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‘You’re both overthinking it. Just go with the flow. See what happens,’ she tells me.

Angie pulls a face.

‘I guess she’s right, but you said you had a good time with Si, right? So, I don’t know, I would focus on that.’

‘Yeah,’ I admit. ‘I did. He’s really nice.’

Mel claps her hands together.

‘Then let’s get back out there and have a good time,’ Mel says. ‘Play it by ear. We’ll help you navigate this.’

I take a deep breath and nod, but I’m not sure that’s a good idea.

We head back downstairs. Si waves at us from over at the bar, smiling.

‘I’ll go see him,’ I tell them. ‘You find us a seat.’

‘You want one of your teenage alcopops?’ Si asks, greeting me with a cheeky grin.

‘Hilarious,’ I say sarcastically. ‘But yes, please, a red one.’

He laughs and turns to the barman. Would you believe it, it’s Tim.

‘Sorry, mate,’ Tim tells Si when he tries to order, ‘we’ve got an over-25s policy here.’

He can’t really need to see Si’s ID, can he?

‘I’m clearly over twenty-five,’ Si tells him.

‘Exactly, you’re way too old to be drinking here. This bar is for young people,’ Tim replies before falling about laughing.

Joking or not, Si looks mortified by this. Tim thinks he’s hilarious, and he’s the kind of guy to make mean jokes and then explain them away as banter, but that doesn’t make it any better.

We wait for our drinks in silence before finding a table away from the dance floor. When it gets late, that’s when the Ghost comes alive… too alive. The music is always very loud, ever so slightly out of date – like the house DJ only ever has last season’s Now! album – and the drunk masses pile onto the dance floor for drinking and dry-humping.

‘Hey, everyone,’ Si says as we sit down with Mel and Angie, who already have their usual bottle of prosecco courtesy of Eric. ‘It’s good to see you both again.’

Mel grins.

‘Hey, Si! Lia tells us you’re renovating your house,’ Mel says, making quick and easy conversation.

Si leans back, looking relaxed.

‘Yeah, been at it for a few months now,’ he says. ‘It’s a lot of work, but it’s rewarding. I can’t wait to see what it looks like when it’s done.’

Angie raises an eyebrow.

‘So, you’re really hands-on with it?’ she replies.

Si nods.

‘Yeah, I do most of it myself. It saves money and I enjoy it. Plus, it’s nice to see the progress every day.’

‘You must have a lot of energy,’ she says, edging into disbelief.

Before Si can say anything, Tim plonks down with us.

‘It’s my break,’ he announces. ‘I thought I’d say hi.’