Okay. I'm horrible at updating in a timely manner. But the first step is admitting you have a problem, right? For the record I've finally settled into my new apartment and am getting into the swing of things at the new job so in theory updates should be more frequent from here on out. Let's go with that. Again, I am sorry for all of you that have been waiting. I'll try not to make you wait forever and a day again.
fookyeahskins, lemontray, Lucie, shewritesforher, Jocelyn Nguyen, catlikemouse, and anon– thank you for taking the time to review. You're champs.
Please do let me know what you think. And as always, thanks for reading.
I don't own Skins or anything of the sort.
Chapter XVIII: It all will fall, fall right into place
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"Climbing tomorrow," Effy stated as Naomi walked into her and Sophia's room.
"Yes," Naomi said excitedly, "We haven't been since the start of the term."
"I know," Effy said, "But now Jamie has got a key, so that will change." Jamie was the name of Effy's latest. "Every Tuesday, we're going."
"Done," Naomi smiled.
"You ready?" Sophia asked before the conversation could be prolonged. They had agreed to head to the paper meeting together. They were both acting as if it wasn't weird between them now. It was weird between them now.
"Yeah," Naomi said.
..
..
"And that's time," the professor said as he clicked off the projector. Naomi dropped her pen, stretching out her hand; a cramp had formed about thirty slides back. For not being a required class she found herself taking a lot more notes than she had anticipated. At least it only met twice a week.
"Do you reckon he doesn't know none of us are actually concentrating in Psychology?" Will asked as he swiped his notebook off the table.
"Oh, I think he's fully aware mate," Sarah chimed in following behind Will and Naomi down the aisle and out of the lecture hall. Thinking it would be an interesting class, Naomi had signed up for Psychology as one of her non-core credits. Sarah and Will, both concentrating in Engineering, had done the same. The trio had sat together since the beginning of the class furiously trying to keep up with their professor's teachings like every other student in the lecture.
"I can't believe we have a quiz every week," Will shook his head.
"I can," Naomi rolled her eyes. They were just a few weeks into the semester but it was already clear their professor was going to be nothing short of a pompous twat.
"Same," Sarah agreed, "What I can't believe is that he's giving us six minutes for ten questions."
"So much for my GPA boost," Will laughed as they entered the hallway. "Well I'm off ladies," he saluted as he turned toward the exit where the flowing mass of students currently poured out from. "A pleasure as always."
"Where you going?" Sarah asked as Naomi turned toward the stairwell.
"Um, class?" Naomi answered.
"What kind of journalist are you? Two classes in the E.S.C.?" Sarah laughed disbelievingly.
"I have calculus," Naomi mumbled, "Bloody prerequisite."
Sarah laughed, concentrating in Engineering, unlike Naomi, she had most of her classes in the Engineering & Sciences Center. "You have fun with that."
"Thanks."
Naomi began to walk to the stairs.
"Oi!"
She turned around, "Yes, can I help you?" she raised her eyebrow at Sarah playfully. She had found herself spending more time with Sarah as the semester started off. There wasn't any bullshit with her, she was fun, their friendship was easy; it was light.
"What are you doing Friday?" Sarah asked.
"Duno," Naomi shrugged, "Why?"
"Brilliant!" Sarah smiled, "You're coming out with the fantastic four."
"I'm what?" Naomi scoffed with a laugh.
"You're coming out with us, night on the town," the other blonde grinned.
"I am?" Naomi asked amused.
"You are," Sarah confirmed, "Even if I have to drag you out." She smiled.
..
Naomi sighed. She was part way through calculus and bored, taking far fewer notes than she had in psychology the period before. She looked around and suppressed a yawn in the processes when she paused. Sitting a few rows back across the lecture hall was the bright red hair of none other than Emily Fitch. She hadn't realized she was in this class. She stared disbelievingly, surely she would have noticed before now? She looked away quickly, before she could be found out staring.
Discretely she pulled out her phone and shot a quick text off to Alex. A minute later she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.
Math Girl is in your math class…weird.
Naomi rolled her eyes.
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Walking back from class, Naomi felt something hit her as she passed Sophia and Effy's room. She looked down at the floor to spy a climbing chalk bag. Inside Effy was lounging at her desk with an expectant look on her face. Naomi looked between the new white mark on her jacket and Effy un-amused.
"Climbing after dinner, yeah?" It was more a statement than a question.
"Yeah," Naomi agreed, as she tried to wipe the chalk off her jacket, effectively smudging it. She let out a sigh. "What, were you waiting there ready to strike?"
Effy just shrugged.
"Mind if I come along?" Sophia asked, startling Naomi, she hadn't even realized Sophia was tucked away at her desk. "See what all the fuss is about."
Effy's surprised eyes looked from Sophia to Naomi before they resumed their usual disinterested gaze. "Sure, Emily might be coming as well, the more the merrier."
Both Sophia and Naomi's heads snap to Effy's direction at her words with two very different surprised faces.
"Wait," Sophia said, stiffening "Emily's coming?"
Naomi felt her pulse quicken.
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"Emily might be coming climbing with us tonight!" Naomi breathed into the phone at all at once.
"Good on you," Alex replied, "I told you, you just needed to grow a pair."
"I didn't ask her, Effy did."
"Oh…well, good on Effy then. At least someone's doing some work."
