I slammed the door of my dorm room closed, grinning from ear to ear. “I’m baaaack!” I sang through the room, Erin’s head soon peeking out from her bathroom.
“I take it the date went well?” she questioned, winking at me. I flopped onto my bed, giggling to myself. “He kissed me,” I laughed, rolling to sit on the floor, wrapping my cardigan clad arms around myself in utter satisfaction.
“What?” Erin screeched from her bathroom, bounding over her bed to where I lay a smiling, giggling mess on the carpet. “He kissed you? Oh my god!” she grinned, joining me in staring at the ceiling. She nudged me with her shoulder as we lay on the floor together, “I told you he liked you!”
I smiled to myself, pulling the sleeves of my cardigan over my hands as I sat up. He actually liked me. The most attractive, sweet, charming boy id ever met actually liked me. And he kissed me! I felt as though someone had just hugged me and given me a puppy along with a million dollars. I couldn’t describe how happy I was, so as I walked to my bathroom to have a shower, I did a little dance to express my thoughts instead.
I turned my music up loud as I stepped under the cascading water, letting my hair fall down to my hips as it became drenched. I couldn’t physically stop myself from smiling, and it was beginning to hurt my face, but I didn’t care. I had never been happier in my entire life. I thought back to my mum back home, and silently thanked her for sending me here.
As I crept into bed that night and began to draw, it wasn’t flowers that came to mind. I drew a huge oak at the bottom of a hill, with two small figures underneath the branches filled with golden leaves. I titled my drawing “The favourite place” before closing my sketchbook and drifting off to sleep.
“So,” Erin began, “Are you and Ashton a thing now?” She stirred her chai latte with a spoon before taking a sip and sighing in satisfaction. We were sat in the schools coffee shop, the sun becoming brighter as it shone through the skyscrapers that were Sydney’s skyline. I inhaled deeply, sipping my coffee as I thought it over. “I don’t really know.” I wondered aloud. “He never asked me to be his girlfriend, so I don’t really think it’s anything ‘official’ as of yet.”
Erin rolled her eyes as she ripped the top off a packet of sugar and poured it into her drink. “He’s such a coward,” she laughed. “He’ll ask you to be his girlfriend over text, I guarantee it. The kid doesn’t have a romantic bone in his body.” I giggled, thinking of Ashton and how awkward he was the previous morning.
“I think he’s just shy,” I lightly defended. She smiled at me, cocking her head slightly. “You really like him, don’t you?”
I rested my forehead on my hands and sigh loudly. “Yep,” I mumbled. “I told myself I wouldn’t fall for him, but here we are, and look what’s happened.”
Erin giggled as she stood from her chair. “Come on,” she smiled, “let’s go wait for Ashton to text you in our room, where it’s warm.” She grabbed her coffee from the table and we began to walk back to the dorm circle.
Come lunchtime, Erin had left to go on a shopping trip with a reluctant Luke, so I was sat on my bed, attempting to organise my books for my classes that started with the new week. Binders and markers and schedules were sprawled everywhere, and I was beginning to get frustrated. Gulping my red bull and running my fingers through my tangled hair, a thud came from the door. I wandered over to unlock it and find a sheepish Ashton standing in the corridor.
“Um, hey,” he smiled, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. His other hand remained planted firmly in his pocket of his skinny jeans, and he couldn’t quite meet my eyes for some reason.
“Hey ash,” I giggled back, pulling the door open. He shuffled into my room, an awkward grin plastered on his face. “How come you’re here?”
He smiled again, taking his hand out of his pocket to grasp my own.
“Well” he smirked, intertwining his fingers with mine. “I managed to get some tickets to the All Time Low show tonight from a friend of mine, and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?”
My eyes fell wide as he finished his sentence. “Oh my gosh, yes! How did you get tickets, I thought they were sold out?” I giggled wildly, excitement coursing through my veins. When a loud chuckle erupted from his lips, and I had calmed down somewhat, he let go of my hand and began walking towards the door. Leaning against the doorframe, he smirked cheekily. “It’s a date then?”
“I guess it’s a date,” I laughed, before closing the door, promising to meet him outside my building at 6pm. I flopped back onto my bed, amongst my books and papers, and smiled to myself. I was really falling for this kid.
