I unexpectedly bumped into VAE in the vaults of the British Library. She was on sick leave in the UK, having suffered illness since her move to Singapore several months earlier. VAE’s current destination was one of the rare books storage areas. She invited me to join her.

A librarian locked us in a room the size of a small bathroom. Rather than sitting on shelves, the books were glued to the midnight blue walls. All were modern, and – at first glance at least – none looked particularly valuable. Amongst them were tiny first editions of the Harry Potter series. A laser swept the tiny space to deter us from touching the covers.

Afterwards we caught the tube back into London. We accidentally alighted at an unfamiliar stop named Boris.