Chapter Sixty-Three

David hasn't been out for a few days, he was currently behaving like a hermit. He didn't even go out for food, he just used the produce from his shop. It worried Priya for Amba keeps asking for her daddy. Due to Graham's recent death, she was given a quick break from work; so she took this as the chance to go and check up on him. She knew what he did to Tracy but unlike the other women, he was the father of her child. Priya felt like she had no choice but to check up on him for her daughter's sake. Her friends Leyla, Alicia and Tracy were slightly teasing her, saying how sorry they felt for her 'being stuck with that disgrace'. David was really in their bad books and their mocking of him proved it. Priya just giving a sigh as she knocked on his door, the curtains currently drawn. It was around 10am by this point so he should be awake.

"David!" Priya called as she opened up the letter-box; trying to see if she could see him. Was he even in?

"Ignore him...He be moping" Leyla insisted as she stood a bit away.

"Leyla! I'm really worried about him...I'm not going to ignore him just because he had a one night stand"

"So you're sticking up for him? Tracy got back with him and he cheated on her after one argument. But you do you Priya"

"Bit rich coming from you who slept with him while he and Tracy were married, I don't remember you sticking by her then"

"Oh that's right, keep going back to that...When are we going to blame David? The man who cheated on pretty much every girlfriend he ever had. Let's think shell we...It was him cheating on you with Alicia, him cheating on Alicia with you then it was him cheating on Tracy with me and Maya...Then him cheating on Maya with Tracy again; did I get that right? I might have got it slightly mixed up"

"I'm not defending him! I'm just here for Amba, okay?"

She just gave a shrug, leaving her friend to it. After another loud knocking, the man in question finally answered. He looked a bit of a state though, his hair not brushed and it looked like he barely got any sleep. A few hours maybe. Priya didn't know what to say now she came face to face. David was a bit of a mess now, he kept thinking over everything in his head and could barely do anything else.

"David...Can I come in?" Priya asked with a sad look on her face.

"No, sorry...I'm in the middle of my nap" David replied.

"David-" Priya went to say however he shut the door in her face.

This just made her give a large sigh. He wasn't even willing to talk right now, so with one final look at the door. Priya had to take her leave, he was in an awful state. The whole business with Tracy has reduced him back to that. Now Jacob was no longer there, he had no motivation to improve his situation. It was all things, Maya dying, Jacob leaving to go back to Justin, his and Tracy's brief reunion and his friend Pete leaving. Everything just got on top of him once again.

...

"I can't return to the village right now...Wendy will just have to come in and discuss things in my office" Liam tried to tell Manpreet.

"Is that your way of telling me I should speak to her?"

"No! I just really can't. Diane is hell-bent on it"

Manpreet just gave a disbelieving moan. Another one of her colleagues hated by Diane! It was a very bad joke. She did question Liam as to why he suddenly left and he just claimed it was due to 'stress' because of his ex-wive's recent death and Bernice leaving him. Though it was hard to believe, he and Maya were estranged long before that. As for Bernice, a break-up is not a good enough reason to ditch everything (which included his job, his cottage and Leanna's education).

"Does this surgery have a 'Those who Annoyed Diane Sugden Welcome' sign written on it?" Manpreet asked rhetorically. Liam would laugh if it wasn't so serious.

"It was just a domestic"

"A domestic? A domestic which resulted in you leaving for months on end and Leanna failing her GCSE's? Look, you don't have to tell me the exact reason, just please give me more notice if the 'domestic' comes up again"

She and her partner Rishi have been talking about it actually, Rishi guessed it was infidelity. Which would have actually have made him look slightly better then the real reason. Though no, he didn't cheat on Bernice. It was much worse then that and only a select few knew the real reason. Diane and Gabby were willing to keep quiet as long as they didn't have to see his face around the village.

"Don't worry, it won't happen again" Liam assured her.

"Okay...Looks like I will have talk to Wendy then"

"Yeah, just tell her she can have some time off if she needs it but she does need to get back to work sooner rather than later"

"Duly noted"

...

A few hours later and Leanna had asked to go for a walk for she wanted something from the local corner shop. A few snacks, maybe a pen and a notepad if they got one but she forgot the way. Hence why she and Ethan were walking to the shop together, it only looked bad because of what he was but he generally had no ill intention (for once). So he just took into the shop and told her to get what she wanted. Some of his equally as disgusting friends were in there. They knew what he was like, girls and young women was his "type". Ethan just walked over to them...

"She's Liam's kid" Ethan explained to them; making them just laugh.

"Oh...Pretty isn't she?" one of them asked him in between his vaping.

His degenerate friends were either druggies, perverts or alcoholics, it's just who he attracted. Bad people tend to find company with other bad people and hence why the only people he could call 'friends' were like that. They were the type of men you would see hanging outside bus stops despite having nowhere to go. One of the other men giving Ethan a look...

"Don't even think it man, she be going elsewhere soon. Her dad's a doctor" Ethan spoke up.

"Posh girl, I thought she was dressed up a bit too nice for round here" the same man answered.

"She's Maya's old step-daughter mate, she and her dad are staying at mine for a bit. You remember them?"

"Maya? I remember her when we were both kids...She was cute too"

This just made Ethan give a slight tut. Leanna was at the counter by this point, good he thought. He needed to get her out of here, he wasn't usually bothered and would join in with his pathetic friends about girls and women they seen. And no, he wasn't any better. He just didn't wish to bring attention on his pathetic self by getting into Liam's bad books. He was only getting away with his disgusting acts because he chose to act fairly discreet.

"Come on Leanna...Let's go home, Gran-gran will be waiting for me" Ethan spoke up to her. Standing a bit in front of his mates so she could walk past without any leers.

Before making his way out with her and shutting the shop door. She had found some snacks after all, she got out the notebook she found. She barely noticed any of that in there thankfully, she was just keen on getting some things. Ethan giving a small nervous smile as he took her bag.

"My dad should be back soon from work" Leanna began.

"Yeah, well don't worry...You will be in some nice area again before you know it" Ethan spoke up.

"Can't wait! I mean, no offence but it's hardly the best around here. Those men in there looked disgusting, vaping and smoking; I'm surprised they were't told to leave"

Her description of his friends made him laugh.

"You're not wrong there kiddo" Ethan remarked; still playing the role of 'good guy'.

...

TBC