It’s early. Not too early that the birds were yet to sing, but early enough for the winter’s sun to still be making its ascent over the day. Holly and Joey emerge from their shared flat onto the quiet residential road to greet Nathan and I, smiles beaming and goosebumps beginning to form as their summer dresses move gently in the crisp breeze. Their combination of heavy hiking boots and light fabrics inciting the memories of muddy fields and playful journeys from August's past. ‘What are you excited for?’ I ask, half expecting the answer which arrived. ‘People. Picnics and warmth and getting dressed up to go to McDonalds because we’ve missed wearing these clothes. To go on adventures and look as good as we feel,’ they answered, finishing each other's sentences. The pair's joy at the chance to see and talk to people was beautiful, as they lent on each other, laughing at the strangeness of these times. ‘We’re going up Arthur’s Seat today,’ they told me, and I couldn’t help but beam at how important the small successes in life have now taken over the extremities of the worries before. 

We were lost, every door looked the same down the street with the building numbers concealed to a height so ridiculous I craned my neck to see. Nathan did not have the same vertical challenges as myself and so eventually we found the home of Chioma. As she stepped through her front door, her casual confidence was captivating, and was not hindered by the black sack she carried to the bins on the street. We moved into the sunlight, which brightened her red tracksuit as Chioma began to tell the stories of her clothing. ‘Red is my favourite colour. And these Vans, I bought them for a night out when my heels broke and this was the first pair available at that time. I might wear this to Lidl right now; comfort, but make fashion.’ Her ideas and hopes were pouring out of her, ‘I’ve been working on Anarchy Creative Studios, sitting at home with my candles and mango and lychee tea.’ Her choice of outfit perfectly reflected this response, the epitome of business at the front and party at the back. A creative mind looking to the future but confined between four walls. ‘Where do you want to go?’ I asked, ‘Anywhere. I’d love to go interrailing for my twenty first birthday. To see the world and to escape the UK.’

A short walk past the gentrified coffee shops and graffiti which contradicted these, and Nathan and I arrived at Gaynor’s home. The ultimate chameleon. Her newly dyed brown hair framed her infectious smile, as I admired the psychedelic colours of her summer dress. ‘I don’t know what shoes to wear,’ she said, half asking my advice and half panicking. ‘Well is there a pair you’ve wanted to wear but haven’t had anywhere to go in them?’ Gaynor disappeared for a moment, and then reemerged with an enormous pair of platform Doc Martens. ‘Perfect.’ I replied. As she posed, I asked ‘What’s something that has been getting you out of bed in the morning?’ Gaynor took a moment to think, readjusting the heavy metal jewellery with which she was adorned. ‘Honestly? Painting. I’ve been painting smoking aliens and a lot of boobs. I’ve been reading a lot of feminist books, and also one about Freddie Mercury. I just miss being able to express myself. I want to go to The Priory in Glasgow, to not care and just be free again.’

Trekking back into the Old Town of Edinburgh, we passed the Instagrammers looking disappointed at the dirt of the red phone boxes ruining their pictures and the locals laughing at them. Finally, we made our last stop, finding Joseph in a small doorway hidden in the tall buildings of the street. His grandads suit made him stand out amongst the passers by who watched with curiosity as he leant against the tiny double doors. ‘Okay, Nathan is going to take some portraits of you whilst I ask you some questions, is that alright?’ By means of response, he immediately found the camera, making me smile at the ease of his professionalism. I repeated my prepared questions to Joseph, to which he replied ‘I want to finish a project. I want Edinburgh Fashion Week to happen. I want to network and have fun in this job again.’ I quizzed him about what has been keeping him busy these past few months, ‘Music, and filming and acting. I think I’ve been doing more of that now than I ever have. I’ve been coming up with ideas for films, not a feature of course but at least twelve to seventeen minutes long. Something I can finish and something that is mine.’ The sense of creative claustrophobia permeated the space between all of us. The desperation to see a final product that we could be proud of. This feeling was amplified as Joseph now leaned out of the third storey window, ‘Where do you want to go as soon as you can?’ I yelled towards the sky. ‘The pub.’ He shouted down, ‘I want to go to Summerhall and be with people.’ The simplicity of this desire was repeated throughout the day. Never exactly the same, but the need for connection had lingered over us in every answer. The hope for a regained normality intertwined with the fear that it may never be the same was consistent, but the optimism of the uncertain future reminded me of the unity of us all.


Photography by Nathan Ross @nathanross.photo
Produced by Imogen Peterson @imipeterson