Night School

She gathered her papers and pens for the day and put them into the dark blue tote bag she’d found in the wardrobe. Swinging it over her shoulder, she headed downstairs at seven o’clock on the dot, well ahead of the seven-thirty breakfast deadline.

When she walked in the dining room door she paused for a moment – it had again transformed itself. Huge windows along one wall let in sunlight, diffused through white blinds. Gone were the twinkling candles and sparkling glasses. Most of the tables were empty and topped only with plain white tablecloths. Food was piled on buffet tables: ten kinds of cereal, a steaming cauldron of porridge and stacks of bread ready for toasting. Heated silver serving platters held eggs, bacon and sausages.

Smelling the food, she discovered she was starving again. Piling her plate with toast, cheese and scrambled eggs, she poured herself a glass of apple juice before claiming a seat at an empty table. She didn’t recognise anybody in the room, which was, in its own way, nice. She smeared butter and blackcurrant jam on her toast and took a huge bite.

‘Is this seat taken?’

Trying not to chew with her mouth open, Allie turned to see Sylvain standing beside her. She shook her head mutely, and struggled to swallow gracefully but failed, wincing as the food went down. For the first time she thought a smile reached his extraordinary eyes.

‘No … I mean, you can sit here. Please. Do …’

Sitting down beside her without a hint of awkwardness, he took a bite of bacon. ‘How did you find your first night? I looked for you in the common room but I couldn’t find you.’

Her heart jumped and she looked determinedly at her cheese so that he wouldn’t see how pleased she was. ‘I had a lot to read last night. I thought I’d better learn as much as I could before today to, you know, get ready. Big day and all that.’

He nodded and took a reasonably sized bite of toast. ‘I remember that from my first day. They seem to want you to learn everything about Cimmeria all at once. I think the information they give you is more than …’ Adorably he seemed to struggle to think of the English words he was looking for ‘… the school in size, if that makes sense?’

Charmed, she couldn’t help but smile. ‘I know exactly what you mean. It’s disproportionate.’

‘Yes. Disproportionate.’ He smiled back at her and Allie’s heart jumped again.

Stop that, she told herself firmly. He’s just being polite.

They ate in companionable silence for a while.

‘So,’ she said after a while, ‘does everybody hang out in the common room a lot? It looks OK.’

Great small talk, Allie. Really smooth.

He didn’t seem to notice as he sipped from a cup of milky coffee. ‘The common room and the library are where people are most evenings. In the summer when it’s warm many of us choose to be outside, though. I was outside last night, playing night croquet. That is why I was looking for you. I thought you might want to join us.’

Allie’s fork stopped halfway to her mouth.

‘You were playing croquet at night? In the dark?’

‘It’s more fun that way. You know, I’ve found that many games are more exotic if played at night.’ His eyes held hers for just a second too long.

And just like that Allie lost her appetite. She tore her eyes away from his, and her gaze skittered around the room.

Chair, table, girl-with-ponytail, window, chair again …

She felt the warmth rise in her cheeks. When she glanced back at him a slight smile played at the edge of his lips as he crumbled a corner of toast between long fingers, watching her face.

He’s flirting with me. Definitely.

‘Rounders, for example,’ he continued thoughtfully. ‘And football without lights, although that can be a bit … rough.’

He balanced a piece of bacon on his fingertips while he considered the possibilities. ‘Tennis with fluorescent rackets on a moonless night is incredible. I think you’d love it. I promise to find you the next time we play – wherever you are.’

She watched as if hypnotised while he took a bite.

‘Allie. How nice to see you again.’ Katie pulled out a chair across the table, and sat down. Her plate was intricately decorated with slices of fruit. ‘And Sylvain. What a surprise.’

Her long, curly red hair contrasted brilliantly with her milky, translucent skin. In the soft light, she seemed illuminated. She was surrounded by a small group of perfectly styled girls who watched Allie with amusement.

Sylvain looked at her icily. ‘I was just leaving, actually.’

He turned back to Allie and held her gaze. ‘We have English together, I believe. It’s Robert Browning this week, in case you want to read before class. See you then.’