The Diary of Sophie Dayton - A Humorous, Coming-of-age Detective Story

7. Con man

Wednesday 31st Jan 2018

I woke to the sounds of Layla and Tessa having a momentous discussion outside my bedroom door. And by 'discussion' I mean the top-of-your-voice kind.

"But why not the glass box? I mean most of it is glass." Layla's voice was at twice its normal volume.

"Because not all of it is glass, and anyway it's the wrong kind-"

"And surely putting it in the recycling box is better than just throwing it in the bin."

"Now Layla, you're falling prey to the common misconception about these old, incandescent light bulbs, namely that due to the fact that they contain glass, they must be recyclable as such, when in fact-"

"And I thought we agreed that you weren't going to interfere in other people's lives any longer."

"Correcting somebody's mistaken actions with regard to the disposal of waste could hardly be construed as interfering in their life. I mean, how little self-respect do you have to have to take friendly advice regarding proper recycling habits the wrong way?"

"Let's ask Penny about her self-respect, shall we? Oh, that's right, we can't because she moved out after you bullied her one too many times!"

"Oh really, Layla, bullying? I'm just trying to care for the planet and maintain a pleasant home environment."

"You'd better not scare Sophie away. It took me long enough to find someone to take the room. And I like her."

"Sophie is-"

At this point, I decided was time to intercede before I ended up overhearing something I'd prefer not to. Swinging my bedroom door wide, I called cheerfully "Morning girls!"

They were facing off in the kitchen doorway. Tessa's glasses had steamed up in the heat of the moment. Layla turned to me with a guilty expression. "Sorry, Sophie, did we wake you up? We were just saying that we like you better than our old flatmate. Weren't we Tessa?" She nudged the shorter girl who glared at her.

I decided honesty was the best policy. "Guys, the door is pretty thin and I heard most of what you said. Maybe we should just get this straight. Tessa, I promise to follow the recycling scheme. Layla, I promise not to get upset if Tessa is a bit more enthusiastic about recycling that other people might be. How's that?"

Tessa beamed. "It's nice to meet someone who understands the importance of both recycling and diplomacy. Here, let me show you the system..."

Smothering a sigh, I allowed her to guide me through yet another impeccably organised and colour coded household scheme. While we were in the middle of the rules for recycling batteries and other tricky items, she glanced at her watch. "Hell, is that the time?! I've got to get to the lab!" She rushed off like a dark-haired maelstrom.

Layla, who had vanished at the first mention of our 'three-tiered sorting arrangement', re-emerged from her room. She poured herself some coffee from the pot and joined me at the kitchen table. "I knew you'd fit in well here," she grinned. "You've got a knack with people."

I brushed off the compliment. "As far as I can see, Tessa just wants everything to function at maximum efficiency, including the household."

She laughed. "Got it in one! But our last housemate, Penny, didn't like anyone telling her what to do. She took Tessa's lectures the wrong way."

She continued chatting about various things, but my mind wandered back to the question of a costume for the video game convention. I hadn't come to any conclusions last night and now I was getting short of time if I wanted to attempt anything complicated...