"You've tried to call her five times today?" Gavin's friend looked very concerned.
"Yes, I really don't know whether I should go over there and see if she's OK."
"Man, oh man. This woman's really got under your skin, hasn't she? Let's recap. You had a week together, you found her sneaking out of your apartment early in the morning, she refused to see you again, then she slept with two other guys and told you about it?" His friend now looked at him as if he were mad.
"Well, yes.... But what you don't know is that I think I'm in love with her."
Gavin looked miserable as he waited for the inevitable dose of tough love he knew he was about to be subjected to.
Suddenly his phone was snatched out of his hand.
"You are NOT going to call her again. You are NOT going to go over there. You are coming with me straight over to Octave Hotel. Then we're going to get you very drunk while we do a pub crawl of the Manning Street strip clubs!"
"Oh come on... I really don't think that's the answer." Gavin tried to convince himself.
"Well if you ever want your phone back you'd better follow me."
Gavin sighed and followed. He was probably right... Ellie hardly even seemed like the same woman lately. Maybe he should give up.
Meanwhile, as Ellie woke up from a very deep sleep she glanced up to check her clock and was relieved to see it was only six. Plenty of time to have some breakfast and think about what to say before Gavin called.
Then the sun streaming through her west facing bedroom window made her do a double take.
Oh no! No, no, no. Six PM. Ellie went to check her phone to find it was off. She quickly plugged it in and became aware of the mess her flat was in. The last week of partying had been fun but she already knew it wasn't the direction she wanted her life to take. It was time to get herself together.
No messages. Had he called and not left a message? Had he not called at all? She immediately tried Gavin's mobile. His friend let the phone ring a few times and then hung up. She tried again with the same response.
Then she tried his work number and was told he was having an evening off. What? He never has an evening off. She grabbed her wallet and keys and rushed out the door.
When she slipped into his office in the night club she'd found that it was true. She had to resign herself to the fact that he was actually having the evening off. And if anyone there knew where he was, they weren't saying.
Ellie wasn't sure what to do next so she called her friend Jake.