‘Are you sure you’re okay, hun?’ Daisy asked him. She was sitting in her living room and the light coming through her blinds was giving her an overexposed look.

‘I’m fine, Daisy. I really am. I needed to get out of the shit-hole, and it’s much better here. Stelios is a great guy. And a very generous man for offering me his space for free.’

She pursed her lips. ‘Are you sure he doesn’t need any money? Are you sure you don’t? What kind of person doesn’t want rent?’

Ren laughed. ‘Yes, I’m sure. Mum and Dad have sent me more than enough for the month. And it’s not as if I’m not paying for anything. I do get the shopping. And trust me, it’s a good chunk out here.’

Daisy shrugged. ‘You know better, hun. Just be careful, yeah? I can’t believe those little twats bullied you out of your house,’ she said.

‘I’m okay. It’s fine. The landlord was the biggest twat of all. But at least now I can actually enjoy my time here. As long as I don’t have to see their ugly mugs in class,’ Ren rolled his eyes. It had been a couple of days, but they still hadn’t turned up for class. According to Jimmy and Stelios, that was usual practice in Greek universities. Only practical classes were mandatory. And since the classes were not practical, the arsehole ex-neighbours didn’t bother coming in.

‘I’m glad you see it that way. I would have kicked some serious arse. Anyway, only three weeks until I arrive. I can’t wait to see you, hun.’

‘Me neither,’ Ren said. And it was true. Being in a better housing situation, where he got some sleep through the night, gave him all the time to anticipate Daisy’s arrival with excitement.

Stelios came into the living room and walked straight to the cupboard, where he got all his tools to make frappé. Coffee, sugar, milk, and bottled water assembled next to his frother. In the last week, since he’d been living here, Ren had found out Stelios’s frother was second only to his phone in usage and more important than his closest family member. Stelios drank coffee first thing in the morning and until seven in the evening when he switched to beer until the wee hours of the next day. He wasn’t only an avid comic book fan but also an avid gamer, and he played games and streamed them on YouTube for some extra cash a month. He was still building his YouTube channel, but it was one of his favourite pastimes.

Only when a number of sips of coffee had been sipped did he talk to Ren, a changed man in a matter of minutes.

‘Man, this afternoon sleep was such a doozy. I’ve lost track of time. What time is it?’

‘Six-thirty.’

‘You didn’t have to hang up for my benefit by the way,’ Stelios pointed to Ren’s laptop. Daisy had already gone and they’d said their goodbyes.

‘Oh, don’t worry. I was done. It was my aunt checking on me. She’s visiting next month,’ Ren said and put the laptop on the coffee table.

Stelios nodded. ‘Cool. When? Where is she staying?’

‘Fifteenth of March. She’s booked a hotel, but I don’t know which one.’

Stelios put his coffee down and switched the TV on. The room was filled with foreign noises and cheering. He muted the sound and flipped through the channels.

‘You should have told her she could stay here. We’ve got enough space,’ he said.

That guy would give his house to the whole cast of Lion King if he could. ‘Well, I didn’t want to intrude any more than I have. Plus, she booked it before I moved in, so I wouldn’t have known.’

‘Fair enough.’

Stelios picked his coffee back up and his phone pinged that very moment. He fumbled with it before turning to Ren.

‘Jimmy is asking if we want to go over to his workplace. He’s got a late shift tonight and he’s bored,’ he said.

‘Sure, if he doesn’t think we’ll get in the way of his work,’ Ren replied.

Stelios laughed. ‘He makes coffee and serves sandwiches. I’m sure he’ll survive the distraction.’

They left the house about half an hour later and took the bus to the city centre. They walked along Aristotle Square and turned right at Mitropoleos Street. Jimmy’s workplace was a sandwich place called Kalimera. It was covered in browns with yellow and white letters, and the interior had a modern, sleek design. They had pizzas, subs, and desserts in a long display, and Jimmy was standing behind the counter browsing his phone when Stelios and Ren walked in. He put his cigarette on an ashtray and came out of the counter to greet them.

‘You’re the first to arrive,’ he said.

‘How many are we expecting?’ Ren asked. He didn’t mind big crowds, as long as he was not in them.

‘Just the guys. Markos is back so he’s joining us,’ Jimmy replied. He picked his cigarette back up and showed them to a table next to the counter. There was a frappé on it and a packet of Marlboro Gold, Jimmy’s brand. They sat and Jimmy offered them some water.

He took their order, which felt surreal to Ren after having hung out with Jimmy at cafés so many times. He brought their canned beers over with frozen glasses to pour them in. Stelios lit a cigarette as soon as his arse hit the chair and offered Ren one, even though he knew fully well Ren didn’t smoke. Jimmy sat down facing the door.

‘What time do you finish?’ Ren asked him.

‘Six,’ he replied.

Ren’s mouth dropped. ‘In the morning?’ Jimmy nodded. ‘How the hell do you do that shift?’

