The New Flatmate

There were three students in the flat on Marchmont Road in Edinburgh: Callum, who studied history; Priya, who studied medicine; and Diego, from Valencia, who was doing a master's degree in engineering. When their fourth flatmate moved out in October, they put up an advert online, and a week later a quiet young woman called Isla moved in.

From the start, there was something strange about her. Diego, who was a light sleeper, heard her get up at four o'clock every morning. At half past four, the front door closed, and she usually came back at about one in the afternoon, went straight to her room and fell asleep. In the evenings she was friendly and polite, but she never cooked, and her shelf in the fridge was completely empty.

"She never eats," Priya said one night while the others were doing the washing-up. "That isn't healthy. As a future doctor, I'm worried." Callum had a different theory. "Maybe she's a spy," he said. "Or a vampire. Vampires don't eat, and they don't come out during the day." "But she goes out in the morning," Diego pointed out. "Very early in the morning." "Exactly," said Callum. "Before the sun comes up."

They decided to find out the truth. Diego offered to follow her the next morning, but when his alarm went off at four, he turned it off and went back to sleep. Callum tried the next day and gave up after ten minutes, because it was raining and he had forgotten his coat. Priya made a simpler plan: she would just ask her. But every time she saw Isla, she lost her nerve and talked about the weather instead.

Then, one cold Saturday in November, Diego woke up at seven to a wonderful smell. He went into the kitchen and found the table covered with food: warm bread rolls, croissants, cinnamon buns and a big tray of scones. Isla was making a pot of tea. "Good morning," she said, a bit shyly. "I thought you might be hungry."

The others came in one by one, still in their pajamas, and stared at the table. Isla laughed and explained everything. She worked at a bakery on the other side of the Meadows, the big park near the flat. Her shift started at five, so she had to get up at four. "I eat at work all day," she said. "After eight hours with bread and cakes, I can't even look at food when I get home. Sorry if I seemed a bit strange."

Callum went red. "We thought you might be a vampire," he admitted. Isla thought about it for a second. "Well, I do work in the dark," she said, "and I make a lot of garlic bread." From then on, the flat smelled of fresh bread every Saturday morning, and the other three made an effort to do something in return. Diego did her share of the cleaning, Priya made her a proper dinner once a week, and Callum, who couldn't cook at all, made her laugh.