ARABELLA • Alex Turner

TWENTY EIGHT

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Within a few weeks of starting her Masters degree, Arabella was more than ready to drop out and work in a local pub for the rest of what was sure to be a broke, sad and miserable life.

   Regret was not a strong enough word to describe how she felt about postgraduate study.

   She and Sophie had become hermits ever since they moved in together, both practically housebound aside from the occasional early-morning trek to campus and the odd trip to big Tesco whenever their cupboards began to resemble a barren desert.

   Arabella couldn't remember the last time she actually had a free day to relax. It was eat, sleep and breathe assignments, every second of every day, and no matter how many deadlines passed, her to-do list just seemed to get longer and longer. It was exhausting, and she was in desperate need of a break.

   So when Alex arrived at her apartment one evening and invited her to a Halloween party in London the following weekend, she was intrigued to say the least.

   Despite the stress of it all, being inundated with work, and feeling a little under the weather, she found herself wanting to go.

   She weighed up her options as she sat curled up on the sofa with Alex's arms around her waist and his warm hands tracing circles on her skin.

   On the one hand, she had so many essays to produce for her writing portfolio that she barely had two seconds to spare, let alone two whole days. But on the other, she didn't know how much longer she could take being cooped up like a caged chicken without any semblance of happiness or enjoyment.

   She loved Halloween. It was her favourite time of year, and to miss out on the chance to get dolled up and drink cocktails with her super hot boyfriend, whom she had only seen a handful of times over the past few weeks, would be a real shame.

   It wasn't just the desire to witness one of those high-end events with champagne towers and fancy finger foods that intrigued her, but the fact that Alex seemed so desperate for her company. He wasn't as much of a social butterfly as someone like Matt, who seemed to thrive on human interaction, but he was by no means a wallflower. He enjoyed nights out just as much as she did.

   The more he spoke about this party, though, the more she realised that his presence there was more an obligation than a genuine desire to attend. It was a public appearance of sorts, where they would get dressed up, smile pretty for the paparazzi outside, down a few martinis, and then leave.

   "It'll be borin', probably. Y' don't 'ave to go if you don't want to. Or if you're busy." He drawled, accent thicker than usual on account of his sleep-deprived brain. Though he was obviously beginning to doubt his decision to ask her in the first place, Arabella found his cynicism endearing. He clearly didn't want to drag her along to something she wouldn't enjoy.

   "I can go on me own." He continued. "Or with Mi. Just thought it'd be nice to spend some time together. Feel like I 'aven't seen you lately."

   Before he could dig himself deeper and deeper into a hole of self-doubt, Arabella replied, twisting the Death Ramps ring around his little finger. "It sounds fun, Al. I've always wanted to dress up fancy and go to one of those things, like in the movies."

   Alex buried his face into the crook of her neck and left a lingering kiss there.

   "Are you sure?" He mumbled into her skin. His breath tickled her, and the gentle weight of his fingers on her hipbones caused a sudden shiver down her spine. If she wasn't on her period, she probably would have tried to initiate something.