Excuse me, Jess types, (I feel a little jolt of something. And then I shake my head. For God’s sake.) You did it the other day, Beck. Can you switch them off, Alex? Thank youuuu x

I step in, carefully, and unplug them from the wall. For the briefest of moments I look around at Jess’s things – at her framed When Harry met Sally picture on the wall, and her fluffy pink coat thing. There’s a striped woollen rug thing on the end of the bed, and a teetering pile of books on her bedside table. I step out of the room, realising that it’ll probably be the last time I’m in there. It feels very final.

Chapter Forty-Two: Alex

Chapter Forty-Two

Alex

18th December

There’s a week to go before Christmas and I need to study for end-of-term exams. The prospect of lying in bed listening to Jess and James together isn’t exactly appealing. I decide I might as well just head back, see my mum, get some decent work done and enjoy some meals I don’t have to cook myself before next term starts. I pick up my notes and textbooks, and shove them in an overnight bag with a bunch of T-shirts, jeans and stuff. I message Mum to make sure she’s okay with me turning up out of the blue. She doesn’t reply. I think given past performance she’ll probably be okay with it, and I pull the door on Albany Road closed behind me.

I always forget how full-on Christmas is in Canterbury. The market stalls are crammed with cinnamon-scented lebkuchen and painted wooden toys. Pubs are stuffed with people in striped Breton tops and deck shoes sipping mulled wine and having leisurely lunches. The university has broken up for the end of term, but the place is still full of students. And my mother is at home, where she’s gone all out with a massive eight-foot fir tree decorated with tasteful silver baubles. She has a house full of guests from her art class.

‘It’s so lovely to have you here, darling,’ she says as she shuts the door behind me, then pulls me in for a hug. The kitchen is jammed with people who all seem to know who I am. I’m touched that she seems to have got her head round the idea of nursing at last, and she’s proudly telling everyone that yes, this is Alex, and yes, he’s the one who’s retraining as a nurse. It’s sweet, if a little bit overwhelming. Eventually I escape upstairs. Mel texts to say she’s checking in to make sure I’m surviving.

I point out that she owes me one. Or several.

20th December