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OLIVER FLETCHER

PAST
September 2018

Moving to University was a terrifying experience but I was excited for the independence and time away from homelife. But meeting new people was always a struggle for me, hating the idea of being alone on my first night in halls.

I wanted to be going to the bars, clubs and getting drunk. Not wanting to miss out on university traditions, this was the time for me to thrive. No one here knew me, I could be anyone that I wanted.

Sure I was shy and quiet, kept to myself. But now was the time to mature and grab life by its horns and jump straight in. I never want to regret something because I let my anxiety takeover.

When my mum left me in my prison-like accommodation, I knew it was time to mingle amongst the other students in our block. Pushing open the communal kitchen door and watching as a girl with small rimmed glasses and short blonde hair looks up at me.

"Hey," she grins.

"Hi," I tell her as I let the door shut behind me, taking slow and steady steps towards the table that she was currently sat at.

"I'm Ruby," she says warmly.

"Oli," I smile towards her and sit down opposite her.

"Are you nervous?" She questions as she pushes her glasses further up her nose.

My lips purse as I nod. "Is it obvious?"

Ruby stretches out a grin towards me. "Don't worry, I am too. It's a new experience for all of us, of course it's going to be a little daunting."

I nod my head towards her. "Agreed," I breathe out. "What's your course?"

"Fashion textiles," she nods. "What about you?"

"Fine art but specialising in painting," I say as I clutch my fingers around the edge of my arms.

"That's cool," she tells me. "There is meant to be a meeting with our RA in a bit, hopefully they can share with us the best places to go on freshers night."

The thought of a freshers night somewhat made me cringe, but that's because I knew I'd be severely out of my depth.

"Yeah," I say to her. "I definitely want to go out on the first night."

"Amazing," Ruby grins back at me brightly. "Let's stick together."

Just as I open my mouth to speak, a few other people emerge from the dorms and enter into the kitchen. We say hello and exchange names but none of them seemed nearly as interested in going out like Ruby and I did.

Later, Peter, our RA shows up to explain the activities and things going on on campus today. It didn't take long for him to get through what he needed to say and before he got the chance to leave, Ruby catches his arm.

He turns back to her and asks if something is wrong. "Oli and I are planning on going out tonight and we were wondering where the best places are to go, to meet other students." She says enthusiastically.

Peter smiles down to her. "A group of us are meeting outside at 7PM and going to Bailey's Lounge. You guys are more than welcome to come, more the merrier."

Ruby claps her hands together excitedly. "Great, see you then."

Peter nods towards us before leaving the kitchen, Ruby then turns to me suddenly. A look of relief covering her face. "Thank God," she sighs out. "I was worried we wouldn't know what was going on."

"Do you want to go down to campus before and see what's going on?" I suggest, a glimmer of confidence in my voice.

"Yeah," she nods. "Sure."

Ruby and I spent the afternoon together, getting to know each other and talking about our worries. I already felt comfortable around her which I was grateful for, I struggle to bond with people sometimes but Ruby made it feel so easy.

By the time it was seven, Ruby and I were outside waiting ten minutes early. Ruby was paranoid they would leave without us if we were late and I agreed, so when a flock of people began to build up in front of our accommodation I relaxed.

Peter led the group down to Bailey's Lounge which wasn't too far away, Ruby grabbed the attention of some other freshers and I politely listened to their conversation. Lots of people made me feel overwhelmed, so I preferred to stay quiet and listen.

Bailey's Lounge was busy but we managed to get a table near the bar, Ruby pulls me down onto a chair beside her and Peter joins us.

They all order in beer except I didn't like beer, so I had to pretend. Having one glance over at the bar and looking at the queue, maybe later when it dies down and I have to push past less people.

Peter and Ruby are indulged into a deep conversation, trying to talk loudly over the noise of the bar. I sat quietly, sipping on my beer and trying not to gag at the taste.

"So what's some advice you'd give to first years?" Ruby asks as I switch on into their conversation.

"Well all I can say is have fun, make sure you have your fair share of messy nights but keep your attendance and grades up. First year doesn't count towards your grade but doesn't mean that it's not important. Make friends but also attend classes." He tells her before taking a sip of his cup.

"What year are you in?" I ask as Peter turns to me.

"Third year," he tells me. "But I still like to go out and enjoy myself."

I nod back at him as Ruby is mesmerised by him. "Do you know most people here?" She asks.

Peter takes a moment to look around and nods. "Yeah mostly, this is a proper student bar."

"Who is that?" Ruby says suddenly, looking across the room.

All of our eyes turn to who she was talking about, realising that she was specifically talking about the guy with a black t-shirt clung to his body, arms filled out to perfection, random doodles of tattoos across his arms, silver rings on his fingers.

He stood laughing with two of his friends, swishing away his dark brown hair from his eyes.

Even for a moment I was speechless.

"That's Max Costello," Peter says as he turns back to Ruby. "He's a third year."

"Wow," she breathes out.

