‘Butterflies!’ Rob says, pointing.
Dawn looks in the direction Rob is pointing and sees them, two beautiful blue butterflies fluttering together in the sunlight. ‘Gosh,’ she says. ‘How lovely!’ She hasn’t seen a butterfly for almost a decade.
‘Maybe it’s working,’ Rob says. ‘Maybe the insecticide ban is finally working.’
‘Maybe,’ Dawn says. ‘I hope so. But they’re probably just some of the bred ones they’ve been talking about releasing.’
‘But you know you’re right,’ Rob says. ‘I remember that too.’
‘You remember what?’ Dawn asks. She’s used to Rob’s butterfly brain.
‘How the Covid thing threw us together. I think that was when I actually realised I wanted to grow old with you.’
‘Christ you took your time, didn’t you?’ Dawn jokes. ‘You were in your fifties by then.’
‘No, I know. And you know that I always loved you. But I was thinking about getting old around then. Worrying about it. And when we got… what was it they called it?’
‘Lockupped,’ Dawn says.
‘Yeah,’ Rob says. ‘When we got lockupped – actually I’m not sure that is… but anyway – I remember thinking that being locked up with you would be OK. And here we are.’
‘You thought it would be OK?’ Dawn says, arching an eyebrow.
‘Lovely, then,’ Rob says.
‘And was it?’ Dawn asks, a cheeky grin on her face. ‘Did it turn out to be lovely, darling?’
‘Yeah,’ Rob says, stifling his own grin. ‘Lovely might be overstating it a bit, but yeah, it’s turned out OK-ish.’
‘Better than with Cheryl?’
Rob guffaws at this. ‘God!’ he says. ‘I can’t even imagine. Did I ever tell you she liked rap music? That really shouty stuff when they go on about cop killers and what-have-you. She knew all the words.’
‘Yes,’ Dawn says. ‘Yes, you told me.’
‘And the TV. God, her TV was on all the time. She used to watch that thing where all the youngsters have to fall in love. I can’t remember what it’s called now but it made my brain go numb.’
‘Love Island,’ Dawn says. Rob has told her that story before as well.
‘That’s the one.’
‘Still, at least she gave good head,’ Dawn says wryly.
‘Yes,’ Rob says. ‘Yes, she really did. But don’t tell Tom that, will you?’
‘All right,’ Dawn says. ‘I won’t. Probably.’
‘But anyway, yes. We had fun during the lockup, didn’t we? D’you remember how we got all the old CDs out?’
‘You forced me to listen to Duran Duran.’
‘But you liked Japan, didn’t you? And OMD.’
‘That’s true,’ Dawn said. ‘I still like OMD now. Actually Duran Duran wasn’t as awful as I made out. I always thought it was a bit fluffy but it was OK. I just said it because it annoyed you. But I ended up hearing them so often over the years…’
‘No more than you made me listen to Sonic Youth.’
‘But I was bored with it all, at one point,’ Dawn says. ‘Did you ever realise or did I hide it too well?’
