In the event there was no need for Barbara to contact me to arrange our next meeting. We were brought together by Dennis and the group.

I got a call from Caro during the day, inviting me to the next rehearsal; she said she’d also rung the previous night, so I went through the rest of the day feeling quite pleased with myself. There was no resentment in her tone when she asked what I had been doing on Monday, but I couldn’t help feeling that being temporarily unavailable had increased my stature somewhat. We made a private arrangement to meet during the day on Friday; she had wanted it to be earlier, but I was trying to keep the evenings open for Barbara. This made me feel obscurely guilty, as I couldn’t bring myself to admit to Caro why I needed the evenings free. I appeased her with the promise of treating her to Belle du Jour during the afternoon on Friday.

I saw Mrs Muller for the first time in what seemed like days, just before I went out to the rehearsal. She looked at me with a definite gleam in her eye as I got in from the shop, and said, in her precise but faintly accented English: ‘A young lady telephoned for you last night.’

‘Yes…she rang me at the shop. Thank you.’ I wanted to disappear straight up to my room to get changed, but it was clear that Mrs Muller had more to say. ‘This was the same young woman who was here on Sunday evening?’

‘Yes. Her name’s Caro – short for Caroline.’

‘Ah. A nice girl, I think. Intelligent.’

‘Yes.’ I made it to the bottom of the stairs and pointed hesitantly upward. ‘I’ve…got to go. Dennis’ group are rehearsing tonight.’ I felt keen to emphasise the fact that Caro wasn’t the only thing in my life, to avoid my mother getting too excited when Mrs Muller phoned her, though in fact Caro was my main reason for going to the rehearsal.

‘You will not be wanting dinner, then?’

‘Uh, no...thanks. I’ll get some chips.’ I started up the stairs.

‘Hah…chips…’ Mrs Muller continued to mutter as she went into the sitting room. I took the stairs three at a time, glad to have escaped. I knew my mother was unlikely to be as uncritical of Caro as Mrs Muller, so I was hoping to play down the importance of the relationship for the time being. Mostly because I still wasn’t sure how important it actually was.

On the walk to Jimmy’s place I tried to put things in some perspective. My head was still full of the things Barbara had been telling me, both the complete adventures and the tantalising hints of what was still to come. I was having trouble coming to terms with my reactions to what she had been saying; I knew I was beginning to believe her, and it worried me more than a little. It seemed so impossible to reconcile the facts of my everyday existence with the fantastic things I was hearing. It was her manner, her basic aura of honesty, that made it all seem plausible – I couldn’t disbelieve her. I found myself wishing there was someone I could share all this with, and I realised that I was experiencing something of how she must have felt for the last two years. I was tempted to phone her before I went to the rehearsal, but I came to Jimmy’s before I passed a call box, so I tried to put it out of my mind.

Then, as I started up the drive, I was thrown into confusion by the sight of the two women on the doorstep. Sally Willmott and Barbara. For a moment I thought I must have come into the wrong road, walked up the wrong path – but there was Jimmy’s mother opening the door, welcoming them in and waving to me, leaving the door open. Barbara glanced back as she went in, presumably to see who Mrs Blake was waving at, and just for a moment her eyes lit up and she seemed about to turn and come rushing back down the drive towards me. Then she pulled her eyes away and went into the hall.

I was walking a little unsteadily as I came up to the porch. I nudged the door open, wondering if I had been hallucinating and the hall would be empty. But Mrs Blake was showing Sally Willmott the stairs down to the basement, and Barbara was standing holding her bag and watching the door, waiting for me.

I shrugged slightly at her to show how surprised I was, then pushed the door closed behind me very deliberately, trying to give myself time to recover. I was taken aback by the strength of my reaction; my heart was trying to escape from my rib-cage and my hands were shaking. Barbara was watching me carefully. I realised it must simply be the unexpected nature of the encounter, and I forced myself to breathe deeply as I pulled off my coat. I was finding it difficult to meet Barbara’s eyes, so I concentrated on the hooks as I looked for a place to hang my coat.

I heard Mrs Blake come back down the hall. ‘This is an unexpected pleasure,’ she was saying. ‘Jimmy said he’d been asked a lot of questions about the group, but I didn’t think anyone would take quite so much interest as to come and see them play.’

