‘It was a few years ago. He and his girlfriend were in the back seat of a car which ended up rolling over into a ditch at speed. Taylor’s girlfriend drowned and he was badly injured. He told me that he feels guilty because she didn’t deserve to be the one who died. How awful is that, Fern?’

I’d sensed whatever he’d been through had been life-changing, but that’s so terribly, terribly sad to hear. No one should have to spend their life thinking they shouldn’t have been the one to survive in a situation like that.

‘It’s good to be honest with each other, but it’s heart-breaking to hear that, Kellie.’

‘He understands what it’s like to feel desperate at times and I think that’s why we hit it off from the start. When you’re broken inside, it takes a long time to heal and only another sufferer can fully understand that pain.’

I’m unable to eat, a growing sense of anger banishing my appetite as I consider how unfair life can be. Placing my plate on the bench next to me, I throw some of the bread onto the grass. A little group of birds has been watching us, flitting in and out of the branches above our heads.

The only other sounds are the leaves rustling in the warm breeze when it gusts and a cacophony of birdsong, with the usual accompaniment of chirping cicadas. Often, there’s the sound of wood being chopped, or metal being hammered at the very least, so this relative peace is bliss. We sit quietly for quite a while, just watching the little ripples on the surface of the lake. There’s an odd gloop sound every now and again as a fish suddenly jumps to catch one of the bugs sitting on the surface.

‘I wear my bangles to disguise this,’ Kellie states, suddenly. Holding out her right arm, she tugs the bangles upwards, exposing her wrist. The cut is straight. It was clearly deep.

Instinctively, I want to throw my arms around Kellie and hug away her pain. With no siblings, she has only her parents and, from what she’s said, they don’t seem to understand her. But she isn’t looking for a reaction, she’s staring into space quite blankly. I sense that what Kellie really needs isn’t sympathy but someone to listen. Someone not to judge, or question.

‘School was horrible. Every single day of it. I didn’t fit in. Always on the edge of things, always different. Then the bullying started. I eventually told Mum and she did take me seriously, but I didn’t want her to do anything about it. I simply had to share it, to hear someone say it wasn’t right. I made her believe I was handling it and that the head of year knew.’