He arches an eyebrow. “You mean I just act like a gobby shite?”
“Oh no. I think youarea gobby shite. But you lean into it so no one looks any deeper.”
Hendrix shifts in his chair.
“Sorry.” I turn to another Sudoku puzzle, using the distraction to give him an out.
“For what?”
“Making you uncomfortable.”
I stare at the puzzle as silence reigns between us. Once again, I’m baffled before I even get going. Hendrix moves to sit beside me, looking at the puzzle. After thirty seconds, he takes the pencil from me and fills in one number, which makes the next one obvious. He hands the pencil back to me, allowing me to fill it in. I manage a couple more, but when I get stuck again, Hendrix takes over.
“I like being edged,” I say as I fill in the last number on the puzzle. “And I like pain.”
“I fantasise about being the only bottom at an orgy.” He turns the page to a fresh puzzle. “I’ve also spent half my life wondering what it would be like to have an older brother.”
“Is that why you moved into a house with seven other guys?”
He snort-laughs. “Yeah. I don’t do things by halves.”
“I guess not. I didn’t have a brother until I was sixteen. Not officially anyway.”
“Did you and Rubin get along from the start?”
“Yes, but we were school friends first, which helped. It’s how Dad met his mum. We were on the school cricket team together. They got talking while watching games.”
“Cricket, huh? That’s posh.”
I chuckle. “Hardly.”
“My school did football and rugby. Oh, and rounders in the summer. Do you still play?”
I shake my head. “Sport and exercising are a lot harder with cataplexy.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
I shrug. “I’ve come to terms with not being able to do some of the things I enjoyed before.”
Hendrix fills half a dozen numbers in and then gives me the pencil. “Was it fun getting an instant brother?”
“Yes, but I was happy enough as an only child.” I was happier when Mum was still alive, but that’s an entirely different conversation. “You don’t like being an only child?”
Hendrix sighs. “It’s all right, I suppose.” He pushes his chair back and stands. “I should probably go and do some filming.”
I can tell I’ve touched a nerve. “Hendrix, if you ever want to talk, I’m here.”
He nods. “Thanks.”
“I bet the same could be said of the rest of our housemates. They’d all be there for you if you needed them to be. All you’d have to do is ask.”
Hendrix’s chin wobbles. He clears his throat. “Do me a favour?”
“Anything.”
“Don’t go telling anyone that I had a sensitive moment.”
His request makes me sad. “I won’t.”
