Chapter Two

Belinda Lawrence stood on the corner of Flinders& Swanston streets, outside St Paul’s Cathedral while waiting for the green light. Her thoughtful eyes followed the throng discharging from the rail station, sometimes veiled by the hulking, clangourous trams rattling across the intersection. Her mood was one of nostalgia blended with melancholy. The lights turned green, and along with the bustling crowd, Belinda made her way across to Federation Square. Her nostalgia stemmed from a return to her hometown of Melbourne and the gossamer memories it invoked. Melancholy from her recent breakup with her lover Mark Sallinger which, while undeniably justified, left an unexpected emptiness in her life along with a dispiriting ache lurking in the shadows.

The crossing complete, the Square lay before her, crowded now in the late summer sun with lunchtime diners, noisy college groups draped around the ochre-coloured sandstone blocks, fiddling with smartphones and taking selfies. Some tone-deaf street musicians added to the maelstrom of Melbourne at play.

Belinda turned from this and made her way along Flinders Street to the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. A large white acronym ACMI indicated she had arrived at her destination. The cinema programme had listed some films Belinda wanted to see, and she had agreed to meet up with Hazel Whitby who had gone on a shopping spree. A mixture of various