Knightmare Fuel

  I’ve lived in Middle s borough for years. I can’t remember how many.   Middle s borough is, in every sense of the word, average. Every house is identical , painted a pebble shade of grey. Not white, not black, but somewhere in between. Size wise, our homes are  not too big but not to o small . Not hing here is breathtaking, no r is it boring. The people ar e much the same. Everything is just… in the middle.   I don’t remember moving her e and I don’t remember where I lived before. As far as I know, I’ve always been here , and I’ve always been exactly how I am now . We don’t have names in Middle s borough, we just have numbers. The same number as our house. I’m 47. I don’t know my age. It’s not high, but it’s not low.   Every day here is the same. I wake up, have breakfast , then a shower. I read the newspaper in my living room for a couple of hours – the same newspape r I read the day before, and the day before that – then I mow the lawn. I ...

  Money’s been tight recently, s o I resorted to selling my stuff. I didn’t really have anything of great value , it was mostly old clothes I’d never worn and shower sets I’d been gifted for birthdays and Christmases. I sold whatever I could on Facebook Marketplace and managed to earn an extra few quid.   My wife even helped me out, sacrificing some of her belongings.   “ Jess , are you sure?” I said, looking at the pile of her possessions  she’d laid out on the bed.   “Yeah.” she said with a shrug. “We need the money.”   Saddened that it had come to this, I reluctantly agreed. I thanked her and gave her a peck on the cheek.   Most of the items sold quickly and effortlessly , and, £120 later, I was feeling glad I’d gone through with it. That is, u ntil I got a message from Ken D .   Ken D : r these still for sale   He was e nquiring about a pair of rol lerblades . Jess had always meant to learn to skate , but life did as life doe...