As other couples’ arms grow tired and patience wears thin, the competition begins to slowly fall away.

‘How long do you think it’s been?’ I ask Freddie.

I feel obliged to keep talking to him, as if it might make this a bit less awkward if we behave like civil colleagues who share an office.

‘Why don’t you check your watch?’ Daniel asks Freddie.

Daniel and Eva are still in, but Daniel can’t even begin to hide the strain in his voice. Eva has slid down his back, turning their piggyback hold into something that looks desperately uncomfortable. She’s so low down that her bottom is pointing towards the floor, and her arms are bolt straight, her elbows hard as she clings onto his neck. I think Daniel’s strange, almost robotic voice is a product of trying to support Eva’s weight when most of the pressure will be from her hands around his neck. It’s funny, she almost looks as if she’s attacking him from behind, trying to strangle him. He certainly looks as if he’s being attacked; he looks as if he’s going to drop her any second.

‘Nice try,’ Freddie replies, before whispering to me, ‘Does he really think I’m that stupid?’

‘He thinks everyone is stupid,’ I tell him.

Freddie is definitely finding this much easier than everybody else is. I’d say he wasn’t breaking a sweat, but everyone is sweating tonight, even without the physical activity.

It isn’t unpleasant, being this close to him, though. I can smell his aftershave, masculine yet sweet, the shampoo he has used, which I recognise from the suite bathrooms, and then just something else, something I can’t explain – something undeniably attractive.

There is something about Freddie that is just so inviting, that makes you want to get up close and personal with him, bury your face in his neck, wrap your limbs around him. As awkward as this situation is, I’ve never felt more at ease. I feel so safe and secure. Freddie isn’t just holding me up in the competition, he’s holding my head up high for me when I don’t know how to do it myself. He’s carrying me in more ways than he realises – and for absolutely nothing in return.

‘Just lift yourself up,’ Daniel snaps at Eva.

I am a little taken aback. Daniel might be a bit grumpy sometimes, but this snappy side of him is something new. I wonder if it’s because he feels bad, but he seems to want to win this even more than I do.

‘I can’t,’ she replies. ‘I’ve only got little arms.’

Her cuteness is like eating a spoonful of sherbet. Somehow both sickly sweet and intolerably sour. She makes my eyes water and my teeth hurt.

‘It’s just us and them left,’ Freddie whispers into my ear. ‘Shall we try and psych him out a little?’

‘Yes,’ I say, my eyes widening with excitement.

Freddie readjusts his grip on my body, holding me securely before dancing with me, grooving to whatever Italian pop music is playing in the bar. The audience, finding it impossible not to be charmed, cheer and coo.