All the usual disclaimers apply. You must know what that means by now, so I won’t spell it out.

There’s not too much else to say either, except thanks once again for the feedback over the past week. So read on & enjoy! More feedback is always welcome, of course; please send your comments to pinkpanther2@hotmail.co.uk and I’ll reply as soon as I can.

CHAPTER THIRTY NINE

The Easter holiday was great. I spent most of the time hanging out with Luke. He’s cool, and really into his music. He’s got some albums that even Uncle Andrew doesn’t have, pretty amazing stuff too. So we didn’t spend all our time having sex, just in case you were wondering. To be fair, we did plenty of that too. Luke’s fifteen now and he’s got a beautiful cock. He fucked me stupid! It seems that his status as the school’s top guitarist and the fact that he’s a very good looking boy have enabled him to hook up with one of this year’s new boys, a cute little thing by all accounts. Luke says he’s fucking the kid; well good luck to him.

I did spend some time with the old gang, but we’re just getting further and further apart. It’s like I understand their life because we were I used to live it with them, but they haven’t got a clue about mine. They can’t understand why I wanted to go to a school like Winchester. Jason kept saying that I’ve changed; I guess I have. I haven’t always enjoyed being at Hartswood; for the first couple of years I fucking hated it, but I have to admit that it’s given me opportunities I wouldn’t have had if I’d stayed at my old junior school. So I got that wrong? Well, yeah, I guess I did.

Mr. Thompson gave us a couple of past ‘O’ Level papers to work through. I think I did them okay. There were one or two bits that I got stuck on, but I could do most of the questions straight off. Looking back, it’s hard to believe that I used to find maths so hard. Anyway, I handed them in as soon as we got back to school so I should know tomorrow how well I’ve done.

So right now I’ve got three things to work on: my maths ‘O’ level, playing cricket, and getting my final film made. For the first two I’m getting all the help I need, but making the film’s down to me. The first thing I’ve had to do is to sort out the two older boys. Well, I asked Teddy, just like I said I would. When I took him down to the trunk store and showed him the film his eyes nearly fell out. When I told him how much money he’d get he went for it without a second thought; one down, one to go.

I was going to ask Justin, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. It wasn’t that he’d have said no; he’d have said yes even though he didn’t really want to. He’s very sensitive about not letting his mum and dad down; I can understand why. Oh, he gets as sexed-up as anyone else, and from what he’s told me he certainly enjoyed his stay at Patrick’s house, but he does have to be careful. It’d put his dad in a very difficult position if anything ever did come out. So now I’ve got a problem; there isn’t anyone else that I know I can rely on. I’ll have to take a gamble.

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

Tuesday afternoon and it’s our first cricket practice. I’m not sure about anyone else, but I haven’t picked up a bat since last year. I’ll soon get into it; I always do. We set up in the nets; make that net; we’ve only got one. Craig bats first with Rob, Paz and Mr. Halford taking turns bowling to him. After sending down a couple of looseners, Rob bowls him a quick straight one, pitched just short of the length, the sort of delivery he always struggled to play last season. To my amazement he gets straight onto the back foot, right up on his toes and brings the bat through perfectly straight, confidently punching the ball away. I’ve no idea where he learned to do that; I’m a natural back-foot player, but even I couldn’t play the shot as well as he just did.

Pretty soon it’s my turn to bat. My first ball’s from Rob. It’s full-length delivery, pitching on off-stump and angling across me. I shape to let it go through, but at the last moment it jags back towards the stumps. I manage to jam the bat down on it, just about. That was close! He’s not just bowling faster than last year, if he can move the ball like that he’s going to take lots of wickets. Paz is bowling much quicker than he did last year, almost as fast as Rob. His first two balls are on a good length pitching on my off-stump. I meet them with solid forward defensive strokes. His third ball looks just the same. I go to play the same shot again, but the ball moves away off the seam. I edge it behind for what would have been an easy catch. Man! If these two bowl like this in matches they’ll cause mayhem!

The practice continues. There’s a different atmosphere this year. We’ve always worked pretty hard; Mr. Halford’s seen to that, but we’ve never taken it that seriously. Well this year we are, all of us, with Craig, Paz and Rob leading the way. It seems that Craig’s been practising at his local cricket club every chance he’s had; that’s why he’s improved so much, and like I already said, Rob and Paz are bowling superbly. The real revelation is Marcus. When he bowls he just trots up to the wicket, but his arm’s so quick he’s much faster than you’d expect, and when he’s batting, well, if he hit the ball any harder he’d put it into orbit; he’s going to be a big asset. If we keep working at it the way we’ve started, this could be a very good team. The practice concludes and Mr. Halford calls us together.

