stuffed in the side zip pocket. A red and blue rucksack slung over his left shoulder.
As he speaks he moves his hands to emphasise the points he is making. His companion listens intently, his legs being shorter he has to walk fast to keep up with him. Occasionally he tries to interrupt but Danny pays no attention and keeps talking.
Barry is almost a head shorter than Danny. Untidy curly blonde hair. Huge brown eyes that look out at the world from a round smiling face on a body that has not done much sport or exercise for months. No time for that, too busy sitting in front of laptops or iPads designing programmes or downloading software when he is not playing games on his own or on the internet. A service he has never had to pay for given his brilliance at cracking programmes, hacking and bypassing all forms of security.
A well used black Nike sports bag gripped in his left hand is full of electronic bits, a rather well used iPod, paper, pens, a mini-toolkit in a silver plastic box, head torch, lighter, soldering iron, empty sweet and crisp packets, a small battered red notebook filled with drawings and equations and a scuffed plastic toy soldier in the form of a roman centurion.
His clothes look like he may have slept in them the night before. Dark crumpled trousers, a blue and white shirt unbuttoned at the neck with a red and black striped tie untidily knotted and hanging half way down it. A deep blue school blazer with a yellow shield shaped badge on it's breast pocket depicting a black dragon being slain by a red knight in armour holding an open book and wielding a sword with the words "Courage & Knowledge Conquer Ignorance" in gold lettering round this heraldic image. All covered by a green parka with a fur lined hood at least two sizes too big that engulfs him and keeps out the chill of winter mornings and nights.
An attempt at school uniform on his mother Carol's insistence.
" What Danny wears to school is none of my business. You'll wear the uniform like all the other lads"
"But mam none of them..."
"Barry get your uniform on, eat your breakfast and go to school. I'll be late for work if I stand here arguing with you any longer. Try to keep out of trouble love. I'll see you tonight ".
Nearly every morning a similar conversation aimed at him, but right now he seems to be the target for the torrent of words tumbling out of Danny's mouth.
"Bastards. It's not as if they don't have the money. It's nothing to them. Like you and I buying a cheap packet of crisps. Bastards. Me dad's worked for them all his life and just because he can't prove they're to blame for him getting sick. They're just fucking scum Barry....fucking scum"
"But Dazzle mebbe.."
"Everybody knows it's their fault. Even his doctor and the specialist at the hospital say it's probably the cause of his cancer. Those fucking containers full of that toxic waste. You know if I could get my hands on one of those guys, those managers I'd....I'd kill him with my bare hands. Rip his heart out and send it special delivery to his wife. Yeah I wonder how she'd like that. The look on her face when she opens the parcel. I have to see me mam's face, every morning with more lines and worry on it. It's not fair Barry. It's just not fair."
" Come on Dazzle. You don't mean that. Ripping his heart out. You've been watching too much..."
Danny stops and turns on his friend. His rage is electric. His face etched with fury.
"But I do Barry. I mean every word of it. Rip their fucking hearts out. All of them. I can't just let me dad die and those...those arseholes get away with it. How many others are going to get ill like him, before they admit it's their fault? It's not the money, all the compensation in the world won't bring me dad back once he's dead. I just want them to own up to what they've done. We've got to do something about it. We can't just let him die"
Barry realises that his friend is on the edge of tears. He would like to comfort him, to put his hand on his shoulder but senses that in his present state Danny might lash out at him. He has never seen him like this before. He used to be light hearted and good natured. Full of jokes and laughter. In the last few months since his father Patrick descended into the darkness of his cancer Danny's nature has changed completely.
"Look man. What can we do? We're not doctors or solicitors. Maybe your dad will get better. You said the other day they were trying some new chemo on him....."
"Yeah. Yeah. That's what they tell us. But more medicine and treatment just seems to make him worse. Me mam says the cancer just keeps spreading. It's fucking eating him up from the inside"
Danny stops talking suddenly. He looks around as if aware for the first time of his surroundings.
They are standing on the pavement by a high mesh fence under a single streetlight. The incessant noise of machinery comes through an open double steel gate in the fence to their left, from which a wide waterlogged and muddy track leads onto the road. At the other end of the track JCBs, cranes, earth-movers and tractors are working on a massive construction site under a bank of arc lights on high poles. The sounds of engines, machinery and the shouts of the workmen fill the air along with the smell and smoke of diesel. The site stretches in all directions from the fence down to the river, across to a distant block of high-rise flats and up the hill where it ends at a dual carriageway.
