After our first ever fight, Cal found me on the roof of the hotel.

We were eight years old and I had accidentally broken this weird robot thing he’d been letting me play with. He wouldn’t let me go near it for weeks because he’d saved loads of pocket money to buy it, but I eventually wore him down and he lent it to me the day of that year’s Christmas ball. I was so scared when I broke it, that I hid it in my room and went to the ball with my mum, thinking I’d just tell him later. But he must have gone to get it back before coming to the ball, and he was so angry with me when he found it, that he came to find me and he yelled all these mean things at me. I was so upset, I left the ball and ran back up to the flat. But Mum had locked the door and I didn’t have keys, so I went out on to the fifteenth floor’s fire escape, and climbed up on to the roof.

Cal came to find me a few minutes later and must have seen the fire-escape door wedged open. He climbed up and sat down next to me as I continued snivelling. He didn’t say anything, he just put his arm round me and then the fireworks started and we realised we’d happened upon the best view in the city.

‘Look at all those lights,’ Grace whispered, when we got to the top and the four of us took in London’s glittering skyline in the cold night air. I was pleased they were all impressed because, let me tell you, it had not been easy getting three girls in ballgowns and heels up the rungs of a fire escape.

I think Olly was scarred from the experience.

‘That’s what I call a view!’ Sky exclaimed, getting her phone out to take photos. ‘And to think the actual royal family have to make do with the first-floor terrace.’

‘How did you find this place?’ Olly asked.

Before I could answer, another voice came floating up from the fire escape.

‘She broke my robot.’

‘Cal!’ I cried, peering over at him. ‘You’re here!’

‘Yeah, well, the award ceremony finished and I told you I didn’t want to miss the fireworks.’

He climbed up from the last rung, looking very smart in his tux. A warm feeling crept into my stomach as he grinned at me.

‘How did you know we were up here?’ Olly asked, as Grace and Sky started the tricky process of sitting down elegantly on the roof in their ballgowns.

‘When I couldn’t see Flick downstairs, I had a hunch.’ He held out his coat to me, which had been hanging over his arm. ‘I also figured you wouldn’t think to bring a jacket, even though it’s December.’

‘Thanks,’ I said, as he helped me to drape it over my shoulders.

‘Where have you been?’ Grace asked.

‘He’s been collecting a big journalism award,’ I informed them.

‘I didn’t win,’ Cal interjected quickly, his cheeks turning as pink as his nose. ‘I came second.’

‘Whatever.’ I smiled. ‘Your article was great.’

‘I can’t take all the credit. You were the one who gave me the idea.’

‘I did?’

‘You don’t remember? When you pooh-poohed my Prince Gustav interview, you suggested I write a feature about getting in everyone’s way at a hotel . . .’

‘The whole thing was Flick’s idea? That’s cool,’ Sky declared, before pouting for a selfie with Grace.

‘Wait.’ I held up my hands. ‘Can we all just focus on the fact that Cal just used the phrase “pooh-pooh” like it was an actual thing?’

‘It is an actual thing,’ Cal argued.

‘Yeah,’ I snorted. ‘Back in the Dark Ages.’

‘I think he can pull off “pooh-pooh”,’ Olly declared, as Cal nodded appreciatively.

‘Out of interest, would pooh-pooh be spelled with an “h” or no “h”?’ Grace asked thoughtfully.

‘Can people please stop saying “pooh-pooh”?’ Sky asked, laughing. ‘The fireworks are about to start and all this pooh-poohing is kind of ruining the moment.’

Olly held out his hand to help me sit down in my impractical-for-roof-climbing dress, before offering his jacket to Sky and Grace to share.

‘I’ve been thinking,’ Cal began as he sat on the other side of me, ‘you should start vlogging.’

‘Veeeeeery funny.’

‘I mean it.’ He laughed. ‘Seriously. People are really interested in what goes on behind the scenes of a hotel like this one. Now that you’ve swotted up on it a bit, I reckon you’d be the best person to show it off. Not giving away its secrets, obviously,’ he added.

‘Cal, are you saying that people might actually be interested in my life?’

‘Those weren’t my exact words.’ He grinned. ‘I think it would be fun.’

‘That’s a really cool idea, Flick,’ Sky piped up. ‘I’d watch it. Maybe I’d be lucky enough to have a guest spot on it when I’m next in town.’

‘It’s a great idea,’ Olly agreed. ‘I think you should go for it.’

‘And me!’ Grace said. ‘We can help you come up with ideas and launch it after Christmas.’

I smiled. ‘OK. I’ll think about it.’

As we waited for the fireworks to start, I looked down the line of friends sitting with me: at Sky laughing with a star-struck Grace as they attempted to huddle under the one jacket; at Olly, who was rubbing his hands together to keep them warm, his dark eyes twinkling under those boy-band-worthy eyelashes; and then at Cal, who leaned back on his elbows, before reminiscing out loud about the robot I had broken, even though no one was really listening to him. It really was a weird little crew I had assembled up here.

Olly nudged me. ‘What is it? You keep staring at everyone with a strange look on your face.’

‘Nothing,’ I replied quickly. ‘It’s just . . . I guess a lot of things have changed recently.’

‘Change can be good sometimes.’ He nodded, looking out at the view. ‘Of course, not all the time. For example, I think that I speak for everyone when I say, we really miss that strut of yours. You should bring that back.’

I whacked him on the arm as he grinned mischievously.

Suddenly there was a loud swishing, whistling noise as the fireworks launched through the air, lighting up the night sky.

‘Just like I said in my feature, Flick,’ Cal said softly, as we all sat in silence, captivated by the spectacle. ‘There really is no place like your home.’

‘You know what, Cal Weston –’ I smiled, as millions of twinkling lights of all different colours exploded above our heads – ‘for once, I might just have to agree with you.’