Perhaps his request was not the most usual - but they were now living in a quite unusual world, weren’t they? And though gentlemanly to the core, Combeferre had never had much respect for propriety for its own sake. He only wanted to show Sybil the stars as he saw them. “Good,” he said, and with a sheepish laugh and a grin he could not contain, briefly looked away.

They were nearing her building, if Combeferre was not mistaken, and he was again struck by the wish that the night might not come to an end quite so soon. With that in mind, he stopped in the middle of the pavement, the quiet street free of people, and turned to slip his other hand into hers. Then, with a twinkle in his eye, he murmured, “Very good,” and kissed her.