I turned. Sally Willmott was going down the stairs. Mrs Blake was standing next to Barbara, who smiled politely and asked: ‘What’s the group called?’

‘Ah.’ Mrs Blake glanced at me. ‘Well, that’s a question. They’ve had so many ideas, and never stuck with one. What is it they’re called at the moment, Conrad?’

‘Black Bolt was the last one I heard.’ I stepped closer to Barbara and she seemed to turn slightly towards me. I could tell she was very pleased to have found me here.

‘Black Bolt?’ she said.

‘Dennis’ idea. From a character in The Fantastic Four. I don’t think the others are too keen.’ Caro would probably find them a name, I reflected. That thought reminded me why I had come to the rehearsal, and I felt my blood rushing around again in an effort to keep up with my emotional turmoil.

Barbara gestured towards the stairs. ‘Shall we go down?’ She looked at me and I had the oddest feeling she was about to wink. She didn’t, of course, but I felt a tremendous warmth coming from her. I wondered if this was what it felt like when you were having an affair. The sense of shared secrets between us was almost palpable.

Mrs Blake seemed to have noticed that something was in the air. She was looking at both of us with a slight frown. I smiled at her and moved towards the stairs. ‘I expect we’ll see you later.’ I looked towards Barbara. ‘Mrs Blake’s scones are an experience in themselves – she always does them for rehearsals. Come on…I’ll introduce you to the group members you haven’t met.’

I could almost feel Mrs Blake looking at us as we descended the stairs. I didn’t dare turn my head to check if she was still there. Barbara caught me up and murmured: ‘I’m very glad you’re here. I knew you knew Dennis, but I wasn’t expecting…well, I’m glad, anyway.’

‘Why?’ I said it without thinking, then realised it might be a tricky question to answer.

She stopped just before we turned down the last section of the steps and I stopped with her. ‘Don’t tell Sally, but…well, I wasn’t really comfortable with the idea of this. Actually, I’m not sure she was. I think I’m here for moral support. She wanted her boyfriend to come, but he’s in Nottingham.’ She looked down towards the basement, then went on in a low voice: ‘Do you know why they invited her?’

I wasn’t sure how honest to be, but I was saved by Sally herself, who appeared from below. ‘There you are. I thought you’d got lost.’ She looked at me with what appeared to be mild hostility. ‘Oh, hello.’ Her eyes went back to Barbara, and I could see a question in them.

Barbara began to move down the steps again. ‘I’m not sure you two were ever properly introduced. Sally, this is Conrad. Conrad, Sally.’ She almost swept past Sally, who looked at me for a moment then went after Barbara. I took the last few steps in some trepidation, wondering how many more awkward encounters were in store.

The group were in a fairly early stage of preparation. The record player in the corner was playing the Magical Mystery Tour EP on repeat, but no one seemed to be listening. Dave hadn’t arrived; he had a wife and child and was often the last one to turn up. Jimmy and Dennis were engaged in a stop-start rehearsal of some bit of rhythm business. Caro was over to one side, sitting against a wall reading from a sheaf of tattered papers. Rob was leaning over her, looking at what she was reading, but she seemed to be paying him no attention.

I was wondering if I should make my presence known to her when she looked up and saw me. She came to her feet, then hesitated as she saw Sally and Barbara. She directed an irritated look towards Dennis and Jimmy, then came over to me with no more than a tight smile at the two women.

I tensed up slightly as she came close; I wasn’t sure how public our burgeoning relationship was supposed to be. But Caro just flashed the papers in front of me. ‘Hi. Going to try this one today; I’ve managed to fit it to something Rob and Dave had been playing about with for months.’

I saw that she was showing me some of the lyrics we had worked on together. ‘Oh…great.’

She tilted her head and squinted at me. ‘What’s up?’

‘Um…what d’you mean?’

‘You’re uptight about something.’

‘Um, no…no, I’m fine…’

She looked as she was about to say something, but she nodded slowly and went back to her position by the wall. She didn’t look at me as she settled down to continue looking over the lyrics. I stared at her for a moment, wondering if I should run across and apologise. I had lied to her and she knew it. I couldn’t tell if she was angry, disappointed, or indifferent.

