My brother chased me around the kitchen. My mother had mopped the floor and laid down unfolded sheets of newspaper in a patchwork of random rectangles with miscellaneous gaps in-between. It was ok to jump on the paper but the gaps were like deadly lava flows. Hopping from safe zone to safe zone I tried to stop my brother who is a little younger than me from catching me in a game of tag. My mother stood in her usual place at the sink and probably started to make some chocolate macaroons, but I'm not sure because I wasn't tall enough to see over the counter top.
In the chase there were no ‘exes’ meaning no escape to a place of invulnerability. As a last resort when my brother nearly had me, I hopped over to my mother and wrapped my arms around her legs for safety. My brother tried to get me, but eventually my mother got tired of us arguing back and forth about made-up rules and what was fair, and she sent us to our bedrooms to play with wooden blocks and little racing cars.
My father eventually came home from work. He put his briefcase down in the usual place. My brother and I clamoured for his attention to show him things we had made during the day. “Let me get my shoes off first” he said as usual. Then he addressed my mother saying “Anything untoward happen today?” He asked this same question every day after work.
Later it was time for dinner and then we would listen to The Archers on the radio.
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