‘Man,’ Finn says, putting his pen away in a jeans pocket. ‘They don’t like you, do they?’

‘No shit,’ Julia says. ‘And I don’t like them, so it’s all good. What’ve you got for me?’

‘You first.’

Julia has been looking forward to this for weeks. ‘Ta-da,’ she says, holding out her phone. She can’t keep the grin off her face.

The photo shows her on the back lawn, which was dumb because any of the nuns could have looked out of their bedroom windows, but Julia was feeling daring. Duckface, hand on cocked hip, other hand flourished over her head pointing up at the clock. Midnight, bang on.

(‘Are you positive?’ Holly asked, Julia’s phone in her hand.

‘Hell yes,’ Julia said, glancing up at the clock to make sure it would fit in the shot. ‘Why not?’

‘Because he’s going to know we sneak out, is why not.’ Behind Holly’s head, Selena and Becca watched from under the trees, pale bobbing faces, waiting.

‘We never said anything about not trusting guys,’ Julia said. ‘Just not touching them.’

‘Yeah, and we never said anything about, like, skipping around telling anyone who’s a good laugh.’

‘Finn’s not going to rat on us,’ Julia said. ‘I swear. OK?’

Holly shrugged. Julia struck a pose and pointed over her head at the clock. ‘Go,’ she said.

The flash blazed white lines of trees across their eyes like lightning and Holly and Julia ran for cover, ducking low, gasping with laughter.)

‘I’ll take my tenner now,’ Julia says. ‘And an apology. I like them with extra grovelling.’

‘Fair enough,’ Finn says. ‘You want me to get down on my knees?’

‘Tempting, but nah. Just make it good.’

Finn puts one hand on his heart. ‘I apologise for saying you would be scared of anything in the universe. You’re a fearless superhero who could kick my arse, or Wolverine’s arse, or a mad gorilla’s arse.’

‘Yeah, I am,’ Julia says. ‘You’re forgiven. That was beautiful.’

‘Good pic,’ Finn says, having another look. ‘Who took it? One of your mates, yeah?’

‘The ghost nun. Told you I was badass.’ Julia takes her phone back. ‘Tenner.’

‘Hold your horses,’ Finn says, pulling out his phone. ‘I’ve got a surprise for you, remember?’

If this is a photo of his dick, Julia thinks, I will kill the fucker. ‘Make my day,’ she says.

Finn hands her the phone and grins, that same straight-on wicked kid-grin, and Julia feels a rush of relief and guilt and warmth. She wants to touch him, hip-bump him off the breeze blocks or hook her elbow around his neck or something, to apologise for underestimating him all over again.

‘Great minds,’ Finn says, and nods at the phone.