TRAVERSE Issue 26 - October 2021 | Page 64

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to have her ! Can ’ t you see he is so desperate he ’ ll do anything — he was lyin ’ on her and lickin ’ her and everything !”
Car headlights flashed on and off , doors slammed , then a female response cut accusingly through the almost-still night air .
“ Well , I ’ m gonna fuck off home then , it ’ s pointless talking to you . He ’ s just a boy ! He doesn ’ t mean it .”
It appeared the young glowerer on the beach was the apple of his mother ’ s eye and could do no wrong — even when he was trying to do his ( half ) sister . The accusations increased in volume , intensity , and overlap . It was like a wall of ‘ fucken ’ sound .
Somebody in another tent further up the beach hurled genitalia-themed curses at the abusive abusers and they quietened down for a short time , but after half an hour or so , things got ripe again . Maybe the lusty youth , who had been conspicuous by his silence , had crept across the flysheet , intent on more reprehensible behaviour . Whatever , shouting and swearing and “ your fault ” -ing kicked vigorously back into high-volume gear but this time with an extension from the ti-tree zone out onto the nearby beach .
By now I was very tired and quite acclimatised to a background of ‘ fuckens ’, ‘ basturds ’ and car doorslams , so can ’ t be 100 percent sure what happened . I do remember hearing more abusive outbursts , an outboard motor start-up down on the beach , and the noise of a dinghy ripping out across the bay away from the camping area .
Maybe the woman was ‘ fucking off ’ home at last . Maybe the man was just going fishing . Maybe the amorous youngsters were escaping to a new life in New Zealand . Whichever , things went silent after that . The car lights snapped off , wind sighed in the bushes and the gentle
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