And then there’s the fact that I don’t need to think about all that stuff I’ve left behind in London. While we’ve grown much closer over the years, I’d never talk to my brother about relationship woes, work dilemmas, flatmate dramas or even pandemic anxieties. Instead, our conversations are light and fun. Who wants to cry over an ex when they’re in their Christmas PJs, munching on pizza and watching Home Alone with their big bro?

Yes, I know I need to process it all properly down the line, but right now I just want to have a nice end to what has been an awful year for all sorts of reasons. I feel calm. I feel I can completely be myself without tiptoeing around the person I’m living with. I feel safe. I feel loved. I feel like a kid again.

At a time when innocent child-like fun almost seems impossible, maybe all we need is an older sibling to remind us that, at heart, we’re all still just big kids who need cheering up from time-to-time.

Family relationships: “The surprising lesson I’m learning while living with my big brother in the pandemic”