"It's a freaking 'eart. It's nofin' ta write 'ome about."

"Eloquent as ever."

"Got a problem wiv 'ow I speak? Then don't talk ta me." Enoch didn't so much as look up from the detailed analysis he was writing up on his laptop when a pile of textbooks landed with a thud on the library table across from him. "And ya know ya meant ta be quiet in libraries, right?"

"I just wanted to see how you're going with your part, geez. Don't need to punch a hole through me." Sam grumbled and drew out the chair opposite him much to Enoch's annoyance. He hated joint assignments. It comprised his likelihood of getting the top grade in the class, however good his partners might think they were.

"If only." His eyes flew up to glare at her over the top of the screen. Just because they were working on the same assignment didn't mean they had to communicate. Well...whatever.

"I hope this isn't how you treat your friends." She arched a mousey brown eyebrow and Enoch rolled his eyes.

"It is."

"Lucky them."

"Ya know, I only came 'ere on a Saturday ta 'ave some peace ta work in."

Sam laughed, quietly enough not to cause any shushing fingers and rolled her eyes before glaring at Enoch will all the ferocity he gave off himself. "No. You came here today because that's what we, as a group decided to do to get this done."

For a second Enoch was so surprised he forgot to look grumpy. But only for a second. Had they? He didn't remember that conversation at all. Either she was making it up or he hadn't been listening. The latter was much more likely.

Sam beat him to it.

"Yeah. Didn't think you were listening. Well that backfired didn't it, Dick Van Dyke?"

"...what did you just call me?"

"Dick Van Dyke? Mary Poppins?"

"I know who he is."

"Because you're Cockney...oh lord it's not funny when you have to explain it."

"Wasn' funny before. 'ow 'bout ya just leave my part ta me? I ain't interrupting you am I?"

Sam scoffed and there was another soft thud as she opened a textbook and pulled out her notepad.

Leave. Leave. Go away. Now would be good. Was all that ran through Enoch's mind. He liked to work alone. Ironically given the sheer hell it had been even a year ago, studying kept his mind occupied now. He enjoyed going to these classes and excelling in them. He was doing something he wanted for once.

Then the very last thing that he'd been expecting to happen, that very much dampened his argument about solitude and quiet, humiliatingly happened.

Something started to ring.

It definitely wasn't his phone, he'd had the foresight to silence that when he didn't want to be disturbed at it was by his elbow anyway, easily visible.

It was the computer. Definitely. Evidently he'd left his volume way up and now Skype, of all bloody things, was ringing. He never used it. It had taken Olive months to make him download it at all and even then, they hadn't ever used it since. She had to pick right now to call him? Birthday or not she could have texted him first.

Colour flooded his face unbidden and he cursed under his breath as he rejected the call, slammed his laptop closed and glared at the few keen weekend studiers who were staring curiously at him, including, to Enoch's chagrin, Sam.

"You know you're meant to be quiet in libraries, right?" She mocked and he just scowled at her.

Without another word, he stuffed his phone back into his pocket, piled everything else up and left just as his phone vibrated in his pocket.

Damnit Olive.

Bad time?

He waited until he was outside in one of the courtyards and piled his stuff up on a bench seat partially covered in pigeon droppings to respond to her.

It was.

There was a soft whoop of a sending message and just a moment later three dots that meant the other person was writing something. Olive didn't waste any time.

Does that mean it isn't anymore?

Enoch scoffed aloud and lifted his head to scan the surroundings. Few other people were mad enough to be outside in the cold of late January. Maybe he could make an exception for Olive's birthday. He left her waiting for a full two minutes before he replied and reluctantly drew his laptop back into his lap.

Fine.

As an afterthought he fumbled around in the depths of his jacket pocket, which wasn't exactly far, for his headphones that had been forgotten there for about a week and plugged them in just a minute before the minimised Skype window began to warble and ring again.

He sucked in a breath and hit the green pick up button.

"Ya know, that's what phones are for."

A slightly pixelated, live image filled his screen which quickly righted itself into an impressively clear Olive. That was another thing to be said of university. The WiFi.
He couldn't help smiling a little though when he saw her, and the way her eyes obviously lit up when he spoke first. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" might be a load of stupidly cliché rubbish but it definitely made him appreciate how pretty Olive was when he did see her.

"I know...but if we hadn't done it soon, you never would have."

"I 'ope ya talkin' 'bout Skyping."

Just like that the happy smile turned into a good natured glare through the camera at him and Enoch's own little smile turned into a smirk equally as quickly.
"At least warn me next time ya 'bout ta make my computer go nuts in a library."

"In wh-Enoch, are you at the college? You don't have Saturday classes."

"Am I not allowed ta be?" He drawled dryly. He would leave off the part that, embarrassing though it had been, at least it gave him an excuse to get away from people who didn't stop talking and he could only but heads with. "Obviously, yeah, I am."

"Oops. Sorry..."

"Whatever. It 'appened now." He snapped his eyes away from where they had drifted off to the side. "... 'appy birthday."

Olive's smile was back in a flash. "Well I thought that was a good enough excuse to get away with making you try Skype for once..."

"Once a year? Deal."

"I didn't say that. I wish you could have come up. That would have been much better."

"Well can't always get what ya want. Yeh'll 'ave ta wait for ya present if ya want it in person."

Olive was the only person for whom Enoch bothered with getting presents for, and that was only a recent thing. What he neglected to mention was the fact he might have slightly forgotten until it was too close to the day and still hadn't worked out what the hell to give her. This way it bought him more time to not look like too much of a forgetful boyfriend.

"You know very well I never mind that." Olive smiled fondly and Enoch rolled his eyes, which, to his disappointment, only made her smile more.

