Someone’s alarm clock was going off in one of the flats around them. Harri cursed the paper-thin walls, and not for the first time.
Annie’s eyes stayed fixed upon him. Her trademark smile was wavering a little.
‘I don’t know how to say this,’ he began, with absolutely no idea what was going to come out of his mouth.
He watched her throat move softly as she swallowed.
He let words form, unsure where they were taking him, instinct taking over. ‘You and me, we’re special…’
Annie’s head turned first.
There was a key in the door, shoes scuffing over the bristly mat, pizza menus and junk mail being scooped up, and all too suddenly, a figure in the kitchen with them.
‘Paisley!’ Annie said, staggering to her feet.
The woman was the same age as the flatmates, young and pretty. She was dressed for work in office gear and black sandals.
‘God, is that the time?’ Harri rubbed at his eyes and stood too, a little too quickly. Dizziness hit him and he steadied himself against the countertop.
‘You stayed up all night?’ Paisley asked, before turning to Annie. ‘Aren’t you supposed to be on your way to the airport?’
Annie took this as the dismissal it was. ‘Yep. Taxi’s coming in ten. I just need to grab my case.’
‘You’re going dressed like that?’ Paisley said.
She’d never really warmed to Annie. And who could blame her? She was always there, stealing the limelight. But now the Texan was on her way out, there’d be nothing standing between her and Harri. They were, after all, boyfriend and girlfriend; had been all final year. Harri had dived in with both feet too. It had all been part of his making peace with the ‘friend zone’ thing.
‘I’ll change at the airport, or maybe I won’t.’ Annie shrugged and squeezed past the pair, heading for her bedroom, right next to Harri’s.
‘Aren’t we getting coffee?’ Paisley asked Harri. ‘We’re supposed to be job hunting, remember? If we’re going to find positions close to each other.’
‘Right.’ Harri held a hand to the back of his neck. ‘Of course. Sorry. I’ll shower and we can go to the computer suite, see what’s out there.’
His eyes travelled to Annie’s door and the sound of trundling suitcase wheels. He wanted to howl like a wolf at the awful feelings inside him, but as Paisley stepped closer and drew his face down to hers with a finger at his chin, there was nothing he could do.
‘Eww, morning breath!’ she told him, but still lifted herself to kiss his lips.
‘Sorry,’ he said again. ‘Last night got a bit out of hand.’
‘And not for the first time,’ Paisley said, softly scolding. ‘It was a shame I had to work, but…’ she took both his hands in hers, ‘now we’ve graduated, there’s nothing getting in our way.’
Harri knew perfectly well what his girlfriend was getting at, and the guilt stabbed at him. Annie emerged from her room in a faded denim jacket over her party dress, shouldering tote bags full of books.
Paisley went on, a little louder now. ‘We have our whole lives ahead of us to be together, go on adventures, get our own place…’
‘I’m heading out, then,’ Annie interrupted.
Paisley was still gripping his hands. Was this how they were supposed to part after the most extraordinary three years of friendship? It was too awful.
Annie stepped nearer, struggling under the weight of her bags. Paisley had no choice but to drop Harri’s hands because Annie was beaming her biggest smile at him, inches away.
‘I’ll be seeing you, my friend,’ she said, holding out her arms.
Harri felt Paisley observing their hug, knowing it was going on too long for her liking. The book totes jutted into his sides but he didn’t mind. He could have sworn he felt Annie’s chest heave in a sob as they clung together, but when she stepped back, she was grinning the same as always.
He watched as Annie pulled the surprised Paisley in for a hug too, the first the women had ever shared. ‘Take good care of him, okay?’ Annie said, her voice like soft music to Harri’s ears.
‘I’ll come see you when I’ve enough money saved,’ he told her weakly.