“Right, gentlemen,” he says, “the announcement you’ve been waiting for. I’ve asked Dominic Lees to captain the team and he has accepted. Okay, I’ll see you all on Thursday.”

That was a surprise; on the face of it it’s an odd choice, but one thing I’ve learned over the past few months is that if Mr. Halford does something, you can bet there are very good reasons for it. If he says Dominic’s captain, that’s good enough for me.

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

I stand outside the art room, waiting; I’m a bit apprehensive about this. We play rugby and cricket together and get on great; he’s in all my classes too, but I still don’t know him that well. Partly it’s because he’s only been here a couple of years. He’s never been part of the gang I hang out with outside of class; he hasn’t attached himself to us the way Marcus has. I picked him because he’s very good looking, he loves to fuck and he’s already been to the trunk store once, but how he’ll react to the idea of starring in my next film is anybody’s guess. There are footsteps heading along the corridor. A moment later he appears.

“Hi Paz,” I say, trying not to sound as nervous as I’m feeling.

I let us into the trunk store and lock the door behind me.

“So what’s this you want to show me?” he asks.

“This,” I say, pointing to the projector. “Sit down while I get it going.”

He takes his place on the trunk. I start the film and sit down next to him. He watches the opening credits, followed by images of Rob and Peter undressing each other.

“Shit!” he exclaims. “Is this who I think it is?” It fuckin’ is too! Fuck!” he pauses for a moment. “You made this, right?”

“Yeah,” I say, nodding casually.

Well, he hasn’t totally freaked, anyway. There’s another short pause while he watches the film intently.

“I’ve seen your sports day films and that, so I knew you were good; I didn’t know you were into making this stuff. This had to be professionally processed, yeah?”

I knew he wasn’t stupid, and on stuff like that he’s as sharp as a razor.

“That’s right,” I agree. “A company in Denmark does it. They pay me for the negative then they process it and sell copies mail order. They only sell them in Europe and America though, not in this country.”

“You have got it worked out, haven’t you?” he says emphatically, his eyes still glued to the far wall.

Rob’s just cum in Peter’s mouth. Paz looks like he’s about to squirt in his briefs. The film runs on to the end without us saying another word.

“Man, you have been busy,” he says as I stop the projector.

I sit back down again and pull out my bank book.

“Here’s what we got for it,” I say quietly pointing to the entry. “That’s two hundred and twenty five each.”

He looks at me like I’ve just grown a second head.

“I’ve done two more since,” I say casually. I point to another entry. “That one was with Peter and Ian, you know, the third year boy I go with.” I move to the most recent entry. “And that one was with Marcus and Gavin; I made that back before Christmas. The thing is,” I continue, “they’ve given me a brief of what they want me to do next.”

I pass him the letter. He reads through it.

“They want Gavin again, in a threesome with two older boys that I haven’t used before. I wondered if you might like to be one of them. It’ll be three hundred each this time. I told them that’s what I’d want and they’ve agreed.”

“Three hundred?” he queries.

“Correct.” I say.

“And they won’t be sold in this country?”

“No; we got them to agree to that before we let them have the first film. They just miss them off the catalogue they send to guys in this country. From what they’ve told me, they’re selling plenty just in Europe and America, so they’re quite happy.”

“Who’s the other one going to be?” he asks.

“Teddy Larsen,” I say.

“Why him?”

“Because a little bird told me he’d be on for it, he’s not bad looking and he’s got a big cock.”

“Fair enough,” he says, grinning. “I’m in.”

We shake hands on it, just like Marcus and I did. The gamble’s paid off.

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

The other problem with this film is that it’s going to be quite tricky to shoot; there just isn’t enough space. I’ve briefed them all, but a single bed’s going to be very crowded with three of them on it; they’ll have to do exactly as I’ve said or you won’t be able to see what’s going on. Well, I’m about to find out. I let us into the trunk store ready to shoot the first two scenes. I haven’t just got the lights and the camera set up, I’ve moved some of the trunks so that I can get a bit further back than I usually do.

