It’s such a shame that little Stevie died. That’s what we all said, as we stood in the gentle rain, laying flowers on the brown earth. Just a dozen or so silent people, spaced apart, holding our grief like a shard of ice, cold and brittle against our ribs. Each of us staring at the flowers in the wet grass as the snow drops pushed their way though. All of us looking at the photo of the smiling boy.

Molly stood shivering in the oversized black coat her aunty lent her. She had loved him for his laughter, for the happiness in his eyes and the courage in his heart. He was her special boy, she always told him so. Perhaps it’s just as well that she will never know.

At last it came time to walk away and leave him in the silence. We needed to hold each other then, to place our hands on the shoulders of our friends so that we could stop the world from falling. But we couldn’t, so we walked away through the church yard with Molly the last to leave, head bowed and shaking. It’s good that she will never know.

As she reached the heavy wooden gate by the road Molly turned and took a last look back, wondering why it happened to him. It had been so quick. Not long ago she had seen him in the street and shared her chocolate with him outside the corner shop. They had laughed about something although she couldn’t remember what. Later she heard he was ill. Soon he was in hospital surrounded by machines. It made no sense. At least she doesn’t know.

She’s smart Molly, thinks for herself and never gets taken in by Internet adverts telling her how slim she should be or what colour to have her hair or why she’d be a better person if she read the right magazine. So it’s odd she listened to what they told her and began to doubt. She wouldn’t wear a mask or take their vaccine. She wasn’t taken in by the governments lies and anyway her body could handle this virus, they all said so.

She handed him the chocolate. Lent in close and ruffled his hair. She was only there for a second or two but that was all it needed for it to leap from her to him. It only took a moment to kill him, but Molly doesn’t know.