Shutting her eyes, she pictured the night that their paths had crossed. Eighteen she’d been, him twenty-one. It had been a boring Friday night down her local, and on the way home she and Tracey had stopped for their regular doner kebab and chips.

Famished, Susan was too busy shoving rancid pieces of lamb down her throat to notice the two fit blokes enter the shop. Aware of them chatting to Tracey, she plonked herself at a table, carried on eating and took little notice.

‘Suze, the boys have invited us to go to a party with them,’ Tracey said, nudging her.

Chilli sauce dripping down her chin, Susan glanced around. Locking eyes with the taller one, she suddenly didn’t feel hungry any more.

Heart pounding, she tried to sound casual. ‘Where is this party then?’

The tall one ignored her, but his mate smiled. ‘Whitechapel. It’s a mate of ours’ twenty-first. Say you’ll come, girls. We’ve got plenty of booze, all we need is the company of some pretty ladies. By the way, I’m Darren and this is Kevin.’

It didn’t take much conferring for Susan and Tracey to make up their minds. Chucking their half-eaten takeaway into the nearest bin, they smiled at one another and linked arms. The lads in their local were silly little boys and neither of them could believe their luck.

The party was in full swing when they arrived and it didn’t take Susan long to realise that the object of her affections wasn’t very interested in her. Darren was all over Tracey like a rash, but every time Susan tried to spark up a conversation with Kevin, he gave her one-word answers and quickly walked away. Watching him chat up other girls made her feel physically sick. She couldn’t understand why she was feeling the way she was – it was ridiculous, as she’d barely known him five minutes.

As the party dwindled and the smoochies were put on the record player, Susan felt her mood lift as the bird Kev had been chatting up for the last half-hour left with her mate. Beer in hand, Kevin saw her watching him and walked towards her.

‘Wanna dance?’

Thrilled that he’d finally noticed her, Susan grabbed him around the neck as though her life depended on it. Determined to snare him, it took her five minutes to get his cock erect and ten to get him in the bedroom. As soon as they hit the sack, Susan knew he was her soul mate. Like hers, Kevin’s sex drive was insatiable and they were at it like rabbits all night.

When daylight broke, Kevin leaped up and got dressed. ‘Me mum’s out tonight. Wanna come round mine for another session?’ he asked casually.

Memorising his address, Susan couldn’t wipe the smile off her face. She’d shagged plenty of boys but, for the first time ever, she was hopelessly in love!

‘Anyone in?’ her mother called.

‘I was just dozing off. Do yer always have to wake me up?’ Susan shouted angrily.

Maureen ignored her daughter’s arrogant tone. ‘Just puttin’ the shopping away. I’m off out again now, so yer can doze as much as yer like. Me and yer nan are goin’ up the Roman to choose some paint. We need to decorate the living room before our Tommy comes home.’

Susan didn’t bother answering and was relieved as she heard her mother leave the house. Tommy this, Tommy that – she was fucking sick of it. Her brother was due out in just under a month, and her family didn’t stop going on about it. Even James had little other conversation.

Desperate to get out of the house before the Tommy fan club returned, Susan decided to get ready early. She was really looking forward to tonight. It was Kev’s uncle’s fortieth, and all his family would be there. Determined to look her best, she tried most of her wardrobe on. The stretch white Lycra leggings with the matching top won by a mile. She topped her outfit off with red stilettos and a matching red bag. She then blow-dried her hair upside down to give it some oomph, and plastered it with hairspray. Applying the bright red lippy, she smiled at her reflection. Unlike the rest of the world, she failed to notice her rolls of fat, bingo wings and corned-beef legs.

‘Kevin, here I come,’ she said, blowing a kiss at the mirror.

Unable to drag Tracey and Darren out early, Susan headed to her local alone. The pub was called The Royal Duchess, but no one referred to it as that. Everybody just called it The Duchess. Apart from Kev’s mum, she barely knew the rest of the family and was nervous about meeting them. She ordered a glass of cider and sat on the barstool, deep in thought. Tracey, her best friend, had recently fallen pregnant and overnight had changed into Little Miss Perfect.

