Dropping In by Geoff Havel

car driver.
    The words hit me like a punch in the stomach. I feel like throwing up. I can’t breathe and then Jess comes pelting down the hill, her face as white as a ghost.
    The driver hands her his mobile as he crouches downbeside James. ‘Ring the emergency number,’ he says. ‘We need an ambulance.’
    It’s one of those flip phones and, when she’s got it open, she stares at it for a second.
    â€˜Zero, zero, zero,’ the driver says. Then he goes back to James. ‘Can you hear me?’
    James moans a bit and nods his head.
    â€˜Good,’ says the driver. ‘Does anything hurt?’
    I can’t believe he just asked that question of a boy lying there like that. It looks like everything hurts.
    James nods.
    â€˜Your back? Your neck?’
    James shakes his head.
    â€˜Can you move your arms?’
    James doesn’t answer. He looks like he’s gone to sleep. It scares me more than when he was moaning.
    Carefully, the man lifts James’ right leg up and tips him more onto the side. He gets one of James’ hands and puts it under his cheek.
    â€˜Just lie still,’ he says. ‘Don’t move until the ambulance drivers have checked you out.’
    Ranga is still making this keening noise, hugging his knees and rocking back and forth, his eyes fixed on James.
    Jess walks over and puts an arm around his shoulders.
    Just to make things worse, a few big drops of rain splatter on the road while we’re waiting. The sky is so dark it feels like the end of the world.

20
    I’ve never seen Dad so angry. Mum either. They look even angrier than the sky outside.
    â€˜How could you be such an idiot?’ Dad says, and they both glare at me as though I’m some sort of mass murderer. I want to try to explain how we thought we were doing something good for James and that we didn’t think anything like this would happen. I think about saying how much James wanted to do it after he saw the couch, but I don’t.
    â€˜Don’t you realise what could have happened?’ Dad doesn’t wait for me to answer. ‘He could have been killed. If his pump was damaged it could still do a lot of harm.’
    â€˜What really hurts,’ Mum says, ‘is how you deceived me. You got me to move my car out of the garage so you could fix the couch, not turn it into a skateboard. Then you wag school and now this.’
    I know I should be feeling guilty but I don’t, not about that anyway. Technically we did fix the couch, but I know better than to try and say that. I do feel sort of bad that I didn’t tell her what we were doing, but I know if we had, she’d have stopped us. Turns out it would have been better if she had.
    â€˜It seems like every time you hang out with Warren, you do something stupid. You’re grounded — and don’t ask for how long! I’m too upset to make that decision at the moment.’
    What? That’s not fair! It’s not like we planned to do anything bad. It just turned out that way.
    â€˜You’re just lucky the car driver was a doctor and that girl came along when she did. Otherwise things could have worked out a whole lot worse.’
    I keep my face straight. At least they won’t ban me from seeing Jess if they don’t know she was part of it. I don’t know what to say, nothing that would help anyway, so I just keep looking at the ground.
    â€˜Look at me when I’m talking to you!’ Dad yells.
    I look up, but not at his face.
    He lets it pass. ‘We’ve been talking to Warren’s mother and we all agree that you boys need to apologise for your stupid, irresponsible behaviour.’
    I don’t know where exactly this is heading but I nod to show I’m listening.
    â€˜Tomorrow, I’m taking you to the hospital. Warren will be there too. You will both say sorry to James’ mother and to James for what you’ve done. Is that clear?’ Mum’s