I may or may not update over the next couple of days but I will most definitely be back on the 2nd. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Love, IJKS xxx
Chapter Six
It was Valentine's Day and with it, had come Angelo's nineteenth birthday. Martha and Jack were out on a date, Leah had gone out with her fiancé, Vinnie, Miles was with his girlfriend, Shane had finally managed to ask Angel out and Belle had accepted Aden's request for a date. Shannon and Curtis were also off somewhere for a romantic getaway. This left Rachel, Joey, Brax, Nicole, Bianca, Hugo, Watson, Liam and Selena to celebrate with Angelo. Typically, Charlie had stayed in her room to study while the rest of the floor had gone out to enjoy themselves.
She heard them like a giggling herd of elephants, thundering down the corridor and towards the kitchen. Within minutes, music was blasting. Charlie groaned loudly and rested her head on her desk. She'd been desperately trying to complete an essay for class but it wasn't proving easy. Glancing at the clock, she realised that it was one in the morning. She'd worked through dinner and not taken a break since eight o'clock so she wondered if perhaps it was time to pack it in. There were three weeks to go until the deadline.
Standing up, Charlie stretched and began to close up her books for the night. Tomorrow was Friday and she was eager to get home and spend time with her daughter. She missed her terribly in the week and more than once had wondered if her father's idea of living apart was such a good idea after all. She lifted her pillow to get her pyjamas, catching sight of a photo of Ruby on her bedside table. Sinking onto the bed, she picked up the frame and gazed into the face of her little girl. She tried not to cry.
In the kitchen, Joey and her friends were distinctly inebriated. Joey's head swam but the night was still young. Out at a club, she'd managed to attract the attention of a hot woman and she'd brought her back home for the night. But both were eager to stay up and hang out with Joey's friends for a while before they retired to her room.
"Watson, you so should have gone after that girl," Joey said. "She had her eye on you all night."
Her friend sighed, fretting over a missed opportunity.
"She was probably looking at someone else," she said shyly. "I mean, I'm not much to look at."
"You're gorgeous," Hugo assured her, putting his arm around her shoulders. "If only you swung my way!"
Watson blushed further, making everyone else laugh.
"I'm not so good at the whole dating thing," she admitted. "In case that wasn't blindingly obvious by now."
"At least you had some interest," Angelo grumbled from the corner.
Brax laughed and patted him on the shoulder. He thought Angelo was a bit of a loser, but he was a nice enough guy. And he couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for him – not to end up with someone on his birthday, especially as he was born on 14th February.
"You'll find someone nice," Nicole said, interrupting herself with a yawn.
She was due to give birth in just over a month and she knew she probably shouldn't keep having late nights. Angelo smiled at her. Joey noticed a small spark between them. Opting not to comment, she noted it for future discussion.
Charlie paced her room. The music and conversation was too loud and she was struggling to sleep. She longed to be at home with her baby girl, far away from these loud, irritating students that she had no inclination to get to know. Frustrated, she stormed out of her room and towards the kitchen.
"Okay, we're going to head off," Joey decided, taking the hand of the date she thought was called Jamie.
"Have fun, kids," Brax smirked, as the two girls stood and headed towards the door.
Their escape was interrupted by Charlie, looking very unhappy.
"Do you know what time it is?" she snapped.
"Far too early for sleep," Brax replied.
Nicole yawned again. She wasn't Charlie's biggest fan but she couldn't help thinking she might have a point. Spontaneously, she moved to lean against Angelo who readily accepted her.
"Well, I've got lectures first thing so could you turn the music down?"
"Say please," Brax instructed.
"Just do it," Charlie snapped.
"Why the hell should we?"
"I'm staying out of this one," Joey declared, keeping hold of Jamie and sliding past Charlie and out of the room.
"Who was that?" Jamie asked curiously as they heading down the corridor to room ninety-five.
"Just our resident stick in the mud," Joey replied. "But I'm much more interested in you."
The music finally stopped at three in the morning. Lying unhappily in her bed, Charlie tried to sleep. She longed to be back at home with her family. At least it was peaceful there and those around her, understood her work ethos. Here, she didn't fit in at all and it made her sad. And even if she did have the desire to get to know the people in her corridor, she thought it was already too late. Closing her eyes, she tried to drift off, only to be immediately disturbed by a particularly distinct sound from the other side of the wall. She groaned loudly. She'd been meaning to move her bed for a while. Joey's night time activities were loud and long and Charlie had no inclination to listen to her. Rolling over, she thrust her head under her pillow, still longing for sleep.
Next time… Charlie joins in with Joey's birthday…