‘We’re doing up the nursery, or me and Darren are shopping for baby clothes,’ were the excuses she received when she asked Tracey to go out with her.

‘Boring cow,’ Susan muttered as she sank her pint and ordered another. Tracey might not be able to drink tonight, but she certainly could.

‘You look nice, Suze – yer goin’ somewhere special?’

Susan smiled. Fat Caz, the barmaid, was desperate to be her friend and had been sucking up to her for ages. She even gave her free drinks when the guv’nor wasn’t looking.

‘Yeah. Kev’s uncle’s fortieth. What about you? Off out after yer shift?’ Susan replied, knowing full well that Caz had no friends to go anywhere with.

‘Dunno, might go clubbing,’ Caz said awkwardly.

Susan smiled. The thought of Fat Caz clubbing amused her immensely. She looked at her watch. The party was being held in the Bancroft Arms and was kicking off at eight. Kev, as usual, had told her to make her own way there. She’d begged him to come and get her, but he was having none of it.

‘Please Kev, don’t make me walk in on my own. I don’t wanna schlep there in the dark – say someone jumps me?’

Ever the gentleman, Kev had laughed down the phone at her. ‘Fuck off, Suze. You look like a rugby player. Who in their right mind is gonna attack you?’

Smiling at Fat Caz, Susan downed her pint and ordered another. Let Kevin sweat, worry why she was late. He needed to be taught a lesson.

At eight-thirty, Susan decided to make a move. ‘I’m goin’ now, Caz. Get a pen and I’ll give you me number so we can go out one night.’

Elated by the invitation, Caz popped the number in her purse. ‘Bye, mate. I’ll call you in the week,’ she said.

Susan smiled as she walked towards The Bancroft. Caz might be a moose, but with Tracey up the duff, at least she was someone to go out with. Kev often went out with the lads and she was sick of sitting at home. Apart from Tracey, she had no other mates and beggars couldn’t be choosers.

As Susan reached the pub she could hear Tears for Fears singing ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’. She took a deep breath and made her grand entrance. Searching for Kev, she spotted him in deep conversation with his mum. She bowled over. ‘Get us a drink then, Kev. Where’s Tracey and Dal? Are they here yet?’

Realising that she was half pissed, Kevin shot her a look. ‘They’re sitting over by the toilets. Go and sit with ’em, and I’ll be over in a minute.’

Annoyed by his cold attitude, Susan ignored him and went up to the bar. ‘I’ll have a pint of cider. Actually, make that two.’

Seething, she downed one on the spot and marched towards the table with the other. Kev was such a bastard to her at times. She’d gone to all that effort to make herself look glamorous and he hadn’t even said she looked nice.

‘What’s up with yous two?’ she asked, as she sat herself down with Tracey and Darren.

Darren rubbed his girlfriend’s arm. ‘Tracey don’t feel too good. The smoke’s making her feel sick.’

Susan let out a deep sigh. This was going to be the night from hell, sitting with these two. They had faces like smacked arses, the pair of ’em.

As Wham’s, ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go Go’ hit the speakers, Susan knocked back her drink and stood up, ‘Come on ’ave a dance with me, Trace. It might make yer feel better.’

Tracey shook her head. ‘You get up, Suze. Me and Darren’ll sit ’ere and watch yer.’

Susan shrugged her shoulders and headed towards the bar. Sod dancing, she needed another drink, and pronto. Eyes darting around the pub, she searched for Kevin. Where the bloody hell was he? He’d barely even said hello to her, and he hadn’t come over like he said he would.

As the evening wore on, Susan became angrier and more inebriated. ‘I ain’t lettin’ him treat me like this. I’m goin’ to find the cunt,’ she told Tracey.

Eyes glazed, she scanned the pub and spotted him. He was standing by the door chatting up two pretty girls. With the familiar pain in her heart that he regularly inflicted upon her, she staggered towards him.

