‘I found a crawl space and for the next few days that’s where I lived. I’d come out at night and go down while the guards were sleeping and steal food and water. They never knew I was there, the idiots. I’d eat whatever I could get my hands on. Just to stay alive. I’d long forgotten the idea of only eating halal – not that I’d been that strict before, unless I was with some of the more, like, devout members of my family. You know what? I figured that if there was a God, and he had a whole universe to look after, he wouldn’t be too bothered about what we put in our sandwiches and what type of hats we wear.

‘I’d mostly sleep in the day and explore at night, poking about in all the back rooms, picking up useful stuff. I found a load of paper bags and I used to crap in them, chuck the poo outside through a skylight, so that there was no evidence of me. I mean, I was a bit weird then, to tell you the truth. I’d been Tyler’s dog for so long. I’d get flashes too, of the fever. See things in the dark. Talking bugs. My sisters. There were pigeons up there, flapping about and crapping and nesting. I used to talk to them. Imagined I’d made friends with them. For a few days I convinced myself that I was dead. A zombie. That my body was rotting. Luckily I never went completely over the edge, imagining I could fly or anything like that. I kept alive. Alive but weird.

‘I played nasty games with Tyler as well. I’d get out on to the roof and wait for him. He turned up most days to organize the food collection. Well, not exactly “organize”, more just standing there, shouting at people and showing off. You could see he was still thinking he was Mister Big Shot, and he was going to let the whole world know. He’d seen off the Arbour Vale kids and now had the biggest source of food around. Well, I found a good spot where nobody could see me and I’d wait for him and I’d lob bags of shit down at him. Twice I got him, and that was enough for me. Made a real mess as well. I still smile at that memory. It’s childish, I know. But oh, it was funny. You should have seen him. He went mental. Never worked out where it was coming from. Stupid idiot, probably thought it was giant pigeons.

‘As I say, I hated him, but did I want him to die? I don’t know. I dreamt of killing him. Pictured myself doing it … But it was never real.