He spends more time than he thinks he should, pondering on what would float her boat and wondering whether she'd let him try. The date they went on...he'd planned for it to be posher, not at Luigis. I can give you sole (soul) he'd said, and then Scarman had thrown the place upside down and he'd had to stay near the station.

He's wondered to himself, sometimes, if taking her somewhere new would have helped. When he thinks about how it turned out, he feels embarrassed about putting himself out there, asking to come upstairs and hearing her say no. But he also knows he'd be angry at himself if he hadn't asked, so he's not sorry he did.

'S'pose so. Everyone's soppy when they first meet someone they wan' to shag.'

Which is why finding romance is more important after you've been with someone for years on end and seen them at their worst.

'An' we 'ad a meal,' he adds, suddenly, after a moment of silence. And leaves it hanging there, unsure of what to stick on the end.