Barbara and Sally were both looking a little out of place; to escape thinking about Caro I went over to them. I was surprised Dennis or Jimmy hadn’t at least cornered Sally, but I assumed they were either trying to play it cool or hoping to impress her with their playing. Or perhaps a bit of both.

‘Shall I go and see if Mrs Blake can bring you a cup of tea?’

They both looked at me gratefully, nodding. Sally put out a hand as I turned for the stairs. ‘She’s probably making a pot for everyone – I’ll go and see if I can help her.’

‘Well, you’re guests here…I’m practically one of the family by now. I should—’

‘No, I’ll go.’ Sally walked off quickly.

There was no way I could avoid looking at Barbara. She smiled at me. ‘I don’t think you need to answer that question about why we’ve been invited. Both of those two,’ she nodded towards Dennis and Jimmy, ‘keep looking over here, and I’m sure it’s not me they’re interested in. Poor Sally; she does feel a bit…well…’

‘How d’you know they don’t fancy you?’

She looked at me carefully, obviously unsure how serious I was. ‘I’m hardly the stuff of young men’s fantasies.’

I gave her what I hoped was a vaguely suggestive smile. ‘I dunno…depends on the young man, I should think.’ I was vaguely irritated at Caro for being hyper-sensitive. I was feeling slightly guilty too. Was that what was spurring me to flirt with Barbara?

She looked at me for a moment, then seated herself on one of the old wooden chairs set against the wall. Her hands smoothed out her knee-length skirt; the movement was slow, almost sensual and I wondered if she was doing it for my benefit. Or was that ridiculous?

She lifted her eyes to mine. ‘So what are you doing here?’

As I opened my mouth I realised I was about to lie again. I certainly wasn’t going to tell her about Caro. ‘Well, I’m Dennis’ friend – I’m friends with all of them ,really. I like to support them when I can.’ I hesitated. ‘And…and today they’re actually doing a song based on some lyrics of mine.’ I pointed. ‘The singer, Caro, reworked some old stuff I’d written.’

‘That must be quite exciting for you. Will it be the first time someone’s performed some of your work?’

‘I…suppose it will, although there’s not much of my stuff left in those words.’

Dennis was frowning at me. I guessed he was wondering where Sally had got to. I pointed upstairs and tried to mime pouring tea and drinking. He seemed to get the idea, although he still didn’t look too happy. I shrugged slightly.

‘She’s rather an attractive girl,’ said Barbara in a slightly odd tone of voice.

I was confused for a moment; then I saw she was looking at Caro and realised that she was carrying on with our playful conversation of a few moments ago.

‘She’s the singer,’ I said, not knowing what else to say in reply.

Barbara looked at me. I couldn’t make out why she should have such a strange expression on her face until I remembered that I’d told her who Caro was, about a minute ago. I spread my hands. ‘I said that, didn’t I? Sorry. It was a long day at the shop.’

‘You are a little out of sorts tonight. A bit tense. I…hope it’s nothing to do with me.’

‘No,’ I said quickly. ‘Well…not really. It’s difficult to explain. There’s a lot going on at the moment.’

She nodded without speaking, then turned back to watch the group prepare. Dave came down the stairs, followed by Sally with a tray full of cups surrounding the teapot. Dennis discarded his bass as soon as he saw Sally and dashed forward to relieve her of the tray, muttering things about her being a guest. Jimmy, partly trapped behind his drums, just glowered.

Sally seemed about to go back upstairs when Mrs Blake appeared with milk and sugar. Sally took them and slightly reluctantly joined Dennis in making the tea. I half-expected Barbara to get up to help, but she sat back with a slight smile on her face.

I edged a little closer to her, took one of the chairs, and sat down. ‘You seem to be getting over your awkwardness at being here.’

‘Yes. Well, I seem to be about the only person here who’s under no obligation to perform for someone else.’

Was that directed at me? This was a side of her I hadn’t seen before. She was obviously well aware of the undercurrents in the basement and seemed to be quite enjoying watching everything unfold. Then I remembered that there really was very little to make her uncomfortable here; this must seem entirely pedestrian compared to what she had been through in the TARDIS.

That seemed an odd thought. Once again I found it hard to connect what she had been telling me with the reality of where we were now – with the reality of her. Did I now believe her completely? Or did I accept the woman and not her stories? How was I feeling about her at the moment?

