‘Zaza,’ he said, leaning on the wall next to me, his expression calmly amused, although not in a way I felt belittled by. He was far more attentive than that. ‘Did you or did you not say that being hangry was your weak point and probably the thing you’d most like to change about yourself?’

‘I did …’ I nodded, feeling the right side of my mouth curl up in the glimpse of a smile at him referencing one of our many messages.

‘Then why on earth would I put you in a position where we’d be waiting for hours for swanky food, only to find it was a minuscule amount that would do little to stop the hunger, let alone hanger?’

I looked at him quizzically.

‘I promise this isn’t me dipping in and out and being a twat with a quick exit,’ he said, before screwing his face up bashfully.

‘Nicely worded,’ I quipped.

‘Zaza, fancy eating some delicious food that’ll be in front of us in minutes and then seeing where else the night takes us on happily full tummies?’

I looked up at him, at this man who’d made a simple choice because he wanted me to be comfortable and my best self, and grabbed his hand so that we could join the queue downstairs.

Every first with Liam was so different to any that had come before, he’d simplified life and love for me. Yet now life has come along to make me doubt the indestructability of that.

I feel sad to push aside the idea of Valentine’s but with my head the way it is right now it might be a good thing.

‘Phone Mike,’ I say, pulling at the face mask that’s started to slip.

‘You think?’ she asks, shouting over the rising noise of Barnaby and Chloe in the background who are shrieking at one another like angry little banshees. ‘You’re right. We can’t just turn up there. He might have plans.’

We both know he won’t have plans with other people, not on the night nearly everyone seems to have things arranged, but he might’ve decided to spend the night watching old home videos or pretending it isn’t happening at all – so it’s good to give him the option of seeing our faces if he’d like to.

‘I’ll do that now,’ she sings. ‘And actually, I’ll suggest meeting up here rather than going there again. Takes the pressure off. Phone you back.’

‘OK,’ I say, sighing as I put the phone down.

I peel off the mask and rub the left-over moisturizer into my skin before going downstairs to find Liam – he’s having a self-confessed ‘break from adulting’ by playing on his game.

‘All good?’ he asks, giving me a quick glance.

‘Can you pause it a sec?’