The week continued very much in the same way it began. Miles and Beth would see each other as often as they could and Beth became more and more bemused by the company she was keeping. Her lunchtimes now comprised of sharing her new bench with Danny, Katy, Liza, Tom and Michelle, three of whom were in the choir with Beth and the others from her drama group. They made each other laugh and had shared similar experiences of being victimized by the Clones with Michael seemingly the worst perpetrator of them all.

Tom was slim and very handsome, with gentle features and an even gentler manner. Since Michael had discovered Tom was gay, he had been hounded mercilessly and Tom was regularly seeing a counselor on and off campus to talk about his anxieties.

In a matter of days, the small group had formed a common bond, each one of them with a story to tell of how isolated they felt within school and how persecuted they felt by a small group of people. Beth and Jessica's term "The Clones" was adopted by all of them and they found some comfort in the knowledge that they had similar experiences of school.

"It's a shame we all had to wait until the end of our last term together to talk to each other," Katy had said, one lunchtime and they had all promised that throughout the summer and whatever college they went to, they would stay in touch.

Jess had been advised by her doctor to stay at home for that week but the regular texts Beth received from her demonstrated Jessica's boredom and frustration at being stuck home. Beth visited whenever she could but between demonstrating to her mother that she was still taking her studies seriously, seeing Miles whenever she could and popping in to see Jess on the way home from school while Miles was in practice, Beth found her new life exhausting.

"I don't know Bethany Evans," her mum commented at dinner one night, "You wait until now to get a social life and a boyfriend. RIGHT before your exams!"

"Oh hush!" her dad scorned, "She's young, besides, you know as well as I do, she's passed half of them already and she's already been accepted into two of the colleges with unconditional offers so she can coast a bit. You enjoy yourself, love. You look alive for the first time in years!" and her dad winked at her.

Miles' parents had told him the same and discussed their exams at dinner that Thursday evening when Beth came around again to visit.

"Miles, love" his mum gently nagged that evening, "I know your coursework has already given you passes in a few of your subjects, but you can't really afford to coast too much in the exams, OK?"

Miles rolled his eyes and Beth giggled.

"Son, fill your bloody boots!" his dad laughed, "Come on Abi ... the boy has been accepted at college, he knows what he's doing and the scholarship is just a little bonus because he knows he's already on the program."

Beth looked up from her plate and stared at Miles, "Is that true?" she asked smiling widely. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Miles shook his head, "I've had a letter from them telling me they're interested in putting me forward and that they'll be speaking to Coach. They'll still be watching me on Saturday 'coz I know one of them from the college will be there and they'll be still watching me at the last trial to make sure I'm not a one game wonder."

"One game wonder," his dad repeated, mockingly, "Those scouts have watched you for at least five or six games this year and they were around last year too, so don't bloody tell me they haven't already made up their minds!"

Miles shook his head again and smiled at his dad, "I'm not taking anything for granted, alright Pop?"

Later that evening, before Miles' dad dropped her home Beth and Miles finished the packet off under the soft and warm duvet in Miles' room.

They lay there, panting and giggling, limbs crossing and entwined across the bed.

"Hhmmm, not bad Mr. Edwards, not bad at all. I think you're match fit!"

Miles laughed and wrapped his arms around her back, pulling her into him.

"I'll have to buy another packet of those quickly, I can't see me lasting too long without needing to ... ahem ... with you again!" he said gruffly.

"I like ... aheming ... with you," Beth coughed, "I especially love the way you .., ahem... my ... ahem."

"Oh, you do, do you?" Miles chortled, "Well the way you ... ahem ... the end of my ... ahem is mind blowing!"

She blushed and buried her head in his chest.

"So, you looking forward to the game? Less than 48 hours away now!" she asked.

Miles smiled and Beth could hear the grin in his voice, "As long as I keep that prick Michael off me for five minutes, I am so looking forward to playing against some of those internationals. Shit Beth, some of them are so fast, I'll be lucky if I land one tackle on one of them. Won't stop me trying though!"

Beth had been chatting to her dad that week about rugby and her father had painstakingly tried to explain the rules to her. He gave up when he tried to explain the concept of a scrum when she exclaimed, "The second row put their heads where?"

"You and Charlie all set? I heard you earlier checking the equipment with him!" Miles asked cheerfully, "God, he's so made up about you helping him. Thank you."

"It's my pleasure, Babe. It also means he gets to have something to remember the match by, you get to see yourself play and we'll get to watch it all back together afterwards with fancy bits thrown in. Is his girlfriend going? Charlie didn't know if she'd be there and he was worried that he'd be so busy with me that she would feel left out."

