Lila heads to a shabby Hampstead pub, relishing a brief escape from home and choosing a Diet Coke. She meets Jensen, notices his cleaned-up look, and immediately frames the outing as a non-date, explaining she needed company without having to recount her marital collapse to friends.

They banter awkwardly about dating apps, age, and vulnerability, with Jensen teasing that Lila pushes people away to avoid feeling exposed. After some friction, Jensen offers a conciliatory compliment and they find common ground in their shared preference for scuffed, lived-in spaces over minimalist perfection.

The conversation deepens as Lila contrasts her taste with Dan’s pristine new life, and Jensen reveals a past engagement to a partner obsessed with matching decor, the relationship unraveling after his breakdown, rehab, and a betrayal with a work colleague. They agree compatibility and love do not always align.

Jensen recounts his City career on Foreign Exchange, the ultimatum that led to his engagement, and the aftermath, while Lila enjoys the relief of listening to someone else’s complications. Their rapport stabilizes into an easy, candid exchange.

Violet then calls with an emergency: Bill placed a wedding photo of himself and Francesca; Gene retaliated by placing his own wedding photo with Francesca beside it, claimed Francesca looked happier with him, and provoked Bill into chasing him into the garden with a chopping implement. Gene fell on concrete and says he cannot get up, while Bill has locked himself in his room.

The brief window of respite snaps shut. Lila ends the outing, and Jensen, having understood the situation, offers to drive her home immediately.