Run Johnboy Run: The Glasgow Chronicles 2 (45 page)

  When Tony arrived back, the boys huddled roond aboot him.  He telt them that the heidmaster hid jist telt him that if a fight wis tae start between any ae them and the boys fae Springburn or Milton or between any ae them and the teachers, then no matter who started it, aw the uglies and The Mankys wid be shipped up tae the closed block at Rossie Farm, in Montrose.  He also said that he wis shifting the Peg boys oot ae the gardens.

“Fuck the pricks!  We’ll bloody-well wreck the place when we arrive if they try that wan,” Patsy declared.

  “Ah thought ye hid tae hiv been in two approved schools before they could put ye there, Tony?” Joe asked. 

  Everywan knew full well that the only reason Silent and a few ae the others wur put tae Thistle Park wis so that they could fuck up, which wis guaranteed, and that they could then be sent tae the closed block, which wis a secure unit, wae cells, within Rossie Farm Approved School.  It wis set up tae deal wae the really bad boys who kept getting intae trouble in approved schools, fae aw o’er Scotland.  Johnboy’s big brother, Charlie, hid been sent there.

  “Aye, that’s whit Ah heard as well,” Johnboy said.

  “That’s whit Ah telt the auld basturt, bit he said that wan approved school or no, he’d declare us too unruly and we’d be offskie.  He said he wisnae gonnae fuck aboot wae us.”

  Silence.

  “Aye, and another thing…he also said that aw the teachers ur up fur a fight and that they hivnae lost a battle yet and they wurnae aboot tae lose wan noo.”

  Silence.

  “Well, Ah hope youse ur aw gonnae wait until efter the morra before ye fuck aboot.  Ah’m wanting tae get back intae Glesga tae catch up oan a wee bit ae unfinished business and Ah don’t want ma chances being spoilt by any ae youse selfish pricks,” Johnboy scowled at them as Tony gied him another wan ae they funny looks ae his.

  It wis the first time since he’d arrived in Thistle Park that Johnboy wis looking forward tae polishing the boots.  He’d been lying in his bed fur hours, no sleeping and wishing the night away.  Every hauf an hour, wan ae the two nightshift teachers came creeping intae his dorm and went across and turned his security key in the wee box that wis stuck tae the wall at the far end ae the room.  They always made a point ae checking that aw the beds hid a body in them.  If a heid wisnae oan view, wan ae them wid draw closer and shine a torch tae make sure.  It hid been agreed that Johnboy wid heid aff in wan direction oan his lonesome and Tottie, Patsy, Minky and Freckles wid go as well, bit they’d heid in the direction ae Barrheid.  Tony and Joe hid decided tae sit this wan oot. Silent wisnae happy wae the situation when he found oot whit wis aboot tae happen and that he wisnae part ae it.  No that he’d expressed how he wis feeling oot loudly tae anywan.

  “Fur fuck’s sake, Silent.  Ah’ve been here o’er a month noo and ye’ve practically said two words tae me in aw that time,” Johnboy hid snarled at him, instantly regretting it.

  Silent hid never been wan tae say much in the first place, at least no since Tony hid made him and Johnboy use Fat Boy Milne and his pals’ mooths as a spittoon in wan ae the back courts back in the Toonheid, no long efter Silent hid escaped fae The Grove wae Paul McBride.

  “He wis always quite, long before then, so he wis,” Tony hid said defensively wan night when they wur aw talking aboot how quiet Silent wis…or hid become, depending who wis talking.

  “Fuck’s sake, Johnboy, it wis you who introduced him as Silent in the first place.  Ye don’t think that tag hid anything tae dae wae how talkative he wis, dae ye?” Paul hid scoffed, demolishing Johnboy’s theory aboot the spittoon.

  “Naw, Paul, he wis quiet then, bit noo we cannae get a bloody word oot ae him fae wan week tae another.”

  “It’s a pity there isnae mair like him aboot here,” Paul hid spat back at him.

  “Aye, shut the fuck up and stoap talking shite, professor,” Joe hid said tae Johnboy, getting in oan the act.

  Oot in the yard, it wis still dark when they wur being allocated their row ae boots.  Baby started arguing wae a teacher that he didnae want the row that he wis being allocated because it wis full ae farm boots.  Another teacher came o’er tae check them oot and that’s when everywan made their move.  There wisnae anything said between them as they’d awready done aw the talking.  Everywan jist lunged at the gap between the shed and the wee red brick building, where the other two teachers wur staunin oan guard.  Johnboy goat clean through while Patsy wis pushed oan tae that arse ae his by wan ae the big muscle-bound he-men, bit managed tae gie him the slip.  Patsy, Tottie, Minky and Freckles heided between the big greenhoose oan their left while Johnboy shot behind the classroom hut oan his right.  Within a few seconds, Johnboy hid scrambled up and o’er the twelve feet fence and o’er the barbed wire at the tap ae that.  He set aff running doon a white frost-coated field towards some hooses that wur being built.  He hidnae realised how cauld it wis until he noticed the cloud ae white breath shooting oot ae his mooth. Johnboy jist aboot shat himsel when he heard running footsteps behind him.

