Flatmates

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

“Got your ticket for the Valentine’s Ball Bell?” Colin asked across the kitchen table, where all of them were sitting.

Bell tried to avoid looking across at Ed, but he was looking out the window anyway. Bell sighed, and replied “No. I haven’t got anyone to go with anyway.”

Colin huffed, then said “I would offer to go with you, but I’m already taking someone.” He winked across the table at Hattie, who blushed.

“If only there was a single guy here who would take Bell,” Lisa said wistfully, trying to get the attention of Ed. But still he appeared to be in another world. Lisa sighed in annoyance, then added “I’ll take you Bell. We can go together and find some guys there instead.”

Bell smiled. “Why not?”

The Valentine’s Ball was only three days away, and until now Bell had no desire to go. She had to admit that she had hoped Ed might ask her, but for the past few days he had only spoken to her a few times, appearing to keep some distance between them. Bell wondered why she was even interested in him. Most of the time his behaviour just completely befuddled her. But this feeling came with admitting that yes, she was interested him. She liked him, a lot. Definitely more than a friend. Only how could she tell him without looking like a complete fool, and with the possibility that he would say he wasn’t interested in her?

She looked across at Ed again. He wasn’t looking outside anymore; now he was staring at his thumbs in contemplation. Bell sighed. What was wrong with him?

“He does seem to be acting weird,” Lisa commented as they sat in Bell’s room, along with Hattie, in their usual watching a film in the evening routine.

“Just go and talk to him,” Hattie advised. “Then at least you’ll know where you stand.”

Both Bell and Lisa turned to face Hattie. “And is that what you did with Colin?” Bell asked. Hattie’s cheeks turned a shade of pink, and all of them started to laugh, including a blushing Hattie.

“Come on, ‘fess up. Have you done the deed?” Lisa asked.

Hattie shook her head vehemently. “No…not yet,” she added at the end of a pause, which caused them all to start laughing.

“No, but seriously Hattie. Be careful. You know he’s a bit of player,” Bell said after they’d all stopped laughing.

Hattie sighed. “I know. But I like him. So…I’ll just see what happens.”

Bell and Lisa exchanged a glance, but didn’t say anything and fell into a silence as they watched the last twenty minutes of the film. Once the film finished, they chatted for a little while afterwards before Hattie and Lisa left to go to sleep – understandable as it was nearly one in the morning, and they all had early lectures the next day.

Even though thoughts of Ed were worrying her, somehow Bell managed to get a good night’s sleep, and spent the next day getting a lot of work done that she had been set in the past couple of days. The Valentine’s Ball was on the Friday, and after getting both her and Lisa’s tickets whilst she was on campus, she knew she needed to get most of her work done if, she was going to do what Lisa had said she was doing and get “completely smashed.” She would need the weekend to recover if that proved the case. Bell didn’t think it was an appropriate way to treat a date, but nevertheless agreed with her plans. Especially as Ed wasn’t likely to be there to observe her behaviour.

She spent Thursday also getting a lot of work done, so that by the time Friday arrived she only had to go to her seminar, then had the rest of the day free. She decided to tidy up her room, with a large pile of books and scrappy bits of paper amounting on her desk, as well as several dirty plates and glasses. She went into the kitchen along with all her washing, trying to manoeuvre her way through the corridor with her arms weighing down.