I had a few misgivings about the script, so did Paz. Gavin didn’t though, and he’s the one that matters. Basically, I’ve told Paz and Teddy to pretend to be quite rough with him, and Gavin to act like he doesn’t want to do it. He loved the idea!

We start with them all dressed in briefs, rugby shorts and tee-shirts. I run through the first scene one last time. I do have a spare reel of film if I need it, but I’m hoping we can do it all first time like we have with the others. I turn on the lights and position myself with the camera.

“Action!” I call.

Paz and Teddy drag Gavin across from by the door and dump him on the bed. They start pulling his clothes off. Gavin struggles and tries to stop them, but he’s so skinny even Teddy’s bigger than he is. Even so, it takes them nearly three minutes to get him naked. That’s bang on schedule and no problems so far. Gavin puts his hand over his privates, but Paz pulls it away and sucks his cock. I guess the fact that he’s already hard is a bit of a giveaway, but I can’t help that. In any case, I don’t think the guys that buy this stuff will mind. Teddy grabs Gavin’s other arm, pushing his cock right onto Gavin’s lips. Gavin tries to turn away, but Teddy ‘forces’ his mouth open and ‘makes’ Gavin suck his dick as I move in for a close-up. It’s the first time I’ve seen Teddy’s cock, nearly five inches long, uncut and quite thick; on a skinny kid who’s barely five feet tall it looks most impressive.

“Cut!” I say, turning off the camera and the lights.

I check the watch. Four minutes twenty two seconds, perfect. I know it’s only the first scene, but I’m more than satisfied. I wasn’t looking forward to this. It’s the first film I’ve done where the boys have to act and I hadn’t a clue how it would go, but they’ve been brilliant; they’ve done it far better than I thought they would. They towel themselves off and we all take plenty of water.

“So how was that?” Paz asks, grinning.

“Fantastic!” I tell him. “You did great, all of you.”

“It seemed a bit strange at first,” he says, “but once we got started it was like, yeah, let’s do it!”

I look down; I guess that’s why he’s got a hard-on.

For scene two Paz is sitting right at the top of the bed, leaning back against the wall. Gavin’s on his knees in front of him, with Teddy pretending to push his head down onto Paz’s dick. I’m a bit worried about this; they’ve got to make it look real, but they can’t be too rough; we don’t want Gavin puking up; that would not be good. But once again they’ve got the idea perfectly. It looks like Teddy’s holding Gavin’s head and making him suck Paz off; actually he’s hardly touching him, just letting his hand ride with the way Gavin’s head’s moving.

“Uh, I’m cumming!” Paz groans.

I get a great close-up of his cock jerking in Gavin’s mouth, with some of his spunk dribbling out of one corner. That is hot!! Teddy takes his hand away, allowing Gavin to come up for air.

“Cut!” I call.

I turn off the lights and check the watch; two minutes forty seconds. That’s about what I was looking for; it’s a bit shorter than usual because next time we’ll have three scenes to do instead of two. I start to put everything away while the lads get dressed. I’m more than happy with how things went; those two scenes were probably the hardest to get right, but we’ve got through them without a problem. Despite Paz having a few reservations beforehand, once we got going he was well into it. I’ll settle for that.

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

It’s Tuesday and we’re back in the trunk store to finish making the film, or try to. With three scenes to shoot it’s going to be tight; we might have to put off the final scene till another time, but we’ve started five minutes earlier than usual, so I’m hoping we’ll be able to squeeze it all in.

For scene three, I’ve had to compromise. I would have liked to show Gavin sucking Teddy while Paz sucked and fingered Gavin, but there just isn’t enough room for that. Instead, Teddy’s kneeling on the bed, with Gavin down on all fours in front of him and Paz kneeling behind Gavin. I start with a long shot where you can see all three of them, then slowly move in for close up of Gavin slurping on Teddy’s cock. After around thirty seconds I pull about halfway back then move back in again to show Paz working KY into Gavin’s bum. Finally, I move back out to where I started.

“Cut!” I call, turning off the lights.

They hop off the bed, towelling themselves down and taking turns to swig some water. Man! This is hot work! That was three minutes twelve seconds, just about perfect. We’ve just got the fucking scenes left to shoot.

