Kane (2024)

Chapter 5: A Plan!

Mark slammed the door behind him as he walked into the kitchen, his face twisted in anger. "That's it, Jane. He's done it this time," he growled, pacing the floor. "Kicked out of school. Permanently."

Jane sat at the table, her hands clasped together, staring at the wood grain in silence. She had seen it coming, hadn't she? All the fights, the drinking, the smoking... Kane had been spiraling for a long time. But this? It felt like the final nail in the coffin.

"No education, no qualifications. What is he going to do now?" Mark continued, his voice rising. "We can't even control him. We've lost him."

"We haven't lost him," Jane said softly, though her words felt hollow even to her. "We... we just need to find a way to reach him."

"Reach him?" Mark scoffed. "Jane, he spends every night out, drinking, smoking God knows what. He's robbing shops now, for Christ's sake! He's ruining his life, and there's nothing we can do."

Jane looked up, her eyes filled with exhaustion. "We have to try. He's still a kid, Mark."

Mark shook his head, slamming his fist on the counter. "He's not just a kid anymore. He's a criminal."

After being permanently excluded from school, Kane's days blurred into a haze of parties, weed, and alcohol. Without school to anchor him, his life quickly spiraled out of control. He spent most of his time at his friends' houses, crashing on their sofas after long nights of drinking and smoking. His so-called friends still went to school, but as soon as the final bell rang, they'd meet up with Kane to continue the nightly chaos.

The parties became wilder, the drinking heavier, and the weed more frequent. They started stealing from corner shops to fund their habits, nabbing bottles of alcohol when the shopkeepers weren't looking. It wasn't long before they escalated to something more dangerous-jumping drug dealers for free weed. Kane had built a reputation, and no dealer wanted to risk meeting him alone. He was too unpredictable, too violent. So Kane had to rely on his friends to collect for him, using their fear to his advantage.

As the months dragged on, Kane and his friends began to form a gang. It wasn't official, not at first. But word spread quickly through the city about the group of teens robbing shops, stealing from dealers, and causing chaos wherever they went. And at the head of it all was Kane Alistair-Ace, ruthless and unflinching.

One evening, they sat around in an abandoned flat, the stench of smoke and stale beer thick in the air. Kane lounged on a beaten-up sofa, a half-empty bottle in his hand, while his friends-Tommy, Greg, and Sasha-sat around him, laughing and talking about the future.

"I'm thinking of going to college," Greg said, his voice slurred from the drink. "Might do something with mechanics, y'know?"

Sasha nodded. "Yeah, me too. Uni, maybe. I dunno. I just want to get out of here."

Tommy shrugged. "I'll probably get a job at my dad's place. Something steady."

They all turned to Kane, who hadn't said a word. He stared at the floor, the conversation grating at him. They still had options. They still had futures. College, university, jobs... all the things he'd never have.

"You alright, mate?" Tommy asked, noticing Kane's silence.

Kane scoffed, taking another swig from his bottle. "What's it matter? You lot have your plans. I've got nothing."

The room fell silent. Kane could feel their eyes on him, but he didn't care. His life was already over, wasn't it? No qualifications, no experience, no future. Just the endless cycle of drinking, smoking, and getting into fights. That was all he had now.