Hey hey. Thank you again to everyone reading, alerting, and favorite adding! Special thanks to anon, kiwi99, HappyAsIAm.x, and Blacksheep24 for reviewing :)
Next chapter should be up within a few days.
Reviews are greatly, greatly appreciated. Let me know what you think. Thanks again for reading!
I don't own Skins or anything of the sort.
Chapter V: Nothing to say, but there's still time
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"What did you think of it?" Alex asked through the phone.
"What did I think of what?" Naomi responded as she packed her bag with books.
"You didn't watch it." Alex stated.
"Didn't watch what?"
"Naomi! I've sent you the link about a dozen times."
"Oh, of that smut show you're obsessed with?"
"It's not smut."
"Did you just admit to the fact that you're obsessed?"
"Ugh, just watch it."
"I'm not watching that lesbian smut show of yours."
"Its not a smut show!"
"I've seen the box, it's got naked women all huddled together on the cover. Lesbian. Smut."
"Whatever. It's actually really addicting, one episode and you'll be hooked."
"I highly doubt that."
"Watch it. Watch it. Watch it."
"Why are you so annoying?"
"Why are you so difficult?"
"I have to go."
"No you don't."
"Um excuse me? Yes, I do," Naomi stated matter of fact, "I have to work on a project with one of my group mates for our part."
Naomi did a final sweep of her desk to make sure she had everything she needed. The last thing she wanted to do was have to walk all the way back once reaching the library. Naomi looked up as she slung her bag over her shoulder and saw red walk by. She sighed.
"Are you listening to me?" Alex said through the phone, "Hellooo?"
"What? Yeah, what?" Naomi said shaking her head.
"She just walked by again, didn't she?" Alex said bemused. Naomi had zoned out and randomly mentioned some mystery girl enough times for Alex to take note. And shamelessly pester Naomi about it since.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Naomi lied. She had in fact, the girl with red hair who lived next door, who was in her math class, had walked by again.
"If you don't talk to Math Girl sometime soon I swear to god…"
"Math Girl?" Naomi laughed leaving her room and headed toward the library.
"Yes, Math Girl, that's what I've decided to call her. Seeing as she's in your math class and you're too much of a little bitch to go and find out her name."
Naomi rolled her eyes. "You're a wanker you know that?"
"Better a wanker than a cowardly lion."
Naomi winced slightly at the jab, as juvenile as it was; the truth always had a way of hitting hardest.
"Of all the insults to your disposal, you go with cowardly lion?" Naomi recovered, "Having another classic films binge are we?"
"Just because some of us appreciate fine cinema…"
Naomi rolled her eyes. "Rubbish. What were those movies you made me go see with you? Sex and the City? Two hours of my life I will never get back. Fine cinema my arse."
"Oh my god. Don't talk about Carrie Bradshaw like that."
"Who?"
"Never mind."
Naomi continued talking to Alex on her way to the library.
"Alright," Naomi stated as she looked around the library café for her group mate, "Later."
"Say it." Alex chastised.
Naomi rolled her eyes. "You're not serious?"
Alex stayed expectantly quiet.
"This is ridiculous. Why do I need to say it?"
"Are you going to fight me on this like the whole you not hugging thing? Because you know how that turned out."
"Fine." Naomi let out an exasperated sigh, "I love you." She cringed.
"God, you're such a sap." Alex laughed, "I love you too."
"Whatever." Naomi smiled.
"Call me later bitch." Alex said before hanging up.
Naomi laughed at her friend. Cringing slightly at the memory of her attempting to make Naomi a more "huggable" person. Naomi was not a hugger.
"That your boyfriend?"
Naomi turned around to see who she had been looking for, Cook, with his eyebrow raised.
"No," Naomi said as she began to walk to an open table, "Eaves dropping?"
"Girlfriend?" he continued.
"No." Naomi repeated, though with a less friendly tone. She sat down pulling her bag onto the table.
"Good to know." Cook smirked sitting down as well.
"What, you going to ask me out now or something?"
"You want me to?"
"Not in the least."
"Hard to get, I like that." He said giving her a cheeky grin.
"Next time I'll just lie and say I have a boyfriend." She groaned.
"Like that's stopped me before." He winked.
Naomi rolled her eyes. "Jesus. Let's just work on this project, yeah?"
"Whatever you say Blondie."
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Naomi was walking with Panda. Effy had somehow convinced her to come to the climbing wall with her that night, not accepting any excuses to leave her be in her solitude. So here she was, walking to meet Effy at the school's climbing wall with Panda who had cheerily decided to join.
"I've just got to drop this off on the way," Naomi explained holding her and Cook's part of their project in her hands. Her and JJ had decided pairing off to get the project done would be in the best interest of their grade, each overachiever taking on a less academically inclined individual (Cook and Freddie). Naomi having no qualms about bitching Cook out to get him to work, paired with him. To be honest she had been surprised how well they worked together, once he stopped hitting on her or staring at her tits.
JJ conveniently lived on the floor below Naomi. His door was open but she knocked anyway, as it was a habit of hers.
"Come in." Naomi heard an accented voice say. French maybe?
She walked in followed by Panda to find a boy with dark skin and a huge smile on his face sitting at one of the desks.
