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I was still standing there watching the gutters fill up and wondering what I was going to do when I seen Mrs Co
Then they parted and there was nothing only the rain sweeping over the town and the fires glowing in the sitting rooms and the smell of frying and the grey jumpy rays of television screens behind the curtains.
I went out to the river it was bulging nearly ready to burst its banks you could be eyeball to eyeball with the fish. I was shivering with the cold and the wet. I pulled at the grass along the edge of the bank and counted all the people that were gone on me now.
1. Da
2. Ma
3. Alo
4. Joe
When I said Joe's name all of a sudden I burst out laughing. For fuck's sake! I said, Joe gone! How the fuck would Joe be gone!
That was the best yet.
It was still raining when I called at Mrs Co
I raised my voice when I said that and then who's standing there only some lad with a moustache I don't know who he was what does he say you he says the best thing you can do is get away from this house as fast as you can before I do this before I do that all these things he was going to do. I told Co
Then I let go of his wrist and said you remember that and I left the pair of them standing I wanted no more to do with them. I went off through the town. I wasn't too sure what I was at, I kept thinking that's Co
Philip wasn't there. Where was he? Then there's Mr Purcell and Mrs Purcell looking over his shoulder ah hello there this is a surprise. After that what does Nugent do only hold up the box I could see it better now it was all wrapped up it wasn't a box at all it was a present. When I looked again the door was closed and the light was on in the front room. I could see Mr Nugent handing glasses around and throwing back his head someone was telling a fu
His face changed it got all sort of pained and I liked him then it was like the old Mr Purcell he was trying to tell me something but he didn't know how. But it didn't matter for I knew what it was he was trying to say. It was all OK until she came along wasn't it Mr Purcell? It was fine until Mrs Nugent started interfering and causing trouble. That's the only reason she's giving you presents – isn't it Mr Purcell?