Life's Never Simple • SIDEMEN

• FOUR •

Monday, 8th October

• Harry •

A part of me wishes that the weekend would come back already.

It's Monday, of course, and I'm round at Simon's with the others for Tobi's party. But honestly, I've been struggling to pay attention to what's going on around me.

Even though I've done nothing but rest over the last few days, I still feel ridiculously tired. It's as if no amount of sleep can cure me. I'm just constantly exhausted. Especially after a day at school. Our teachers can't seem to stop piling on the pressure, continuously reminding us of how important our exams are, and how close they are now. The fact that our mocks are in a couple of weeks doesn't help the situation at all.

But I've got to try not to think about that now.

The seven of us are all together in Simon's extension, sat in our usual spots on the huge 'C' shaped wicker sofa. From right to left, is sat Simon, JJ, Josh, Ethan, Callum, me, Vik and then an empty spot on the far left beside Vikk for Tobi. I can hear birds chirping around the garden, and it's quite relaxing.

"Harry?" Vikk says, shaking me from my thoughts. When I glance at him, there's concern in those soulful brown eyes of his. "You okay?"

"Yeah, sorry," I say, relaxing back into the sofa slightly more. "Just tired." Vikk nods in an understanding way.

"Oh my God! When is he gonna get here?" JJ complains loudly, interrupting our conversation. and dramatically leaning his head back on Simon's shoulder.

"Hey, JJ, it's lucky he could come at all," Josh says, in the defence of Tobi. "Sounds like he's had a nasty case of food poisoning."

"Yeah, I would not like to be where he is now," Ethan says, giving an over-exaggerated shudder.

"Does that mean you wouldn't want to be here, Ethan?" A voice calls from over the tall, wooden gate that leads from Simon's driveway to the outdoor extension. Vikk jumps excitedly to his feet, already knowing who it is.

"Tobi!" He says enthusiastically, pulling the gate open to reveal the slightly taller boy. Tobi still looks quite rough, but seems happy to be here. He's dressed in casual clothes, where the rest of us are in our uniforms still because of coming here straight from school. He grins widely, but dodges Vikk's hug.

"Hey Star," Tobi smiles. "I'm sorry, I would hug you, but I don't trust myself not to throw up if you accidentally squeeze me too tight." Vikk looks sad, but nods. Tobi ruffles his hair lightly, and the two come towards the group. Vikk retakes his seat, and Tobi claims the empty spot next to him.

"A'ight, Tobes, can I trust you not to throw up on anything?" Simon says, only half joking.

"I'll be fine bro, don't stress. Just don't let me eat too much," he says, eyeing the huge collection of sweets, chocolate and crisps on the table in the middle of us all.

"I ain't gonna complain, more for us," says JJ, reaching for a bag of Minstrels. Simon smacks his hand.

"Leave some for the rest of us Jide," he says sternly, and JJ pouts.

"Fine, Dad," he grumbles, but Simon allows him to then take the bag of Minstrels. To my right, Cal reaches out for a tube of Pringles, and opens that.

"What're we doing tonight?" I ask, looking around at everyone.

Simon shrugs. "Tobi's pick, it's his birthday after all."

"In that case," says Tobi, glancing around the circle. I can tell he's trying to think of something that we will all enjoy doing, even though he should be allowed to pick whatever he likes. He can't seem to help being considerate of others. "You guys fancy a game of Truth or Dare?"