It was a fine spring morning so Romy had begged Amah to take her to the markets. She fancied some of the pulled noodles with chilli and shallot oil, and she loved walking past the vendors marvelling at the different-coloured eggs, ranging from blue to cream, and the various noodles and piles of leafy green vegetables.

As Romy stepped onto the landing with the amah, their neighbours who lived opposite came out of their door. Romy had heard there was a Shanghainese family living there, but she was surprised to see the man from the Chinese medicine shop emerge with a woman who must be his wife. Behind the two smiling adults came a girl about Romy’s age wearing a green velvet dress with a white peter pan collar and black patent leather shoes.

‘Hello.’ The girl had jet-black hair threaded into two long plaits and her smile produced a dimple in each cheek. She stepped towards Romy and offered her hand. Stunned, Romy obliged and the girl closed her slim fingers around Romy’s, nearly crushing her knuckles with her enthusiastic squeeze. ‘I’m Li. And these are my parents Wilma and Dr Ho. What’s your name?’ Her words were like a river, endless and smooth.

‘Romy.’ She felt herself blush. ‘Romy Bernfeld. I’m Austrian.’ Her stomach churned as she remembered the horrible red ‘J’ stamp on the front of her passport. Was she still Austrian? Mutti and Papa said they didn’t belong to any country since they’d left Vienna. They were stateless.

Li spoke English with ease and appeared every bit as glamorous as her mother, who wore a blue silk cheongsam, a cream fur stole across her shoulders and triple strands of pearls around her neck. Her skin was as pale as milk.

Wilma noticed Romy staring, and put her hand to her collar with a conspiratorial smile. She had the same deep dimples as her daughter and her eyes twinkled.

Romy smiled shyly at her, wishing her mother were here to meet this intriguing neighbour. Mutti’s eyes used to sparkle like this, just as her skin used to glow.

Wilma stretched out her hand and said in perfect English, ‘It’s lovely to meet you, Romy. I trust you’ve settled in well? We must have you over for tea.’

Abruptly the door opposite opened again, and Romy’s mouth rounded into an astounded ‘Oh’ as the boy from the medicine shop charged out of the front door with his camera swinging around his neck, a violin case tucked under one arm and two books and some papers slipping out from under the other. He started to mutter something in Chinese before looking up and spotting Romy standing with his parents, sister and the amah on the landing.

He started as his dark eyes met Romy’s, and the books he’d been holding slipped to the floor. They landed with a thud and slid across the marble.

‘Here, let me,’ said Romy as she kneeled to pick them up. She tried to suppress her surprise as the first was a hardback of Marx translated into English. The second looked like the pages of a script, although as it was written in Chinese characters Romy couldn’t be sure.

‘Mama’s directing a play,’ Li announced proudly. ‘Zhe Buguo Shi Chuntian. It’s Only Spring. We’re on our way to the dress rehearsal. Jian’s playing in the orchestra for the introduction and intermission.’ She leaned over to Romy and whispered in a voice fit for any stage. ‘I wanted to be in it, of course. A lead. It’s about love and revolution,’ she emphasised in clipped English. ‘But Mama wouldn’t cast me.’ She paused. Her eyes narrowed and she glanced from side to side to make sure she’d captured everyone’s attention. Satisfied she had the floor, Li raised her eyebrows and took the script and book from Romy’s hands. ‘I’m not old enough, apparently.’

Romy’s amah stifled a giggle under a cough, and Dr Ho stepped forwards and took the books with one hand and ruffled his daughter’s hair with the other as he chuckled. ‘Plenty of time for you, Li. I have a feeling that in a few years, the stage of the local theatre won’t be big enough for you. If you keep up your voice lessons…’

Jian looked at the floor as he swapped his violin to the other arm. His unbrushed hair was swept to one side and the buttons of his shirt must have been done up in a hurry, as the top one had been missed, revealing a glimpse of a smooth brown chest. Romy shivered. As he moved past her down the stairs, she caught a slight trace of mint.

Li looked bemused as her brother brushed past, then turned her attention back to Romy.

‘Well, Romy, I’m honoured to meet you at last.’ Li smiled as she linked her arm through Romy’s as if they were already dear friends and continued to walk down the stairs after Jian. ‘We’ve been waiting for the new family to arrive. And besides—’ she looked sideways at her parents and dropped her voice to a whisper ‘—I always wanted a sister. Is it horrible being an only child?’

Li’s voice dropped to a cautious whisper as she checked to see her mother wasn’t listening. ‘My oldest brother Zhou came down in a plane at Harbin.’

‘I’m so sorry,’ said Romy, seeing in her mind’s eye pieces of Benjamin’s brain scattered over the footpath in Vienna. She blinked away tears. ‘I’m not an only child,’ she whispered to Li. ‘My brother—’ But she was interrupted by Amah, telling her to hurry along and moving her hands as if to sweep Romy down the stairs with her basket. They had to get to the market.

Li reached out to take Romy’s hands in her own, staring deep into her eyes.

Unsettled, Romy closed her eyes and opened them again to see if this charming Chinese girl with two sweet dimples and multiple languages was an apparition. Encouraged, Li threaded her arm through Romy’s once more and tugged her to start walking.

‘Well, Romy-Bernfeld-from-Austria,’ Li sang as they stepped down the stairs like a couple heading out to a ball, ‘I can tell already you are going to be my best friend.’

The slip of a girl shrugged on the black mink coat her mother was holding out for her and ran outside into the sunshine.