Mrs Fielding walked the teenagers to Swain Gardens Double, and they enjoyed strawberries and scones with jam and cream in the tea room, which was open on Earth Double on Sunday afternoons too.

“You know the gardens better than us,” said Mrs Fielding to Lewis, “Can you show us around?”

He knew he was being prompted to demonstrate the trip to Earth Single. He led them to the spot and left them watching on the path, while he stood in the bushes, bent his legs a little and disappeared from the sight of the Fieldings.

To him, they seemed to disappear from sight, and be replaced by the view on his own world. To his surprise, there were two people sitting on the wall with their backs to him, talking: a husband and wife couple. They had only to turn around and see him.

He certainly couldn’t very well bring two double sized people there at that point.

He returned to Earth Double and explained everything to a surprised Melendy, but leaving out the reason that he’d called her Lynda, and the fact that he loved her more than Lynda. He didn’t want her to feel the faintest concerns about a rival double, as he had no intentions of creating any rivalry. Had he been able to see Lynda again, he’d have been happy with her for the rest of his life, and would never have discovered Earth Double. Yet things had gone in a different direction, and he could not have been happier with the outcome.

Half an hour later, he popped into Earth Single again, wondering what would happen if one of his arrivals had coincided with someone looking in his direction. He’d have to pop out and hope they thought he’d been a mirage. This time the Swain Gardens Single were deserted. He went back, and helped Melendy into position. She vanished towards Earth Single. Then he did the same for Mrs Fielding.

“Oh Mum, look how small and quaint this is!” said Melendy, thinking, “No wonder Lewis is so small and cute.”

“Nobody else on either of our earths knows about the other earth, as far as I’m aware,” said Lewis.

“How tall is the tallest person on your earth?” asked Melendy.

“There is a record of a woman who is eight feet tall (eight of my world’s feet, which would be four of yours),” said Lewis, “You’d be even taller than her, but just as your people thought me a native midget, mine would accept you as a native giant.”

“They’d accept one of us,” said Mrs Fielding, “I think it would arouse too much suspicion if we came here together. I should stay on my world, now that I’ve seen proof of yours. You two young people need to be able to go on outings and see each other on both worlds.”

“If I can fit in your house’s rooms,” said Melendy.

“I don’t think I’d like to tell my parents about your world,” said Lewis, “They might stop us from meeting again. But my year 10 formal is coming up, and the school dance hall is much higher even than you. You could stoop down to go through the door and then be comfortable all evening. Would it be alright for me to take her, Mrs Fielding?”