Ruby sat on Harry’s bed, clinging to him, trying to cry quietly so his mum in the living room next door wouldn’t hear. A damp patch formed on Harry’s hoody, right over his heart, where she was resting her head. She was the strongest person he knew, the funniest, too, and so clever. Everything about her made him feel awe, and walking down the street with her he genuinely could not believe his luck that she loved him. It was like his walk got an extra bounce when they were together, and the world got a bit of a polish, because the colours seemed cleaner and brighter. How could other people miss how amazing she was?

And how dare they reduce her to this?

The fury ripping through Harry was like nothing he’d ever experienced. People had thrown insults at him like rocks for years; he barely noticed now. They said he smelled, because he didn’t always have time to shower before school, too busy getting the rest of his family ready. Or they laughed because his shirt was crumpled, if he hadn’t had the chance to iron it. Hell, some people had hated him from the second he was born, purely because of the mocha colour of his skin. Stuff them. They couldn’t hurt him unless he let them. He simply rose above it. But he couldn’t rise above this pain. He couldn’t ignore this fury. People hurting Ruby made him feel like the Incredible Hulk was trying to get out from inside him. If he saw any of her bullies, he’d tear them apart with his bare hands.

But right here, right now, that wasn’t going to help his girl.

He stroked her hair and leaned down to croon in her ear.

‘Hey, hey, baby girl, it’s okay. Long as we’ve got each other, it doesn’t matter.’

‘But I haven’t got you. My stupid parents won’t even let me see you. They’re so clueless they think you’re the one who is a bad influence on me.’

‘Maybe… I dunno, maybe it’s time to ’fess up about what’s going on, Rubes.’

The soggy snort she gave was muffled by his top, as she buried her face back into it, a mouse burrowing for safety. He thought he could make out the word ‘useless’ but he wasn’t certain if it was only a cough.

‘Ruby?’ he probed.

She looked up at him. Red, puffy eyes, swollen lips and runny nose. He hated seeing her so vulnerable – but loved that he was the only person in the world privileged to witness it.

‘What’s the point? Even if they listened – which they totally won’t – they’ll just tell me to stop using social media. Yeah, because that will make it all go away. They’re clueless about real life. Whether I’m checking or not, the posts are still there. Everyone laughing at me. Everyone hating me.’

Harry rubbed her arm up and down, helpless, trying somehow to erase her pain.

‘I’ve never… I couldn’t… telling them would be like… I don’t know, they already think I’m such a loser, they’d probably agree with what everyone’s saying anyway.’

‘They’re not going to agree to someone setting up a prozzie site for you, are they? Maybe it’s worth talking to them about this so they can, I dunno, maybe go to the police. It might be worth seeing if your parents are as useless as we think – or if they can step up. What you got to lose, Rubes?’ He could see the war going on inside her.

She threw her hands up in despair.

‘When I try to talk about it, though, I get all bunged up. The words stick together in clumps and I can’t spit them out. I can’t even breathe with them there. It’s just easier not to say anything.’

She was so pale, as white as the pristine trainers some of the crew wore.

‘I get it. The stuff you’ve been put through… no one should have to put up with that, man. And I wish I could do something to make it better. Believe me. But, maybe once you tell your parents about this they’ll go to the police, report that sick shit. This new stuff, making out like you’re offering sex to any takers, it’s off the scale. The police will see your parents, all nice and neat and middle class, and they’ll jump. They’ll investigate, they’ll do their little technological magic to find out who did this and nail them. Job done. I can’t do that for you. Wish I could.’

‘I wish you could, too.’ She pulled close to him again and they kissed. ‘I wish it could just be you and me for ever. Screw the rest of the world.’

‘Amen to that. Whole world could explode for all I care, long as we got each other. When people hurt you, I want to kill them all, Rubes. Swear. Hearing you say you wish you was dead… Well, if that happened you’d have to take me with you; I can’t live without you, girl.’

He fell into her eyes, onto her lips. Even with all this talk of death, Harry’s blood thrummed and he’d never felt more alive.