Page 55 of Connectio

He smirks and hands over his money. “Yes, someone like me.”

She turns her back to him and opens her eyes so wide I’m afraid her eyeballs might pop out and I’ll have to catch them.

“Thanks for your input, Oliver, but I think I’ll decide for myself who my type is.”

“Well, we both know it’s not him.”

Carly doubles back. “It’s not you either.”

He glares at her.

I give her a little shove. “Come on, you two, we gotta go.”

We arrive at school just as the bell rings, kids running in all directions back to their classrooms.

Will is supervising Jeremy manoeuvre the excavator from the car park into the roped-off area, his arms crossed over his chest, his legs shoulder-width apart.

I detour over to him on my way to class. “Hey, sorry about Oliver. I don’t know what’s gotten into him. He acted like a complete jerk at lunch.”

Will doesn’t look at me, instead completely focussed on his apprentice. “It’s not an act, sweetheart. The guy is a jerk.”

“Yeah.” I bow my head. “I’m just beginning to realise that.”

“Better late than never, I guess.”

“True. Anyway, I better get to cla—”

“Stop!” Will shouts.

He darts off and dives behind the excavator, his python arms wrapping around one of the kids who somehow snuck into the roped off area. I scream, horrified, as they tumble to the ground, Will bearing the brunt of the fall, his head colliding with the back of the machine.

“Will! Toby!” I rush to their side and drop to my knees. “Are you okay?”

“I…” Toby starts crying, his tiny body trembling all over. “I was just getting my b-ball.”

I quickly scan his face, running my hands from his head to his arms. “Are you hurt? Can you walk?” I glance at Will, who’s not moving. “Will!” I touch his arm, but he’s unresponsive. Oh no! No, no, no. Dread climbs my spine like a flame, my chest seizing.

Jeremy is by my side in an instant, one hand covering his mouth, the other gripping his hair. “I’m so sorry. I… I didn’t see the kid. I—”

“It’s not your fault.”

“My knee hurts,” Toby whines.

“Jeremy, take Toby to the office and get Carly to call an ambulance. Tell her Will hit his head. He’s… he’s unconscious.” I scoot closer and gently touch the side of his face. “Will! Can you hear me?”

He doesn’t answer. God! Please be okay.

Jeremy carefully scoops Toby into his arms and dashes off.

“What happened?” Sal questions as she kneels on the other side of Will, her eyes wide, her hands tentative as they hover over his still body.

I slip my hand under his head, cushioning it from the concrete. A sticky warmth coats my fingers, and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt they’re covered in blood.

“Toby snuck in here to get his ball and nearly got hit by the excavator. Will jumped in the way and hit his head.” I cup his face with my other hand. “He’s bleeding, Sal. I can feel it.”

“Shit! What do we do?”

“We—”