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“No, and I don’t want you to think it’s your responsibility to tell anybody either.”

“It is my responsibility if there’s a safeguarding issue,” he murmurs.

“I already said you don’t need to make a big deal out of it. You don’t need to report this to anybody at the school. I’m not being physically abused. I’m not being neglected. I’m fine.”

“Dee, I—”

“If you tell anybody, I’ll deny we even had this conversation. Besides, it isn’t that bad. I just make myself scarce for the nights Duncan is around, and then I’m fine at home. It isn’t a big deal. I’ll be moving out soon.”

“It might not feel like a big deal, but it’s still dangerous. What you’re doing is risky. You understand that, right?”

“I don’t have sex with them.” I sigh.

I wish I could retract all my words, because I’ve never told anybody what I’ve been doing for the past couple of months. I haven’t even told Felix yet. Something tells me that I’ll be better off talking to him face to face when he gets home from his travels rather than over our brief texts and emails. Confessing after the fact will be better than during.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re not having sex with them. Any of those men could get violent or pushy. You don’t know what you’re walking into. What if you get home with them and they sober up and won’t let you leave?”

“I can handle myself,” I argue.

“Delilah, you’re a tiny slip of a person. Unless you’re packing some martial arts expertise that I’m not aware of, if a man like Christian or that guy from earlier wanted to overpower you, it wouldn’t take much for them to do it.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“I think it would be better if you spoke to the safeguarding team. They could look into the—”

“You’re the only person I’ve spoken to about this. I’m trusting you with this information and that you won’t tell anybody else. Can you promise me you won’t mess everything up for me? If you tell anybody else, it will mean an invasion into my life, pulling my parents into school for talks. I’m eighteen. Social services won’t have the capacity to deal with me. I just need to get through the school year. Please don’t mess everything up for me.”

I don’t know whether it’s my long speech or my tone of voice, but he falls into a silence, looking like he’s pondering everything. Pondering both my situation as well as the position he’s put himself in.

I cut my burger in half, then pick up one side and take a bite. For a fast-food restaurant that caters to people who are typically drunk, it tastes really good. I chew slowly, watching Joseph as inconspicuously as I can. He carries on eating his own food, but he looks pensive and thoughtful as he does.

The meals and the coffees are finished by the time he speaks again.

“I won’t tell anybody,” he promises.

“Thank you. Thank you for the food too. You didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s nothing. What are you going to do for the rest of the night?” he asks. Now his brow is furrowed.

“I’m going to argue my way back into the club. Don’t worry, I’ll stay out of your way.” I smile like it’s no big deal.

“Just because you don’t want to go home?”

“That’s the only reason I’m doing it,” I confirm.

He’s quiet for a moment, and then he shifts in his seat, pulling his mobile from his pocket. He taps away on the screen, still frowning, but then his expression relaxes and he puts his phone away.

“Come with me,” he says. He stands up from the booth.

“Back to the club?”

He shakes his head and waits for me to stand. “Just trust me.”

I nod and stand. I don’t trust many people in life. Felix. His parents. And now, apparently, Joseph Wakefield has made his way onto my list.

I follow him out of the restaurant. He walks in the opposite direction from the club, heading towards the busier section of town. We pass groups of people who look like they’re heading to various clubs. Bunches of girls wearing body-con dresses and high shoes. Groups of men who smell overwhelmingly of cologne. Girls holding hands and giggling. People who look like they’re on hen parties or theme nights, dressed like cowgirls and schoolgirls. We walk past couples who have either been swept up in the moment or given up on the idea of going somewhere more private, kissing with reckless abandon up against buildings or down darkened alleyways.

I follow Joseph across one of the quiet side roads, and it takes me a second to realise his intended destination. At the top of the street is a hotel.