Unsurprisingly, she took it upon herself to start the conversations. He never launched into questions, so someone had to in order to save them both just staring awkwardly at the screen thinking of something to say. This was why he didn't like the idea. At least without a camera you couldn't see each other sitting in silence and in person it was just much less awkward actually being with each other.

"Why are you at your school on a weekend?"

"Tryin' ta get stuff done in quiet. Didn't exactly last much longer than a hour-do I bloody look like Dick Van Dyke ta you?"

Olive had just opened her mouth to say something and then closed it again, clearly surprised.

"...Come again?"

"Yeah, that's what I figured."

"No...hang on, who called you that?"

"Don't matter. 'pparently 'ow I talk is enough. I'd sooner die than sing and dance-what are ya laughin' at?"

Olive had burst into giggles, much to Enoch's distaste. That was hardly appropriate. "You're imaginin' it..."

"I'm sorry..." But she really wasn't at all sorry, clearly. "...that's exactly what I'm doing. I think you'd look adorable in one of those caps and skipping around."

"I'll let ya call me a lot'a fings but not adorable. I'll 'ang up..."

"Grump."

"Tease."

"I should be allowed to on my birthday."

"Got a lot less impact through technology-" Enoch cut himself off and frowned slightly as something new caught his eye when Olive lifted her hand to brush her hair out of her face. There was something on her wrist. "What's that?"

She looked over her shoulder at the back of the couch she was sitting on. "What's what?"

"That. On your wrist. I ain't seen that before."

"Oh, it's just a birthday present. Isn't it nice?"
Actually it was relatively plain as best he could see, just a black band with something silver glinting on it. Olive held it up to the camera, eclipsing everything else behind her hand and as it focused, the charm revealed itself to be an open book.

"It's okay...'oo gave ya that? Millard? Looks like 'im."

Something tweaked at the suspicious part of his brain. He sincerely hoped it had been Millard, or even her parents, or almost anyone really. But even before Olive confirmed it, part of Enoch knew the answer already.

"No. Actually Nathan did."

Enoch's expression darkened in moments. The no good, son of-

"He what?"

Olive sighed and dropped her hand to look at him imploringly.
"Enoch, please don't overreact again...he's my friend and that's what friends do."

Perhaps Enoch could be unfair in who he decided he absolutely despised. Sometimes it was their face, sometimes it was their personality and sometimes it was because they were much too close to his girl. But the latter, he definitely didn't think was unfair.

It might have been almost six months since Olive had moved but Enoch's overzealous need to make sure her roommate knew Olive was not available only grew the more he visited. To be fair, that was only three times so far but...beside the point. Maybe Olive was about the only person who he'd ever had more than a purely physical attraction to but he liked to think he knew what it looked like.

"Guys don't get girls jewellery if they ain't interested." He snapped harshly and then pursed his lips. " I 'aven't even given ya jewellery, he's tryin'a show me up."

"...You got all that from a ten pound bracelet with a charm on it? I couldn't exactly not take a birthday present, that's so rude."

"I want ya ta 'ave an 'appy birthday, sure. But I don't want some guy finkin' 'e can make a move just 'cause I ain't around for it."

"No one's making moves, Enoch O'Connor. How long will it take for you to realise that?"

Enoch's eyebrows shot up. She only used his last name when she was either blatantly flirting when they were alone, or she thought he was being ridiculous. He was pretty sure it wasn't the former this time.

"Until 'e either comes out of some closet, or gets a girlfriend. Or is just...outta the 'ouse. I fink I know better than you what goes through a guy's mind. Yeah."

Olive sighed and then she was looking at him with that patient smile and shaking her head just the tiniest bit like she knew something that he didn't.

"In six months has he ever shown the slightest attempt to steal me? Which by the way, you know perfectly well wouldn't ever work."

"...Uh, ye-"

"A valid attempt, Enoch. No, he hasn't and I'm pretty sure that, under that scowling, but very good looking face you actually agree with me."

"Was that s'posed ta reassure me?"

"Well I'm glad you love me that much."

"Obviously, yeah."

Olive's smile was back in full force at his automatic response and Enoch just stopped himself from rolling his eyes. He didn't usually say 'I love you' outside of much more intimate settings, he wasn't at all comfortable expressing feelings. Saying 'obviously' was the closest he'd come to it.

But that had changed slightly. He wasn't as guarded anymore, and it was almost a subconscious thing that he didn't even realise he was doing when he lowered the walls a little more. Since the holidays, though he didn't mention it, it really did feel like a burden had lightened considerably, like a load was being shared.
Someone knew. Someone he trusted and it helped more than Enoch ever imagined it could have. He couldn't have that taken away from him now, couldn't have had it before for whatever primal, possessive reason. If anything he was more protective of that relationship in the last month. Like it had gotten impossibly more precious somehow.
Come hell or high water there was no damn way he was sitting there and trusting that someone wasn't going to try and take her away. So yes, he was possessive and yes, he was suspicious of some random guy he didn't know from Adam, but damn it Olive was a prize to be protective of.

He loved her and he loved her fiercely, however bad he might be at showing it.

"I'm comin' up next weekend. Ya not too busy then are ya?"

Olive's whole face lit up and then dimmed suddenly in a matter for a few seconds.
"I do have things due..."

"So do I."

"But if you don't mind if I spend a lot of the weekend studying...I mean, it's not something I can really put on hold."

"I don't give a damn, do what ya want. I wanna see ya."

The ginger haired girl beamed, and for a moment the whole business of flatmates and birthday presents, platonic or otherwise, was forgotten.
"I really want to see you too."