You hop out at Waterworks Corner, a part of town that is close to the reservoir and the spaghetti junctions and flyovers that take drivers out of the city. Bae’s road is an avenue all lined with trees, but also clogged with parked cars.
”I don’t ever want to own a car,” says Bae, “unless it was a Citroen, because they look cool, right?”
”My mum’s got a 2CV,” you tell her.
”Oh, they’re very cool.” Bae leads you halfway down her road. It’s lined with terrace houses on both sides. None more than two storeys. Narrow front gardens fronted with box hedges. Bae’s place is no different.
”Oh God,” she stops in front of the garden gate. Between the two box hedges there is a cobweb criss-crossing the gate. In its centre the biggest spider you have ever seen. “We have to go back. We have to napalm the whole borough. I’m sorry, this is the end of the road.”
”You’re afraid of spiders?” you ask.
”No no,” she replies, “I’m terrified of this spider.”
Do you say, ”We could climb over the garden wall, and come back through the back entrance?” (goto 61)
Do you leap forward and break the spider web? (goto 41)
Or do you admit defeat and go home? (goto 68)