A Pocket Full of Posies (Book 1)

Chapter Seventeen

I've been so wrapped up in all this ghost drama that on the day of my first exam, I forget it's the day of my first exam. It's not until Tom asks me if he can borrow a pen for his own exam that I remember. He lost all of his over Christmas, apparently. Not quite sure how that happens, but I didn't dare question it because I'd only be bombarded with some weird, elaborate story.

He dyed his hair red over the holiday, which he explained to me was in honour of the festive season, despite the fact he did it about a week after Christmas. It's better than the badly bleached blonde it was before, I guess. Sort of. Everyone has moved back in now other than Carmen, and maybe Mason. He's not made an appearance, but he doesn't show his face during term time either. He could've been home all through the holidays, for all I know.

I don't even really think about the exam much while I'm taking it. It's for my hydraulics module, and thankfully, I find this crap quite easy. Annabel offers to cheat for me a few times throughout the hour and a half, and while I appreciate the gesture, I decline.

I got her to check through my notes, which contained the answer to a question I was stuck on in my Spanish GCSE exam once, and I've felt like a fraud ever since. I feel confident enough with how it went without Annabel's aid anyway. I don't think I've gotten a first or anything, but I can't see me having failed. I can't say I really care, to be perfectly honest. I've got a fair few distractions at the moment.

I go to the student bar at The Cavern after the exam, and order myself a whisky and coke. I've only been to this place three or four times, and I'm not really sure why. There's a really chilled atmosphere, and the booths they have here are the comfiest things I've ever planted my arse on. The music played is based on request too, and because it's pretty quiet here at the moment as it's still morning, I'm basically choosing every song. It smells slightly of syrup and stale beer mats, and the colour theme centres around a blinding hot pink and purple, but I guess it adds character to the place.

There should probably be some alarm bells ringing in my head over the fact I'm in a bar drinking alone at eleven in the morning, but hey, we all have our flaws. I promise Annabel I'm not getting drunk or anything, but based on the fact she's sitting opposite me with a face like thunder suggests she doesn't completely trust me.

It just feels like I've hit a brick wall, like I should be doing something about all of these weird occurrences, but what? It's not exactly something you can just Google. The only option I can think of is to return to the haunted manor and find that female spirit. She seemed to have a decent idea of how things work in the afterlife. I groan as I lower my head onto the sticky table, and become one with the peanut crumbs and beer stains.

"Exam went well then?"

A voice startles me, and when I lift my head back up to see Carmen standing over my booth, I start stuttering like a deranged broken record. I don't know if I'm only noticing this because I've not seen her for over three weeks, but she has a glow about her. Her hair is pulled up into some kind of ponytail or braid or something, but a strand has fallen out and is tucked messily behind her ear. There's a dimple in her cheek as she smirks at me. I forgot how much I fancied her. Well shit. Another thing to add to my current car crash of a life.

"If it's any consolation, the inevitability of my exam failure is driving me insane. Turns out putting up Christmas decorations and getting drunk on toffee cider most nights is far more fun than revising Portuguese grammar," Carmen says as she sits down opposite me.

"Sounds better than my holiday of not trying to murder Jamie in his sleep," I argue.

"Touché. I'm surprised you both made it to January alive, actually." She reaches over to my drink, then takes a sip, only for her face to contort into a look of pain. "Holy--You do realise it's not even midday yet, right?"