For scene four, we start off with the boys exactly where they were, with me filming from as far back as I can get. Paz and Teddy immediately change places. As Gavin starts working his tongue over Paz’s dick, Teddy lubes himself up, moves in close and stuffs his cock up Gavin’s bum. I move in slowly, getting an excellent close up of Teddy pounding Gavin’s arse, before moving round next to Teddy, the camera aimed over Gavin’s back as he licks and slurps on Paz’s dick.

“I’m cumming!” Teddy gasps.

I move around and part way back as he shoots his spunk into Gavin’s bum, holds still for a few seconds, then slowly withdraws, sinking back onto his heels looking totally spent.

“Cut!” I announce.

I’m not totally happy with it; if I’d been able to film them on a double bed I could have made it much hotter, but given the lack of space it’s the best I can do. The timing was okay; at three minutes forty seconds it’s a fraction longer than I would have wanted, but it’s not a problem. I check the time. It’s just gone quarter to eight. We need to be away before eight or Gavin might be missed. That could lead to some awkward questions, especially if they realise that it isn’t Marcus he’s with.

“Ready to do the last scene?” I ask. “We either need to do it now or leave it till next week.”

“I’m ready,” Paz says grinning. “Let’s do it.”

They get into position, with Gavin lying Face down on the bed, legs apart, the pillow under his hips, and Paz kneeling behind him. I’m right back again, as far away as I can get.

“Action!” I call.

Paz lowers himself onto Gavin, guiding his cock onto Gavin’s hole. As he sticks it in, Gavin pretends to scream. Teddy appears from out of shot, stuffing a pair of discarded briefs into Gavin’s mouth before retreating again. Paz is totally into it, supporting himself on his forearms and fucking the kid as hard as he can go, with Gavin doing a very convincing job of pretending he’s in agony. I move in close to get some close ups from the side then move round behind the bed, getting another great view from between their legs.

“Fuck!” Paz moans. “I’m gonna cum!”

I return to my side-on, halfway back position as he unloads into Gavin’s bum then collapses on top of him. After a few seconds he pulls out. I move round behind the bed again as Gavin gets up on all fours. It’s my bum shot, the best yet, Gavin’s hole still partially open, the spunk leaking out and running down his legs. I hold the shot for around ten seconds till his bum finally clamps shut.

“Cut!” I call for the final time. “Well done boys, that’s a wrap!”

“Are you okay?” I ask as I help Gavin get cleaned up.

“Yeah, course I am!” he says, giving me his cheekiest grin. “They didn’t really hurt me; I was just pretending like you said. I’ve never taken two cocks one after the other like that; it was ace!”

They get dressed while I put everything back where it should be. By the end of the week the film will be on its way to Denmark and that will be it; my career as maker of porn films will have come to an end. I’ve done it and it’s time to move on; like somebody said, always leave them asking for more.

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

I stride along to Mr. Halford’s office. My heart’s thumping a bit. It’s not that I’m in trouble; I’m about to find out whether I’ve got my scholarship or not. I knock on the door and walk in.

“Take a seat,” Mr. Halford says, smiling. “I guess you’re wondering how you’ve done.”

“Sir,” I respond.

“Well, you performed very well in both the common entrance and the scholarship exams. In addition to that, we’ve had to write a report on you, as we always do. Now when we do that, we have to paint the full picture. So we told them about how hard you work, your sporting achievements, your ambition to be a film maker and your wish to test yourself against the best brains around. But we also told them that you are very single minded, an atheist with some pretty radical ideas, and that you can be difficult and argumentative. I’m sorry Toby, but Winchester decided not to offer you a scholarship. I’m not surprised, to be honest. They regard themselves as educating the next generation of senior civil servants and Tory politicians; they’re not very interested in boys like you. They’ve offered you a place, as they were bound to, based on your exam results, but no scholarship. However, you have been offered a scholarship at Charterhouse, who are very keen to have you, and for someone with your drive and creative talents, I think you’ll do far better there than ever you would have done at Winchester. Film making is a collaborative exercise, as I’m sure you’re aware. At Charterhouse you’ll find plenty of other boys who are interested in the same things as you are; you’ll spur each other on. And as far as the academic side goes, you’ll get all the competition you’ll need.”

For a few moments I sit there without saying anything. I’m bitterly disappointed. Winchester was the scholarship I wanted and I haven’t got it. And I haven’t got it, not because I wasn’t good enough, but because the school, well Mr. Halford actually, decided they needed ‘to paint the full picture’ in the report they wrote.

