Chasing Pavements

The first time Violet saw Tom she thought he was this nerdy looking string bean with curly blonde hair. It didn’t take long for the people in her dorm at NYU to spread the news that he was English, straight from Britain with an adorable accent.

The first time that Violet and Tom actually talked occurred when they were both moving in freshman year, both on the fifth floor of Weinstein Hall. She was getting off of the elevator with a box of her books and had just arrived at the door of her room when the bottom fell out, sending her books crashing to the floor loudly.

“You have got to be kidding me,” she had mumbled to herself, staring down at the pile, feeling her face heating up. She glanced around, somewhat worried that people would now remember her as the girl who dropped all of her shit in the hallway. Realizing that no one was paying attention and that no one actually cared, she quickly bent over and picked up several of the books into her arms before opening the door to her room. She brought a few inside and set them on her desk and went out to collect more, and saw the curly blonde hair of someone picking up her books.

“Did you drop these?” he asked, glancing up at her, all blue eyes that temporarily made her forget how to speak.

“Yeah,” she cleared her throat. “My box broke.”

He stood up, a few of Violet’s books in his hands. He was taller than her and she found herself looking up at him wondering just how tall he actually was.

“Are you a Shakespeare fan?” he asked, staring intently into her eyes.

“What?”

He held up her copy of Romeo and Juliet and she felt her cheeks redden.

“I know it’s cheesy, but Romeo and Juliet is my favorite of his plays,” she answered, clearing her throat again.

“Not cheesy,” he responded, grinning at her. “I’m actually quite partial to Othello, though.”

“I actually haven’t read that one,” Violet answered, bending down to pick up a few more books.

“I would definitely recommend it, then. Would you like some help with these books?”

“That would be great, thanks,” she replied, carrying more books into her room.

Between the two of them, it didn’t take long to bring the books into Violet’s room.

“You have a lot of books,” he commented when they were finished.

“I like to read,” she replied, smiling at him. “By the way, I don’t think I ever got your name.”

“I’m Tom,” he said, smiling back as he offered her his hand to shake. “And you?”

“Violet. My name’s Violet.”



It was a week until the beginning of her senior year and she had just finished bringing boxes and furniture up into the small, but cozy apartment her and Tom had managed to find near the NYU campus that also wasn’t outrageously expensive. Her parents had just left, her mom almost in tears about how much of an adult Violet had become. She would have laughed at the fact, but she also felt like crying herself. It felt like freshman year all over again, being in a new setting and having to find your own way around.

She and Tom had responsibilities now, they had both managed to find some part time jobs to help pay for bills and groceries. Even though they were on their own in their own apartment, they still weren’t technically on their own. Both of their parents were helping out with rent. They had both somehow ended up with parents who were fortunate enough in their own lives to be able to afford the additional fees that having an apartment would cost.

For an hour after her parents left, Violet spent the time unpacking and organizing her own bedroom. Tom’s stuff had arrived to the apartment last week and the boxes were piled into the middle of what would most likely be their living room.

When it was time, she left the apartment and headed to the nearest subway to catch a train to get to LaGuardia airport where she would be picking up Tom. She walked fast, her head buzzing with the excitement of being back in the city, as well as knowing that soon she and Tom would be reunited. They always stayed in touch over the summer, but it just wasn’t the same when they couldn’t be in the same room as the other. That’s the problem when your best friend lives across an ocean.

Unfortunately the subway didn’t go directly to LaGuardia, so Violet took a taxi the rest of the way. When she arrived at the airport, she had twenty minutes until Tom’s flight would arrive, which gave her time to find the gate that Tom would be exiting from. She tried sitting, but she couldn’t stop fidgeting and soon decided it would be best to just stand. She continued to check her watch and when she heard the announcement that his flight had arrived she could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

When the people started pouring in she kept her eyes on the lookout for curly blonde hair. She was shocked however when she did spot Tom to see that his hair was darker, brown rather than blonde, and gone were the familiar curls. She couldn’t help but think that he looked handsome with the tamed, brown hair. Not that he hadn’t been handsome before…He just looked more grown up.

Once she had recovered from her shock over Tom’s changed appearance, she ran toward him and when he spotted her approaching he grinned at her. Before he could give her a proper hello, Violet had launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a tight hug.

“Missed me?” Tom asked, laughing at her.

“So much!” Violet exclaimed, pulling away from him and smiling up at him. “And what did you do to your hair?”

“I could ask the same of you,” he said, tugging on a lock of her hair. “You’re blonder than the last time I saw you.”

“I guess we both missed each other so much that we had to have the other’s hair color,” she teased.

“That must be it,” he said, laughing again. “Now, I need to get my suitcase and then can we get lunch? Preferably some pizza.”



After an early dinner, and after Tom had taken a nap (in Violet’s bed since his wasn’t set up yet) the two worked on getting Tom’s things sorted and out of the living room. When they had set up the furniture where they wanted it, and had gotten their TV set up, they decided that they were done for the day.

“What should we do now?” Tom asked.

“Movie?”

“Yes!” Tom answered. Violet left the living room to go to her room and pick out a movie. She came back out with her copy of Sleepy Hollow and a bottle of wine.

“Look what else I have!” Violet held up the bottle of wine with a smile on her face. “I thought we’d enjoy something classy in our new apartment.”

She plopped down beside Tom on the couch, handing him the DVD case; she’d let him set the movie up.

“Question is, are you going to drink it classily?” Tom asked, putting the movie in the DVD player and turning the TV on. He went back to the couch and sat down, watching Violet struggling with a corkscrew to get the bottle open.

“Definitely not,” she answered with a laugh. Finally the cork came out with a pop and Violet cheered at her accomplishment. She brought the bottle to her lips and drank a mouthful of wine before passing the bottle to Tom.

“Bottoms up,” he said, before drinking.



When the movie was over and the bottle of wine was empty, Tom and Violet sleepily went to their rooms with a “goodnight” and a quick hug.

As Violet was laying her bed trying to fall asleep, she realized her pillow and sheets smelled like Tom and she buried her face in them, breathing deeply. God, she had missed him. Sure, she had admitted to herself that it was difficult being so far away over the summer because they were each other’s best friend…but if she was being completely honest the only reason it was so difficult to be apart for him was because at some point over the three years they had known each other, Violet had fallen head over heels in love with Tom.

Every day she wished she had the courage to tell him, to utter those three simple words that really weren’t all that simple. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that it would blow up in her face and she would end up heartbroken and alone…

She sighed and rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling, imagining telling Tom her feelings and having things go well.

Finally, she rolled onto her side, breathing in Tom’s scent through her nose, and fell asleep, dreaming always of him.