This last was a question I found impossible to answer, especially with Caro tugging at the edge of my awareness even when I wasn’t looking at her. I took a deep breath and tried to relax. It seemed like this would be a long session.

Once tea was despatched the rehearsal got underway. They played it fairly safe to begin with, doing old covers and two of their better songs, written while Brian was still the singer. Then they took another crack at Rolling Stone, pulled it off fairly successfully, and embarked on a slightly wobbly but nonetheless impressive version of All Tomorrow’s Parties. As it was my current favourite from the Velvets album I enjoyed it a lot; I sneaked one or two looks at Barbara and Sally to see what they were making of it, but it was difficult to tell from their faces. It seemed likely that this selection was due to Caro’s influence and she certainly put everything she had into the vocal.

I found I was getting more nervous as the session progressed, wondering exactly what they had done with my words. I was also wondering if Caro would introduce the song for the benefit of the guests, and I wasn’t sure I wanted it identified.

During a short break Barbara excused herself and took the tea-tray upstairs. On impulse I followed her. She heard me, looked back, and waited at the top of the stairs.

‘I had to get out of there,’ she said apologetically.

‘That bad?’

‘The smoke.’

‘Oh.’ I hadn’t thought about it, but all of them smoked; Caro only occasionally, but Dennis and Rob particularly were never without a fag hanging from their lips. I was used to the atmosphere by now; reflecting on Barbara’s teaching background I realised it was probably just as well Rob hadn’t brought anything else this time.

‘Which way is the kitchen?’

I led the way. Mrs Blake was nowhere to be seen, and it was still too early for her husband to be home. Barbara went straight to the sink and began to rinse the cups. ‘I feel a bit guilty about leaving Sally, but we couldn’t both walk out – it would have looked terrible.’

‘I’d go back and sit with her but I don’t think she likes me all that much.’

‘Oh, she likes you more than she did a couple of hours ago.’

This was obviously designed to intrigue me and I didn’t disappoint her, moving closer. ‘Oh yes?’

Barbara smiled a faintly embarrassed smile. ‘She thought…well, she asked me if we were…you know.’

‘Ohh…’ I wasn’t quite sure how this made me feel. Whatever the sensation was, it wasn’t entirely unpleasant. ‘So you told her…what?’

‘I said you’d been very kind and sympathetic and you’d enabled me to talk for the first time about some of the things that were troubling me.’ She emptied the residue from the teapot.

‘You didn’t have to lie.’

She shot me a stern look. ‘You have been kind, whatever you like to pretend.’

I took refuge in action, grabbing a tea towel and drying the cups. ‘So…what d’you think of the group?’

She gave me another look, as if telling me she knew I was changing the subject. ‘For what they are, I think they’re quite good. I’m not really in a position to appreciate it. Perhaps I should try tuning to Radio One.’

‘The pirates are still better.’ The mention of radio reminded me of something I had been thinking about; I folded the towel quickly and looked at her closely, leaning back against the draining board. ‘If you don’t mind me asking…what exactly do you do with yourself in the evenings and at weekends? You’ve no telly, no record player…’

‘You saw the books,’ she shrugged. ‘I read, mostly. I try to understand what happened to me – to us.’

‘Is that what all that science stuff is in aid of? Looked a bit heavy to me.’

‘I can’t pretend I understand it all,’ she admitted. ‘But what I have understood has told me I won’t find the answers in any book written on this planet.’

Involuntarily I glanced round, just in case there was someone else in earshot. ‘Did…did you really expect to?’

She dried her hands on the corner of the folded towel. Her eyes went to the window, looking out over the large, untidy back garden. ‘I don’t know. I hoped…I hoped to find something that would make it easier to bear.’

‘I’m not sure what you mean.’

She looked at me. ‘If you accept, for a moment, that what happened to me was absolutely real – what would you do, now, in my place? Could you just slip back into a comfortable urban life, knowing that out there are so many planets, so many life-forms…knowing that one day, perhaps quite soon, creatures from another world will land on the earth?’

