The garden wall

An original fiction passage set in the nineteenth century.

Richard stayed on his side of the garden wall. His cousin Anna stood on the other, holding the ball he had thrown over it. Yesterday they had quarrelled about the broken greenhouse pane. Today neither wished to be the first to speak. The wall was scarcely higher than their shoulders, yet it divided them as effectively as a country border.

Anna tossed the ball back. It struck the top of the wall and dropped between two bricks. Richard reached from his side while she reached from hers. Their hands met around the trapped ball. Both began explaining how to free it, then stopped and laughed. Richard lifted the loose brick. Anna caught the ball. When he asked her to play, she came through the gate rather than throwing it back.

Analyse how the writer uses language and structure to show the cousins’ changing relationship. Support your answer with references to the passage.