We entered a maze of small alleys that alternated between cobbled streets and dramatic paved walkways. The buildings were painted white brick and smooth ivory stone, and up above an awning bridged the gap between buildings so that ivy could grow theatrically. The buildings had painted wooden shutters that matched the window boxes, stuffed to overflowing with bright, colourful flowers, even in the chilly air. Signs in front said what I assumed meant art gallery, and the windows of some had treasures of paintings and tables and knick-knacks. At the corner, where two alleyways met, was a small café with tables outside, and it was just about warm enough to take a seat directly in the sun. I wished I’d thought to bring my sunglasses. It was very bright, in a way that doesn’t happen in London during the colder months, where everything can be fifty shades of grizzly grey.

‘Here,’ said Jules, gallantly. ‘You sit with your back to the sun.’

He ordered us coffee and pastries and water, and it occurred to me that I must have looked awful considering I’d gotten up at five thirty that morning. I smoothed down my hair at the nape of my neck and pulled out some lip balm from my bag.

‘So,’ stated Jules. ‘Chen said I’d have to charm you as if my life depended on it.’

‘Did she now?’ I said, rubbing my lips together to spread the Vaseline. Was I flirting as I said it? I felt light. Playful. That’s exactly what Aus had done to me – made me sprightlier because it felt full of opportunity. Hope is a dangerous gateway drug.

Jules was amused. ‘I’m not afraid to rise to the challenge.’

‘That’s very noble of you,’ I said.

He grinned. ‘Something tells me you won’t be strong-armed,’ he mused, and I shrugged. Antwerp certainly was cute. Maybe Patrick would come with me and find a job, or maybe we would do long-distance. He’d made it seem that seizing this opportunity would be so black and white, but there were so many different ways we could navigate it together. If I wanted to. If he wanted to. Or maybe this would be it, and we’d break up. I didn’t know. I felt clammy at the thought of it. Being in charge of my own future was more uncomfortable than I’d thought it would be. That’s the thing they don’t tell you about having choices – saying yes to one thing normally means saying no to ten more.