He would take Ben for a walk. He loved Ben. He always wanted a dog. But father didn’t let him. No animals in the house, he said. He didn’t love father so much. Mother was way better. She allowed him Ben. As long as it’s just THIS, father said. But he was angry.

Now he would walk Ben. He put him on the leash. Ben didn’t like the leash. He chewed it. But he would learn. He would teach him tricks too. He carried him down the stairs. Ben was still small. But he would grow. He would be as big as him.

He met Mrs Nowak at the stairs. She was good. She would take him to her kitchen and give him tea. But only when father was angry. Now Mrs Nowak smiled at him. He said hello. She said, Oh, hello, Ben, now, that’s a cute guinea pig, but why do you have him on the leash?

The neighbour’s kid was a queer fish, she thought. They must be abusing him, a bad family, fighting on the regular. A person can’t have a moment of peace, and she was fed up. She was making her mind to call child welfare. This used to be such a quiet house, it would be nice to have it back.