As the car cruised past the couple, Ingrid glanced back to look at the male student again. She hoped to cross his path again. Maybe then she’d figure out what it was that bugged her.
***
‘This portion is huge, we should have shared,’ Caitlin said, unable to stop herself from tucking in. Chips made it onto her top five of guilty pleasures.
‘Oh. I don’t know. I can easily polish this off.
With a shrug of shoulder, Caitlin replied, ‘I’ll give it a go.’
‘It’s good to see a girl with an appetite,’ he added, apparently amused.
Caitlin stopped in her tracks. She placed her available hand on her hip, and pouted. ‘Do you have a stereotype for what a girl can and can’t do?’
‘No,’ he spluttered. ‘Have I annoyed you again? I don’t mean to. It’s just a lot of girls back home never seemed to eat at all, especially when I was around.’
‘Maybe you intimidated them. Did you think about that?’
‘So, does that mean I don’t intimidate you?’ His eyes had a mischievous sparkle. She could tell he enjoyed the cat and mouse game.
She avoided the question. ‘Hey, the rain has stopped.’
‘This is England. It comes and goes.’
‘It sure does,’ she mused. Steven was really annoying her now. Of course he intimidated her, there was just no way she’d let him in on that secret. Besides, she had never had to think of cutting back on food, she never gained weight.
‘I don’t mean to pry, but, where do you come from? Your accent sounds different, and you speak Spanish well, I take it?’ Steven popped another chip in his mouth.
‘I’m fluent,’ she said. A thought crossed her mind and she gave a cheeky grin of her own as she continued, determined to have some fun of her own. ‘I live in England now, but I used to live somewhere else. We moved when I was twelve. I currently live in Guildford. I bet you can’t guess where I was born.’ she challenged.
‘You get more interesting by the minute.’
She felt her heart skip a beat; he thought she was interesting.
‘Now you’ve got me. This is probably wrong but, somewhere in North America?’ He waved his finger in the air.
‘Nope,’ she smiled. This was a good game.
‘No, you don’t have an American accent. What about Andorra? It’s Spanish and they speak French there. Do you speak French?’
‘Nope, but getting warmer,’ she smirked.
‘Somewhere in the South of Spain then?’
‘Maybe, last chance. You’re never going to get it.’
‘I am beginning to realise that,’ he rubbed his fingers against his lips as he thought hard. ‘Give me a clue, is it British?’
‘Yes.’
‘Is it a colony?’
‘Yeeees.’ She was wary now.
He chuckled aloud. ‘Well, that’s easy – it can only be Gibraltar.’
***
Caitlin’s face was legendary. Steven was beginning to have fun watching the way her expressions altered with her emotions.
‘How did you know? Most people have not even heard of the place.’
‘Like I said, my mum comes from Torremolinos. Of course, I’ve heard of it. We’ve been on day trips loads of times. I’ve even gone to the top and seen the Barbary apes.’
‘I am so glad you didn’t call them monkeys. Apes sound so much better!’ she chuckled. With a shy smile, she asked, ‘Where do you live then? You have a very pronounced accent. And I’m rubbish at guessing, so don’t even go there.’
‘I was brought up in Ilfracombe, but I went to boarding school for ten years, that’s why I have a, what did you call it? A pronounced accent.’
‘But, you’re not a snob, are you?’
Her directness was incredible.
‘Snobs are much more pompous.’
She looked mortified. ‘I didn’t mean to offend you, again. I always say aloud what I’m thinking, bad habit. Your accent does give you away though. You must have gone to a really good school.’
‘I did and I’m not ashamed of it. My parents sent me to boarding school at the age of eight, so I have to admit I’m a bit institutionalised.’
‘Well, I won’t hold it against you.’
‘Good,’ he said. Even if she did, it would not bother him.
To his dismay, he realised they were back at halls. ‘Anyway, I guess I’ll see you again sometime. It’s been nice talking to you, Caitlin.’
‘I enjoyed talking to you too, Steven,’ she replied. With a half-smile, she entered the pass code and disappeared through the door.
Steven turned around, and started to walk back. He definitely wanted to get to know her better now.