A large sign in foot high lettering on the gate reads:
A smaller hand written sign below it says:
A single wobbly red arrow points up the road.
In front of them is a zebra crossing leading to a row of terraced houses. Cars pass, their headlights reflected off the puddles on the road.
"Barry man we're nearly home"
"I know. You've not stopped talking since we left the toon"
Danny turns and looks at his friend.
"Jesus I'm sorry Barry. You're my best friend and all I do is fucking shout at you. It's not your fault"
"Hey, it's OK".
He puts his hand on his friends shoulder.
"It's OK Danny. You're right though, we've got to do something about this. Even if your dad doesn't get better we can't let ASI get away with it. Maybe we should find out about taking them to court."
Danny starts to laugh.
" Yeah, right and ten years later some stupid over paid judge will say there wasn't enough proof. Anyway how are we going to pay for that. Unless of course you've won the lottery and forgotten to tell me?"
"Oh shit. Me mam gave me a pound and told me to stop in at Ali's on the way home and get her a lottery ticket. She'll kill me if I don't do it"
Danny laughs some more and slaps Barry on the back
"Barry man, you know if it wasn't for you I'd have topped myself weeks ago. Where would I be without you? Go on you better get that lottery ticket. Hey look who's coming"
Running along the other side of the road shouting at them at the top of his voice is Danny's younger brother Joey. Almost the double of Danny though a few inches shorter in height with a mop of wild black hair and wearing his school uniform. He is jumping up and down and waving his arms at them.
"Barry man, Danny you'll never guess what? Quick...."
His words are lost in the sounds of a stream of lorries and cars passing by. The lorries turn into the construction site in a spray of mud and water making Barry and Danny move up towards the crossing.
" I'm out of here. Your kid brother drives me mental. I'll come round to yours once I've bought this ticket and done some things for me mam at home. See you soon Dazzle"
Barry slaps Danny on the back, slings his bag over his shoulder and lopes off up the pavement towards the local shop. Danny checks the road in both directions and then steps out onto the zebra crossing causing a silver Mercedes to brake suddenly. Barry looks through the windscreen at the driver. As their eyes meet he feels a shiver through his whole body, a moment where all movement ceases and his legs freeze.
The man in the car stares intently at him. A thin aquiline face. Eyes that Danny could swear were bright green. Red hair swept back from his brow and ears with long lobes. A slow smile spreads across his lips and he inclines his head slightly towards Danny. Danny is sure he has never seen him before but feels he knows him so well.
Then he is walking over the crossing to the other side. The car accelerates, Danny turns and watches it disappear down the hill towards the town. He shivers and is aware of Joey jumping up and down beside him shouting.
"That was him. The guy I was shouting you about. Came to see me mam. He's got something to do with the company that dad works for"
It starts to rain heavily. Large drops of dirty city rain.
"ASI. Really. I wish I'd been there when he was around. I'd have........"
"What Danny? What would you have done?"
Danny ruffles his brother's hair.
"Nothing. It's not important. It's good to see you kid. Let's go in the house before we get soaked and you can tell me all about it. How's dad and mam?"
"Allright..... I think. Dad's asleep and me mam's gone up to Ali's to get something for his tea. Where did Barry go?"
" Up to Ali's as well. Come on I'll race you home."
The two brothers run up the street for a few yards and into the open gate of a semi-detached house. Barry turns and looks down the road in the direction the Mercedes had taken.
"I don't know him but...."
His thought is interrupted by Joey pointing through the bay window of the house.
"Mary!"
Warm light casts shadows into the small front garden and a dark haired young woman stands looking out the window. She raises her hand and smiles at them. Joey dashes through the half open door and into the hallway.
"Mary. We're home. We're home!"
Danny follows him a moment later and closes the door behind him.
Medium shot of front garden with rain falling on late blooming red roses, white and purple pansies and the last of the marigolds turning brown.
Cut to close up of a single gnome with water dripping off its nose playing a silver saxophone.
Fade to black.