Walking around the city those last few weeks, he looked closely at the faces around him. All hard and blank, no warmth behind any of them. Was that what he looked like, too? If not, how many years would it take? These people had no thoughts in their heads except survival, which meant only chasing after the next bit of money, the next promotion. It had been less than two decades since the end of the war, and already everyone had forgotten what it was like to work together. Without a common enemy, they were turning on each other. What kind of world was this?

The night of the next meeting, Mrs Chiam begged him not to leave the house. “The bandits are out again, everyone’s saying. They stopped a bus in Jinjang yesterday, tried to take everyone’s identity cards. Mrs Wong at the market told me. It’s like the old days.”

“I’ll be all right,” he said, “Don’t worry about me.”

“Is it a girl? There’ll be time for girls later, if you don’t lose your life. I dreamt there was a fire, I dreamt the house burnt down and all our children died. Stay at home tonight.”

He was touched, never having realised he was more to her than a valued employee. But this was important. She was right, there was danger out there. And he knew which side of it he wanted to be on. He could be a victim forever. His father had been shot in the back, and his killer never punished. The powerless would never be safe. The system itself had to be overthrown.

A light drizzle fell as he ran through the streets, probably faster than was safe on the slippery pavement. The future was ahead of him. He could taste it. When he thought of how open and optimistic the comrades had been, he felt ashamed. Why had he thought the natural state of man was to be cynical and suspicious, like himself? That’s how far he’d been deformed by the system. If everyone was selfish and mistrusting, they would all die alone. He was going to join the struggle to smash the barriers keeping everyone down, and without the oppressors forcing them to compete against each other, they’d be free to unite. It was so simple. Why had he ever been unsure?

He gave the password and slipped into the hall. Siew Li saw him and came over right away, radiant. She’d looked at him and known. “I’m joining you,” he said, and she pressed her lips to his, just for a moment, so quickly it might almost not have happened. She took his hand. “Come, they’ll tell you what you need to do next. I’m so happy.” He followed behind her, unable to name the feelings bubbling inside him, knowing only they felt barely contained, as if he might explode at any moment.

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