  “Johnboy, hing oan!  It’s me, Silent!”

  “Silent, ya diddy, ye” Johnboy wheezed, stoapping and turning.  “Whit the fuck ur ye daeing here, ya eejit, ye?” he demanded, bit Silent jist stood panting, gieing him a smile.

    Johnboy looked back up the dark field.  He noticed their trail ae fitprints oan the frosted grass fae the fence further back. He could hear whistles being blown by the teachers and the school bell ringing.  They kept oan running like whippets across mair fields and disappeared intae a wee wood.  Oan the other side ae the wood, they came tae a road wae a farm oan the other side.  Their luck wis in.  Leaning against the byre wis a push bike.  Johnboy grabbed it and started tae pedal like fuck as Silent ran behind and jumped up oan tae the saddle.  They hidnae a clue whit direction they wur heiding in…bit they wur free.  They dumped the bike efter a couple ae miles and heided across mair fields, keeping tae the edges ae them tae hide any fitprints that wid gie them away tae passing cars oan the road. They wur heiding in the direction ae a busy road they could see in the distance. Wance they wur close tae it, they sat freezing their baws aff in amongst some bushes fur maist ae the day.  At wan point, Johnboy wis gonnae tell Silent aboot his visit fae Skull, bit when he glanced across at Silent, he wis hunched up wae his teeth chattering, looking close tae death.  Cop cars wur whizzing up and doon the road past them fur maist ae the morning before they started tae peter oot.  He wis glad Silent hid come efter him. Even though Johnboy hid known the uglies fae the Garngad fur years, none ae The Mankys hid really ran aboot wae them oan the ootside.  The uglies wur part ae the crowd that used tae beat everywan up and take their money and sweeties aff ae them ootside The Carlton picture hoose in Castle Street oan a Saturday efternoon when Johnboy wis younger.  The first time he’d spoken tae them hid been when Skull introduced him tae them wan time up at the Toonheid Baths, the day that Baby swopped his big thick green knitted woollen trunks, which hid nae elastic in the waist, wae that fat fingered flickerer, Alex Milne, who’d practically droont when he’d dived in tae the pool and sank tae the bottom wae the weight ae them.  Efter that, it wis as if Johnboy hid jist been accepted as wan ae the gang and they always hung aboot wae each other when they wur inside.  They wur always up fur a rammy, no matter how big or how many ae the basturts wur staunin in front ae them.  Paul, who’d learned how tae box in a real boxing club, hid telt Johnboy that Patsy hid received mair second prizes than a monkey at the carnival.  Johnboy wisnae sure if he’d meant it or no as he wis laughing when he’d said it.  Anytime Johnboy hid clocked Patsy fighting, he’d always seemed tae come oot oan tap, even if he
did pick up a black eye or a split lip oan route.  Johnboy supposed the difference between the Garngad boys and his pals wis that, while the uglies wur always fighting wae anywan that they thought wid fight them back, Tony, Joe, Silent and Paul wur only interested in blagging anything that made them money.  That wisnae tae say that they didnae fight.  There wur very few ae the Garngad crowd who’d want tae hiv a go at Tony, Joe or Paul.  Wance Tony started, people tended tae get mair than a black eye and wid get hurt jist a bit mair than they wid if they wur in a normal square-go.  Tony wisnae too choosey whit he used either…anything that came tae haun wid dae.  He’d gied Johnboy a lesson wan day, bit no oan how tae box or use his feet, although if Johnboy hid asked him, he’d probably hiv shown him wan or two wee classic moves.  Whit he’d telt Johnboy wis mair tae dae wae knowing why ye goat intae fighting in the first place and whit it wis ye wanted tae get oot ae it efter the damage hid been inflicted oan whoever it wis that ye wur fighting.  Efter Tony hid finished patiently explaining, Johnboy still hidnae been quite sure if he’d taken in whit hid been said.  It hid been oan the same day that they’d ran intae some boys fae Possil that Tony and Paul hid hid a wee barney wae sometime in the past, when they’d been in The Grove.  They’d been in the Wan-O-Wan snooker hall, doon oan Hope Street.  Tony hid chased efter wan ae them.  Paul hid been dealing wae wan ae them o’er by the windae where ye collected yer baws and cues, which hid left Johnboy squaring up tae another wan.  Johnboy and his boy hid been prancing roond the table, swinging punches four feet apart fae each other, bit never landing any.  Johnboy hid thought that he wis daeing okay until Paul hid casually sauntered past him and knocked the boy oot wae wan punch.  At the time, Johnboy hid been really impressed because the boy, who wis a big mean-looking basturt, hid drapped like a sack ae spuds.  Paul hid then turned roond, withoot saying a word, and hid looked at Johnboy as if he wis a bloody eejit.  He’d then walked towards the exit oan the stairs.  When they wur back up the road, sitting up oan Horsey John’s stable roof, Tony hid carried oan wae the lesson fae earlier.