Peter snorts quietly and sips on his beer. "He gets that a lot, all the girls are obsessed with him. He's also super talented, his degree is in illustrations. Explains the random tattoos."

My eyes remove themselves from Peter and look back to Max, still laughing and talking with his friends. Waltzing my eyes from his face to his arms, glancing over every one of his tattoos that were scattered across his skin. To his jeans that were clung to his body, even my core tightened at the sight of him.

Dragging my eyes back up to his, not expecting his eyes to already be laid on mine. I drop my pint glass down onto the table suddenly, desperately trying to look elsewhere.

Peter and Ruby recoil from the large noise, some of the liquid hitting the table. "Sorry," I mumble as I grab a napkin to wipe up the mess.

"You okay?" Ruby questions with a strange look.

I nod at her and wipe my damp hands down onto my trousers. "Yeah my hand slipped," I rush out suddenly.

My eyes focus down onto the table as Ruby and Peter continue to talk, too afraid to look up in case I caught eyes with him again.

Peter grabs onto my shoulder and I look up at him. "Your turn to get in the drinks next," he tells me and I hesitantly nod towards him.

"Okay," I say as I shakily remove myself from the stool.

Sliding myself through the sea of people, attempting to reach the bar and steering away from the large crowds. As I reach the bar, the bartender approaches me almost instantly. He takes my order and then asks for my ID.

Digging through my pockets to find my drivers licence and handing it over to him, he takes one glance at it and holds it out for me to take.

Before I can pinch it between my fingers it's snatched from beside me, whipping my head in the direction of the thief.

Almost stumbling when Max stood directly next to me with a firm smile on his face, his eyes roaming over my licence. His dark eyes snap to mine as he leans down onto the counter beside me.

"Oliver, huh?" He says with a smirk.

My hands latch onto the piece of plastic and draw it back into my body. "Yup," I say shortly. "That's me."

"Fresher?" He questions, his dark, thick eyebrow raising towards me.

"No," I say bluntly.

"Liar," he responds.

My eyes flick between his, the bartender placing my drinks down onto the counter in front of me.

"How would you know that I'm lying?" I tilt my head, an ounce of courage piling up on my back.

"Because I would have noticed you before," he states simply, folding his arms across his chest.

Narrowing my eyes towards him. Unsure what kind of game he was playing, or if this was pick on the poor fresher and embarrass the hell out of them in front of a bunch of other students.

"Nice try," I spur out before grabbing my drinks and turning my back to him sharply.

By the time I reach the table, Ruby and Peter pull back from a cosy conversation. Relieved that they hadn't seen Max trying to talk to me at the bar because I did not want a million questions.

Not realising how rapidly my heart had started beating, even being in the presence of him made me feel weak at the knees. But I knew better, this must have been some kind of prank or game between him and his friends.

No hot guy just strolls up to me at a bar. Never.

PRESENT
January 2021

"You going to the studio today?" Jamie, my roommate, pokes his head around the corner of my room.

I glance away from the mirror and look up to him, his blonde hair pulled up into a mini bun on top of his head. "Yeah in a bit," I nod to him.

"Okay cool," he runs his hand down the edge of the door hinge. "Are you going out with Logan later?"

My lips purse as I nod. "Yeah, he wants to take me out on a date but I'm not really sure if I'm feeling it."

"Why?" He questions.

My shoulders shrug towards him. "I'm not sure if we actually have that much in common, he's a super nice guy but I think he's a bit too nice."

Jamie rolls his eyes towards me. "Don't give me that bad boy bullshit, you want someone to treat you nice and Logan seems like he treats you well."

"I can't help it if the spark isn't there," I admit as I adjust my watch. "I'm going to give it one last go and if things aren't working then I'll tell Logan I don't want to see him anymore."

"Okay," Jamie nods once as he pushes up from the door. "Well I'm going to work, text me later and let me know your plans?"

I hum towards him. "Yeah sure," I smile. "See you later Jamie."

"Bye," he waves once before shutting my door behind him.

My phone buzzes in my hand and my eyes fixate on the notification, from Logan.

Can't wait to see you later x

The message was cute but internally I cringed, I already knew that I didn't like Logan like that but I enjoyed his company. Feeling guilty that I might have let this drag on for far too long, after tonight I would have to tell him that this wasn't working out between us.

No matter how many guys I tried to date, no one compared to him.

Groaning to myself as I try to dismember any thoughts or feelings towards him right now. No matter how hard I try, he always comes floating back into my mind without warning, without permission. Yet here I was, thinking about how I am never going to find someone like him.

. . .

Chapters 2-5 are on Patreon now, link in bio or link is www.Patreon.com/dreammcatcher

Hello my loves!!

What did you think of the first chapter?

I'm splitting each chapter between past and present, might be a little confusing at the start but once we get into the story it'll be easier to understand!

I think about this story all the time and honestly I love it so much, think it might be my new fav!!!

See you guys next Tuesday, love Sav x

Insta: SavRose.x
Patreon: dreammcatcher