A Different Telling

But I still need love cause Im just a man

Harriet sighs, pushing her chair back with one hand and messing with her hair with the other. "The supply curve therefore indicates that..."

One really shouldn't be reading economics text at ten-thirty in the evening. Harriet's trying to be a good student, she really is - four days into the semester and she isn't behind on anything yet. Not that that's much to brag about in the long run, but it does give her a one up over Nila.

Speak of the devil. Someone's pounding on her door. "'S open!"

Nila barges in, rucksack in hand. She looks from Jess's empty side of the room to Harriet . "Where is she?"

Harriet shrugs. "Class, maybe? I don't know, I don't really care."

Nila drops her bag on the floor as she flings herself onto Harriets bed across the room. "Not class, got out half an hour ago and it was the last block."

"Okay, then," Harriet mumbles. "You have a weird schedule, seven thirty in the morning and nine at night?"

"Don't judge me," Nila whines, writhing around and messing up Harriet's comforter. "I had a lapse in error and chose courses based on what I thought I wanted to learn instead of when I wanted to sleep." She sits up. "Do you see her at all?"

Harriet absentmindedly glances over at her roommate's bed. They've spoken once, maybe twice since that first morning. She tried to engage her in conversation one time but it lasted probably five minutes before Jess tapered it off. "Yeah, sometimes. She doesn't talk much, though. She probably thinks she's going to catch the gay."

Nila snorts. "That's her problem."

Harriet closes her textbook. "Right, but I have to live with it."

Nila shifts awkwardly, tucking Harriet's pillow under her arm. "Sorry mate. I don't...I wouldn't know, you're right, I can't imagine how that is." She gives Harriet a gentle shove. "My bed is always open, if you can stand my kicking and cuddles again. Jane doesn't give a fuck."

Harriet smiles. This kid, she swears. "Might do that."

Nila switches the pillow to her other arm. "Have you seen Lia around again? We should, like, try and recruit her into hanging with us. I liked her, did you like her?"

"She's in my calculus class, I've been meaning to mention it to you. She said hi yesterday. And yeah, she seems cool. Want me to talk to her tomorrow?"

Nila bounces. "Yes, do that. Not that I don't love spending my time with you and only you, but we should broaden ourselves." She spreads her arms to make her point, dropping Harriets pillow on the ground in the process. "Oops."

Harriet smirks inwardly, thinking of her run-in with the emcee from karaoke night a few days ago. Louise. "What did you want me to ask her to do?"

"Oh, I know." Nila picks the pillow up and sits on it.

"Hey, I sleep on that thing you know." Harriet tugs the pillow out from under Nila's arse and gets up to shove it in her closet. "I've only known you a week, but I do know that your farts stink."

Nila crosses her arms and lays back on the bed. "Wasn't gonna fart."

Harriet gets back in her chair and shoves her textbook back onto the shelf. "It's my head, mate, my head. Did you read the econ chapter?"

Nila squints at her "No."

Harriet laughs. "Then my question is irrelevant. What were you going to say before I oh-so-rudely took your fart cushion away from you?"

"Right, with Lia. There's a football game tomorrow night. We should go."

Football game. Instead of jumping like she wants to, Harriet tries to play it cool. "Why do they hold football games on Friday nights?"