  “Johnboy, whit the fuck wur ye daeing, prancing aboot like a big Jessie, doon at the snooker club?”

  “Er, how dae ye mean?”

  “Ah thought ye wur gonnae ask that prick oot fur a date.”

  “Ah wis jist aboot tae land ma best knockoot blow when Paul interrupted me,” Johnboy hid said lamely, looking across at Paul who looked tae be thoroughly enjoying Johnboy’s squirming.

  “Johnboy, why fuck aboot, using up aw that energy, huffing and puffing, eh?  Whit ye need tae dae is get in and oot and back tae daeing whit ye wur daeing before ye wur disturbed in the first place.”

  “Eh?”

  “Whit’s the point ae fighting?  Whit ye need tae dae is make sure that whoever comes up against ye, knows fine well that they’re gonnae be bloody sore fur mair than a day if they mess wae you.”

  “It’s awright fur youse two.  Youse kin fight like fuck…Ah cannae.”

  “It’s goat sweet fuck aw tae dae wae being able tae
fight.  We cannae fight either, bit we kin bloody make sure that any basturt that fancies their chances will get a sore wan if they dae hiv a go.  Who wants tae fight?  No me, that’s fur sure.  Ye want people tae get the message that although they might beat ye, they’ll get hurt in the process.”

  “Whit he’s trying tae say, Johnboy, is there’s less chance ae being in a fight if people know whit it entails.”

  “Ye mean fear?  Ye make them scared ae ye, even if they’re bigger and tougher than ye?  So, how dae Ah go aboot daeing that then?”

  “Ye jist hiv tae make sure that the first time ye hiv a go, ye really hurt whoever it is that’s stupid enough tae be staunin there in front ae ye.  The message will soon get aboot that people should stay well clear ae ye,” Paul hid replied, as Johnboy looked across at Tony.

  “Couldnae hiv said it better masel,” Tony hid said, nodding.

  While Johnboy agreed that whit they’d said probably made a lot ae sense, he never could get intae aw that violence shit that they seemed tae enjoy inflicting oan people who crossed them.

  Johnboy and Silent wur picked up oan the new motorway that wis getting built, which ran past Abbotsinch Airport intae Glesga.  They’d been walking alang the ditches beside it, bit every noo and again, they’d hid tae climb up the embankment tae make sure they wur still gaun in the right direction.  It took the bizzies twenty minutes tae take them back tae the school…a journey that hid taken Johnboy and Silent aw day.

  “Right, you’re first, Taylor!”  Rolled Back Neck growled, gieing Johnboy a wee push in the middle ae his back towards the room. 

  There wur six ae them plus the heidmaster, who Johnboy hidnae met up until then.  Johnboy wis telt tae strip aff and put oan his thin cotton blue PE shorts.  When he wis finished changing, he wis ordered tae lie flat oan his stomach oan the table.  When he didnae move, he wis grabbed and flung face doon and held by his hauns and ankles while two ae the basturts held his heid and wan pressed doon oan they shoulders ae his.  The heidmaster then started tae tug and roll the waistband ae Johnboy’s shorts up until they disappeared between the cracks ae his arse and they felt as if they wur sticking tae him.

  “Right, Sunny-Jim.  This is what awaits you if you cross the line in here.  I had to administer the same to that brother of yours and you’re not any harder than what he was.”

  And wae that, Johnboy goat six ae the sorest beltings he’d ever felt in his life.  He thought it wis a wonder the ceiling hidnae come doon oan tap ae everywan every time that thick leather-fingered ‘Black Prince’ landed oan that arse ae his.  Whit made it even mair painful wis when the belt landed oan a bit ae his flesh where it hid landed a few seconds earlier.  Efter the sixth wan, Johnboy’s howling died doon tae a semi-scream, due tae the numbness ae his sore arse.  He wis then carried, like a deid body, tae an adjoining room and slung oan tae that stinging arse ae his and his school uniform wis slung oan tap ae his heid.  He could hardly move when bending o’er tae put his shite-catchers oan.  The stinging wis unbearable.  Meanwhile, Silent hid been getting his dose ae whit Johnboy hid jist been gied.  Aw Johnboy could hear wis a whoosh and then whit sounded like a giant firecracker gaun aff, followed by a blood curdling scream.  Johnboy thought they must’ve hid plenty ae practice ae belting arses.  Within a minute, the door wis flung open, and Silent came sailing through, oan tae that well-skelped arse ae his, followed by his clothes and wis telt tae get dressed.  Johnboy wis practically dressed, apart fae getting his shoes back oan tae his feet.  Silent didnae say anything tae him efter they dumped him oan tae the flair.  When Johnboy looked o’er, Silent wis whimpering quietly tae himsel, as he peeled aff his PE shorts.  Johnboy thought he looked like a bloody sergeant major wae they blue and red stripes oan that arse ae his oan display.  Johnboy couldnae help himsel and suddenly burst oot laughing, while hauf greeting at the same time.