BARNEY: Five, eight…

But before BARNEY can go any further, ROO reaches down and jerks the flex free from the staple securing it to the skirting board.

Aaah—fair go—

EMMA: [astonished] What’ve you done? You’ve pulled it outta the wall—broken it—

ROO: No, I ain’t. It isn’t on the level, this.

BARNEY: Could have waited, couldn’t you?

ROO: We’ve had our giggle out of it. [Holding the flex towards EMMA] It’s not a phone, a real phone that’s been connected. ’S a thing that we brought home from Royal Park.

BARNEY: Only needed another minute, she’d have found out for herself.

Silence. EMMA stands stock still, her usual immediate response to any situation that has quite deserted her. Indeed, her state of mortified disappointment is so real and apparent that it gets through even to BARNEY. He makes a disclaiming gesture, trying to pass the moment off.

Aah, c’mon—just a joke.

EMMA picks up her handbag, and moves out towards the kitchen. A departure of shocked disbelief, to which OLIVE rallies, attempting a reassurance.

OLIVE: It’s alright. I’ll have a word.

She follows EMMA out to the kitchen. BARNEY, knowing he has gone too far and lost favour, makes a surly attempt to justify himself.

BARNEY: Bloody hell. The song and dance that she’s been makin’ ’bout that phone?

ROO: Yeh.

BARNEY: All that moanin’? You been just as much fed up as I have.

ROO: Can’t be helped. Done now. Give it a rest, I think.

He addresses NANCY, very much a change of subject.

Hey, I shoulda told you. What Emma said, someone here smokin’ a cigar. It was that bloke from the City Club. That reffo bloke.

NANCY: Josef?

ROO: He was waitin’ here when we got in.

BARNEY: [sullenly] Another pain in the bloody neck.

ROO: Wants Emma to give him some sort of a reference. One of them boardin’ houses she put him on to.

BARNEY: Greasy continentals.

ROO: Maybe you could mention it? Ask her?

NANCY: Yes. I will—

She starts to leave.

BARNEY: Gettin’ in everywhere. Worse than Yanks ’n’ all them other kiss-me-quicks. I told this bastard. Straight.

NANCY: Told him?

BARNEY: You can go the hog with who you like when I’m not here, but when I am, you toe the line.

NANCY stiffens in a pause. She then addresses ROO with a determined purpose.

NANCY: When Olive’s come back in, she’ll want to talk of celebrations, and you gettin’ out the army. I think first we ought to settle what comes after.

ROO: Oh, easy, easy on—

NANCY: You agreed. When they give you word of your discharge, the four of us will sit down, talk things over.

ROO: But not like this. Because you’ve had some stupid row with Barney—

NANCY: Stupid? Telling people he can whistle me up from the gutter?