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partnership?’ Joy cocked her head towards the lounge room.
    ‘Huh?’ said Chloe.
    ‘Oh, haven’t you heard about the Grand Plan? Hunter Goldman & Associates?
If
they can find any associates who are ideologically pure enough.’
    ‘That’ll be the day,’ Chloe snorted. ‘They’ll never get anything actually
built
; they’ll just sit around arguing all the time.’
    ‘I think they’ll do really well,’ said Dane. ‘One’s creative, the other’s practical. Perfect balance.’
    ‘You reckon?’ Chloe looked out at Nick and Isaac, disconcerted. They were so confident now, about stepping forward and claiming their adulthood—how did they
do
that? Chloe felt caught in an endless hesitation, herself, with possible lives multiplying all around her, none of them notably more attractive than the others. Life was going past while she stood still, watched and wondered and looked for a good place to jump on. What if she didn’t find one? What if there wasn’t one, for her?

    ‘G’day, Cole,’ Janey said quickly. ‘You remember Bass?’
    ‘Sure,’ said Chloe, heart sinking.
    ‘Mind if I tag along?’ said Bass with what was meant to be an ingratiating smile but turned into a smirk. Bass was constitutionally incapable of warmth.
    ‘Sure,’ said Chloe again. Her mother sent her an enquiring look over Janey’s head. ‘Let’s get a move on, hey, if we’re walking.’
    ‘Take a cab, why don’t you,’ said her mother. ‘It’s freezing out there.’
    ‘We’ll stay on the move.’ Chloe kissed her. ‘See you later.’
    ‘I’ll wait up, as usual,’ lied her mother.
    She closed them out into the night, and they fell into a step made awkward by the narrow footpath and the fact that Bass held Janey’s hand. Janey was in boots and tight jeans, but a giant jumper swamped her top half. Bass was neat, all in black, his mean punched-flat little face like a clock-dial sticking out of his skivvy neck.
    ‘So what’ve you been doing with yourself, Bass?’ said Chloe to break the silence.
    ‘Oh, hanging around.’
    Yeah, whose neck?
‘Working?’
    ‘Yeah, a bit. What about you?’
    ‘Oh, the same.’
    ‘Still living off Mum and Dad, I see.’
    Chloe cleared her throat and shot a glance at Janey. ‘Where are you kipping these nights, Bass?’
    Janey laughed nervously. ‘He’s with me,’ she apologised.
    ‘Paying much rent, Bass?’ Chloe asked softly. ‘Putting in for food, are you? Running a vacuum over the carpet? Putting out the garbage?’
    ‘Oh yeah, and you’re so good, Chloe,’ snapped Bass. ‘So bloody perfect in every way.’
    ‘Oh, stop it, you two,’ said Janey weakly.
    ‘Like, it’s so cool cleaning the
toilet
,’ Bass added.
    ‘Like, it’s so cool sitting on a
dirty
one,’ Chloe murmured.
    ‘What, you scared some bacteria might migrate onto your squeaky-clean arse? Only living thing that would.’
    ‘Oh yeah? I seem to recall
some
one,
some
time not too long ago, sitting across from me at Connie’s, cooing, “So who’s the
real
Chloe Hunter, then?”’
    ‘Will you two,
please
… ?’ Janey sighed. ‘All I want you to do is sit in a darkened room for ninety minutes together without killing each other.’
    Chloe halted, and the other two collided with her and fell back. ‘I’m not sure that’s possible, actually,’ she apologised to Janey.
    ‘Yeah, why’n’t you dip out now?’ said Bass, pulling Janey in beside him. She staggered and looked at the ground.
    ‘Because she deserves better company than a
leech
like you.’
    Bass shrugged. ‘If the girl wants to be sucked, I’m happy to do the sucking.’
    Chloe looked at Janey. ‘When did he turn up?’ she asked conversationally.
    ‘Couple of days ago.’ Janey’s eyes pleaded with Chloe.
    Chloe nodded. Bass stuck out his chin and hissed at her. Janey looked down again.
    ‘You know you’re too good for him,’ Chloe said.
    ‘Get fucked. You think you’re too good for
anyone
.’ Bass made to step around