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‘What? What are you doing?’
Dominic pulled back from the kiss, and looked towards the voice in the doorway. Alex. Something sank in his stomach. He almost wished it had been Emily.
‘What are you doing?’ Alex lurched towards them, pulling the plastic sword from his scabbard as he did so. Helen jumped out of the way, and Dominic stumbled backwards the three steps onto the car park.
Alex staggered after him still brandishing his sword. ‘Avast you dog!’
‘What?’
‘Avast!’
Dominic shook his head. ‘I think you mean “En guarde!”’
Alex stopped still for a second. ‘Whatever. You were snogging. And you can’t snog Helen because ...’
Helen marched down the stairs. ‘Why can’t he snog Helen?’ She leant in close to her housemate and whispered something before raising her voice. ‘He can snog who he likes.’
Alex frowned. ‘That’s not it.’ His gaze drifted south towards Helen’s chest. He turned back to Dominic. ‘You can’t snog Helen because I’m in love with her.’
‘You are?’ Dominic was surprised.
Helen shook her head. ‘He’s not.’
‘I am.’ Alex took another step towards his rival. ‘So ...’ He stopped. ‘What am I supposed to say?’
‘En guarde.’
‘Thank you. So en guarde!’
Dominic watched as Alex charged, unsteadily, towards him. Clearly, they couldn’t have a swordfight. He stepped smartly to the side and let Alex charge past him, and turned to see the other man stop and stagger in confusion, before navigating his way round in a circle back towards his adversary.
Then he came again. Dominic watched his approach as if in slow motion. Alex charged, sword aloft and Dominic watched him. That was what he did, wasn’t it? He watched life going on around him. He had a plan. He had a reputation. He had mountains of memories of times when he’d done the right thing, stood back, not made a fuss. Dominic realised that he was smiling. Why the hell shouldn’t he fight? It was obviously what Alex wanted. He was wearing a knight’s costume. There was a fair maiden who had been dishonoured. Technically she had, he mentally conceded, been dishonoured by him, but still, there was some honour involved. He pulled out his plastic sword, and swung it in Alex’s direction, failing utterly to make contact. No matter. This was happening. He was having a fight in a car park. Even given that it was a sword fight with fake swords and fancy dress, it was still probably the most dangerous thing Dominic had ever done, and it was cool. He was thrusting and parrying, channelling the two hours of fencing he’d done, aged ten with a foam sword at a holiday camp with his Auntie Karen.
By comparison, Dominic felt, Alex lacked technique, but was making up for it with sheer vigour and enthusiasm for the quest.
‘Have at ye!’ Alex yelled, and the two men bowled around the car park, thrusting and slicing through the air with their toy blades.
Dominic could feel the air racing from his lungs. Oh god, he was out of shape. Next week, he decided, he was definitely going back to the gym. He held up a hand.
‘What?’
‘Hold on a minute.’
Alex paused. ‘You can’t stop in the middle of a fight.’
‘Course you can. It’s like half-time in the football.’
Dominic glanced at his opponent and noticed a certain redness in the face.
Alex nodded. ‘All right, but just for a minute.’
Dominic leant on a Land Rover for a second, and watched Alex crouch down. Helen marched over to them. ‘Have you finished?’
Both men shook their heads. ‘It’s just a break.’
Helen sighed. ‘You’re ridiculous. Both of you.’
Alex turned towards her. ‘We’re fighting for your honour.’
‘My honour can look after itself.’
Alex shook his head. ‘No. I love you.’
‘No. You don’t.’
‘I do. And I have to defend your honour.’
‘And what about you?’
Dominic looked up, and couldn’t resist a smile at her furious face. He shrugged. ‘I sort of got dragged in.’
‘You’re a highly educated professional. People like us do not get dragged in to brawls in car parks.’
He sighed. She was right. This was exactly the sort of thing people like grown up Dominic did not do. They didn’t act on impulse. They didn’t let things get out of control. He laughed. ‘It’s not a brawl. It’s a sword fight.’ He stood, pushing one leg forward and raising one arm behind him. He held his sword out straight towards Alex. ‘En guarde!’
‘Oh for goodness sake.’ He heard Helen mutter as she stomped back a few paces across the gravel, but he didn’t care. The fight was back on. He thrust towards Alex. Behind him Helen was shouting.
‘You’ve got plastic swords. How are you even going to know when someone’s won?’
That wasn’t the point any more. The fight was the point. His heart pounding was the point. The pulsing in his ears. The gasping and gulping for air. The burn in his arms. Being absolutely in this moment, not standing with one eye to the past and one planning for the future and completely missing the now. This moment. Right now. That was that point.
Helen was still talking behind him, but now there was more than one voice. Emily. Emily must have come outside. He ducked a thrust from Alex’s sword, and tried to listen.
‘They’re fighting.’
‘Yeah.’
‘You told him, didn’t you?’ That was Emily. ‘I can’t believe you told Dom.’
He stopped. ‘Told me what?’