July 14, 1901
Today is the big day you have been waiting for! Mummy is taking you to the shore at Brighton to bathe, dig in the sand and look for strange sea creatures. Your friends at school have bragged about their visits to the resort and now you will be able to add your voice to theirs, as well as beat up on the other boys who have never been.
Written by Beatrigail
You dress in the suit of clothes that were laid out for you the previous night, carefully doing up the buttons and checking yourself in the mirror to see how you look. A handsome fellow, you decide, even if you are just ten years. Mummy and Daddy hadn't wanted to get you this suit, saying you were too young, but when you kicked the family dog and threatened to hold your breath until you turned blue, they gave in. They always did. Silly Mummy. Dumb Daddy. Stupid dog.
Cancer
You build sand castles with some other boys you meet there, wreck the sand castles of some younger boys, wade to your ankles in the sea and pull the legs off the funny crabs you find scuttling for shelter when you lift the rocks. One of the best parts was lying in the warmth of the sunshine while the whish of the waves lulled you to sleep. But when you woke up, your tummy and throat hurt and Mummy said it must have been from too much sun....or maybe something you ate.
After breakfast, the train takes you and your younger siblings, your mother and Nanny Grey to the resort, just four hours away. The beach is everything you hoped it would be.
The next day you go back to school. Your tummy and throat are still sore but you don't care because you're having so much fun telling of your adventure! The other boys laugh when you describe the wriggly little crabs and stupid little boys with their dumb little castles. You laugh so hard your tummy hurts even more.
At lunch time, talk of upcoming summer holidays is on everyone's lips. You're not very hungry. You're tummy still hurts and feels strangely full. You try to nibble a piece of bread but when you go to swallow it, it comes right back up your throat and out of your mouth to drop onto your plate. The other boys laugh and jeer. You take another bite and the same thing happens. Only this time there is something else on your plate. You look closely. It is a tiny crab, waving its legs as if it is taunting you.
Your fear rises as you feel something else rising up out of your throat. You can't breath. Your throat is full of some wiggling writhing mass. The other boys start yelling and jumping out of their chairs. They gather around the table to watch in horrified fascination as thousands of tiny crabs come pouring out of your mouth and nose, cutting off your airways. The last thing you hear as darkness falls around you is the clatter of the falling crabs, the roar of sudden erupting laughter and the crash of ocean waves.