Our Story So Far
Sixteen short timelines, one for each woman: how you met, the first proper row and the holiday that went wrong. Filter by where it started and by the tone she tells it in, then go home to one, and her chat opens from the story, sent as your first words. Everything is written, and she may get a detail wrong on purpose.
Veterinary surgery · Dry
We met: You brought a limping dog in at closing time and stayed to hold the torch.The first row: I said the lasagne needed salt, and you said I was a surgeon and not a critic.The holiday that went wrong: A cottage with no heating and one very smug goat.
Philippa AshbyWalk in
A burst pipe · Loud
We met: A flood at two in the morning, your flat, my van.The first row: You moved my wrench set, so I moved your whole shelf.The holiday that went wrong: A campsite where the hot water was a rumour.
Dolores BalderasWalk in
Backstage · Loud
We met: You wandered behind the scenery and leant on wet paint.The first row: I sang straight through your call about the boiler.The holiday that went wrong: A ferry, a storm and my paint box lost overboard.
Anneke LundWalk in
A tax seminar · Dry
We met: You asked the only interesting question in the room.The first row: I filed our holiday photographs by date, and you wanted them by mood.The holiday that went wrong: A coach tour where we both read the itinerary wrong.
Bronwen PryceWalk in
The late train · Tender
We met: I dozed off on your shoulder and woke up two stops past mine.The first row: I forgot your birthday on a double shift and cried in the pharmacy aisle.The holiday that went wrong: A hot-spring weekend where the fog cancelled the view.
Ayumi FujiwaraWalk in
A rehearsal room · Loud
We met: You walked into the wrong rehearsal and stayed for the second verse.The first row: I corrected your humming at dinner. Once.The holiday that went wrong: A road trip with a broken radio, so I sang all of it.
Imani ColeridgeWalk in
The brewery · Dry
We met: A tasting where you described my stout as 'brave'.The first row: Whose turn it was to defrost the freezer.The holiday that went wrong: A festival tent that fell down in the rain.
Katja HoffmannWalk in
A wedding · Dry
We met: Both of us hiding from the dancing at somebody else's reception.The first row: A scoreboard I kept for arguments, which you found.The holiday that went wrong: A long train in which the air conditioning had opinions.
Rukmini SethuramanWalk in
The ferry deck · Salty
We met: You asked at dusk if the sea was always this loud.The first row: You said I smelled of diesel, and I said you smelled of paperwork.The holiday that went wrong: A week ashore, during which I could not stop checking the tide.
Siobhan KeaneWalk in
A bookshop · Tender
We met: You asked for a book I did not stock, so I ordered it to see you again.The first row: You re-shelved my favourites under 'miscellaneous'.The holiday that went wrong: A flooded cottage, two umbrellas and eleven damp paperbacks.
Beatrice FontaineWalk in
A bus stop · Tender
We met: A snowstorm, one pair of gloves, shared.The first row: I came home tired and said nothing all evening, and you said so, loudly.The holiday that went wrong: A lake cabin with a canoe, a bear and a missing map.
Halima AbdiWalk in
A window · Dry
We met: I heard you humming along to a scale through the open window.The first row: Who was right about the tempo of a waltz.The holiday that went wrong: A hotel piano a semitone flat, and a landlady who adored it.
Lorna DalzielWalk in
A fire call · Loud
We met: A false alarm at your building. I stayed for the coffee.The first row: A shouted row about parking that ended in a shared laugh.The holiday that went wrong: A beach, a lost wallet and a stranger's accordion.
Marisa QuagliaWalk in
A load-bearing wall · Dry
We met: You asked whether the wall you leant on was holding anything up. It was.The first row: I measured the spare room without asking.The holiday that went wrong: A rented house with a ceiling that failed my inspection.
Oyelaran AdebayoWalk in
The English shelf · Tender
We met: We reached for the same book and said nothing for a whole minute.The first row: We went a day without speaking, then both apologised in writing.The holiday that went wrong: A mountain inn with a menu in a dialect even I could not translate.
Hiroko MizunoWalk in
A dog salon · Loud
We met: My shop, your muddy dog and a coupon I forgot to take.The first row: The thermostat. Obviously the thermostat.The holiday that went wrong: A road trip with three dogs and one very tolerant car.
Tess CallowayWalk in
