Steven’s nan was asleep. She was small.  Very small.  Steven reckoned she was half her original size.  It was hard to describe how she looked really.  Kind of like an airbed that is half deflated.  Her arms were thin, so thin that her veins lay on them like freshly laid train tracks.  And her face was …so…well she looked in pain, a lot of pain.  Her face twitched in her sleep.  She stirred, mumbling something and Steven panicked, she was waking up. 

‘Nan are you ok…?’

She moaned.

‘Nan, can I get you anything?’ He patted her arm gently and tried to put the blanket up around her in case she was cold.  She came to, started to recognise him and smiled. 

She was mumbling something but it made no sense whatsoever, didn’t even sound English to Steven.  Then she uttered a word that he knew. She wanted a cup of tea.  He left is nan, pulling the bars up on the bed in case she fell out, she looked like she could fall out.  Then he found a nurse who brought over some tea a few minutes later. 

‘Are you fucking joking?’ He whispered between his teeth to the nurse as she handed him the plastic beaker with the kiddies drinking spout.  ‘Haven’t you got any real cups like or what?’ The nurse reached out and stroked his arm handing the tea over to him she whispered, ‘this will help your nan, so she doesn’t spill it, its hot you know.  You need to help her.’  He felt ashamed, and quickly took the beaker from the nurse, stuttering a sorry to her. She came back with some biscuits ‘try by julesy