She hadn’t had close friends growing up. The constant moving and new schools had made it hard. She was always self-conscious about her height. Overly studious. She stood out while trying to blend in. Rose’s friendship had been as sudden as it was unexpected, all sparked by a lost student ID card, six weeks into her studies at university.

Eliza hadn’t even realised she’d lost the card. Rose found it on the floor of the library, tracked Eliza down to their residential hall and handed it over, introducing herself with a warm smile.

‘We’re nearly birthday twins! I’m only a day older than you. Did you have a big eighteenth party? My parents insisted. Mortifying baby photos and all!’

Eliza hadn’t marked her birthday in any way. Olivia and Maxie rang, trying hard to be cheerful, but it was too difficult for all of them. All Eliza wanted was for the day to be over.

Caught off guard, she told Rose the truth. No, she hadn’t had a party. She didn’t say why.

The next morning, she was woken by a knock on her door. She opened it to find a card on the floor. Happy Belated 18th Birthday! Rose had written. Part two tonight! That night, Rose arrived at her door carrying a bottle of cheap sparkling wine, two glasses and a shop-bought cake covered in eighteen candles. She came into Eliza’s room, ignoring her protests, opening the wine.

‘You don’t drink?’ she said, mid-pour. ‘Good for you and more for me!’ She gazed around. ‘Can you please teach me to be tidy? I’m just a floor below, but your room looks so much nicer than mine.’

She noticed the small framed photo of Eliza with her mother and two godmothers. ‘What a wonderful photo,’ she said. ‘I don’t need to ask which one’s your mother. You’re the image of her. Isn’t she gorgeous? Look at that dimple! She’s so young too. Who are the other two women?’

Eliza briefly explained.

‘Two godmothers? Brilliant. How did you manage that?’ Rose put a cocktail umbrella into a glass of water for Eliza, sat down and said, cheerily, ‘Now, why did you ignore your eighteenth? Because you’re actually fourteen and used a fake ID to get into uni?

Eliza hadn’t intended to tell her anything. It was hard enough carrying the knowledge of it herself, let alone having other people know. No one at the uni knew what had happened. But she hadn’t expected anything like this friendly, open girl asking her questions. Looking at the photo from the concert with such interest. Asking about her godmothers. Her mother.

Once she started talking, it was impossible to stop.

Rose was in tears by the time Eliza finished. ‘I’m so sorry,’ she said. ‘Oh, Eliza, how can you even be here, after something like that?’

It was as if those words needed to be released too. She’d felt like she had no choice, she said. Her mother had always wanted her to go to uni. She had to be here, for her.