Her mother barely missed a beat. ‘I didn’t realise you were thinking of moving back,’ she said, and Pip could hear she was trying hard to keep her tone neutral.

‘Well, I won’t be going anywhere at this rate,’ replied Pip, determinedly avoiding her mother’s meaning. ‘I think I’m going to have to share, but the thought of trying to find the right flat and flatmate at the same time is totally hideous.’

Her mother looked over her shoulder at the flat that was currently on her screen, a new-build in Shoreditch. When she saw the rent she whistled, and then crossed the room and began to fill the kettle. ‘Is that near where you lived before?’ she asked. ‘I’m sorry, I should know, but I get confused with how London all fits together.’

‘Yes, more or less,’ Pip said.

‘And it’s handy for work?’

‘Yes. About half an hour by Tube.’

Her mother pulled a face. ‘And that’s handy, is it?’

Pip laughed. ‘It’s handy for London,’ she said.

Her mother was quiet for a moment as she put teabags in the pot. ‘What would happen if you drew a circle around work, on the map I mean, and marked all the places that were within say, forty-five minutes?’

Pip thought about it for a moment. She had assumed she would move back to Shoreditch. That was where she had always aspired to live. She had given her postcode proudly when she got into a taxi and she and Dominic had often congratulated each other on their excellent taste. In fact, now she came to think about it, she struggled to remember exactly how it had felt to be so pleased about something so very trivial.

But her mother was right. Why was she contemplating moving back there, to a flashy, poky, overpriced flat surrounded by people who neither knew their neighbours nor cared who they might be, when there were so many other places she could try? So what if she lived a little bit further out? Lots of people did and no one thought any the less of them.

Actually, that wasn’t true, she admitted to herself. People like her and Dominic had thought less of them. Pip winced as she remembered the kinds of conversations they had had within the confines of their boxy living room, barely big enough to swing a cat in, but in the right location.

She couldn’t quite picture herself cast in that role any more. It felt so long ago, almost a different lifetime. But then, when she thought about it, she supposed that was exactly what it was.

She closed down the Shoreditch search and started again.