Her loud acclamation was only one of many that night. We’d expected to have to wash every bed linen in the house after the party, so I wasn’t conc...rned about all the body fluids. There were rubber sheets under the regular sheets on the beds too.Deb Summer found me playing voyeur and planted a loving kiss on me. “Will you come and make love to me?” she said in a seductive tone. I had the feeling from the tone of her voice that she meant ‘love’ and not ‘fuck.’ We’d migrated into a special. Somehow they all meld together yet stay distinct. Coffee brewing, ham, the butter with the more delicate smell of eggs cooking, the slightly sweet smell of the raisins as the toaster does its work. I smiled at the sounds of the hot water going through its final bubbling as the percolator sent that last tablespoon into the coffee grounds, the eggs spattering a couple of inches up above the pan and the toast popping up to signal its completion. The sounds of home, of family.I put the toast on. “Can I ask who you are protesting against?” one reporter asked a young man holding a large, handwritten, placard reading “I WONT TO WORK”. The reporter was amused by the misspelling, but didn’t try and correct it.“I’m not. Not really. I’m jus’ tellin’ people I want to work. I want a job.”“So you’re not complaining about government policy?”“What gov’ment policy? There ain’t none. The gov’ment’s s’posed to have banned all replicators, but there’s still loads around, and my boss said he had to. At one stage his lips brushed against my ear. He whispered, “I love watching women smoke, it almost looks like they’re preparing for oral sex.”I didn’t know how to reply, and was very self-conscious, as I continued puffing away.Not only, did Martin receive his award, but he was also promoted to Regional Manager.At 11.30, the lights came on, and the evening appeared to be coming to an end. Ian picked up two bottles of wine from our table, telling Martin to grab our glasses, “Let’s help Martin.