Strangled Silence by Oisin McGann Read Free Book Online

chance,
despite the age gap of three years.
    His heart started thumping so loudly he was
worried Dani might hear it over the phone. He
lifted the receiver from his chest.
    'She'll be down in a minute,' he lied. 'So how's
life?'
    'Life's good,' Dani replied cautiously. 'Y'know
. . . full of experiences. Just can't believe I can cram
so much excitement into each day. How about
you?'
    'Great, great,' he said, nodding even though she
couldn't see it. 'So . . . eh . . . eh . . . listen, you want
to go out for a drink sometime?'
    'Mmmm,' she said in that I-had-a-feeling-this-was-coming
type of way. 'I'm . . . I'm flattered,
Tariq, really. But I have a boyfriend, you know? You
met him at the party?'
    'Oh . . . I didn't know that was still on,' he said,
the lead weight of embarrassment and failure
settling in his stomach. Then he added lamely, 'Hey,
you could bring him too!'
    'Yeah. Thanks anyway,' she said in a voice
intended to be kind, which just made him feel
worse. 'Ehm . . . is Amina going to be long? I could
call back.'
    'No, seriously,' he persisted, with a recklessness
born of having no more pride to lose. 'He could
come along. I'd like to meet him; I don't have
enough friends anyway. We might have a lot in
common – we both like you; that's a good start.
What's he into? Does he play any games?'
    'You have things in common all right,' she
chuckled – Tariq loved the way she could chuckle
with a Scots accent. 'He doesn't take "no" for an
answer either. And I am afraid, my dear, that you
both love games more than you love me.'
    'Really? What's his highest score on Tech-Shot
Extreme?'
    'He doesn't play it.'
    'Dump the swine. Really, dump him. He
obviously can't handle a real game and he's just, like,
going out with you because your scrumptiousness
helps prop up his fragile self-esteem. He'll end up
snapping and . . . y'know, finding God or something.
You should go out with me instead. I have a
much more interesting set of inadequacies.'
    'Is that right?' Dani asked, and he could almost
hear her arch an eyebrow. 'And in what fascinating ways are you inadequate?'
    'I live life in a . . . y'know, like, a virtual fantasy
world because real life has little attraction for me,'
he told her in a serious voice. 'I seek the shelter of
darkness, away from prying eyes, so that, like, my
sensitive nature won't be bruised by human
contact.'
    'My, aren't we articulate all of a sudden – now
that we've been rejected by the bonny lassie?' Dani
retorted, and there was a smile in her voice. He had
won a smile, even if it was over the phone. 'And
how can I save you from this virtual oblivion then?'
    'Your intelligence, your wit and your kindness
can be the shining light that will guide me out of
the darkness,' he crooned. 'And your breasts will
give me something to hold on to.'
    Dani burst out laughing, pulling the phone
away from her head to try and muffle the sound.
Tariq bit his lip, knowing he had scored a point. She
came back a moment later, trying to stop laughing.
    'They're not handlebars , Tariq!'
    He was in with a chance after all. Make them
laugh and you were halfway there. Clenching his
fist in victory, he was framing his next remark when
the phone was grabbed from his hand.
    'Hey!' he exclaimed.
    'I said I'd call her back!' Amina said, prodding
him in the arm and giving him her big-sister smile,
then enunciating each word with a prod: 'Stop.
Trying. To. Chat. Up. My. Friends. It's embarrassing.
And you're soiling the phone with your dirty
adolescent mind.' Then, into the phone, she added,
'Hi, Dani? Yeah, yeah, I know. I think I just saved
you from a fate worse than death. You're in danger
of becoming my little brother's next obsession.
Yeah? He did, did he?'
    She looked at him. He waved his middle finger
in her face and folded his arms, waiting to have this
out with her when she finished the call.
    'Yeah,' she said, returning the gesture. 'He can
be pretty funny when he wants. But then, it helps
that he's funny- looking .