‘I’m pretty sure he has or they’d have rung the landline to find out where he was. It’s not like he has an office I could ring and ask to speak to him or turn up at. Goodness knows where and when he’s supposed to be flying.’ She chews her nail. ‘Everything is such a mess. Everything.’ She pauses. ‘Not just with Fergus either. I can’t believe Mr Marshall went back this year, can you? He hasn’t said anything to Ryan yet but he’s worried. I’m worried.’

‘Us too. Lucy persuaded Connor to finish his exams but if we’d known that Mr Marshall would still be the head we’d have let Connor transfer to another sixth form. It must be hard on the boys seeing him but also hard for him seeing them. Can you imagine the gossip he’s subjected to amongst the staff? I wouldn’t want to go into that environment every day.’ He takes another sip of his drink. ‘That’s what I wanted to talk to you about today. Gossip.’ He fiddles with a beer mat. ‘Lucy.’ However insistent his wife is that she’s left her post solely because of Kieron, he doesn’t believe her. ‘I wish she hadn’t been so hasty handing in her notice at the hospital after the school trip. Kieron is… well he’s not great at the moment but Mr Peters says he’ll pick up again. God knows how Lucy will occupy her time once he goes back to school. She’s… well she’s not behaving rationally. She’s become so obsessive over Kieron and I know it’s partly because of… well, you know. But also because she’s let her career go.’

‘I don’t know what to say,’ Mel says, her eyes pooled with sympathy. ‘I’ll give her a call later, see if I can get her to open up.’

‘I’d appreciate that. She’s so fixated on Kieron. She doesn’t talk to me, not properly. I’ve no idea what she’s thinking half the time. You know how she fell apart after…’ He can’t bring himself to say it but Mel is their oldest friend. She knows. She takes his hand. Gives it a reassuring squeeze.

‘What happened then is not going to happen now. Don’t take her not opening up to you personally. We all have our secrets, don’t we?’ Her eyes don’t meet his. Instead, she drains her drink.

‘Another?’ she asks.

Aidan turns his phone over to check the time. He’s had nine missed calls from Lucy.

There’s a tightening in his stomach. Something must be wrong.

‘I’ve got to go.’ He hurriedly pecks Mel on the cheek and jogs out of the pub before she’s even said goodbye, unlocking his mobile in his hand. His notifications shoved aside by a text.