episode I
“Leg it”
Monday
morning should have been like any other in the Molloy house. Dad, (Billy),
set off at 5 o’clock; he delivers fruit and veg to the big supermarkets. Mum,
(Jenny), left about 20 minutes later to start the first of her two jobs, cleaning
offices for a firm of solicitors. Daughter, (Sally), is getting breakfast
ready for herself and younger brother Micky,
who is in court today, (again!). He nicked a bike from outside the paper shop,
and then tried to sell it to the owner’s cousin! Not exactly a criminal
mastermind is our Micky.
“Get up Micky! It’s
9 o’clock,” shouts Sally.
“Right Mum,” replied Micky sarcastically. “No
rush.”
Micky never took
court appearances very seriously. “After all, I’m 13. What they gonna do –
hang me?” he always said.
Seventeen year old Sally was the opposite. She worried about Micky every time he went to court.
“One
day you are going to be old enough to be sent down. What’s that gonna do to
Mum?” she always alleged.
Jenny could never
understand why Micky got up to half
the stuff he did and often wondered if she had spent more time with him when he
was younger, would he have turned out differently. Billy, on the other hand, just saw it as part of growing up on a
large council estate. Micky never got into big stuff or
anything with drugs. He was ‘small fry’ really. Mum and Dad both loved him to death and he has a big sister who would
always watch out for him – unless she killed him first – which was sometimes
quite tempting.
“Micky,” she screamed
and, before her tonsils had stopped vibrating, this angelic little boy appeared
at the foot of the stairs.
“Are you ready? We’re gonna be late,” he stated.
“One day Micky! One day,” she said. Micky
grabbed a slice of toast and took a bottle of milk from the fridge – swigging
half straight from the neck.
“Get a glass you ‘pig’,” Sally shouted.
“Shut up,” Micky replied. “Come on, mum will be waiting at
court”.
Jenny worked till
9.30 and the solicitor’s office was just around the corner from the Magistrates Court. After a short bus ride and 200 yards walk, Micky and Sally arrived at court. Mum,
is already there with Micky’s solicitor. Most kids of 13 would be a little nervous by
now but not Micky! His solicitor takes them all into an interview
room to discuss the case.
“Pretty straightforward,” he says. “You
admit taking the bike and trying to sell it?”
“Yeah,” says Micky. “What do you think I’ll get?”
“Hard to say. Don’t think
it’ll be a fine as your mum and dad are still paying the last one you got for
the spray paint incident”
“Michael Molloy, Court No.2 please.”
“Bloody hell, that’s quick. We must be first on. Come on Micky, here we go”.
Jenny
takes a deep breath and wipes her eyes which have been filling up
for the last few minutes. This is the
part she hates the most – going into the courtroom and waiting for the Magistrates to appear. Some thirty
minutes later they all troop out of the courtroom. Jenny
thanks the solicitor whilst Micky
spots one of his mates who asks, “How did you get on?”
“Community
Service! How hard can that be?”
“Oh, I don’t know! I got that last
time. They get you doing all the crap jobs; tidying gardens, painting fences ‘n
stuff.”
“It’ll be alright,” says
Micky.
It was on that note Sally clipped little brother round his
cocky earole!
“Ow!”
Mum
tells the pair of them to “Pack it in and let’s get home for a brew.
Micky has to go back to school tomorrow and he must report to the Community
Service Office on Saturday morning at 8 o’clock,” which brings a sigh
from Micky and a snigger from Sally.
Back at the house, Sally puts the kettle on while Mum
has a shower before going back out for job No.2 – 1o’clock till 4 p.m. on the
checkpoint at the ASDA supermarket. Just then Dad arrives home carrying a big box of bananas, apples and oranges.
“All fruit today luv. I’ll get spuds ‘n
veg midweek. Alright Mick? How’d you get on?”
Billy and Micky are more like brother than father
and son. Probably why Micky
gets away with so much.
“Community
Service. 8 o’clock Saturday morning,” Micky says.
“That’s not bad, eh! What do you
think?”
“Yeah,
whatever”.
Micky goes to his
room to play on his playstation. Mum has
10 minutes with dad before going to work. Sally
sets about the washing and ironing and its only 12:30!
Another chapter
in the life of young Micky Molloy.
Written
by Graham Vickers
Submitted:
6th February 2006
Edited by:
Brenda Earnshaw WRR Website/Magazine Editor
Next time: ‘Micky’s Community Service’.