I resisted a powerful urge to look round again. Below us I could hear a few stray chords as the group got ready to start again. I looked into her eyes and wondered exactly what was going on here. The things she had said about fate came back to me, and I found myself asking why we had met, what purpose our friendship served – what would happen if we continued to see each other. Suppose I believed her – who would believe me? What difference did it make if even a hundred people believed her? There was no proof – she had told me that right at the beginning. I caught myself wondering what Caro would make of all this, and I wished again that I could tell her – at least some of it. But where would I start? How had Barbara started – what had made me inclined to believe her?

‘What are you thinking?’ she asked me softly.

‘I’m…thinking that I wish I could help you more. I wish I had some power to…to, I don’t know, make people listen to you.’

‘Do you believe me?’

‘You keep asking me that – and I can’t give you a new answer. I believe in you – I’m sure you’re not lying.’ I gestured around me. ‘But look at where we are. It’s very difficult for me to make your stories real…to make them fit with all this.’

I became aware that there was someone in the doorway. I turned. It was Caro.

Her face was expressionless as she said: ‘We’re ready to go again. I thought you’d want to hear what we’ve done with your words.’

‘Yeah…thanks.’ I walked towards her without looking back at Barbara. ‘I have to admit I’m a bit nervous…’

‘Yes, you are, aren’t you…?’ Her eyes were challenging me. I wondered how much she had heard. My heart was thumping for several reasons as the three of us went down to the basement.

The song itself was a fairly painless experience. There really wasn’t too much of my original work left, and the tune was one of their better efforts. I couldn’t resist a glance at Barbara as we sat and listened; she met my eyes with a tiny smile. Sally had been extremely glad to see us back and practically sat in Barbara’s lap for the rest of the session.

When it was over Dave had to leave at once, and he offered Rob and Dennis a lift. Dennis declined, much to Jimmy’s obvious disappointment. Dennis and Jimmy both paid Sally a lot of attention when Mrs Blake reappeared with a large plateful of her scones and a fresh pot of tea. Barbara kept near Sally, clearly feeling it her duty, and Caro came and sat next to me.

Talk over the scones focussed on the subject of the group’s name. Black Bolt had been unequivocally rejected, not least by Caro. She was all for Venus In Furs, Tomorrow’s Party or some other Velvets-inspired tag. Jimmy favoured Dr Robert, from the Revolver song, which had apparently been suggested by his dad. Dennis approved the ‘Doctor’ part, but wanted to add Doom or Strange.

‘Do we really want to advertise such low-brow taste in literature?’ was Caro’s response.

‘What about Doctor Who?’ said Barbara quietly before Dennis could explode.

There was silence for a moment. Dennis and Jimmy looked at one another, as if unsure how to take Barbara’s sudden participation in the debate.

Caro was looking thoughtful. ‘Mmm. Doctor Who. It has possibilities.’ She looked at Barbara. ‘What made you think of that?’

Barbara’s mouth opened, but for a moment no sound came out. ‘Well, I…’

‘Too like The Who,’ said Dennis suddenly. ‘What about Doctor Octopus?’

‘Please.’ Caro lowered her head and covered it with her hands.

‘Perhaps if there were eight of you…’ suggested Sally with a slight giggle.

Jimmy went over and turned up the volume on the record player, and the Beatles drowned out all conversation for a while. Then Barbara began talking to Jimmy about his parents and the house, and Dennis took Sally over to the player to look at the other records stacked there.

Caro nudged me and nodded her head towards Barbara. ‘This is your older woman then,’ she murmured under cover of ‘I Am The Walrus’.

‘If you want to put it like that.’

‘How would you put it?’

‘We’re…just friends. We talk.’

‘So I saw.’

‘What d’you think – we’re having an affair? I mean, look at her, she’s…’

‘She’s not bad. Interesting face. And I’ve seen the way you look at her.’

I held my breath for a moment. ‘And…how is that, exactly?’

‘Like you’re sharing a secret.’

‘But you already know we are. I told you, there are things I can’t tell you without breaking—’

‘I wonder if you’re sharing a secret you haven’t talked about.’

I wanted to ask her what she meant but I was afraid I already knew. And I wasn’t sure whether it was true. I couldn’t make any sense of the way I felt. My feelings for Caro and Barbara weren’t the same, but then they were two very different women.

