Catherine’s College, Oxford University — Eleven Years Before the Break Up “Earth to Jim! Come in Jim! Jim! What on earth are you staring at?” Matthew Clinton-Jones poked his relatively new friend’s arm. Jim was no longer partaking of the debate that the rest of the Fresher’s were locked in.“Sorry, what’s that?” Jim didn’t take his eyes off the subject of his focus.“We’ve been discussing the merits of classical literature versus contemporary and all you’ve been doing for the last ten minutes is staring into space… Wait a minute...you’re staring at that blonde girl, aren’t you?!” Matthew followed James’s line of sight. “She is rather gorgeous, Jim. I have to say!”Matthew was from a very well to do family who were mainly practicing G.P.’s or surgeons, but Matthew had plumped for reading English Literature with a view to becoming an English professor. His floppy dark hair and round rimmed spectacles made him look the part, even before his time. His accent was an acquired taste, but Jim was slowly realising that you shouldn’t judge a book by its accent…or something like that.Jim didn’t take his eyes off the blonde girl as he nodded.
