He looked at her and she looked so sad that in that moment, Paul knew he would do anything to make her happy.

‘Yeah, mine too,’ confided Paul. ‘It’s a bit crap to be honest. Especially my dad – once he loses it, he loses it. And my mum just never stops fussing.’

‘Really?’

‘Yep. I don’t know if all parents are like that, but mine definitely are. My mum’s all right though. She would like you, I’m sure.’

Claire looked up at him with a smile. ‘Are you inviting me to meet your parents?’

Paul looked horrified and Claire couldn’t help but laugh.

‘I’m just kidding,’ she said and Paul grinned. Spontaneously, he put his arms around her, breaking their stride. Putting his hand under her chin, he looked into her eyes. He was half a head taller than her and he leant down to kiss her. She responded to him, wrapping her arms around his neck, and Paul thought he was going to explode. He pulled his mouth away and buried his embarrassed face in her neck.

Suddenly, voices startled them both and they repelled apart like opposing magnets. Paul’s body was taut and he tried to control his breathing. His first thought had been that it was Gavin. But it was just a pair of elderly walkers coming towards them up the path.

‘Afternoon,’ said the man politely while the woman behind him smiled indulgently at them. Claire returned the greeting, but Paul dropped his hands and his head and scuffed his trainers against a nearby rock. After they passed, he looked up to see Claire watching him curiously.

‘You okay?’ she asked.

‘Yeah.’ He kicked the rock once more before taking her hand in his. ‘You know maybe it wouldn’t be so bad for to you meet my mum,’ he said. ‘We could do our homework together there rather than hiding in the school library.’

At first, he thought Claire was going to say no, but then she smiled.

‘Sure, how about tomorrow?’ she suggested, and Paul was so overjoyed, he didn’t see the shadow of relief cross Claire’s face.

*

Paul watched Claire’s gaze take in the gate hanging off its hinges, the overgrown front lawn, and the peeling paint on the front door. His mum had been nagging him to mow the front lawn for weeks but now it was almost winter and it was hard to find a day where it wasn’t raining or bitterly cold.