Chapter 5
The First Day Is The Hardest
Georgina stared at the bleeping alarm clock and mustered the energy to get up. At the best of times, she had never been a morning person. Now, without her creature comforts or parents, the start to every day bordered on torturous. When she eventually got up, her head spun as though recovering from a hangover. What she was really beginning to loath with a vengeance was queuing for the shower. If there was something she wished she had asked for before arriving, it was to have an en suite. That would make her Christmas wish list.
Getting into her pink polka dot dressing gown, she opened the door by a fraction to survey the corridor. The bathroom door was open and there was no-one in sight. She rushed back in, got her things and raced back out again to find the door shut. Someone had beaten her to it for the third day in a row. Words failed her.
After sitting on the floor of the corridor for ten minutes, so as not to lose her place again, the bathroom door finally opened. Caitlin walked out with a beaming smile. In a songbird voice, she chimed out ‘good morning’ as she strolled past and got into her room. It seemed unfair. How could anyone look that perky in the morning?
Over the past few days, a thought teased and taunted her. At university, there were a lot of intelligent people who were attractive, popular and extremely charismatic. They were not as nerdy and geeky as she suspected she was. At school, she had hoped that once at university she would meet other people like her. The truth was she could not see that many. If they were there, they certainly kept to themselves, which was not a huge surprise. It was depressing to realise that even here she still felt like a nerd, an outcast.
When Georgina finally got to the kitchen to have breakfast, she found the rest of the girls chatting animatedly. Caitlin was blushing at something that Sally had said and seemed reluctant to expand on the topic of conversation.
‘Caitlin’s got a boyfriend,’ Sally blurted out, a silly smirk on her face. She had purposefully spilled the beans; it was like she relished Caitlin’s discomfort.
‘He’s not my boyfriend. We only just met,’ Caitlin gave a deep sigh, as she glared at Sally with huge eyes.
If Caitlin had been a dog, Georgina was sure she would have growled.
‘Well, there seemed to be more to your connection than conversation last night, if you catch my drift,’ Sally insinuated, as she twiddled her index fingers together.
‘It was nothing. I am allowed to have male friends.’
‘A very good male friend by the sound of it,’ Julia scoffed, scraping the last of the cereal out of the bowl. ‘I heard that you were seen playing pool together. Very cosy! What about you, Sally? Did you have any luck with that Adam bloke?’
‘It looks promising,’ she replied, as she rambled on again. She definitely liked the sound of her own voice.
Caitlin’s shoulders drooped as the tension eased. Georgina would not be surprised if Caitlin had a bust up with Sally and Julia in the near future.
With her bowl, spoon and cereal, Georgina sat down after helping herself to some milk. She was not an authority on boys, so there was no way she would join in their frivolous chat. Eyes on the bowl, she concentrated on eating. One by one, all the girls left the room. Eventually, she sat alone as she finished. Finally, she took her
bowl to the sink to give it a rinse.
‘Are you coming, Georgina?’ Caitlin asked.
Georgina turned round and saw Caitlin’s face poking through the doorway. ‘No, I’m not ready yet, thanks for asking.’
‘Oh, okay,’ Caitlin said, ‘sorry I have to go or I’ll be late. I’ll see you later.’
With that, she was gone and Georgina felt a surge of anguish rush through her. She hung her head in her hands and held back the tears desperate to escape. She wanted to cry. She wanted to scream. Deep down, she knew all she wanted was to go home. She did not want to be at university anymore.
***
Sally strode into the lecture hall with a steady swagger. She was brimming with confidence. The first lecture of the term was on Contract Law and since she had already covered most of the material on her A-Level Law course, she was not daunted by the forthcoming lecture. Nevertheless, even for someone like her, it was amazing to walk into a room that could seat over one hundred people. It felt far removed from the largest class she had ever attended of thirty-five. Sally had attended a large state school in the outskirts of London and had already dealt with plenty of adversities during her education. However, she could not deny that the environment was intimidating.