“Sir,” I ask quietly, trying to hold myself in check. “Did you really have to tell them about, you know?”

“Yes Toby, we did,” he replies emphatically. “It’s important that the schools know that they can trust the reports that we write, otherwise boys from here would never be offered anything.”

“So how did I get offered the scholarship at Charterhouse?” I snap. “I didn’t even put them down. Did you fix that up, sir?”

“Well, with Tom being in the sixth form there, I do know a few of the senior staff quite well,” he says quietly. “And yes, I did have a word about you. When I told them you wanted to go to Winchester their immediate reaction was ‘why on earth does he want to go there?’ So I told them what you’d said. They told me that in terms of ‘A’ levels, university entrance, scholarships and that sort of thing, they’re up with the best schools in the country. And I know that’s true; we’re hoping Tom will get a scholarship to Oxford next year, and if he can do that, I’m quite certain that you can.”

I’m seething! I hate people trying to run my life! I’m just about to storm out, but somehow I manage to stop myself. Deep down inside I’ve got this little voice saying, ‘he’s right, you know’. My problem is that I always think I know best; I hate admitting I’ve got it wrong. I give myself a mental kick up the arse. I’ve got to stop behaving like a spoilt brat; that’s what dad does when he can’t have his own way. Mr. Halford probably knows me as well as anyone; if he thinks Charterhouse is the best place for me, I guess that just this once I ought to trust him. And another thought hits me. With a scholarship at Charterhouse on offer, are mum and dad really going to fork out the money to send me to Winchester? Of course they’re not. I take a deep breath.

“Thanks, sir.” I whisper, not even looking up at him.

I stand up to leave. Mr Halford comes around his desk, putting his arm round my shoulder.

“Well done, Toby,” he says gently. “You’ve done superbly. I know you’d set your heart of going to Winchester so I can understand your disappointment, but you are making the right choice; you can trust me on that.” He turns to face me, smiling warmly. “I have to say that none of this looked at all likely during your first couple of years here, but you’ve turned it around and shown us what you’re capable of. I think you becoming friends with Callum Shawcross was a big factor; you seemed to calm down a lot after that.”

My head almost explodes; I’d always thought that he had no idea about me and Callum.

“I didn’t think you knew about that, sir,” I say, without even thinking.

“Oh,” he says smiling, “There’s not much that goes on here that I don’t know about.”

“I thought that if you found out I was friends with Callum you’d, you know, stop us hanging out together,” I respond, still trying to come to terms with what he’s just said.

“And why would I have wanted to do that?” he asks. “I’m pretty certain that you benefited from the friendship, and I know Callum did. He improved out of all recognition; I think some of your self-confidence must have rubbed off on him.”

Wow! I can hardly believe it. He’s just told me that was long as everybody’s happy and doing well, and we keep everything quiet, he’s going to turn a blind eye to what we’re actually doing. I wish I’d realised that at the time; I’d have told Pervy Atkinson to go fuck himself.

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

It’s the week before half term. The cheques from Denmark arrived last week. They were ecstatic about the film; gave me all sorts of suggestions about what they’d like me to do next. Well they’re going to be disappointed. After half term, when we’ve all got our money safely in the bank, I’ll write and tell them.

It’s Monday morning break; I’m on prefect duty on the ground floor of the main building. It’s a beautiful spring day so almost everybody’s outside, so it’s boring more than anything. I stroll along the bottom corridor. Jamie Barnett walks past me, grins and disappears into the boys’ room. If it hadn’t been for what happened at the cross-country championships, I’d have probably ignored it. As it is, I’ve got a hard-on like you wouldn’t believe. I think for a moment. I’m on duty; I can’t very well catch myself, now can I? The only way anything could go wrong is if some trouble happened while I was ‘otherwise engaged’, and with virtually all the kids out on the playground, that doesn’t look too likely. I turn round and follow him in.

He’s standing at the urinal, pretending to have a piss. I stand a couple of feet to his right, open the top of my shorts and get my dick out. I glance across. He turns towards me slightly, grinning and showing me his cock. It’s almost four inches long and uncut, pretty big considering he won’t turn eleven till next month. It’s still very slim though, a little nozzle of foreskin sticking out past his knob. I move my hand away and let him see mine.