"Hello," he said jovially, "I am Thomas, it is very nice to meet you."
"I'm Pandora!" Panda smiled enthusiastically, "I thought you said his name was JJ?" She turned to Naomi confused.
"Pandora, that is a very pretty name." Thomas smiled.
"You can call me Panda though," Panda beamed, "everyone does."
"Panda." The boy nodded.
"Sorry, am I in the wrong room?" Naomi asked, JJ had said he would be in his room. She turned to check if she had gotten the room number incorrect.
"You are very much in the right place." Thomas said. "JJ is my roommate. He just left for the loo. He should be back very shortly yes."
"Oh." Naomi said standing awkwardly by the door.
"So where are you from Thomas?" Panda asked talking a seat in the empty chair, making herself comfortable while they waited.
"The Congo." Thomas answered.
"Bloomin' hell that's far away." She said, "what'cha doin' all the way over here then?"
"I am here for track," he smiled, "I run very, very fast."
"Whizzer."
"Oh, Naomi, hi." JJ said walking into his room. "And hi to a girl I do not know—"
"Hey JJ, here's mine and Cook's part." Naomi said cutting the curly haired boy off. It may come off rude, but really she was saving everyone, JJ included from him rambling on.
"Oh, right," he smiled, "excellent." He took the folder from Naomi.
"Right, well," Naomi began making her way toward the door, "we'll just be on our way."
She exited the room before realizing Panda had not followed. Naomi poked her head back into the room. "Panda?"
The dirty blonde looked up from her conversation with Thomas. "Righto, climbing an all that." She said standing up.
"Shame I already got a boy for surf 'n' turf," Panda sighed as the girls walked across campus, "that Thommo is a blinkin' dream."
Justin. Naomi kept forgetting about him, Panda's boyfriend. Panda's mum had sent her away to a foundation school hoping it would put her focus on her studies and away from boys. To this day her mum still regards her plan as a success, unaware of Panda's nearly yearlong relationship. Justin was a year younger and planning to visit in a few weeks.
Walking across the street Naomi eyed the dodgy building that was their destination. The climbing wall was located across the street from the main campus, where the "old campus" was. An old gymnasium was turned into the climbing wall after the building was no longer in use. It was referred to as "the climbing wall" but in reality it was more of a climbing gym with climbing walls and caves build up throughout the years.
Through a back door and down a flight of stairs Naomi and Panda found themselves in a large slightly cold room. It was dingy, but much bigger than Naomi expected, not that Naomi really knew what to expect.
The door was in the corner of the room. In front of them was a desk and small cupboard with climbing equipment in it. Along the left wall three climbing lines were set up. Each rope located a wall with a different level of difficulty. The one furthest down the line, by the back wall looked most difficult with a built in overhang. Naomi became uneasy just looking at it. There was no way in hell she was climbing that.
Old mattresses covered the floor. A platform of mattresses, three or four deep, surrounded every climbing structure. Two dusty couches sat facing the left climbing wall after the mattresses. Behind the couches were more mattresses and a balance line like rope about waist high bolted out from the wall. Currently a blonde boy had his back to the door attempting to balance on it. The boy turned still balanced on the line. Maxxie.
"Hey!" He smiled hopping off the line gracefully. "I didn't know you guys were coming. Wicked. We could use a few more girls round here. Get's a little macho with all the testosterone." He winked. Though the ratio had been steadily changing over the last few years, there was still a disproportional amount of boys to girls.
"I'll try and keep my machismo to a minimum." Effy said appearing from the cave of the lower climbing structure by back wall and right corner of the gym.
"You came." Effy said handing both Naomi and Panda harnesses.
"I had a choice in the matter?" Naomi asked.
"No."
"I didn't think so."
Panda took a seat on one of the sofas next to Tony as Effy clipped Naomi in and went over the instructions. Effy and Tony had been climbing since they were younger.
Halfway up the wall Naomi realized two things. First, she wasn't wearing the proper trainers for this sort of thing. Second, she was actually quite enjoying herself, not that she'd let Effy know that.
She had climbed a few times growing up. It wasn't something she had ever sought out to do, but she had done some on her mum's various hippy retreats she was forced to partake in over the years.
"That's cheating." Naomi heard a voice from below say.
She looked down to her right to see Sid belaying Andy on the most difficult wall at the end. She watched Andy use the corner of the climbing wall and the brick wall to prop himself around the lip of the overhang.
Once he had righted himself up Andy was parallel with Naomi across the wall.
"Hey." He smiled
"Hey." She returned the pleasantry.
Andy opened his mouth to speak again.
"Oi!" Sid yelled. "Are you climbing or on a date?" He pulled in all the extra slack giving Andy a bit of a tug on the rope to emphasize his point.
There was chuckling from below.
"Fucking hell." Naomi muttered before reaching for the next handgrip and climbing on.
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Later that night lying in her bed Naomi scrolled through her phone to set her alarms for her morning class. A text popped up on the screen.
"DO IT!"
Naomi rolled her eyes. Alex was persistent if nothing else, well besides annoying. A huff escaped her lips as she put her phone down on the built in wall shelf by her pillow.
"For fuck's sake," Naomi sighed gazing up at the popcorn ceiling, "fine, I'll do it. Tomorrow." She said to no one but herself.