Page 5 - Nails
P. 5
the mesh of the grill pan. Toast crumbs, coffee
rings and stained teaspoons littered the work
surfaces.
Kevin lifted the kettle, guessed its contents and
flicked the switch. As he gathered things together,
looking out on the bright day through the small
kitchen window, the electric kettle hissed and then
rattled and bumped. He knew that that was what
came of re-boiling the same water, but he did not
know why.
He returned to the lounge and put a record by
Echo and the Bunnymen on the turntable. Then,
beginning to feel the cool of the room because he
was still in his birthday suit, he went back to the
bedroom and pulled on a pair of jeans.
He looked at himself in the wardrobe's full-
length mirror and pulled his stomach in, then he
let it relax and watched the slight overhang.
As he puffed up his chest, raising his arms
above himself and then bringing them down, all
tensed and straining, the kettle switch clicked off.
Ruffling his thick black hair with a hand he went
back into the living room.
This time he drew the curtains, flooding the flat,
which held the stench of cigarette smoke, with the
morning light. He opened a window and the room
sighed.
He picked up a couple of ashtrays on his way to
the kitchen, tipped their contents into the flip-top
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