Miles shook his head, "No, she's got a hospital check up. We didn't tell him because he hates the word hospital and it's only a check up."

"Does he hate it because he was in there a few years ago?" Beth asked quietly.

She felt Miles nod his head and she dropped the subject. Charlie's heart scare had been a shock for the family and there seemed little sense dwelling on that part of their lives when they were so deliriously happy in the present.

As Beth lay there, she realized that this could be a perfect moment to tell Miles how she felt about him. How her heart ached when she wasn't with him, how his smell was intoxicating and how his touch felt like small pulses of electricity passed through her skin.

She thought back to when they were waiting together for the ambulance to leave with Jessica. The exhilaration of the moment, seeing Miles in control and being his wonderful strong self had suddenly provided a window of clarity for Beth, only for her to be interrupted just as she felt she could say the three words that paralyzed her with fear. She longed for that same clarity. As she lay there with Miles, having been taken from crescendo to crescendo and from having him gasp her name and protest his love for her while she brought him to his own crescendo, she looked deeply into his eyes and desperately wanted to tell him how much she loved him. How her love for him was marrow-deep and how she had never felt that way before and whilst it petrified her, to put herself in a position of such vulnerability with someone, the love for him was so powerful, that she couldn't help but take the leap of faith and declare her feelings for him.

"I love you Bethany Evans," he whispered and Beth's eyes filled with tears as her throat closed up, denying her those three words she longed to say.

Miles' eyes dropped and the disappointment of not having his words mirrored flashed in his perfect sapphire eyes and Beth loathed herself in that moment for being the coward that she was.

The morning of the big match came and Beth felt butterflies in her stomach while they were driving to the ground with Miles' parents.

Beth and Charlie sat in the back and his parents chatted in the front. Miles had travelled with the team that morning and the first time they would see him would be on the pitch.

Charlie asked, "Dad, do we have to sit in the seats around the ground or can I take video closer?"

His dad smiled and replied, "No Charlie boy, we're going to one of the training grounds next to the stadium so we will be right by the pitch. Mind you keep back though or you'll get yourself knocked over by a flying tackle if you're not careful!"

"I can take them!" Charlie laughed and he winked overtly to Beth who giggled back at him.

"Is Jessica coming?" Abigail, Miles' mother asked, "I thought the fresh air would do her good."

Beth nodded and then realized his mum couldn't see her nodding in the back and quickly added, "Oh, yeah, she'll be there. Her dad wanted to see the match, being a Head he's got to show a local interest. Plus he loves seeing the Old Boys play. I think a lot of people are coming because a few more famous old school players have come back for the match?"

His dad nodded as he pulled into the junction and replied, "Yep, should be a good match. Miles was a bit nervous before he left this morning, but he should know that place on the program is his."

Beth asked inquisitively, "Miles has been quite modest about this, but it's a big deal to get picked for the rugby program at that college, isn't it?"

Andrew nodded enthusiastically as he pulled the car into the stadium car park, "A few international careers started there, plus scores of successful coaches. It's just a damn good platform and he's got what it takes."

Beth grinned at Charlie and grabbed the camera bag that sat on the seat between them, passing it to him, "Ready to make a rugby movie, Charlie?" and he nodded enthusiastically, clambering to get out of the car.

Miles' father found a spot for them all to congregate close to the half way line and Beth helped Charlie set his tripod up for his little camera in front of them. She quickly showed him how to use the small display at the back to see where the camera had focused and for him to follow whoever had the ball.

As the teams came out to warm up, Beth spent time with Charlie practicing how to follow who had the ball. Charlie's natural instinct was to focus on his brother, so Beth gently cajoled him into following the game as Miles would appreciate that better than seeing an entire game comprising of him running up and down the field with occasional shots of him on the ball or tackling someone.

As the warm up finished, Beth nervously waited for the ref to blow the whistle while monitoring Charlie in front of her, making sure he started filming. She suddenly heard a familiar voice behind her, "Hey B."

She quickly turned around and saw a pale but happy Jessica. Beth had only seen her bathed in the light of her bedroom when she'd visited that week, so seeing her in the morning's sunshine made Beth realize why the doctor had been so hesitant for Jess to return to school so quickly.

Beth enveloped her friend in a powerful hug and smelled her gorgeous friend's perfume.

"Ah, the Princess and the Porker are reunited!" Beth exclaimed happily, "Oh, it's so, so good to see you out and about."

Beth looked behind Jess briefly and shot massive smiles to Jessica's parents. Frank stepped forward and gave Beth a peck on the cheek, "Hello Beth," he warmly greeted and then Penny greeted Beth in the same way. Beth blushed a little and then introduced them all to Miles' family.

