Underneath: The Scowl

The sixth story in Pills, and the first that could be described as ‘Flash Fiction’.

Personally, I think ‘Flash Fiction’ implies lack of care in the process – this is not true. I spent a long time on this one, because I wanted to make every word count.

This one is a serious little tale of infidelity and hate. It also picks up on the male fear of fatherhood, which is something I don’t often see being addressed.

The location of this one is pictured above. I know it well; I spent many days walking along Regent’s Canal from London Fields to Angel. Looks quite pretty in the shot above. At night, with the wind and the rain beating down, it’s a sinister prospect.

And I’m sure that murky brown water hides some true horrors. Amongst the shopping trolleys and the Tesco shopping bags, there’s something really bad down there. It’s not a place you’d want to bathe in (although to my disgust, I did watch an inebriated friend of mine take his shoes off and dip his toes in there at 4am on a Sunday morning).