Naomi rolled her eyes, "She doesn't know."
"Oh, well then luck," Alex said, "Just show her your climbing moves."
"Moves?" Naomi deadpanned, "I don't think you understand what climbing is…" She shook her head as if to focus "Oh and Sophia's invited herself…"
"HAHAHAAHA," Alex laughed, stopping to speak again only after she had regained her breath. "I swear you couldn't write this better…"
"Shut up."
"Well, lez be honest," Alex added, "If I had written this you'd have totally done the deed by now."
"Bye, Alex," Naomi grumbled into her phone.
"Moves," she heard Alex repeat as she closed her phone.
..
Naomi let out a breath she had been holding as she rounded into Effy and Sophia's room. She wouldn't admit it, but she had been somewhat avoiding Sophia. She just didn't know what to say, to be honest. As nervous as she was at the prospect of being in the same room with both Sophia and Emily, the excitement of potentially being able to spend time with Emily outside of class trumped.
Only Effy was in the room. "Am I the first one?" Naomi asked as she plopped down into the navy circle chair.
"Sort of," Effy said.
"What?"
"You're the only one," Effy stated, "So, yes you're the first, but you're also the last if you think about it."
"Why aren't the others coming?" Naomi felt herself deflate a bit, realizing she wasn't going to be seeing Emily.
"I told them when we were all meeting, then Sophia mumbled about something and pissed off somewhere, and Emily said something came up."
"What came up?" Naomi asked.
Effy lifted an eyebrow, "Something." She shrugged. "Didn't ask, not my business."
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Naomi walked out of her dorm, on route to Sarah's. It was Friday and they were going out, her and the "Fab Four" or so she'd had been informed. Shoulders hunched slightly, her hands firmly rooted in their rightful place in the pockets of her jeans she watched the ground as she walked, lost in thought. She almost didn't notice the person headed for the door she had just vacated.
"Oh," Naomi said surprised. "Hey."
"Hey," Emily returned stopping in front of the blonde.
"Happy Friday," Naomi offered.
"You too," Emily said, a smile cracking on her face. Naomi sometimes impressed herself, with the dorky shit she would say.
"I heard you bailed on climbing. You should have come," Naomi said, "It was well fun."
"Didn't want to intrude," Emily explained, "Didn't want it to be weird,"
"How'd you mean?"
Emily looked at her pointedly, "You know how."
Naomi squirmed a bit, Effy must have mentioned who else was going, "Right."
Emily shrugged. "Besides I picked up an extra shift at the call center."
"The call center?"
"Yeah, I work there a couple nights a week, ring people, ask them to donate to this dump. It's a bit shit really, but they pay me so…" she shrugged.
Naomi stored the new information in the back of her mind. "Right well, you'll have to come another time then."
"Well see," was all Emily said.
There was a pause in the conversation. Naomi dug her hands deeper into her pockets, rocking on the heels of her feet. Her mind yelled at her to think of something else to say as the seconds stretched out.
"You're in my mathematics course," Naomi blurted randomly, cringing slightly as she heard the words leave her mouth. "…again."
"Am I?" Emily asked, an amused look on her face.
Naomi nodded.
"And what, you were just planning on stalking me this semester rather than sitting with me?"
"What?" Naomi panicked slightly she didn't want Emily to think she was stalking her, because she wasn't. She definitely wasn't. "No—I…I just noticed the other day…in class." Naomi could feel her cheeks flush a bit, and not from the cold.
Emily had that smirk on her face. "That's cos I just switched in. I picked up an extra course," she explained, "so I had to swap my schedule round a bit."
"Oh, right," Naomi said, "cool."
A song Naomi didn't know began to play and Emily pulled her phone from her pocket. She looked down at the screen then back up at Naomi, almost regretfully. "I've got to take this," the redhead said, "But I'll see you in class, yeah?" She raised a questioning eyebrow at Naomi.
"Yeah," Naomi replied a smirk slowly edging its way across her face as Emily gave her one last look before disappearing into the building.
..
"What are you doing?" Naomi asked as she walked into Sarah and Katrina's room. Sarah and Brandt were midway through pulling Sarah's mattress off of her lofted bedframe. They dropped it onto the floor with a thud.
"Readying the fort," Sarah explained.
"Battening down the hatches," Brandt chipped in, plopping down next to Sarah on the mattress.
"Making their future drunk selves love them, that's what," Katrina explained.
"What?"
"Climbing up there after coming back drunk is a right pain in the arse," Sarah explained. "Coming home to your bed on the floor is actually the greatest thing ever."
"Right," Naomi said, unconvinced.
"Just crash here tonight, you'll see," Sarah laughed opening up the small fridge and tossing Naomi a beer.
"It's early, have you even had supper yet?" Naomi asked looking at the beer in her hand. "And my dorm is right next door."
"It's late somewhere," Sarah winked cracking open her own beer. "
"We're having supper now," Sean interrupted as he entered the room took a chug from Brandt's beer. "We're eating beer."
"And trust me," Sarah continued, "You come back here and see this on the floor," she said patting her mattress that she was currently sat on, "That dorm of yours will seem impossibly far." She laughed, cheers-ing Naomi with the nod of her head before she took a drink from her own can.
Naomi cracked hers open with a shrug, "Why the fuck not."