By now he was starving. It was getting on for nine o’clock and he daren’t disturb Gerard again to ask if he could spare a Pot Noodle, so his only option was to rip into the cellophane and feast on the Matchmakers.

He must have dropped off soon after that, only to be awoken by a loud scream. Lana had finally arrived home.

‘Jesus! Gareth! What the actual fuck!’

‘Sorry, babe,’ he said, smiling. ‘I didn’t mean to frighten you.’

‘Well, you failed,’ she said, catching her breath.

‘Didn’t Gerard tell you I was here?’

‘What? No, he’s asleep.’ She lit a cigarette, shaking from the shock, and sat on the bed.

‘Came to surprise you,’ he said, venturing a smile.

‘Well, that you did succeed in doing.’

His plan hadn’t had the happy, romantic outcome he’d hoped for. They hardly talked at all other than about college stuff and how full-on this term was turning out to be with rehearsals for Carousel. The weird thing was that she never seemed to get over her irritation about him frightening her like that. But even weirder was that she didn’t offer an explanation for where she’d been that evening. It felt odd having to ask her, but when he did, she brushed it off.

‘Sorry, didn’t I say?’ she asked vaguely as she got undressed for bed. ‘Rehearsals.’

‘Oh.’

‘What?’ She sounded annoyed.

‘Well, Gerard said you didn’t start the evening rehearsals till next week or something.’

Was there a flicker of doubt in her eyes or did he imagine it?

‘Gerard’s a bloody prat,’ she said, irritated. ‘We do back-up singing rehearsals in the evenings. He thinks the world revolves around him – if he’s not needed, then it can’t be happening. Now shift up and show me what you really came to Guildford for.’

They had sex, but it was quick and uninspiring.

‘Sorry, babe,’ said Lana. ‘I’m just absolutely knackered.’

‘Never mind, there’s always tomorrow,’ he said as they spooned cosily in the single bed. ‘I took the day off work so we could spend some time together.’

‘Great,’ said Lana.

And he decided that the lack of enthusiasm in her voice was another figment of his imagination.

In the morning he took her to college on his bike. She seemed in a better mood than the night before and for the first time in a long while he felt that things might get back on track. He hung around the town centre after he’d dropped her off, visiting a bike shop and a record store. It had been such a long time since he’d taken a day off, he’d forgotten how relaxing it was to just potter.

As arranged, he met Lana for lunch and they went to a new vegetarian café she’d discovered. He hated the food, but loved the company, and by the time he’d taken her back to college, he felt the warm glow that he used to feel whenever he was with her.