‘He had a massive—’

‘Stop it!’ Judith interrupted. ‘I seriously do not want to know.’

Catrin looked like she did. But knew better than to ask.

‘Look, girls. I’ve messed up, OK? I will hold my hands up and say I’ve been a complete and utter twat. I shouldn’t have drunk so much, and if I hadn’t I wouldn’t have done it, OK? I wouldn’t have shagged Danny or Donny or whatever the fuck he’s called. So if you want me to feel bad, well, I do, OK? And I’m sorry.’

There was a pause, then Catrin said, ‘It’s not us you should say sorry to, though, is it?’

‘Hey, hang on a minute, I’m hardly gonna tell Gareth, am I?’

‘No, come to think of it, that would be a really bad idea,’ said Catrin.

‘Obviously,’ snapped Judith and Lana together. Catrin wasn’t always the full ticket.

‘But please, girls …’ Lana continued. ‘Promise me that you will not tell a soul about what I did – and in exchange, I will give you my word that I will never, ever let it happen again.’

Judith sighed and begrudgingly nodded.

‘Of course,’ said Catrin, and she picked up an empty red Marlboro packet from the table. ‘Let’s swear,’ she said.

‘What you doing?’ asked Judith, still irritated.

‘Like we did when we were kids. When we swore on the Curly Wurly wrapper to always be friends, remember? Let’s swear on this fag packet never to tell. I know it isn’t a Curly Wurly, but it will have to do. Say after me …’

‘Sorry, but I’m not in the mood,’ said Judith with a sigh, softer now. ‘You’re right, Larn, you were an idiot, but we all make mistakes.’ She put her arms around Lana. ‘So let’s just forget it, yeah?’

‘Not too tight, Jude, I might be sick down your back,’ Lana mumbled.

The waiter handed them the bill and Catrin reached into her rucksack for her purse. Lana threw a handful of drachmas from her pocket on to the table, and Judith followed suit.

‘What’s the matter?’ she asked Catrin, who had now begun emptying the contents of her rucksack on to the table.

‘It always ends up right at the bottom,’ she said, smiling, as she took out a pair of sunglasses, a book and a bottle of insect repellent. But the more she took out, the more her smile faded, until panic crossed her face. ‘It’s gone!’ she said. ‘My purse! I had it with me less than an hour ago!’

Judith emptied the rucksack, systematically checking the pockets again before fruitlessly searching under the table and the surrounding area. But no joy. They had to admit defeat: Catrin’s purse was definitely gone.

‘What a bummer,’ said Lana, trying her best to sound supportive whilst battling the urge to throw up.

‘Who’d have bloody nicked it?’ said Judith sympathetically.

‘From right under our noses. Bastards,’ added Lana unhelpfully, her hand shielding her eyes from the sun.