The hinterhof is long and yellow, yellow sunshine reflecting on high yellow walls. It’s empty except for a delivery guy who makes some remark as I walk in, despite my face being half-covered by a black mask, and 2 figures at the end of the courtyard. They are both dressed in purple PPE, head to toe, with shields over their faces and masks a lot more heavy-duty than mine. A single chair waits at the far end.

These modern medicine men stand in front of the last of a row of garages. This is the only one that’s open for business, converted into a makeshift clinic by two white screens. Behind them probably lie the rusty tools and spider nests that are a hallmark of any garage, anywhere.

The guys in purple are relaxed. They seem to be enjoying their new office. They give me gloves that I struggle to put on in the heat, give me a form to write down my symptoms and tell me to sit in the waiting room – the lone chair at the end of the courtyard. There are no other patients, so as soon as I hand back the form I graduate to the other chair, inside the garage. I take my mask off, try not to gag on the swab that’s stuck down my throat, and ask if that’s it.

Das war’s, they say. That’s it. I return to the street, peeling off my gloves and adding them to the pile of limp purple hands that has accumulated in the nearby bin. My mask attracts stares as I walk home. I wonder when I will next leave the house.

On this nondescript corner
I
Waited for you to get the best pizza in the world
Crashed my bike
Smoked cigarettes
Introduced my father to the best pizza in the world
Wondered what the baby clothes stood for
Drank beers
Walked alone
Crossed from one side of the street to the other
Learned to navigate the bad pavement like you learn to navigate the creaks in your house
Stood in the sun
Stood in the rain
Began one hundred journeys to work
Ran for the tram
Got angry at missing the tram
Waited
we
Walked together
Smoked cigarettes
Drank beers
Stood in the sun
Stood in the rain
Stood closer than we needed to
Debated the meaning of the baby clothes
Ran for the tram
Planned
you
Picked me up when I crashed my bike, laughing
Crossed from one side of the street
to the other