‘Whaddya think you’re doin’? I’m yer girlfriend and you ain’t even spoken to me all night. You’ve got time to talk to these slappers, though, ain’t yer?’

Kevin felt himself blush. Susan was shit-faced and he wasn’t about to introduce her as his girlfriend. Talk about showing him up in front of his family. Grabbing Susan by the arm, he dragged her over to where Tracey and Darren were sitting. ‘Do me a favour, Dal. When you go home, take this cunt with yer. She’s too pissed to walk, so you’ll ’ave to put her in a cab. She’s a fuckin’ embarrassment, she is.’

Realising she’d gone too far, Susan started to grovel. ‘I’m sorry, Kev. I was upset because you hadn’t sat with me all night. I promise I’ll behave meself, I won’t show you up, honest.’

Kevin pushed her away. ‘You can sit ’ere until Tracey and Dal leave. I’m goin’ up Benjy’s with me uncle Paul and his mates and you ain’t invited. Now just sit still and shut yer trap, and if yer make a cunt out of me any more tonight, I’m gonna rip yer fuckin’ head off. Got it?’

Not wanting him to see her upset, Susan ran into the toilets. He had a habit of making her cry and she was sure that he got a kick out of it.

‘I love Kev, he’s such a scream. Is he comin’ up Benjy’s with us?’ said a voice from inside the cubicle.

As Susan looked in the mirror, she saw the colour drain from her face.

‘Yeah. He told us to leave before him. I think he’s gotta get rid of that awful bird first, and he’ll meet us up there. Christ knows who she was, but didn’t she look a sight in those white leggings?’

Blinded by panic, Susan ran from the pub. She knew the voices in the toilet belonged to the birds Kev had been chatting up. She’d been too busy grovelling to see them go in there, but they were definitely talking about her. She was the only one at the party wearing white leggings. Holding onto the wall, she took deep breaths. She was going to be sick.

Having seen her bolt past, Tracey followed her out. ‘Are you OK, Suze?’ she asked, rubbing her back.

Susan stuck her fingers down her throat and brought up as much of the cider as she could. She couldn’t think straight and she needed to sober herself up.

‘Let me go and get Darren and we’ll take you home,’ Tracey said sympathetically.

Susan shook her head. ‘I need to walk, get some fresh air. I’ll be fine, honest.’

‘I’ll ring you tomorrow,’ Tracey shouted, as she walked back inside.

As Susan stood on the corner of her estate, she was livid. She’d always had a feeling that Kevin played around, but how could he be so blatant about it? Unable to face going home, Susan lit up a fag and headed back to The Duchess. Fat Caz would be finishing her shift soon and she desperately needed someone to talk to. She couldn’t get the two girls’ faces out of her mind. Both were blonde and pretty, but the one with the long hair was stunning – in fact, she looked like Madonna. And as for their conversation, they might as well have stuck a knife in her: ‘He’s gotta get rid of that awful bird first. I love my Kev, he’s such a scream. Christ knows who she was, but didn’t she look a sight in those white leggings?’ they’d said.

And they were laughing, the fucking slags. Well, she’d give ’em something to laugh about. She was Kev’s bird and if four years was about to go up the swanny, she was determined to go out with a bang.

‘Suze, you’re back! Wasn’t the party any good?’ Caz beamed, as she approached the bar.

Susan forced a smile. ‘Get us a cider and when you’re finished, me and you are goin’ up Benjy’s.’

‘Want another drink, Joanne?’

‘Yes, please, I’ll have a white wine. Don’t bother getting Nat one. She’s on the dancefloor with that bloke and she’s got two on the table.’

Susan turned her back and hid in the corner as he approached the bar. She was frothing at the mouth and if that slag left the club with Kev, she’d fucking kill her.

‘Are you all right, Suze?’ a concerned Caz asked.

‘No, I ain’t. Do I fuckin’ look all right? Just let me know when he moves away from the bar.’

As the DJ slowed down the tempo, Joanne was desperately trying to spy on her friend Natalie.

‘Thanks, Kev,’ she said, as he handed her her drink.

