I was in my last lecture when I finally got some replies to the messages that I, or rather Ronnie, had sent Ashleigh the night before. I’d been hoping for a string of vitriol, even a ‘we need to talk’, but — what the hell?
2.57. You want to move in together??
2.58 Sorry it took me ages to find my phone and I only just saw these.
3.03. That might not be such a bad idea.
3.04. I’m convinced Van is stealing my stuff and selling it off for drug money. My AirPods are NOWHERE TO BE SEEN this morning.
3.06. When do you finish? Can you come around?
‘Shit,’ I said, and a couple of girls in the row in front of me shot me irritated glances.
‘What’s up?’ Yoda asked.
I blew out a breath. ‘Nothing,’ I said. How was I going to tell Ronnie that her plan had back-fired?
Sure, I finish at 4. Will come around after that.
I massaged my forehead. Perhaps I needed to puke in Ashleigh’s bed again, maybe even on her. There was bound to be something rotting in the depths of our fridge. The liquefying cucumber had worked well enough last time.
Yoda elbowed me. ‘Class is over, mate. Are you coming to the pub?’
‘Uh, maybe later. I’ve got something I need to sort out.’ I glanced around. ‘Have you seen Tess today?’
‘Come to think of it, I haven’t. Why?’
‘No reason,’ I said. ‘I might catch you later.’ It was dark outside, even though it wasn’t even five o’clock yet, the clouds hanging heavy over the hills. I strode to my car and turned on my windscreen wipers against the drizzle before remembering I still hadn’t replaced the broken one. I needed to clean up my car. I needed to clean up my life.
When I arrived at the flat, I found the girls in the lounge — three of them anyway. Ashleigh was doing a twirl, her arms held high. Ronnie was curled into an armchair, clutching a tissue. Skye was in the kitchen, holding a bowl and wooden spoon.
‘What do you think?’ Ashleigh said. ‘Does my bum look big in these?’
‘Of course not,’ Skye said. ‘What brand are they? Diesel?’
‘Yep.’ Ashleigh beamed. ‘I saw them in the window and I couldn’t resist, even though they were a little over my budget.’
‘Aren’t those, like, five hundred dollars?’ Ronnie’s voice was nasal, her cheeks were flushed.
‘Hi, babe.’ Ashleigh dropped her arms and came over to kiss me. I’d been so flustered by her messages I hadn’t had time to prepare my stink breath, damn it. ‘Um, so we’ve got some news for you guys.’ She clutched my elbow.
Skye squealed. ‘Oh my God, are you guys getting married?’
‘You’re pregnant?’ Nisha came through the door and dropped her bag on the table.
Ronnie didn’t say anything, but she’d gone pale. I should have warned her. I should have—
‘Not yet,’ Ashleigh sing-songed. ‘We’ve decided to move in together. Isn’t that fantastic?’
Nisha’s mouth fell open. ‘What? When?’
‘As soon as possible. Right, Xander?’
I shuffled my feet. ‘Uh yeah, I might need to give my flatmates some warning.’
‘You signed a twelve-month lease,’ Nisha said to Ashleigh. ‘You must have too, Xander.’
Ashleigh smiled. ‘Relax, you’ll find another flatmate. Maybe Van can move in. By the way, can you tell him I’d quite like my AirPods back?’
Nisha glared. ‘Van hasn’t got your AirPods.’
‘That’s funny because I’m sure I saw him wearing some around uni today.’
‘Along with every second student. You know what, maybe you should move out. It’s not as if anyone is particularly enjoying living with you.’
Skye set down the mixing bowl. ‘Nish …’
‘Oh, come on, you said yourself that she’s mean and vindictive. She made you cry the other day, don’t you remember?’
Ashleigh let go of my elbow. ‘That was a misunderstanding. I said sorry.’
‘Oh, sure, sorry you said Skye was too dumb to be at university, yeah, big misunderstanding.’ Nisha took a packet of cigarettes out of her bag.
‘I didn’t say she was dumb, I said she might be better suited to something else. Real friends are honest with each other. You didn’t mind, did you, Skye?’
Skye’s eyes swung between Nisha and Ashleigh. ‘No, I mean—’
‘You do mind,’ Nisha said. ‘You told me you can’t stand her, that you can’t wait until this year is over.’
‘Is that right?’ Ashleigh’s voice was deadly quiet. ‘Perhaps you could let Skye speak for herself, instead of putting words in her mouth.’
Skye gulped. ‘I was really upset, that was all. After what I overheard you telling Ronnie the other night.’
‘What did you hear me tell her?’ Ashleigh rolled her eyes at me. I glanced away.
‘You said I didn’t have many brain cells,’ Skye said. ‘You said you didn’t even know why I was at uni.’
Ashleigh gaped at her. ‘I never said that. Did I, Ronnie?’
We all looked at Ronnie, who was blowing her nose. She hesitated. ‘I don’t think so. I mean, I don’t remember.’
‘See?’ Ashleigh said, triumphant. Skye burst into tears. Nisha put her arm around her, murmured something in her ear.
‘Come on,’ I said to Ashleigh. ‘Let’s go upstairs.’
‘What do you mean, you’ve changed your mind?’ Ashleigh asked a few minutes later. She was sitting on her bed, while I leant against her windowsill. My back was cold, the evening seeping through the pane and into my skin.
I crossed my arms. ‘I haven’t changed my mind. I think you’re jumping the gun a little, that’s all.’
‘You said we should move in together.’
‘I said we should talk about moving in together. But there was no talking. You just announced it to everyone.’
‘I was excited. Aren’t I allowed to be a little bit excited? Why would I want to stay here anyway? They’re all arseholes, except for Ronnie, who’s hardly ever here, because she’s always with her two-timing boyfriend. Skye’s a liar and Harrison’s a borderline psycho, and as for Nisha, she keeps bringing home her druggie friends, and she’s no better. She’s even got acid in her room.’
‘Look,’ I said. ‘Let’s get out for a bit, shall we? Maybe we should go join the others at the pub, then grab some McDs for dinner.’ I sat beside her, rubbed her arm. ‘Relax for a bit, before we make some decisions.’
She took a deep breath. ‘OK. But can you please not drink too much? You know how I hate that.’
‘I won’t,’ I said. ‘I promise. What are you doing?’
‘Getting changed. These jeans need hemming.’ She pulled them off and draped them over her desk chair, scooped another pair off the floor. ‘I’ll take them to the dressmaker tomorrow.’