The venue for the research council meeting was a tiny battered car on Annandale Street. I was squashed in behind the front passenger’s seat listening to academics pontificating about anything but research. For example, one shared his obsession for staging a pantomime starring the members of this committee.

I don’t remember what time it was when I well asleep, but it was 05:00am when I woke up again from the cold. The only other person left in the car was a grey-haired woman who had attended the meeting in place of her husband. She announced that she was hungry and was heading off to find some food. I put in an order for a pain au chocolat. Her look told me that she didn’t believe that I would pay her back for anything that she purchased on my behalf and she suggested that we go shopping together.

My new companion took the wheel of the car and we drove up Leith Walk to look for a shop that was open. We had no luck here so continued to the castle. The esplanade was deserted too, although I was pretty sure that I glimpsed NY slip past us in his striped towelling dressing gown. There was no food to be had here either.

When we went inside, however, we were distracted from our hunger by the castle’s luxurious bathrooms, expensive toiletries and attentive staff. A small German servant boy offered to sort my newly laundered clothes. He’d just collected them from the laundress, who, it turned out, I recognised as a (now) former colleague. I was delighted to discover that apart from today there would be no further reason for me to see this sullen, ungrateful woman ever again.