Free Not That Easy by Radhika Sanghani Page B

softly.
    â€œThat’s fucking ridiculous,” gasped Emma. She was rolling on my bed with Will, still snorting with laughter. “It reminds me of the time you got with the only emo in Mahiki.”
    â€œEmma, you weren’t even there that night,” I snapped.
    â€œAnd then you slipped on your friend’s come in your bath,” she gasped.
    Will sat up straight. “Come . . . or conditioner?” he asked, and then collapsed with laughter again.
    I rolled my eyes at them. “Guys, get over it. We’ve all had bad dates.”
    â€œUh yeah, but I’ve never abandoned mine after they bled on me,” cried Will. “Mainly because they’ve never bled on me.”
    â€œEWWW the blood,” shrieked Emma as she remembered it was on her hands. “I’m covered in a strange man’s blood. OHMIGOD AIDS!!”
    â€œFuck,” I cried in panic. “You don’t think . . . ?”
    Will groaned loudly. “You’re both so fucking stupid sometimes,” he said. “AIDS is a severe form of HIV and you’re not going to get it from his nosebleed unless it’s gone into an open wound on your face. Do you have a cut on your face, Ellie?”
    I raced over to my full-length mirror and examined my face. “Okay, no,” I admitted.
    â€œThen, my darling, you are AIDS free,” he said. “Congratulations.”
    I hobbled downstairs to the kitchen to find breakfast and stop my hangover. My head was banging and I needed carbs to soak up the alcohol. But all I had was Sainsbury’s own brand Crunchy Nut Cornflakes.
    Forlornly, I tipped the packet into a bowl and reached for the milk. I was pouring it in when I realized there were small black lumps floating in my bowl. What the fuck were they?! I grabbed a spoon and lifted a few out to examine them closely. They looked like rabbit poos, only smaller.
    Then I froze. There were sounds coming from my cornflakes carton. I took a deep breath and moved towards it. I held on to the sideboard to steady myself and hesitantly peered inside. There was a tiny gray lump moving in my cornflakes. I opened my mouth and screamed.
    Will walked into the kitchen. “Seen a mouse?” he asked nonchalantly, as he pushed past my trembling body to get to his cupboard.
    â€œIT’S IN MY CORNFLAKES!” I shrieked.
    â€œYeah, there’s a few in here,” he said. “I saw a bunch running out of the bin bags last week.”
    I stared at him aghast. “Are you fucking kidding me? You’veseen mice in here, and you didn’t think to tell anyone?! What’s wrong with you, Will? We need to buy traps and . . . and poison.”
    â€œEllie,” he said, “we live in London. Obviously we’re going to have mice. Besides we have a four-bed in Haggerston with a living room and only pay £550 each. We’re lucky we just have mice.”
    â€œAs opposed to?” I asked. “Oh fuck, do you mean RATS?”
    â€œCalm down,” he sighed. “You can’t have mice and rats at the same time.”
    â€œThey’re . . . mutually exclusive?”
    â€œExactly,” he said. “Anyway, are you going to eat those cornflakes? I’m starving.”
    â€œThere is a mouse in the box,” I said slowly. “Do you not get this?”
    â€œWhatever.” He shrugged. “I’ll just take the mouse out.”
    I stared at him in incomprehension and backed out of the kitchen quickly, straight up the stairs to Emma’s room.
    â€œEm,” I cried, as I pushed open her door. “There’s loads of mice and Will doesn’t care. What do we do?”
    â€œUgh, I know,” she said, as she paused the program she was watching on her laptop. “I’ve just been getting Serge to bring me food or staying at his more.”
    â€œRight, well, some of us don’t have a boyfriend to rely on,