rather than lounging around in bed half the
day,” I pointed out to him.
“Just chill,
Liam. It’s all under control. Once I've had a shower and something
to eat, I’ll be studying hard all afternoon.”
“Glad to hear
it.” I left him to it, and climbed the second narrow set of
stairs.
“Oh, mind your
head,” he called out, just as I cracked it against the low sloping
ceiling at the entrance to the attic room. I cursed loudly as I
rubbed my head.
As I entered,
Seraphina was standing back looking at a whole series of boards,
obviously trying to decide how best to display them. I glanced
around the oddly shaped room. It was crammed full of art work of
all sorts, everywhere I looked – on the small wonky desk, the bed,
the floor, propped up against the sloping walls – everywhere.
“Christ, how
the hell do you work in such a disorganised mess?” I said,
appalled. I hate clutter; I have to have clear work surfaces.
“It’s not
cluttered. It’s all totally organised, I know exactly where
everything is. I need to have it all out on show, to visualize and
compare. It’s the way I work. You can't tidy everything away out of
sight all the time if you want to be creative,” she told me as she
rearranged some things. “Why don’t you take a seat before you hit
your head again, Mr. Starr,” she suggested helpfully, as she
pointed to the chair she’d placed in the middle of the room, the
only place where the ceiling was normal height.
I sat down on
the rather wobbly chair, and looked around. I noticed a clothes
airer in the corner that had an assortment of her washing on it,
but as it already felt cold and damp in her room due to the
unseasonably chilly spring weather, I couldn’t see how it was ever
going to dry properly. I certainly didn't feel like taking my coat
off.
“It’s bloody
freezing in here. I’ll just get Jamie to put the heating on,” I
said as I made to stand up.
“Oh I think
you’ll find it’s already on. It usually is if Jamie’s in. It’s only
the radiator in here that doesn’t work properly.” she muttered
distractedly, as she sorted through some large folders to retrieve
yet more sheets of art work.
Then I
remembered. Months ago, Jamie had told me about the problem with
the radiator in this attic room, but I’d refused to pay for any
repairs, telling him it was his responsibility. Clearly my brother
had not managed to get it sorted yet. I glanced at the window, and
saw a piece of cardboard clumsily taped across a hole in it, but I
could still feel a cold draught blowing in through it. On her desk,
there was a thick woolly scarf, a body warmer, a hot water bottle
and some fingerless gloves. Apparently she just wrapped herself up
and carried on working that way. Shit. She wasn’t even complaining
either.
“Surely there
must be a heater you can borrow to warm it up in here?” I
suggested. “And why don't you use the tumble dryer for those wet
clothes instead of making it even damper in your room?”
She looked up,
giving me a puzzled look.
“What for?
Heaters and dryers use a lot of electricity. It’s fine. I’m not
bothered – I'm used to it. Right, I think I’m all set now. Shall I
make a start?”
“Please
do.”
“Do you want
me to run through all the options I considered, or just the ones
that I personally think work the best?”
“Seeing as I'm
here, I think I might as well have the full presentation, don’t
you, Miss Jones?”
Not having the
least clue about what she’d come up with, I wasn’t sure that her
idea of what would work best was going to come close to anything
I’d be prepared to accept, so I thought I might as well see
everything.
“As you wish.
I just thought you might prefer the abridged version, as I
appreciate that you’re a very busy man. But I’ll take you through
the whole process if that’s what you want. So, initially, I came up
with nine options,” she began.
“Nine! My team
could only come up with three.”
“Oh, I
day,” I pointed out to him.
“Just chill,
Liam. It’s all under control. Once I've had a shower and something
to eat, I’ll be studying hard all afternoon.”
“Glad to hear
it.” I left him to it, and climbed the second narrow set of
stairs.
“Oh, mind your
head,” he called out, just as I cracked it against the low sloping
ceiling at the entrance to the attic room. I cursed loudly as I
rubbed my head.
As I entered,
Seraphina was standing back looking at a whole series of boards,
obviously trying to decide how best to display them. I glanced
around the oddly shaped room. It was crammed full of art work of
all sorts, everywhere I looked – on the small wonky desk, the bed,
the floor, propped up against the sloping walls – everywhere.
“Christ, how
the hell do you work in such a disorganised mess?” I said,
appalled. I hate clutter; I have to have clear work surfaces.
“It’s not
cluttered. It’s all totally organised, I know exactly where
everything is. I need to have it all out on show, to visualize and
compare. It’s the way I work. You can't tidy everything away out of
sight all the time if you want to be creative,” she told me as she
rearranged some things. “Why don’t you take a seat before you hit
your head again, Mr. Starr,” she suggested helpfully, as she
pointed to the chair she’d placed in the middle of the room, the
only place where the ceiling was normal height.
I sat down on
the rather wobbly chair, and looked around. I noticed a clothes
airer in the corner that had an assortment of her washing on it,
but as it already felt cold and damp in her room due to the
unseasonably chilly spring weather, I couldn’t see how it was ever
going to dry properly. I certainly didn't feel like taking my coat
off.
“It’s bloody
freezing in here. I’ll just get Jamie to put the heating on,” I
said as I made to stand up.
“Oh I think
you’ll find it’s already on. It usually is if Jamie’s in. It’s only
the radiator in here that doesn’t work properly.” she muttered
distractedly, as she sorted through some large folders to retrieve
yet more sheets of art work.
Then I
remembered. Months ago, Jamie had told me about the problem with
the radiator in this attic room, but I’d refused to pay for any
repairs, telling him it was his responsibility. Clearly my brother
had not managed to get it sorted yet. I glanced at the window, and
saw a piece of cardboard clumsily taped across a hole in it, but I
could still feel a cold draught blowing in through it. On her desk,
there was a thick woolly scarf, a body warmer, a hot water bottle
and some fingerless gloves. Apparently she just wrapped herself up
and carried on working that way. Shit. She wasn’t even complaining
either.
“Surely there
must be a heater you can borrow to warm it up in here?” I
suggested. “And why don't you use the tumble dryer for those wet
clothes instead of making it even damper in your room?”
She looked up,
giving me a puzzled look.
“What for?
Heaters and dryers use a lot of electricity. It’s fine. I’m not
bothered – I'm used to it. Right, I think I’m all set now. Shall I
make a start?”
“Please
do.”
“Do you want
me to run through all the options I considered, or just the ones
that I personally think work the best?”
“Seeing as I'm
here, I think I might as well have the full presentation, don’t
you, Miss Jones?”
Not having the
least clue about what she’d come up with, I wasn’t sure that her
idea of what would work best was going to come close to anything
I’d be prepared to accept, so I thought I might as well see
everything.
“As you wish.
I just thought you might prefer the abridged version, as I
appreciate that you’re a very busy man. But I’ll take you through
the whole process if that’s what you want. So, initially, I came up
with nine options,” she began.
“Nine! My team
could only come up with three.”
“Oh, I
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