"UP UP UP!" someone screeches, pounding on the heavy door. "Be in the common room at six!"
"Effie," Madge groans quietly in the bed beside me, sitting up slowly.
"It's literally five-thirty in the morning," I whined, looking at my alarm clock.
"Well, come on," Madge says, already beside my bed holding her hand out. "You heard the woman. It's a big big day. They're announcing the final events."
I groan and let Madge drag me out of the comfiest bed on the planet. She slips into the bathroom to shower, the outfit she left out last night draped over her arm. I grab the hairbrush off my dresser and run it through my hair, which is pretty straight this morning. When Madge is done showering, I don't have time, which I'm honestly grateful for. Besides, I showered when we got back to the hotel last night, and 5:50am is too early for a shower. I'm not really in the mood to get dressed yet either, even though Madge is looking super cute in her daisy-printed skinny jeans and soft white sweater, so I wash my face and throw an orange hoodie over the cropped tank top I slept in, staying in my black and orange checkered pajama pants.
I don't even put shoes on for the walk to the common room - it's just down the hall - and I'm relieved to see that there are people looking a lot worse than me when we get there.
"You look like a jack-o-lantern," Cato murmurs as I sit next to him on the floor beside one of the couches. "Even your socks are orange."
"Your shirt is on backwards, so I wouldn't be one to talk."
"Oh my god, is it really?" he asks, looking down at his grey t-shirt, horrified.
"I'm just messing with you, dummy," I tell him, shoving his chest gently. He rolls his eyes and smiles at me.
"How did you sleep?" he asks, leaning back against the side of the couch. He looks relaxed, and so comfortable to be sitting here with me, an amused half-smile on his face. I duck my head so he can't see me smiling.
"Not enough. You?"
"Me too," he laughs. "Er, do you want to grab some breakfast with me down the street after this? There's this nice little cafe and they serve the best clotted cream in the city."
"Have you really tried all the clotted cream in the city or are you just guessing?" I tease, and he pushes my shoulder and groans.
"I looked it up, you nerd," he says, rolling his eyes, but he's grinning. "Are you coming or not?"
"I have brunch plans with FInch and Delly," I tell him. "Sorry."
"Aw, man."
"We'll go for breakfast when we're back in Vancouver," I promise.
Effie's shrill voice cuts through whatever Cato was about to say. "We've got a big big day ahead of us!" she shrieks. "Everybody listen!"
I sigh and turn to face her. I feel Cato scoot a bit closer to me and he murmurs in my ear, "Here we go again." I stifle and try to pay attention.
"Now, I'm sure you're all curious as to what our final activities are," she starts. "As promised, we're finishing off our trip with three big activities, spaced out through the day so, if you choose, you may attend all of them. I'm going to keep this brief. If you have questions, you may consult either myself, Lyme of Paylor afterwards.
"Our first big activity is a tour and tea in beautiful and historic Bath. The bus for Bath leaves at seven-thirty, but you are expected to be down in the lobby by seven - "
"Jeez, is she gonna give anyone time to shower and get ready?" Cato whispers in my ear, sending a shiver down my arms.
"You just had the best opportunity to make a pun about getting ready and you passed it up," I sigh, shaking my head.
