‘You know, Sophie, when we were growing up in Loughisland, it was the happiest time of my life, even though it was simple and we didn’t have much,’ I say, not knowing where my words are coming from or where they’re going. ‘The sound of the ice cream van coming into our estate was like our own little version of Disneyland, a bit of snow in winter gave us a whole new playground and we’d use coal bags as makeshift sleighs to slide down hills, and we could tell what day of the week it was by what Mam was making for dinner.’

Sophie smiles but I know my childhood was several light years away from what she experienced. I’m not saying it was better or worse, it was just different.

‘I wore my sister’s clothes when she had grown out of them and I longed for the day when I could wear my own things, instead of depending on Emily’s growth spurts,’ I say with a smile. ‘I’ll never forget the time I saved enough money from picking strawberries at the weekends to buy a whole new outfit of my own. A denim jacket with patches on, a full-length floral tea dress to go underneath it and a pair of boots that made my mother’s eyes water. I was fifteen and it was my first sense of self, my first expression of who I really was inside. I’ll never forget that feeling.’

I know that Sophie is trying desperately to think of something to say, but she can’t relate at all, can she? From what she has told me, as a child she was showered with ponies, violin lessons, speech and drama tuition, designer clothes. Her weekend entertainment was the opera whereas mine was going for a bag of chips with my friends. She knew exactly who she was and where she was going in life from the day she was born.

‘Charlotte, you’re one of the sweetest, funniest, most caring and talented people I know,’ she says to me gently. ‘You’re an out-of-this-world teacher, but most of all, you’re my best friend in the world, even more than Harry sometimes. I’m serious about that.’

Her gentle words make me lose my breath.

‘Really?’

‘Yes, really,’ she nods. ‘I’d be lost without you, Char, and the laughs and words of wisdom we share. You’re such a special person, so unique that even my mother likes you – and that’s more than what she feels for me!’

I manage to laugh at that one but it is true. I’ve gone way up in Sophie’s dragon mother’s estimations since I walked out on Miss Jean Brady.