Beth watched how Jessica's family greeted Charlie as they would any other young man in his twenties and made no special effort because of he had Downs. Charlie gave them all a beaming grin and exclaimed, "Pretty Beth is showing me how to be a film maker! This is fucking awesome!"

"Language, Charlie!" his dad scolded giving Beth a knowing wink and rolling his eyes.

Jessica and her family seamlessly attached themselves to Miles' and the two men and two women chatted as if they had known each other for years.

"Your parents coming?" Jess asked as the ref whistled the start of the match and the crowd roared.

Beth's face slowly darkened, "No, they got a call ... from a hospital in Edinburgh ... my brother's ... well, apparently he's taken a shit load of prescription painkillers he'd acquired from robbing a local pharmacy and he's not well. My folks have had to go all that way for that piece of shit, Jess. And dad was so much looking forward to seeing this."

Jess frowned and gave Beth's arm a little cuddle.

"Jeezus, Jess. I'm going to have to lose weight just so you can hug a little bit more of me than a limb at a time!" Beth laughed.

"How do you feel, you know, about your brother?" Jess asked softly. Beth quickly peered over to Charlie but he was doing well and one "well done, Charlie" from Beth was all the encouragement he needed for the moment.

"I don't feel anything, is that bad?" asked Beth and Jess shook her head. Beth continued, "That bastard put me through hell. One day, I'll tell you what he used to do to me ... oh Jeeezus Jess, nothing sexual, Christ, it's written all over your face ... no, just really cruel shit, really properly vindictive ... well, it's left me a bit numb to him now. Does it make me a bad person if I said I didn't care if I saw him alive again?"

Jess shook her head and reassured Beth, "I think that makes you human, B. That's all. Ooh, Miles had got the ball. Shit Beth, I know fuck all about rugby, but I can tell he's good."

Beth looked up, embarrassed that she'd been too busy talking to her lovely pal than actually cheering her boyfriend on.

They were about fifteen minutes into the game and Charlie was getting bored so he panned the camera around to the crowd and then to Beth and Jess who scowled at him playfully and encouraged him to move the camera off them quickly. Charlie laughed and refocused on the pitch.

Being a front row, Miles was always in the thick of the action when it came to close play and he also needed to dish out hard tackles. The score lay at 7-7, each side had scored and converted a try and the crowd could see they were in for a good match, not the usual white-wash of recent years. Despite Beth's pathetic grasp of the rules of the game, she could see that Miles' role was pivotal and he had successfully tackled experienced players in the Old Boy's team and Beth wondered if they were the coveted internationals Miles had been talking about and how it would be an "honour to have his face pushed in the mud by one of them." Beth chuckled to herself, recalling Miles' hero worship of some of these men and yet here he was, playing his socks off, looking strong and dashing, caked in mud but quite clearly the star of the game, even though they were only twenty or so minutes into the first half.

Jessica, however was watching a very different game. She reveled every time Michael dropped the ball and every time he was tackled by an Old Boy and brought thundering down into the mud.

"Oooooh, I bet that hurt!" Jessica giggled and Beth looked to see where Jess was pointing. Michael had been tackled as he tried to take a pass and he spilled the ball in the process of being slammed into the ground.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Beth laughed, watching her friend take delight in seeing Michael being humiliated.

"Who knew rugby could be so much fun?" Jessica purred, "Oh, diddums, he's limping!"

Beth quickly scanned the crowd and saw Michael's father screaming at his so from the sidelines.

"Oooh, that Paul bloke doesn't look happy!" Beth laughed and pointed at him for Jessica to pick him out.

She nodded, "Yeah, I've been watching him. His face has been getting more and more purple throughout the game, he's hating the attention Miles' is getting. Look at him pointing at Miles and shouting at Michael - do you think he's telling him to play more like Miles or get Miles?"

Beth looked at Michael's father again and suddenly interpreted his gestures just as Jessica had suggested, it looked like he was egging Michael on to do something.

Beth looked to see where Miles was on the field and looked for who had the ball, most of the players were chasing after someone racing down the wing for one of the Old Boys so Miles, being a front row had been left behind with the pace of the wings ahead of him.

Suddenly, Michael ran full speed towards Miles. At first she thought he was chasing the ball but with the roar of the crowd signifying a try had just been scored by the Old Boys, there was no other reason for him to be running in that direction but to reach Miles.