‘Look…’ I took Caro’s hand – and even now a part of me was distracted, hoping Barbara wasn’t looking – and leaned close to her. ‘Strange things are going on. I don’t understand it all myself, but I’m clear on one thing – I certainly don’t want to wreck what’s starting to happen between you and me. Can you…can you trust me for a while? I’ll tell you whatever I can, as soon as I can. Okay?’

The blue of her eyes looked amazingly beautiful as she regarded me from a distance of a few inches. And I still felt a fraud, because, desperate as I was to kiss her I hoped she wouldn’t want to, not with Barbara a few feet away.

But all she did was nod and put one forefinger to her own lips before pressing it to mine. ‘But don’t leave it too long. I’m not a patient person.’ Her eyebrows lifted slightly. ‘And we’re still on for Friday, I hope?’

‘Of course,’ I gushed in relief.

‘And after the film I suppose I’ll also have to compete with Catherine Deneuve.’

‘We could see something else…’

‘No, I want to see it. Bunuel’s one of my inspirations.’ She glanced towards the others. ‘I wonder what the time is; I came out without my watch…’

Barbara overheard and looked at her own watch. ‘Quarter to ten.’ She froze for a moment, still looking down. ‘I didn’t realise it was so late. We should be going…’

Dennis glanced at Barbara before returning his attention to Sally. ‘How’re you getting home? Someone should walk you to the tube or the bus stop.’

I watched Jimmy as he began to appreciate the disadvantages of being on his own turf. Dennis, in contrast, was all smiles and charm. ‘Will you be riding home together?’ he looked from one to the other of the women.

There was momentary indecision. Sally looked vaguely guilty for some reason. Barbara smiled and stood up. ‘It’s easier if we don’t. I can catch the bus at the end of the road; you should take the tube, Sally.’

‘I’ll walk you to the station.’ Dennis plucked Sally’s coat from the back of her chair and offered it to her. Sally got up and allowed Dennis to help her with the coat. She exchanged a look with Barbara that I found difficult to read.

‘I can walk you to your stop – it’s on my way home,’ I said to Barbara, then realised I was ignoring Caro. I turned to her. ‘What about you?’ It occurred to me that I didn’t know exactly where she lived.

She looked at me for a moment before replying. ‘My bus goes from the end of the road as well. We can walk up together.’

I refrained from helping Barbara with her coat. As she shrugged it on she turned to Jimmy. ‘Thank you very much for inviting us. It was a very interesting evening. And do thank your mother.’

Jimmy managed a brave smile. Something occurred to me and I asked if I could borrow the Mystery Tour EP.

‘It’s me dad’s,’ he shrugged. ‘He’s prob’ly already lookin’ for it, if he’s home.’

‘I’ve got it,’ said Caro. ‘Maybe I can play it for you on Friday..?’

I avoided looking at Barbara. We shuffled up the steps, Dennis hovering around Sally as if he wanted to take her arm but wasn’t sure if he should. Barbara went just behind them as if she was still protecting Sally. Caro linked her arm through mine as we climbed. I could sense her watching me and I couldn’t look at her. I was hoping her bus would come first so I could have a word with Barbara – and I wasn’t feeling good about that. I remembered how dull my life had seemed only a fortnight ago and found part of me longing for the return of that simplicity.

As predicted we encountered Jimmy’s dad in search of his EP; he looked somewhat taken aback to see Sally and Barbara, and clearly had no idea who they were even when they were introduced. We left him to storm down to the basement.

The night had turned very chilly; the cold air was a shock after the close atmosphere of the basement. Barbara took deep draughts of the night; she looked very pale and I wondered if the smoke had affected her more than she had indicated.

Dennis took Sally in the other direction with no reluctance to part from us. As the pair disappeared down the street Barbara shook her head. ‘I don’t know…’

‘What?’ asked Caro.

Barbara looked at Caro as if uncertain whether she should speak what was on her mind. ‘It’s…Sally. She ended up rather enjoying all the attention, I think. I wonder now if she regrets asking me to come.’

‘Has a boyfriend, doesn’t she?’ sniffed Caro.

Barbara nodded as we began to walk towards the bus stop. ‘He blows a bit hot and cold. She adores him but she’s getting a little fed up with it. I think perhaps she needed something like this to restore her faith in herself.’

