I’ve never been kissed by a girl before, but her lips were soft as soft, not like the way the lads kiss, not like Vivek. Old grey stone buildings with steeply slanted roofs, neat streets, some of which are still cobbled…it all reminds me a bit of home, or, rather, what home used to be like. Of course I knew at once it was the girl. And so here I am. So, she said, you missed a good movie last night, I’m coming over tonight to your house, we can go out for a bit. Then, to Trace, saying I hope she has a great life, that she was a good mate (I can lie about things if it’s just to make her feel good, can’t I?) and that she’ll someday meet the bloke for her. Your fingers fumble at my clothes, unsure and unpractised to undressing another person. “I just want to get off.” I couldn’t see his eyes, which were fixed on the road ahead, but I let my voice deepen and roughen, putting all
