The Fire

Chapter Twenty-Five

Present

When my alarm clock rang, I knew I would finally have more thrilling entertainment than the backs of my eyelids for the next twelve hours or so.

I was fed up with the endless nights.

Mum wasn't up yet, so I stayed quiet as I rushed through the house, struggling to find my pens and notebooks that had become buried amongst my belongings.

With a semi-packed bag slung around my shoulder, I stealthily went downstairs and grabbed a breakfast bar to shove in my pocket and forget about, before grabbing the spare key and hastily rushing out the back door.

***

The final lectures of the year before finals had caused a hectic rush of students in the University halls. A mad rush to gather those last few important scraps of information that would secure their future was understandable – but annoying. The hustle and bustle was inconvenient, causing nothing but stationary traffic in the corridors and packed lecture theatres that drove me round the bend. I would have to make my way to the lecture theatre quickly before there were no decent seats left.

I wanted to avoid Millie at all costs. Luckily, she took a different course to me so I wouldn't have been likely to have any unwelcome encounters, but I didn't want to jinx myself. Although it was for the best, I couldn't stop myself from feeling guilty, no matter what point of view I viewed this situation from because I'd hurt her, and my conscience wouldn't forgive me.

I was trying to keep my bag on my shoulder as I shoved past the crowds with my eyes fixed on the double doors with the metal lettering glued to it – LECTURE ROOM 2A. As someone else slipped through the doors, I caught a glimpse of the hall. It was packed. Brilliant. Just what I needed. I hoped I could get a seat because it seemed as if a few extra students that weren't meant to be there had slipped in for one reason or another. The door bounced back to close the gap as I practically sprinted to the door to catch it before it shut again. I weaved my way through the gap in the door to be astounded by the crowds beneath me. Letting go of the handle to let the door shut, I surveyed the sight of the theatre before me. There was the odd seat scattered here and there but nothing easily accessible without bothering the other under-graduates who had already meticulously laid out all their highlighters, notebooks, pens and textbooks in front of them as if it was a competition to see who had the tidiest setup. Examining my options, I saw one seat to the right of me that was just two seats into the row. But there was just one problem.

It was right next to where Katie was sat.

I cringed at the thought but concluded that I didn't have another option. I made my way down the crimson carpeted staircase to Row E and took a deep breath before sidestepping into my doom.

Wow, I'm dramatic.

I muttered statements of apology as I shuffled towards my seat. I risked a glance in Katie's direction. At first, she looked surprised. Her perfectly outlined eyebrows raised and alert, accentuating the hazel glow of her eyes...but then flashed me a perfect smile with her milky white teeth. I nearly dropped my bag from my shoulder in shock. What just happened? I was so stunned that I forgot to carry on walking and received a furrowed brow and an evil glare from one of the girls I was squeezing past. I gave her an apologetic expression and continued on my way, trying to hide the shock on my own face. When I made it to my seat, I was scared to look upward. I dumped my bag on the seat and kept my head firmly towards the ground as I fumbled with the golden zip and tugged at it to retrieve my stationery and notebooks.

Although the theatre must have been loud, the atmosphere between Katie and me was still silent, tense and awkward. I cleared my throat to rip through the tension as I nudged my bag onto the floor and replaced its prior position with myself. I couldn't stop shuffling around in my seat, not even daring to glance to my right. My teeth were gritted, my lips pursed and every muscle in my body was tensed. I probably looked like I had just bit into a lemon, but I couldn't help myself. Her familiar, annoyingly nice smell of her apple shampoo met my nose and I felt haunted by the memories it brought back, mainly of Josh; her smell rubbed off onto him and had seemed to be a permanent change. I caught myself smiling at the thought of him. His charming smile, his witty jokes, his special, unique sparkle in his eyes...it was what made Josh...Josh. And all of it was dead and buried.

Six feet under.

My face fell.

"Good morning everybody!"

Professor Underwood's overly happy, Californian accent made me jump out of my skin. I think I may have let out a small alarmed exclamation in shock and I glanced around me to see if anyone saw my odd reaction. It was all good.

I opened my notebook and picked up one of my black biro pens, clicking in the top and swinging around the table that was attached to the arm of the chair and dumping them down on it. Lazily, my right hand flicked open the book to the first page as my left supported my chin and my elbow rested on the desk. Although our lecturer hadn't yet begun to speak, I could hear the sound of a pen scribbling on paper to my right. I couldn't help but be curious. What could she possibly be writing? I was feeling nervous to chance a look to my right but turns out I didn't need to. A flawlessly manicured hand had reached out to my table with a piece of neatly folded paper placed in between her thumb and forefinger. I still couldn't bear to look at her. As she withdrew her hand, she left behind the piece of paper which, naturally, I unfolded.

Meet me at my locker at 11:15. I have something to say to you.

Ummm. Sorry, what? This time I couldn't help but look over at her, however, it was her turn to ignore me. I scrunched up the paper in concern; I was nervous. We hadn't spoken since...since forever. What would she say to me now?

***

The remainder of my lecture was simply ordinary, and I was now terrified for what awaited me at locker number 13.

13. Unlucky for some. Definitely unlucky for me it seemed.

My nails were digging into the palm of my right hand which clutched at the bag strap on my shoulder. I could see her now, waiting for me. What was I doing?

When I reached her, I leant against the locker. She didn't acknowledge me; she was tapping away on her phone. I cleared my throat.

"Oh, Sophie! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there!" She shoved her phone in her pocket and took a deep breath. "Well...I just wanted to say..." she paused, "I'm sorry."

My jaw fell to the floor. "Sorry?"

"Yeah, after everything that has happened with...you know. It has really put into perspective for me how important you were to me, and, I don't know why I threw that away."

I truly was aghast. "Oh," I said, a vacant expression plastered onto my face.

"So...I was wondering if – if you wanted to come over to mine and talk things through because – because I really do want to fix things with you."

I had lost control of everything, so my mouth said the first thing it wanted to. "Yeah sure."

She smiled her perfect smile. She did look genuine; her smile wasn't forced or fake and her eyes were glimmering with...tears? I didn't know why I was trusting her; I was a little apprehensive, so I asked a question without thinking.

"Can Millie come to?"

She replied with a simple, "Sure, why not?"