The lecture room was large and imposing. It resembled an amphitheatre. All the seats inclined sharply, to give everyone a good vantage point, and the room had a musty old smell of aging carpets and worn furniture. It was already half full, so she made her way to one of the middle aisles. Efficiently, she removed the A4 size notepad and her favourite pen from the rucksack and waited for the start of the lecture. Whilst she waited, it occurred to her that now was as good a time as any to review the opposition.
With a discrete turn of the head, she surveyed the melee of people. At the front, a scattering of mature students intermingled with other keen students seeking to please. Others chatted, as though introducing themselves. She would normally have been one of them, but today she wanted to watch carefully to get a feel for the lay of the land.
To her right, Adam caught her attention. He was sitting a few rows ahead. She could imagine running her fingers through his tousled, brown hair. Next to him sat the dark, relatively handsome guy she had seen Caitlin with the previous night. She did not understand the attraction, if there was any. She had never found that type remotely interesting. In her experience they were usually either gay or taken, so not worth the effort.
Even though reasonably satisfied with her looks, she knew her limitations. She accepted the fact she would never look right next to someone like that. To compensate for her average features, she adopted a brash overconfident approach to get noticed. It always worked. With that thought in mind, she noticed Adam glance back and look in her direction. She took the chance, gave him a subtle smile, and a flirtatious wave. They held eye contact for a few seconds as the lecturer walked in and prompted her to look towards the front. She smiled, knowing Adam was still watching. Now, all she had to do was reel him in.
***
‘I can’t believe what I’ve let myself in for!’ Caitlin exclaimed.
‘It can’t be that bad.’ Lisa flicked her long, dark hair off her face.
‘It’s worse. I have no idea what they were talking about this morning. Most of it flew over my head.’
‘You should join me in English instead,’ Lisa suggested, as she took a sip from her tea.
‘Or History,’ Abbi threw in, putting her cup down. ‘I mean, no offence, but, the other night you seemed to think anyone studying Medicine or Law was weird. Well, Mathematics, erm, not exactly popular, is it? I’ll give you Spanish. It does sound exotic and exciting.’
‘I like maths,’ Caitlin protested. ‘At least, I did. Now, I’m not so sure. It’s too hard for me.’
‘Give it a chance; you’ve only done one day. Bet you’re a brain-box deep down,’ Lisa encouraged, as she waggled her finger.
‘Admit it,’ Abbi said. She nudged Caitlin gently with her shoulder.
‘Fair enough, I’ll persevere. It’s only been a day,’ Caitlin agreed. She held her cup firmly in her hands and took a large gulp. As she was about to swallow, she caught sight of Steven walking past in the distance. She swallowed too fast and started to choke.
‘Slow down girl, what is it?’ Lisa asked, her eyes following Caitlin’s line of sight. ‘Oh, now I get it. Was that Steven? Admit it. You have a thing for him?’
‘The Law student from last night, really?’ Abbi jumped up and down on her seat.
‘Nothing happened,’ Caitlin said, defensive, ‘We just went to get chips.’
‘YOU DID WHAT?’ Lisa screamed.
‘Shh,’ Caitlin glowered and covered Lisa’s mouth with her hand.
‘Lisa!’ Abbi exclaimed. ‘Discretion please, it’s obvious she has a crush.’
‘It’s time for me to go.’ Caitlin got up and stuffed her things in her bag.
‘Don’t go,’ Abbi pleaded. ‘Seriously, we won’t tease anymore. Will we, Lisa?’
‘I’m not upset,’ Caitlin reassured, glad she had made them feel guilty. ‘I really have to get back. I’ll catch up with you guys later, try not to gossip behind my back.’
‘Promise.’ Lisa smiled and gave a cheeky wink.
Once out of the cafeteria, Caitlin heard Sally’s pealing laughter in the distance, flirtatious. She wondered who Sally had set her sights on. As she got closer, she saw her standing next to a guy with mousey brown hair and a lanky build. Standing next to him was Steven. It was too late to turn back. Relief swept over her as she noticed he was about to walk away. Unfortunately, Sally saw her and called out. The effect was instant as he glanced in her direction. She felt her heart skip a beat when he stopped to wait.
‘Caitlin, let me introduce you. This is Adam.’