His laugh, the shake of his shoulders, the way his teeth touched his bottom lip as he smiled, the creases in his eyes, they all stayed with Ren long past his momentary jolt of amusement. ‘That’s what you guys are here for.’

‘What do you mean?’

Stelios flicked some of his ash in the ashtray. ‘Night shifts in this place are a graveyard. So, we come by as much as we can and for as long as we can to keep him company.’

‘Why do you stay open if it’s so quiet?’

Jimmy snorted. ‘It’s the brand policy. They want all their shops open twenty-four hours a day, every day.’

‘That’s crazy.’

‘It might be, but they have given a lot of people a lot of jobs by branching out. They only opened after the recession and have managed to grow in every corner. So, it’s either this or sleeping all day wasting money I don’t have.’

Ren agreed. The news about Greece’s financial situation had been regular and horrifying in the last decade. It was only lately they weren’t in the news as much, but Ren guessed Brexit took most of the media’s attention nowadays rather than another country’s problems with the European Union. Quite ironic considering the potential Greek European exit had been heavily criticised by the British media.

‘So, what? Are things getting better?’ Ren asked.

Stelios and Jimmy laughed. ‘Better? Things won’t get better until the head has been pulled out of the ass of our politicians. But we have adjusted. Greece is a different landscape than it was twenty years ago than what it was ten years ago than what it was five years ago. Things keep changing. Stuff we all knew are withdrawn. New stuff is introduced. Like card payments. In cafés. That was unheard of a decade ago. But we make do. With every crazy thing the government does. Or we protest. Our country is a mess,’ Stelios said.

‘Amen to that,’ Jimmy agreed.

‘It’s not like my country is any less of a mess. But don’t get me started. It’s one of the reasons I don’t want to live there if I can help it.’

Jimmy tilted his head and stared at Ren. ‘Really? I didn’t know that.’

He had a way of looking masculine and sexy but also cute and adorable.

Katerina and Antonis came in with Markos not long after, along with a stream of customers, so Jimmy had to get up and serve them while the guys settled around the table. Markos grabbed a beer for all of them, and they let Jimmy do his job while everyone lit up.

The guys raised their glasses and clinked them, and Ren tagged along. He had already finished the second can, but instead of going for another one he decided to wait for the guys to finish their round.

‘How is life with Stelios?’ Katerina asked him.

‘Peachy,’ Stelios answered for him.

Ren side-eyed him. ‘Excuse you. She asked me.’

‘What else are you gonna say? I mean, what could possibly beat living with me?’

Ren had an idea but didn’t want to share it. His eyes found Jimmy behind the counter, and as if Jimmy had felt him looking, turned around and gave him a bright smile. Ren reciprocated. No reason mulling over something impossible. The truth of the matter was Stelios was a great flatmate. He kept out of Ren’s way and Ren kept out of his, and when they often met in the open plan living room and kitchen, they watched a movie or a TV show and heavily commented throughout the whole thing. It was a fun relationship to have with a guy. Ren never really had any guy-friends, and the guys he lived with on campus, back home, were all loud-mouthed and party animals.

‘No, Stelios is great. He is a great flatmate. Even if we don’t agree on who would win in a battle, Thor or Superman,’ Ren told her as Jimmy returned to the table. He paused for a minute when he heard Ren’s comment and Ren looked at him. As if on cue, he smiled again and sat down. He put a beer in front of Ren and filled his glass.

‘Well, Thor, of course,’ Antonis said.

‘Et tu, Brute?’ Stelios directed at him with a sour face. Ren high-fived Antonis.

‘Ah, I am so happy you guys like each other,’ Katerina said.

Stelios blew a kiss at Ren and Ren couldn’t help but crack up.

He composed himself and turned to Jimmy, who was looking at the door, even though there was no one there.

‘Hey Jimmy,’ he turned to look at Ren and another smile formed in his face instantaneously. ‘Where’s the loo?’

He pointed up and Ren excused himself, before climbing the stairs. A mezzanine, half the size of the bottom floor, with chairs and tables greeted him. Along the wall, a big guy was sprawled across the chairs, his hands under his head, breathing slowly. His eyes, buried deep under his curly hair and bushy beard, were closed. Ren found the toilet door and used the facilities, then rejoined the guys downstairs.

‘You know there’s a man sleeping upstairs, right?’ Ren told Jimmy as soon as he was close enough.

Jimmy nodded. ‘Don’t worry. He’s harmless.’

‘Who is he?’ Ren asked.

‘He’s Nikos, a homeless man. I let him sleep upstairs at nights when it’s cold. It’s the best I can do to help him,’ he explained.

Ren could have melted right there, collapsed on the floor and made silly faces at Jimmy, but he composed himself and told him it was sweet, instead. How could he be so adorable, so good, so nice? And what was wrong with Ren that he couldn’t make himself stop wanting him so much?