John drives up the High Road until he reaches Seven Kings British Rail station. He manoeuvres around the roundabout and turns into the residential area just off the High Road. The road becomes very narrow here with cars parked on both sides of the road. The houses are simply rows of identical terraced housing opposite each other. Three up, two down as the old adage explains quite accurately.

            A car is approaching in the opposing direction so John pulls into a gap between the parked cars so that he can pass. But the other car does the same.           

            ‘Oh come on Granddad’ John calls out. ‘I’m giving you space and you stop like your heart is running the engine’

            Irritably John swings his car back out into the road and accelerates aggressively past Granddad, shooting him an angry look at the same time. He doesn’t let up on the speed and he zings the car the whole way down the road, braking at the last minute before the intersection at the end of the road. A stray cat walking out into the road would’ve ended up in feline heaven before he could’ve spat out a fur ball. John navigates the final few turns to his home and he makes it. In good time too. He takes the car into the driveway, kills the engine and blows out a sigh of relief that he has arrived somewhere that his mind can rest. Home with the wife.

            Stepping out, John grabs his briefcase from the back seat and slams the door hard, a last piece of therapy.

            ‘Hi baby, I’m home’ John calls out to his wife as he steps onto the threshold of his marital home. Yvonne sticks her head out of the kitchen and greets her husband.

            ‘Go and rest, I’ll bring you some food’ she tells him. John complies and walks into the front room where he throws his briefcase onto one of the sofa’s and collapses onto another. Feet lift onto a table and he closes his eye trying to forget all of the tense action from the day.