There was a murmur of agreement from the others in the hot tub – Wilbur’s girlfriend, another friend of Max’s and his particular interchangeable blonde girlfriend – and they fell into a comfortable silence, the noise of the bubbles filling the air. Chloe stared up at the clear blue sky, watching a plane trail along. When she was little her mother had told her that there were rips in the sky and that planes were stitching them up, that the vapour trails left behind were actually darns. She couldn’t remember where the story had come from. Probably her mother attempting to convince her that having darns in your clothes was a nice thing, not something to be embarrassed about. Her memory was punctured by a great roar from everyone else. She turned her head to see Zadie standing by the back door, completely naked. She was even thinner than she had been the night she had stayed in their shared bedroom. Her breasts were still impressive, further adding to Chloe’s questions about whether or not they were real, but her ribs looked like a xylophone and there was an astonishing gap between her legs. She picked a graceful path from the house to the hot tub and slid into the warm water.

‘What are you doing?’ asked Max, who seemed somewhere between irritated and amused.

‘I’m enjoying the hot tub, obviously.’

‘You’re naked.’

‘Aren’t the rest of you?’

Everyone shook their heads.

‘And there was me thinking this was a party. At least take your top off, Chloe.’

Chloe looked down at her chest and said nothing. Zadie giggled and reached for the string at the back of her bikini top. She caught it and pulled. Chloe grabbed the front and clamped her hands to her chest, gasping. Zadie laughed. The other girls in the hot tub half laughed, but Max’s face was stony. ‘Zadie, stop it.’

‘I’m just playing!’ She pulled at the bikini top again. There was a ripping noise as one of the straps came away from the rest of the bikini. Chloe tried to smile. It was only cheap; it wasn’t a big deal. Zadie looked horrified.

‘I’m so sorry.’ She held the strap in her hand. ‘I’m so, so sorry.’

‘It’s okay,’ smiled Chloe, frantically making sure she was covered up. ‘Just … can you grab my towel? Please?’