Effy (Skins Uk)

Chapter five - The new guy's name

I tilted my head, curved the right side of my mouth into a smile and looked deeply into his eyes. I knew I was right about him. He wanted to figure me out. He was different though. I wanted to unravel him like a roll of ribbon. It was so tempting yet so unnerving to feel this feeling again. I only ever felt this for... For Freddie. But he's gone and I know I have to forget him just as he forgot me but love is so unforgiving and cruel and I was still cast against it's spell.

While keeping my right side of my mouth upwards into a half smile, I said,
"So then, 'Naomi's cousin', what's your name?" I walked into my room and sat on my bed, crossed legged, wondering what would happen with this boy and if it'll be anything like how it was with Freddie. Obviously it's too soon to think of him like that, I'd only just met him of course but there was something about him that attracted me to him.

He broke his gaze from me and looked towards the window,
"Bennett. Bennett Tyler", he looked at me again.
"Well Bennett. Bennett Tyler, tell me about yourself."
I patted the spot on the bed beside me. He looked at me, surprised at my sudden interest in him. Probably as I hadn't made conversation with him earlier at breakfast, I hadn't even asked him for his name. Oh well. He closed my door and sat down, looking slightly anxious but then soon relaxing in his new position on the bed.
While leaning on the bed frame, he said, "Well, let's see... I'm 21, currently unemployed, but I was working as a journalist in Bristol before which was pretty boring if I must admit, before I came here to see my baby cousin and then of course, by chance, I met you as well".
His mouth then turned upwards into a smile which didn't quite reach his eyes. He clearly just realised how boring his life really sounded when he talked of it so bluntly.

I smiled at him,
"That's not what I meant by telling me about yourself. Tell me important details about you. What's your favourite colour? Your favourite movie? What do you hate? What do you like? What do you love? What do you want in life?"

He looked amused by my sudden outburst of words but was quick to reply,
"Okay my favourite colour is turquoise...No wait gold.. Oh I don't know, gold and turquoise. I don't have a favourite movie but I love the horror genre. Only ones that are carefully structured though and aren't as predictable as a cliche horror movie would be. Comedy is also a genre that I love. I hate lots of things. That's mostly why I became a journalist, to sprout my views on the public of the things that should be known worldwide. I love dogs and the sun." He turned towards me obviously pleased with the explanation he had given me of himself.

"You forgot to tell me what you like."

"I like a lot of things", he said while winking at me. Is this guy for real?

"What about you then? Naomi hasn't told me that much about you but, then again she's never told me much about any of her friends to be honest, probably because I hardly see her anymore". He looked disheartened at this. Naomi hadn't told me much about how her cousin but I knew how close her and Bennett. Bennett Tyler had been while they were growing up and how they never seem to catch up as much as she hoped they would these days.

I decided to end the connection we may or may not have right then and there, to avoid all the sadness and all the darkness that had once taken over me. He doesn't need to know. I jumped up from the bed, opened the door, not before looking back at him and saying,
"There isn't much to say about me. I'm Effy Stonem, and that's all you need to know."

With that, I turned my head and walked out, leaving him sitting on my bed, stunned.