LOCKDOWN
Thomas crouched over the water, peering at his reflection. It was only five days ago that he could turn on any tap and magically, clear, clean, sparkling water would come gushing out. Today he had to collect it for his mother.
He was being on his best behaviour. Thomas knew that it was the only way. No more doughnuts until she said so.
So he stood up slowly, hauling the bucket off the ground; it seemed so much heavier than it had before. Maybe Mother was right - maybe he was becoming lazy and weak, to both temptation and work. He wished he had never let everyone come round to his flat. Thomas thought he should have just invited Pandora. He would have had lots of time to make friends if he had not ruined everything. And Mother would have liked Panda. Thomas knew that his mother would have learned to like her, because she wasn't like the others. Mother hated the others. She hated sex and drugs and anything that insulted Jesus.
What would Jesus do?
Thomas didn't know. Thomas didn't know anything for certain right now.
He walked along the dusty track, humming a song under his breath. He'd learnt it in England. They had good music in England.
Thomas smiled. He could see his mum's garden in the distance. It reminded him of the chillies. He missed the taste of them, even though he had eaten them not so long ago. He liked it that he got to eat forbidden fruit and be the hero. Who knew that such sweet chillies could make Mr Johnny completely crumble?
They seemed to stand out so brightly against the green. Thomas liked red; it was power, love, muscle, life, everything. Red was like owning the world.
There was another thing about England: so much colour!
There were buildings in blues and greens and pink, and in the school everyone wore all the colours of the rainbow. He remembered the twins' hair - red too! Thomas liked the freedom. He liked the way you could do what you wanted and he liked the parties, friends protecting him, and not having to look after his brother and sister when he came home.
Of course, Thomas loved his siblings a lot. He told himself that he had to make sure that one day, if he ever got back to Bristol, he would make sure they followed again. He just had to make sure that Panda and Effy and Cook and all of his 'gang' - he liked having a gang too - weren't there when Mother arrived.
He hoped they were keeping his flat for him. At least, he hoped Johnny White had stayed away.
The heavy bucket was cutting into his skin. He had forgotten that he was carrying it - some of the water had sloshed out. Thomas checked that there was enough left for now.
He was lucky.
Thomas knew his mother would say he should be thanking G-d, but he didn't feel very grateful at this very moment.
Maybe soon, Thomas hoped, G-d would give him something to be thankful for.