It took a bit of manoeuvring to get into a position that gave Lou access to my hair while also making room for her leg cast to rest comfortably. In the end I sat on the floor on a couple of cushions, and she perched on the very edge of the bed.

‘By the way, Lou, have you ever . . .?’ I pointed to my hair, enquiringly.

‘Never.’

‘Excellent.’

‘Isn’t it?’

So Lou cut my hair. And even though I probably should have been a little nervous at her snipping away up there unsupervised with a blinding lack of credentials, I felt weirdly calm about the outcome. Out of the corner of my eye I could see interestingly uneven chunks of hair dropping on to the floor, but I didn’t seem to be straying too far from home these days, so did it really matter what I looked like? (I’d called into the Lamb the day before, out of curiosity more than anything, but it felt so depressing and claustrophobic I didn’t even stay to finish my half. For the first time in my adult life, I appeared to have lost the taste for beer and wasn’t that a big old surprise?)

Lou worked away, occasionally tilting my head to one side or the other. The tinny snip of the scissors and the sight of those chunks of hair falling to the floor was almost hypnotic, and I was a long, long way from home when I felt a gentle tug on my ear.

‘Hey. Snap out of it. Turn around so I can do the front.’

I swung around on the cushions, and Lou pushed my forehead back so she could trim the sides. I closed my eyes to reduce the risk of losing one, so I hadn’t noticed the snipping had stopped until she said my name.

‘Finished?’ She still had the scissors in her hand, but she was dead still.

‘Hey, I . . . I just wanted to say thanks, Danny. You know, for everything.’

‘Don’t worry about it. I don’t mind a bit of blood and guts and it’s—’

I had to duck to avoid getting swiped by the scissors as she waved her arm to emphasise her point. ‘No, not my leg. That’s not what I meant. Just . . . thanks, for letting Wolfie and me stay. Because I know it’s been hard for you.’ Her eyes slipped to a point over my shoulder. ‘I know it has.’

I’d have loved to be ready with a gracious reply, but what would I say? That she was right, it had been the hardest thing I’d ever done? That it wasn’t even my house, and the truth was that if I’d had my stupid, selfish way a few weeks ago, she’d probably still be disappearing under a pile of laundry in Tottenham being looked after by a fifteen-year-old? Best not.

‘Being here these last few weeks, Danny, with all of you, it’s been like my entire body and soul have exhaled, or something. My whole life I’ve felt like I have to slog my way through porridge in jackboots just to get to everyone else’s starting point, you know? But here, everything feels sort of—’ Lou paused and ran her fingers over George’s little star on her cast. ‘I don’t know, diluted. I’ve felt safe here, I feel safe here. And more importantly, I feel like Wolfie’s safe. And I think maybe it’s the first time I’ve ever genuinely felt that.’