The Dropout Detective - A Comedy Mystery

15. Time's up

Thursday 8th Feb 2018

At the end of yesterday's match congratulations were sung to the home team and then all of us went home to my flat. Layla's flat. Whatever... We squashed around my laptop in the kitchen to watch a replay of the half-time interview.

"Let's skip this bit," urged Jade, as Blazer's confused face filled the screen. I obligingly clicked along the video progress bar, but not before taking another second to savour the fear in Blazer's eyes.

"What was wrong with that guy anyway?" asked Shane, but his question was lost amidst Jade's cooing when I forwarded to the later part of the video and Shane's own face appeared. Jade couldn't seem to stop enthusing over how "cute" he looked on camera. It's like she wasn't even there watching him do it in real life. Speaking of which,

Note to self: Never do a TV interview without first checking a mirror. Why didn't Jade tell me my hair was sticking up like that??

Update: I asked Jade. She said she thought I was going for 'increased volume'.

Note to self: Carry mirror.

Everyone was in a party mood. Layla investigated the wine cupboard (organised according to Tessa's system of classification by colour, region and year) and brought out several bottles, starting a loud discussion between Tessa and Ethan over which was more appropriate to celebration. I was itching to sneak off, find Adam and listen to him praise my performance in the final task. I was also desperately scared that he might say it was a huge mistake to expose Blazer in such a public and flamboyant way. Perhaps secret agents shouldn't appear on television. What if I'd sabotaged my whole career before it even starts?

But I couldn't desert the party. My nervous jitters ended up causing me to drink far more than I should have. Suddenly it was past midnight and there was no hope of finding Adam. Or forming a comprehensible sentence in his presence. So I figured that I might as well be hung for a sheep...

Note to self: NEVER DRINKING AGAIN.

Shopping list:
- Paracetamol

On the bright side, being 7th wheel turned out to be my saving grace. All the couples found a very good reason to disappear around midnight, effectively cutting off my wine supply. I crawled into my own room and passed out, only waking late this morning. The smell of frying food drew me into the kitchen, where a breakfast-themed rerun of the previous night's party was taking place. Turns out Dylan makes a mean omelette.

Note to self: Fluffy eggs = amazing hangover cure

It was just me, Layla and Dylan, as Ethan and Tessa had already gone out somewhere and Shane and Jade left in a taxi last night. Even so, I felt a pang of pre-homesickness for this cosy circle of friends that I've built. The past couple of weeks had been hectic, but everything turned out well. Now I was facing yet another scary and intimidating realm of unknown. Assuming that I had indeed passed the final test, I had very little idea about what my secret agent training would encompass (I imagine magnifying glasses don't feature greatly these days). It was feasible to expect that my new life would take me far away from my new life. I mean my new-new life... Whatever.

Layla noticed my maudlin expression and tried to cheer me up by showing me the pictures she'd taken at the football match. As per usual, she'd captured some brilliant moments: hard-core fans in mid roar, a girl checking her phone in the thick of a leaping crowd

And there.... no, it couldn't be!

It was Adam.

Later...

Like a schoolgirl with a crush, I hugged my phone and the picture of Adam to me all the way to Cosy Nook Cafe. There was only one photo of him. I think Layla was taken aback when I pounced on the camera and demanded that she should send it to me instantly, but she did. And now I have it. Solid proof that he was there, tracking my progress.