He sat forward on the sofa, his elbows resting on his knees, and he looked at her searchingly for a while; then he spoke. ‘You’re short-tempered with me. You never show me any affection, never, ever, initiate sex, and did you flinch yesterday when I kissed you? I’d swear you did. You’re dissatisfied with our home life. Home life? Why, the whole of Adelaide society’s not quite the go for you any more because we’re blinkered, limited, narrow-minded, parochial and penny-pinching. You’re doing your level best to be as uncomfortable in this house as possible, which is why I came home this evening to find you on your knees in the dark, scooping filth out of the fucking drains with your bare hand!’

Michael rarely swore, and never shouted, so when he did both, she knew he was provoked. But so was she. So was she.

‘What I’m “doing my level best to be” here, Michael, is the person you want me to be,’ she said quietly. ‘But this relationship isn’t tenable if you keep treating me as your subordinate.’

‘See, how can you say, “this relationship isn’t tenable” with such … such equanimity?’ he said. ‘It’s like it’s neither here nor there to you, whether we hold it together or not.’

‘I won’t live under suspicion,’ she said. ‘I will not forever be this … this lesser person, the bad one, the weak one.’

‘Ali, I admit I checked your phone just now, it was a reflex action, a gut feeling. But it’s the first time I’ve done it in weeks, and I didn’t like doing it, I just needed to put my mind at rest.’

‘And did you find what you were looking for?’

‘No,’ he said. ‘I didn’t know what I was looking for, and anyway my heart wasn’t in it.’

He looked a little defeated suddenly, and she felt a beat of true compassion for what she’d put him through – was still putting him through. Neither of them needed this scene. She’d left her phone out; he’d seen it, glanced at it and moved on. No drama.

‘How’s the game?’ she said, nodding at the silent footballers in the corner of the room.

He seemed to soften, letting go of the tension. Maybe Michael wasn’t really seeking confrontation, she thought. Maybe all he wanted was his old life back. And after all, the old life had been fine, hadn’t it, for both of them? On the whole? She sat down next to him.

‘Not pretty,’ he said. ‘In fact, downright ugly, but they’ve got Port on the run.’

‘Yeah, well, Port’s still going better than the sodding Crows.’

He turned his head sharply and looked at her.

‘What?’ she asked, glancing at him, away from the screen.