‘Can’t get that faith from anywhere but inside you.’

Barbara looked at Caro. ‘Yes…I would agree. But not everyone’s that strong.’

‘Most people don’t really test their own strength. They prefer to stay safe.’

‘Can you blame them? Fear is a very powerful emotion.’

We had reached the stop. Caro regarded Barbara. ‘You don’t seem like someone who scares easily.’

‘You should have known me before…I mean years ago.’

‘What changed you?’

‘Is this your bus?’ I chirped into the silence. They both turned. Caro nodded with a sidelong glance at me.

‘Well,’ said Barbara, ‘nice to have met you.’ She extended her hand.

Caro took it after a moment’s surprise. ‘You too. Maybe Conrad’ll bring you along again sometime.’

Barbara glanced involuntarily towards me. ‘We didn’t…’ Then she seemed to realise what Caro was doing and nodded. ‘Perhaps.’

The bus pulled up. Caro stepped onto it, with a parting jab of her finger at me. ‘Ten thirty, Friday.’

I nodded. Her eyes flicked over to Barbara again and then she was gone, climbing the stairs as the bus pulled away.

Barbara let out a low, thoughtful hum. She wrapped her arms around herself and did not look at me. ‘So, what was going on there, exactly?’

I had no idea what to say. I shuffled a little closer to Barbara. She turned her eyes to me, lifting her eyebrows slightly in enquiry. ‘Are you two..?’

‘I don’t know. Yes. Yes, I think so.’ I didn’t want to admit it but equally, I didn’t want to lie to her. ‘It’s…we’ve only just met, really. I’m not sure what’s going on. She’s, um…not quite like anyone I’ve met before.’

‘Yes…a very strong-minded young woman. I think you’re very lucky – or you could be, if you play your cards right.’

I wanted to ask her how that made her feel, but I was afraid it was a ridiculous question. She didn’t seem at all put out by the revelation of Caro’s interest in me. I wondered if she had seen what was going on in the basement earlier and made her own assumptions.

‘I’m rather relieved, actually.’ She smiled wanly.

‘Oh?’

‘Well, don’t laugh, but…I wasn’t sure of…of the exact nature of your interest in me. I mean, we’ve indulged in a little harmless flirting, which could have meant absolutely nothing, but…well, there was something about you, about the way you behaved…I’m sorry, am I being ridiculous?’

Looking at her I was sure she was at war with herself over this. Part of her wanted to believe that I took her stories at face value, that I was a sympathetic friend who was only interested in helping her – and still something in her wanted reassurance about her appeal as a woman. And if I was completely honest with her I could satisfy her on both counts.

‘How…how early on did you begin to wonder about this?’ was all I said.

‘Almost from the beginning, I suppose…I couldn’t see why you would want to talk to me otherwise.’

‘So why did you agree to meet – and keep on meeting?’

She was silent for a moment. ‘It’s probably hard for you to imagine just how much I’ve wanted to talk about this – to anyone who would listen. If there was just a possibility you would hear me with an open mind, I had to follow it up. Can you understand that?’

‘I’m starting to. It’s quite difficult for me to keep it to myself as it is.’

She smiled.

I had one more question to ask. I wasn’t sure if I should voice it, but I knew I’d lie awake all night if I didn’t. ‘If…if I had been interested in more than just your stories…how would you have felt?’

‘Honestly?’ For a second I thought she was going to look away, but she managed to hold my eyes with hers. ‘I don’t know. There’s…there’s Ian, still, even though I haven’t spoken to him for some time. I haven’t sorted out my feelings for him…haven’t worked out whether it’s possible for me to live without him. I still feel as if I’m waiting for something.’ She stepped closer to me. ‘You’re so young, and yet…you don’t seem young, in some ways. I can’t explain it, but…’

A large shape drew up. A couple of people jumped down. Startled, we gripped instinctively at each other’s arms. Barbara shot a question at the conductor, who nodded. She looked at me. ‘I have to go. W-will we meet again soon?’

‘Tomorrow evening? The café?’

She backed towards the bus. ‘All right.’ She stepped up, still looking at me. ‘Conrad…thank you.’

The bus pulled away. I watched her climb inside, then turned for home. I had asked my question, but I suspected I was still destined for a sleepless night.