‘It smells really musty in here,’ Alexa observed, wrinkling her nose. The attic was heating up like a greenhouse, which seemed to be making all of its assorted contents ripen.

Ellen scrunched her nose up too.

‘So this is all your landlord’s stuff?’ Ben asked. His hand had moved from Alexa’s hip and was now lurking near her lower back.

‘Yeah,’ Alexa replied, and then suddenly giggled.

Ellen assumed Ben’s hand had slunk lower. She smirked at Alexa, who flushed. In spite of everything, Ellen was desperate to find out how Alexa and Ben had ended up together last night. She decided to get rid of Ben.

‘Hey, Ben?’ she asked sweetly.

He looked up.

‘Maybe you should go yell out the window again?’

He narrowed his eyes as though she were playing an elaborate practical joke on him.

Alexa twigged it straight away. ‘I think Ellen would like a word.’

‘Aha,’ Ben said. He untangled his fingers from Alexa’s and sprang to a standing position. ‘I could do with some fresh air, anyway.’

They both watched him lope towards the skylight, making Jack jump.

‘That wasn’t very subtle,’ Alexa observed in a low whisper, with an anxious glance towards the skylight. Her small hand was cupped in front of her mouth, though Ellen could tell she was smiling.

Ellen shuffled round, and indicated that Alexa should do so too, so that their backs were to Ben and Jack. Ellen shot a glance at the boys. Ben was trying to pretend he wasn’t watching.

‘I know it wasn’t my finest.’ Ellen shrugged, then tucked a sheet of long, lank brown hair behind her right ear. ‘But …’ She inclined her head towards Ben.

Alexa smirked.

Ellen widened her eyes again, then prodded Alexa’s knee with her finger.

‘Ow,’ Alexa said, hammily.

Ellen prodded her again, and put her own hand over her mouth. ‘So?’

Alexa leaned closer to Ellen. ‘Well, straight after I texted you last night, Ben texted me –’ The words were coming out in a rush. Her breath smelled sharp and artificial, and she still had the smear of kohl on her left cheek.

Ellen rubbed her finger across Alexa’s cheek. ‘Sorry – you had eyeliner, and it was annoying me.’

‘Is it off?’

‘Yes. Go on.’

‘Well, like I said, he texted, and suggested Penny’s.’

Ellen remembered.

‘And I knew you were in Farringdon but I couldn’t really be arsed to trek back into town …’ Alexa paused to look apologetic but Ellen shrugged her off, impatient to hear more. ‘And I wanted to see him,’ she said, more quietly. ‘After last time … so anyway, we went. And it was fun. Back to how it was on our first few dates. We got quite drunk – very, actually – and the conversation flowed, and then we came back here and –’

‘And then he locked us in an attic,’ Ellen prompted.

‘And then he locked us in an attic.’ Alexa laughed, hopelessly.