Monday comes around all too quickly and, after English, I meet the others for lunch in the heaving canteen. The room is thick, and the smell of cooked food permeates the air. I decide to grab a sandwich from the fridge and make my way to the tills to pay. As I patiently wait in the queue, a familiar voice greets me.

"Hey tiger" he says, casually, leaning in towards me. "I almost didn't recognise you - you look... different." His iridescent green eyes scan down my body, taking me in and I feel my stomach start to knot. My long hair is tied into a messy bun and I'm wearing a white t-shirt and black skinny jeans. With my standard winged liner, mascara and lip balm, it's a far cry from the effort I went to on Friday.

He's wearing another black hoody, but his face is newly shaven and his hair looks more tamed than before. We're holding the same prawn mayonnaise sandwich, which makes me giggle lightly.

"Ditto" I reply, and he half-laughs, low and slow at my remark. Retrieving the money from his jacket pocket, he also pulls out his lighter.

"Any chance I could steal another cigarette from you, please?" I ask awkwardly. He tuts but nods his head. "Sure. Let me eat this and I'll meet you in 15."

Surprised but excited by his suggestion to smoke together, I make my way back to the girls, and find I've completely lost my appetite. After 10 minutes, I make my excuses and head outside. Opening the doors, I catch him standing outside, headphones in and his bag slung over his shoulder.

"Am I a bad influence on you?" He shouts, oblivious to the other people surrounding us.

I blush as I walk over. "What do you mean?"

He pulls his headphones out and smiles. "The smoking?"

"Oh – no, been smoking on and off for a while..." I lie, and he smirks again. His cheeky demeanour is endearing, and I can't help but giggle a little again.

When we reach the smoking area at the edge of the campus, he stands only inches apart to offer me a cigarette. Every hair on my body rises at the close proximity to his.

"So, Holly... I haven't seen you around before..." He says, his eyes fixed on me.

My mouth immediately goes dry. "I've, erm... recently transferred from South Thames."

" Mmm... so you're new here." He replies, his sexy voice causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand.

"Well, I used to live here when I was a kid and just recently moved back."

He nods, bringing his lighter up to the cigarette pursed between my lips. His thumb grazes my cheek as I inhale the smoke, causing the butterflies inside me to go crazy.

We stand for a few moments together, silence filling the small space between us.

"What classes are you taking?" I ask, hopeful to continue the conversation.

"English and Business."

He brings his cigarette to his big, beautiful lips and I lick mine instinctively. Noticing my reaction, he grins and flicks it to the floor. "Catch you around' he drawls, slinging his bag onto his shoulder and walking away.

I spend the remainder of my cigarette thinking of Ben, which makes me giddy, weak, and nervous. It's a great deal of emotions for someone I hardly know, and I scold myself for my inability to control it. A few minutes later, I exit the smoking area and, head cloudy with nicotine and walk towards the Art block.

"Yo, Holly!" A deep voice calls and I turn to see Ben again.

He rubs the side of his hand across his chin and asks, "what are you up to right now?"

I stare at him confused for a second. "Erm... class?"

He laughs. "Fuck that. Wanna go somewhere?"

His question causes my heart to race once again and without thinking, I reply, "Ok, where?"

Walking towards me, he grins but doesn't answer my question.

"Cool - Follow me."

He leads me up the hill walking slightly in front but turns once or twice to share a cheeky smile. My heart races and I follow closely behind. Once out of the gates, he slows his pace, and we walk side by side.

"So, where are we going?"

He sweeps the messy curls off of his face with his hand. "You'll see."

In no time at all we arrive at a small, gated community garden near the high street. The day is crisp and sunny and as we sit on a bench, I let out a shiver.

"Want my scarf?" He asks, brandishing a well-worn sky blue and claret West Ham one from his bag.

"How chivalrous of you, but no, thanks... I'd rather freeze!" I say jokingly.

"How dare you! What's wrong with the irons?" He responds accusingly.

"Arsenal 'til I die..." I reply proudly.

"Ah... this relationship is doomed to fail." he jokes.

The silence lingers between us again and I can't help but try to fill it. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Depends on the question," he replies, pulling two cigarettes out of his packet. He passes one my way and raises the other to his mouth. Lighting it, I watch as his lips purse around the tip and he inhales deeply. I've never realised before how sexy smoking can be.

"So, why did you invite me here?" I ask.

He stares ahead for a few seconds and then shrugs. "Erm, didn't really think about it to be honest."

My heart sinks a little, though I'm not really sure what I expected his response to be. He pulls out his phone, fires off a quick text.

"As fun as this has been, I gotta shoot." He drops his cigarette to the floor and stands.

Walking away, he casually calls over his shoulder, "See ya."

Confused, I try to wrap my head around yet another strange encounter with Ben. Having missed a good chunk of Art and with no other classes left for the day, I opt for a slow walk home.

Later that day my phone rings. Leila.

"Hey, what happened to you today?"

"I had a headache, so I went home." I lie awkwardly, trying to keep yet another interaction with Ben to myself.

"Aww matey, sorry to hear that."

"It's cool - feeling much better now."

"So, how'd you feel about going on a double date? Mark said he'd bring one of his mates from the party. I promise it won't be awkward and it'd really take the pressure off."

"But you were getting on so well at the party?"

She sighs. "Yeah, I know, but it all feels a bit official..."

A double date sounds awful, but being a good friend and, in the hopes that Ben could be the friend in question, I do the honourable thing.

"Sure - happy to be your wing woman."

"Yay! Thank you - you're the best!"