Joanna Johnson did not think that she was special in any way whatsoever. She knew that she was a fairly good athlete in high school, and that she had an excellent memory for birthdays. However, she never felt that sense of knowing that others seemed to—that belief that they were destined for some greater purpose. The…

It’s just past two in the morning when Sarah switches off her alarm, buttons up her dressing gown, and sits down to write to Amber’s husband. She accepts that this is not exactly a normal thing to do—less normal, say, than eating white bread, than wearing M&S knickers and standing in bus queues and tracking the…

It’s July 4th, and She’s announced they’re going to the aquarium again. She never asks anymore, just announces. “Sophie loves the sharks,” She says, and, turning to him, adds, “I read on the website the Great White is male.” He surveys her blonde hair and the cleft in her chin. Twenty years, He thinks. He used to…