Cooper sat across the table from Peter in silence. Dad had taken pity on them for being two boys left alone to fend for themselves and kindly stocked the fridge up with a few home-made meals until they had a chance to settle in. Cooper’s hair spilled in ropes over a plate of brown stuff called nut roast where he’d been hiding for the last ten minutes. They hadn’t spoken since he left last night and he’d only offered a few grunts since he got back from the supermarket. Peter sat across the way from him wondering if this was how it all started going wrong. He’d been invited over to the Carmichaels’ home on Bear Island on more than one occasion over the years. They used to make out they liked having young company around the place on account of them never having had children, but it became obvious in time that his being there gave them more than just another body to focus on, but someone to do all the talking for them when they were clean out of anything left to say to each other.

Peter lowered his knife and fork. “Do you want some water?”

Cooper pushed more of the brown stuff around his plate and said nothing.

“It’s a little salty. I can get some if you want.”

“S’OK,” said Cooper. “It int too much.”

“It was kind of Dad to do this for us but it might be easier with a glass of water.”

“I said I liked it, dint I?”

Cooper glanced up through his hair and went to say something, an apology even, but nothing came out and a moment later he disappeared behind his hair again and Peter was left watching the snow falling across the window behind.

“I started at the movie theatre today,” he offered.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“How’s that?”

“It was good, Coop. Marge, she’s the manager there, made me feel so welcome. Gave me the guided tour and everything. She showed me the auditorium, projection room. Her office. I’m working in the ticket booth for now but she told me that if I continued to show this much promise, she couldn’t see why I wouldn’t make promotion to assistant manager in no time. I got a brand-new T-shirt, factory pressed, with a dickie bow on it and everything.”

The corner of Cooper’s mouth creased into a half-smile, like there was genuine pride there. But he didn’t take his eyes off the plate.

“That’s really somethin’, Pete.”

“Yeah. I can’t wait to go back tomorrow.”

“And it don’t get too busy?”

“No. Not at all. Just enough so I don’t get bored.”

“And this manager won’t be gettin’ on your tail or nothin’?”

“No. I don’t think so. I think she likes and trusts me. She largely stays in her office, anyways.”