It wasn’t my band as such. A load of old guys had put together a rock and roll group, but their pianist had managed to have a heart attack a couple of days before the gig. I got drafted in courtesy of Miss Morgan. They gave me a battered old upright piano, jacked up on breeze blocks so I could play standing. We did some Little Richard, a bit of Jerry Lee Lewis, some early Rolling Stones stuff. It would have been pretty cool had I not looked like one of the other player’s grandchildren.

‘We were kinda shit,’ I said.

‘You were amazing! We couldn’t stop looking at your hands.’

‘I did see you dancing. I thought you were taking the piss.’

‘No way. We were pissed. Very pissed. But we weren’t taking the piss. You were fantastic. My friend Amy was getting a bit of a crush on you. She actually started taking piano lessons for a bit, that’s how good you are.’

‘Are girls really impressed by stuff like that?’ I had always wanted them to be, it was one of the things that had kept me practising, but I was far from sure.

‘Hell, yeah,’ she said, her eyes flashing wild, the smile lopsided. ‘It’s very attractive.’

My smile was involuntary, just a reflex tugging at the cheeks. It occurred to me that I wasn’t feeling nervous any more. I was just a guy chatting to a girl. And I was enjoying it. ‘So, how’s Amy getting on?’

‘Lasted about three lessons. I think she can play “When the Saints Go Marching In”. That’s not the point. You made it look so easy; she found out how hard it is.’

‘It’s not that hard.’

‘You playing this year? Please say you’re playing.’

I looked down at my lap. ‘I don’t play much any more. Not at all actually.’

She looked furious. ‘Why the fuck not?’

I wasn’t sure how to explain. I wasn’t even certain I knew the answer.

‘You can’t just give up, Ollie. It’s such a talent.’

That word again. I felt sick just picturing those piano keys in front of me. Once that ping of nerves had been excitement. Now it was just plain dread.

‘It’s just a made-up word – talent.’

‘Explain,’ she demanded, fumbling for another smoke, barely taking her eyes off me.