Beth saw the expression on Michael's face, it was pure rage and spiteful fury. His eyes bulged and spit flew from his mouth as he careered towards the back of an oblivious Miles. All of the crowd's attention was on the other end of the pitch and Beth watched helplessly, like it was happening in slow motion as Michael approached Miles. With his fist raised, Michael swung his arm round into the side of Miles' head and carried on running past him, hardly breaking stride. The momentum from the running coupled with the energy transferred through his entire arm meant that the punch that collided with Miles' temple had deadly accuracy and force. Beth watched in horror, heart pounding, helpless and weak as Miles' eyes rolled into the back of his head and he crumpled to the ground, hitting his head again firmly on the grass.

Time lost all meaning. Before Beth knew it she was standing above Miles' limp body, surrounded by people shouting and she had no recollection of how she got there. Michael's father was walking towards them, arms raised and Michael was being held back by other players. Beth looked around her and saw Miles' dad, Andrew being restrained by a player in an Old Boy kit as Andrew lashed out at Michael.

St Johns' Ambulance first aiders pushed the angry group back to make room for them to assess Miles. Beth looked down at him again and couldn't see him breathing. His powerful chest lay dormant, eyes still fixed and lips turning blue. Words forced their way into her mouth as a primal cry erupted from her core.

"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

Wild-eyed she threw herself at Michael who dared to stand behind an official smirking, apparently surveying his work as the First Aiders yelled for someone to call an ambulance while one of them started giving him the kiss of life.

Her nails sunk into the skin on his face and she clawed at him, while she felt someone pull her back.

Suddenly Paul, Michael's father stood, wide-eyed and arrogant in front of his son, spitting vile words of abuse at Beth.

"You BASTARD! He couldn't even defend himself!" Beth shouted to anyone who could hear, "That fucking BASTARD punched Miles in the head and then ran off. PLEASE tell me someone saw it, PLEASE!"

Beth looked around her frantically, but everyone looked blankly at her. Of course they hadn't seen, they'd all been watching the try at the other end of the pitch.

Charlie suddenly shouted, his wonderful childlike face, streaked in tears holding his camera above his head!

"Beth! Beth! It's on here! It's on here!" and he ran towards her with the camera in his hand.

Of course! Charlie would have been recording his brother, not the match at the other end of the pitch.

Suddenly from behind her she heard a sickening sound. One of the first aiders exclaiming to the other, panicking "I can't find a pulse!"

Beth turned, head spinning. She can't lose him now. She can't lose him now. Not Miles.

"Beth!" she heard behind her. Charlie's voice sounded constricted and she whipped her head around. Paul was standing over Charlie, who was now sat in the mud on the sideline and Paul was holding his camera defiantly.

"Fucking RETARD!" he spat at Charlie and snapped at the catch on the back of the camera. He popped the SD card out and snapped it between his fingers placing the two pieces in his jacket pocket.

"NOOOOO!!" Charlie yelled, scrabbling to his feet again, slipping on the mud.

Beth lurched forward, trying to grasp at Michael's father, if only she could grab that broken SD card, the video could be recovered, couldn't it? He pushed her back hard, hitting her in the chest and causing her to fall back onto the ground, knocking the air from her lungs.

Charlie ran at Paul again, only to suffer the indignity of being slapped hard across the face and pushed roughly to the ground.

"I said down, DOG! FUCKING pigs! The lot of you!" he bellowed at Charlie and then down at Beth. He turned and stormed off towards his defiant son.

Beth frantically looked over to Charlie and slid over onto her knees and crawled over the mud towards him.

She heard Jessica's voice, shrill and piercing over everyone's, "Beth! Beth!" but Beth's priority was to get to Charlie. The childlike panic and the innocent despair etched onto his face compelled Beth towards him and when she reached him and held out her arms to him, Charlie fell sobbing and broken into her arms.

Both caked in mud, sitting on the sidelines with Charlie's head cradled in her arms, Beth dared to look back towards the horror still unfolding on the field. Miles' dad continued to be restrained as Michael and his father walked hastily towards the changing rooms like the cowards they were.

Crowds gathered and Beth spotted Abigail standing over the huddled group where Miles' lay. Her eyes were vacant and staring wildly at her son as Beth could hear, "Can you hear us Miles, can you hear us? Breath again for him, I think I can feel a pulse."

From behind them the sound of an ambulance siren wailed and Miles lay motionless. Time lost all meaning. All Beth could do was cradle and rock Charlie in her arms and let events unfold around her. She couldn't lose him. She closed her eyes and felt the paramedics run past her, yelling at people to clear a way for them and all Beth could picture, in slow motion was the image of Michael's fist striking the side of Miles' head with sickening force and accuracy and the light behind those perfect sapphire eyes dimming and rolling back.

Not Miles. Please. Not Miles.