“Shall we do something else?” Saïd puts a hand on the girl’s thigh as he speaks, and lets it travel inside, to the leg of her shorts that are too tight for him to go where he wants.

“Isn’t your father here?”

“He went to the bled the day before yesterday. He’s not coming back till August.”

He slides a hand under her sleeveless T-shirt, over the warm skin of her stomach, and grabs a breast.

“What about your brother and sister?”

“He’s taken Fouad and Nordine with him. Sonia’s at a friend’s.”

“Who?”

“Sophie.”

“That bitch?”

“Why do you say that?”

He brings his mouth to the nipple, erect in the middle of a tiny little breast. She gently pushes him away. “I don’t like that.”

Saïd teases. “Better not fuck you face-on.”

He tries once again to glue his mouth to her breast.

“That depends.”

He looks up and sees her smiling at him, revealing her beautiful teeth. She strokes his neck with her fingertips and pulls on the strap of her top to bare her shoulder. She’s not quite sure what she wants, but when he slides his mouth down her stomach she stands up, having finally decided. “Shall we go to my place? There’s no one in.”

“If your father finds out —”

“Are you scared?”

“It’s not that.”

“Then what is it? Have you got an issue with my father I should know about?”

A brown lock falls aggressively over her blue eye. The green one challenges the young man.

“No, not at all. It’s just that I’d rather not at your place…”

He senses that she’s taken offence, so he looks at her for a few seconds without replying, a little wildly. Crap, he was nearly there. She pulls back her strap with a finger, moves away and gets up, a contemptuous pout on her lips. “No, you’re right. It’s so much better to feel each other up quickly in a shed that stinks of piss. Or shut up in a bathroom full of dead cats.”

“Jo…”

She stands, slightly arched, one hand on the sink, the other on her hip. “Never mind. I’m off.”

“No, wait.”

He straightens up and tries to put his arms around her. She wrenches herself free, arm outstretched, hand open.

“Get off, you’re pathetic.”

Jo leaves the bathroom, gritting her teeth. He rushes after her. “Wait, please!”

“In your dreams! Touch yourself while thinking about my pussy. Next time, you’ll be quicker off the mark.”

She emerges into the light. People are small, the world without limits.

Coffee in an Algerian-Style Mug

Coffee in an Algerian-Style Mug