‘Dell.’ She was tired. Sometimes her body would fool her into just telling the truth.

Heidi nodded, and they sat in silence for a moment, both thinking about Dell. ‘What did you want?’ Heidi asked. She was sipping her tea now.

‘Huh?’

‘You messaged me.’

‘Oh. Just to say I hate those girls,’ said Margaret.

‘Carola and Lotte?’

‘I hate them.’

‘Like hate hate?’

‘Like, “they’re taking up space in my head” hate them.’

‘Like, “drinking poison and expecting them to die” hate,’ said Heidi and they both laughed a bit. ‘They’re all right.’

‘I know that,’ Margaret said. ‘But I’m not.’ And they laughed again. ‘I’m jealous.’

‘Yeah,’ Heidi said. ‘That’s usually what it’s about for me. Ungrateful.’

‘Ungrateful,’ Margaret said. ‘It was driving me nuts. I couldn’t work. Then you came over and I haven’t thought about it for, like’ – she looked at her watch – ‘half an hour.’

‘Lucky I wasn’t busy.’

‘Blessed,’ said Margaret, and they laughed again.

‘I’m sure that’s the phone from that day,’ Heidi said.

Margaret looked at her like she’d forgotten about it. ‘Huh?’

Heidi didn’t flinch.

‘It’s not yours,’ Margaret said. ‘You didn’t bring it round.’

‘I know I didn’t bring it round.’

‘It was in the letterbox already,’ Margaret said.

‘I know it was in the letterbox already.’

‘It wasn’t in the letterbox,’ Margaret said.

‘I know it wasn’t in the letterbox,’ said Heidi. ‘I was testing you.’

‘Anyway, it’s not that phone.’

‘I know it’s not that phone,’ Heidi said.

‘It’s not yours.’

‘I know it’s not mine,’ Heidi said. ‘But it’s that phone, isn’t it?’

Margaret arranged her face, hoping she looked like she was thinking, like it really wasn’t that important.

‘Have you had that phone all this time?’ Heidi said. ‘Is it sending you messages?’

‘Is that what you think is happening?’ Margaret said.

Heidi sipped her tea and looked away. ‘I don’t know,’ she said. ‘I don’t really care. It’s not my business.’

‘I wonder what happened to your Tamagotchi phone,’ Margaret said.

‘I never had a Tamagotchi phone,’ Heidi said.