‘Fine, don’t answer me.’
‘Okay, here’s something I don’t tell many people. I’ve got three hobbies that all begin with the letter K. Care to take a guess?’
‘What the hell starts with a K?’
‘Knitting.’
‘You knit?’
‘Is that weird?’
I peered at him. Was he taking the piss?
He smiled. ‘No, I don’t knit. But I was just proving the point that a lot of activities start with the letter K.’
‘Riiight.’
‘Kick-boxing, karting, karaoke, karate, kung fu, kayaking, kite-flying.’
‘Who flies kites for a hobby apart from kids and Mary Poppins?’
‘Okay, so you’ve ruled out knitting and flying kites. What about the others?’
He opened his mouth, but I stopped him. ‘I bet it’s none of those.’ I thought for a second. ‘Kissograms, kleptomania and kerb-crawling.’
‘Wow. You don’t think much of me.’
‘You really wanted me to guess? I bet you’re a martial arts nut. Karate, kung fu and that other one you mentioned. Am I right?’
‘Kick-boxing, kayaking and karaoke.’
‘Karaoke?’
‘Karaoke.’
‘Singing to a backing tape? In public?’
He shook his head. ‘Don’t say you’ve never done it.’
‘I’ve never done it.’
‘You’re missing out.’
‘I doubt it.’
‘I do a very moving version of Aerosmith’s “Angel”.’
Was he serious? ‘You’re an Aerosmith fan?’
‘Unfashionable, I know. ButPermanent Vacationis a great album.’ He looked at me. ‘Let me guess. You only like their early stuff – the Columbia years.’
‘I get it, you think I’m a music snob – but actually, I agree with you.Permanent Vacationis a great album. The steel drums on the title track are a stroke of genius.’
He looked surprised. ‘Well, who’d have thought we had something in common?’
He seemed genuinely pleased, like we’d discovered we were connected by an old friend. It wasn’t such a big deal. Loads of people liked Aerosmith. But it was something I’d noticed over the years – music’s peculiar magic to forge bonds between the unlikeliest people.
A few moments later, the taxi pulled up to the restaurant and Nick jumped out to pay the driver through the window. I tried to thrust a note at him, but Nick waved me away.
‘Thanks,’ I said, once the taxi had gone. ‘But let me give you half the fare.’
‘You don’t need to do that.’ He gestured towards the restaurant. ‘Shall we?’