Kev laughed. ‘Who yer lookin’ at, yer nosy cow?’

Joanne giggled. ‘Nat split up with her ex over a year ago and she’s never copped off with anyone since. I’m sure she’s snogging that bloke. Come and have a dance with me, Kev, so I can spy on her.’

Kevin grabbed her arm. ‘Come on then, you pest.’

Susan was horrified as she watched them take to the dancefloor. As Kev put his arms around the Madonna lookalike’s waist, her stomach could take no more.

‘Hide my drink inside your jacket – we’re leaving,’ she told Fat Caz.

Filled with anger, Susan marched down the street. ‘I can’t go home. I’m gonna wait in the alley and confront him as he walks past.’

Caz hated trouble of any kind. Her night out had been awful, and she was absolutely starving.

‘Suze, there’s a takeaway over the road. I’m gonna get meself a kebab and chips. Do you want anything?’

Susan shook her head. ‘Fat cunt,’ she muttered as Caz waddled across the road.

As people began to trickle out of the club, Susan kept her eyes peeled. Finally, she spotted him walking towards her. He was alone with the slag, the cheating bastard. Picking up her now empty glass off the ground, she held it firmly in her right hand. She could hear their voices, they were getting closer.

As she leaped from the shadows, she took the pair of them by surprise. ‘That’s my fella, yer fuckin’ slag,’ she screamed, as she cracked the glass over the girl’s head.

As Joanne crashed to the floor, Kevin laid into Susan. ‘Get off of her. You’re a psycho, Susan, a fuckin’ psycho,’ he screamed, as he punched her to the ground.

A group of young lads ran over. ‘Oi, leave her alone.’

‘Stay out of it,’ Kevin yelled as he kicked Susan in the face.

‘Whatever’s happened?’ Natalie screamed, as she saw the blood running down Joanne’s face.

‘The kebab shop have called the Old Bill,’ someone shouted.

Petrified of getting arrested, Kevin grabbed Natalie’s arm. ‘Look after Jo for me. I’m gonna have to make a run for it, I’ve got no choice. Say nothin’ to the Old Bill, I’ll explain later.’

Lifting Susan up, Kevin half dragged her down a side street. ‘Try and run, Suze, try and run,’ he screamed.

Across the road, Fat Caz stood frozen to the spot. She’d been too busy stuffing her face to see what had started the fight, but she’d seen Kevin beat up Susan.

As Kevin dragged Susan out of sight, Caz knew she had to do more to help her. Remembering that Susan had earlier given her her phone number, Caz searched through her purse and ran back into the shop.

‘Give me the phone, quick. He’s abducted her and I need to ring her mum.’

Aware of the sirens getting louder, Kevin helped Susan through the back gardens and into a different street. He was fully aware of what led where, as he’d often been involved in bouts of burglary in this neck of the woods. He tried the handle of someone’s shed and was relieved to find it open.

‘Get in there, Suze, go on, lie down. We’re safe here.’

As Kevin handed her a fag, he lit the match and was appalled by what he had done to her face. She was caked in blood and looked like she’d gone ten rounds with Henry Cooper. Susan looked worse than she actually felt and was more bothered about Kevin’s infidelity than her injuries.

‘Why, Kev? Why did yer cheat on me? Surely the sex ain’t as good with her as it is with me? How long yer been seeing her?’

As Kevin held her close, he began to laugh. ‘You stupid girl, Suze. I haven’t cheated on yer. Joanne, the girl you glassed, is my fuckin’ cousin.’

Susan felt nothing but relief as she clung to him. ‘I’m so sorry, Kev. Please don’t finish with me. I’ll never tell anyone that it was you that beat me up. I love you, Kev, I really do. You won’t leave me, will yer?’

As Kevin put his tongue in her mouth, all he could taste was her blood. Pulling away, he smiled at her. ‘I’m not sure if we’re meant to be after this, Suze. I’m gonna need time to think about it, girl.’

Desperate for him to love her again, Susan unzipped his trousers, unleashed his cock, and took him gently into her bruised mouth.