Adam nodded and stared at her breasts. She could not believe he was the type of guy Sally went for.
Sally raised her eyebrows as she then blurted out, ‘And I believe you know Steven.’
‘We meet again,’ Steven added, somewhat ominously.
‘It’s a small world.’ Caitlin hoped she would not start blushing again.
They stared in silence until Adam spoke, ‘Are you in the same hall as Sally?’
‘Yes,’ Caitlin answered, relieved to look away from Steven.
‘Shall we go for that coffee now?’ Sally asked Adam, entwining her hand round his arm.
‘Sure,’ Adam replied. He glanced at Caitlin, then turned to face Steven and winked. ‘See you later. Have fun.’
The look Adam gave Steven was suspect. He looked like the cat that had got the cream. There was something about the way his eyes dissected Sally that she did not like. The thought did not linger as she became aware of the fact it was just the two of them again. Tense, she looked at the floor, now self-conscious.
‘The chips were nice last night.’ His smooth tones tempted her to look in his direction.
‘Yes, they were.’ Slowly, she glanced up. In daylight, she could not help admiring the way gold strands seemed to flit in his irises.
‘Anyway, I was just leaving,’ Steven said, as he gestured with his hand.
‘Oh… I guess I’ll see you around then.’
In a way she was relieved their encounter would be brief. However, when she faced the main entrance, he did the same.
As they walked side by side, Steven broke the silence, ‘I promise I was going this way anyway. I am not stalking you.’
‘Oh,’ she replied. It was awkward, but she had to see the funny side and broke into laughter. With some Dutch courage, she added, ‘I don’t have any more lectures for the rest of the day, so I’m heading back to halls. What’re you doing?’
‘Well, that’s funny, another coincidence, I’m also heading back.’
With a contented sigh, she smiled and stared into his eyes.
***
Georgina actually enjoyed the first day of lectures and laboratory work, the topics were great. Yet now, she trudged back to her acco
mmodation alone. The course suited her perfectly, she just missed home. The sound of her lone footsteps made her overly anxious. The fact it was dark already, even though it was only four o’clock in the afternoon, did not help. She considered jogging back just to feel more secure, but she was too unfit to even try. It was strange; it felt like she was being watched.
Two sets of running footsteps got louder behind her and she quickened her pace. They were getting closer. As her breathing started to sound forced, she heard a female voice call out her name and a wave of relief overcame her.
‘Wait up, Georgina,’ Caitlin called out, breathless.
‘Sorry, I didn’t know it was you.’ She hung her head down low.
‘We didn’t mean to scare you, sorry,’ Steven apologised.
‘It’s alright,’ she said, as she noticed him behind Caitlin.
‘Georgina, this is Steven.’
‘You sure walk fast – I thought we’d catch up with you easily,’ Steven joked.
She got the impression he was trying to put her at ease. He was nice. Her first impression was usually correct. He was the one she’d seen talking to Caitlin on the first week at university. ‘I like to walk fast.’
‘Are you okay?’ Caitlin asked.
‘I’m fine,’ Georgina sighed. Truthfully, she was far from fine.
‘I’ve got to get back, so I’ll let you catch up. See you around Caitlin,’ Steven called out, as he rushed ahead.
‘Looks like you made a friend. Don’t worry. I won’t tease you like Sally and Julia,’ Georgina reassured.
‘I appreciate it. He’s great, but we barely know each other. So, there’s nothing more to it.’
Georgina nodded.
‘You sure you’re okay. I’m here if you want to talk.’
‘I just miss home, I guess,’ Georgina admitted.
‘That’s understandable. I’d miss it more if it wasn’t for the fact I’m enjoying being free of my baby sister’s incessant moaning.’ Caitlin giggled.
Georgina snapped, ‘I’d like to go home. I’m not enjoying this.’
‘Oh,’ Caitlin exclaimed, her lips curled down, worried. ‘It’s not long until Christmas, you’ll be back soon.’
‘I know.’ Georgina struggled against the choking sensation restricting her throat and held back the tears.
‘Hey, don’t get upset, you’ll be home soon. You could go back this weekend for a visit if it’s that bad.’