“That’s nice!” he breathes, his eyes fixed right on it. It looks like he’s almost drooling.

I jerk my head in the direction of the stalls. We zip up and I follow him in. I sit on the toilet and quickly take his shorts and pants down. His cock’s sticking straight up, pressed tight against his tummy, a real beauty for a kid his age; his balls are developing nicely too. I hold it round the base with thumb and index finger, carefully pulling at away from his body. I lean forwards and take it into my mouth. I suck it eagerly; it tastes wonderful. He holds my head, pumping his hips. I slip my hand between his thighs, silk-smooth and creamy white. My hand slides slowly upwards till my finger finds his bum-hole. I tickle it for a second or two then push inside.

“Oooh!” he gasps.

He’s getting close. I let him go and look up, grinning. We swap places. As soon as he’s got my shorts and pants down he starts sucking my cock, doesn’t even think about it. Man! He is good! His tongue’s going everywhere, working all over the head and flicking out to lick my balls; I hardly know which day of the week it is. It’s obvious he’s done it before, quite a few times by the looks of things. Now it’s me that’s getting close; I gently ease my cock out of his mouth.

“Are you going to bum me?” he whispers, grinning up at me.

I nod. He stands up and gets into position bent over the toilet, his hands resting on the seat. I look at his cute little bum. The area on each side of his hole is bright red. I was pretty much expecting that he’d been fucked before, but by the looks of things he’s taken it within the last day or two. I’ve no idea who that would have been; right now it doesn’t matter. I retrieve the KY from the pocket of my shorts and quickly lube us up. This is it. I shuffle forwards slightly, guiding my cock right onto its target. With one well-practised thrust I’m inside him.

“Oh, Toby!” he moans.

He’s very tight; I’ve only gone in a couple of inches. I’m guessing whoever’s been bumming him isn’t all that big. I hold him round the thighs and slowly pull him onto me. He whimpers slightly as my dick goes in deeper. I touch his prostate.

“Ohhh!” he gasps, his cock twitching wildly.

Another inch and he’s got it all. I settle myself, taking several deep breaths. Then I set to it, fucking him with long, even strokes. The sensation of the tight little sheath that’s gripping my cock is indescribable, as good as anything I’ve ever experienced. I pick up the pace, bumming him harder with every thrust, his little moans and squeaks driving me to even greater efforts. I reach down and play with his cock. Almost immediately he shudders like I just plugged him into the power socket, his bum gripping my dick even tighter. A moment later his cock swells and jerks between my fingers. He’s taken me right over the edge.

“Nnng!” I gasp. “Oh! Ohh!! Aarrrgghhhh!!”

My balls fire into action, spunk racing up my dick and spurting into his bum in several big wads. Finally it’s over. After a few seconds to get my breath back I slowly pull out. Man! That was hot!

Jamie turns round and sits on the toilet. “You cum a lot, don’t you?” he whispers.

“So who’s been bumming you, then?” I ask.

“Martin,” he says, “Sunday mornings after training; we’ve been doing it for months.” He pauses for a moment to wipe his arse. “Next term I’ll be Mr. Thompson’s boy,” he continues proudly, “You know, after Martin’s left.”

Well it’s worked for Martin, why not for him too?

“So doesn’t Martin do stuff with you any other time?” I ask as we get dressed.

“Nah!” he says, screwing his face up. “Says he doesn’t have anywhere to go.”

“Leave it with me,” I say quietly. “I’ll see if I can sort it out for you.”

0 o 0 o 0 o 0

When I walk into the dorm, Martin’s lying on his bed with his nose buried in the latest issue of ‘Athletics Weekly’. I squat down next to him.

“I hear you’ve been getting quite friendly with Jamie Barnett,” I say quietly. “You know, Sunday mornings after training.”

“Who told you that?” he demands.

“Never mind,” I say grinning at him. “That’s not important. But if you and Jamie want to do stuff together, why not ask Rob to put you on the list so you can see him more often?”

“I thought, you know, with what happened before Christmas, he’d say no,” he mumbles.

“Man, that’s ancient history!” I tell him. “And nothing came of it anyway. Well now you’re a county cross-country champion, bronze medallist at the Prep Schools Championships and you’ve got a place at a really good senior school. You’ve got as much right to be on the list as anyone. Just ask, man; it won’t be a problem.”

“Thanks,” he says smiling. “I’ll do that.”