PHONE SWAP | drew starkey

01: NICE TO MEET YOU

Addie thinks she must be wrong. Of all places, he can't be here.

  It all begins with Addie's roommate waking up to no bread, no milk, no cereal, and an abundance of an alcohol-induced mess. It was the brunette's rare night off to party, so Marianne woke up to quite literally nothing. Now, it's almost noon, and Addie's got a nasty headache right behind her eyebrows, an odd taste in her mouth, and a nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach.

  'Food,' demands Marianne. 'I'm starving.'

  Addie pokes her head out of the bathroom, holding up two fingers. Marianne just rolls her eyes and drapes herself over the couch with a groan that Addie drowns out with her toothbrush.

  She splashes some cold water onto her face, rubbing some moisturiser into it afterwards. Doesn't do much – her eyes are still bloodshot, under-eye circles dark, skin dry and lips chapped even with lip balm on it. Addie just sighs. This'll require sunglasses which, in turn, will require contact lenses.

  'Two more minutes!'

  Another groan from Marianne. 'Merde, Addie!'

  First contact in. She blinks it into place, ignoring its dryness. 'I'll be back before you know it.' Second in. 'And I'll bring you some chocolate.'

  'Aw. You will?'

  'Yes. For emotional disturbances.'

  Marianne beams at her from the couch. Noon sun shines on her through the window as she basks in the light, looking all fresh and ready to take on the day.

  Addie envies her. Not like she'd ever admit it, though.

  'You're a godsend,' Marianne tells her. 'When you're not the devil's menace, obviously. Today shall be your lucky day.'

  'Shall it?' Addie quirks an eyebrow at her, grabbing a purse from the drawer in the hallway with a smile dancing in the corner of her lips.

  The blonde-haired girl hmms, her eyes closed and arms raised up in the air. In the tiniest voice, she says: 'I am throwing my blessings at you now.' She outstretches her hands in what looks to Addie like a kung-fu move, fully accompanied by a half-breathed half-voiced 'HA!'

  'You done?'

  Marianne grins. 'Yes. Now please go get me some food.'

  'Tea for when I'm back?'

  'Yes, ma'am. The finest the British Isles have to offer.'

  'You're not even British.'

  'Half,' says Marianne. 'Half is enough.'

  'Yeah, but the other half is French.'

  Marianne just rolls her eyes, and Addie revels in the fact that there'll be a hot cup of tea waiting for her when she comes back with the groceries. Equipped with her iPhone and earphones, a foldable IKEA bag, some money, and sunglasses big enough to cover her hungover mess of a face, Addie leaves the small apartment.

  Summer in Atlanta is something Addie hasn't experienced before. People get a lot more vibrant, there's more joggers than usual, and people with dogs and kids venture out of their homes more often. There's also the filming aspect, increased during summer, which generally means that there'll be at least one street blocked for public per day – an inconvenience that made her be late for class more than once.

  To Addie, it's starting to feel like home. Warm and filled with a light breeze, the place lively and bright.

  Or, possibly, it's just that she starts to listen to music that makes her feel that way.