He certainly hadn’t expected the call.
At the time it had been quite a buzz having his old school friend Stinker make contact. This was despite the fact that all that time ago he had stolen the Stinker’s girlfriend. Maybe it was only him that remembered it. As childish as it was, there had been bad feeling between the youngsters at the time, but this was obviously something that could be safely left in the past, were such things belong. The caller had been working overseas for a couple of years and was now back, getting in touch, and eager to catch up after a long absence. After a long chat, he noted the name of the club, apparently the best possible place to meet up in, with rave reviews being posted. He agreed to be there at the appointed time on the following evening. The caller said that would be good as he was leaving the next day.
He felt a degree of childish excitement as he got off the bus and made his way to the rendezvous. It was hard finding the place at first and he had to check that he’d typed the address into his phone correctly. Eventually he found it tucked away in a backstreet. The bouncer on the door had given him a funny look and seemed reluctant to let him in at first. This was resolved by him explaining that he was meeting somebody. When he entered, he was surprised to find that the place’s décor, and the clientele for that matter, weren’t at all what he was expecting. The crowd seemed to be a rough looking mob and very rowdy. A silence fell as he made his way to the bar, looking around for the one who had invited him. He was nowhere to be seen.
Meanwhile, on the other side of town his old school friend was looking at the time and wondering if the other was having trouble finding the place. He waited a while longer before trying his phone. After several attempts, each time finding his calls were being rejected, he started to think. There was that time at school, when they had fallen out. This had been payback! He felt foolish, he’d been kept waiting for well over an hour. He would go back and pack, ready for his morning flight.
Back at the other club… well, not exactly the club, but the rubbish skip in the alley behind the club, he slowly regained consciousness. He moved rubbish bags to one side and looked up. The container was large and deep. He wondered how difficult it would be to climb out. He became aware of the bruising to most parts of his body. Trying to sit up was painful, so climbing up and out wasn’t an option. He had only a vague recollection of being approached by a woman at the bar just before being struck on the head from behind. He could remember nothing after that. He would call for help, but his phone was gone, along with his wallet, and his shoes! They were his favourites and very expensive, so he wasn’t too surprised. He would wait until morning when there’d be people about. Then, he could cry for help. He started to think. There was that time at school, when they had fallen out. He felt foolish. This had been payback! He would try to get some sleep before daylight.
Neither would ever know…