Page 4 of Pretty Little Fears

Theirsmiles stretch from ear to ear, displaying rows of pearly whites and dimples.Theyradiate true friendship.Myheart clenches at the sight,Ican only hope to be a part of something like that during my time here.

There’sa hallway entrance both through the kitchen and living room.Oneleading to the east wing of the house, and one leading to the west wing.Makingmy way through the living room,Iwalk straight down the corridor untilIam faced with more doors.Thereare four down this hallway.Knockingon the closest door,Istand silently, waiting for a response.

Aftera few seconds,Iput my hand on the knob and tried to open it but to no avail.It’slocked, soImove on.Openingtwo more doors,Ifind identical bathrooms.Eachone had a bidet attachment, a standing shower,anda tub, topped off with colossal full-length mirrors.Thelast door is a simple bedroom that looks lived in enough for me to know that it doesn’t belong to me.

Walkingto the other side of the house,Ibegin to trek down the opposite hallway.Thefirst door is unlocked.Peekingthrough,Isee my luggage in the corner and come to the conclusion thatIhave finally found my room.

Islip off my shoes before walking over to my bed and flopping onto the plush comforter.Homesweet home.Thisbeautiful campus is my home now.Howfucking unbelievable!

WhileI’mmoving my toiletries into the bathroom,Inotice something odd about the door at the end of this hallway.Allthe other doors are white but this one is…black.AsIwalk closerIsee a symbol on the door.Uponinspection,Isee the door was painted, and whoever did it, did not do a good job.Thesymbol in front is a single letter,V, painted with red paint.

Thepoint of the v looked as though it was dripping at the time it was painted and dried like that, similarly to a trickling blood drop.Intriguedbut a little weirded out,Iwalk back to my room, deciding it’s better to mind my business on that one.Onceall my things are put away,Idecide to take a quick shower.Istill have a couple of hours before orientation starts.

Thebathroom is stocked with towels, washcloths, and a fluffywhite robe.Someonepinch me,Ihave to be dreaming.Iopen the door to the standing shower and start the water.Strippingoff my clothes,Iwait patiently for it to heat up.Onceit’s one degree away from boiling hot,Istep in and let it rinse away any lingering anxiety and stress.

Thirtyminutes later,I’mback in my room feeling refreshed and slightly more relaxed.Idress in jeans and a simple white top, brush on mascara, and braid my hair.Ihear the front door open asI’msecuring the elastic on my hair.Myhead whips toward the door asImake out voices coming from the foyer.Silencereturns only for a second untilIhear a screech and heavy footsteps that sound like they’re making their way towards my room.

“Ahhh!You’rehere!”Ayoung woman screams as she reaches my door frame.

“Hi!I’mAspen, you must beBlair!WelcometoBlackwood!”Sherushes over to give me a hug andItense up.I’venever been the best with physical affection and that is not changing now.Assoon as she lets go,Istep back and recognize her as the blonde from the picture frameIsaw earlier.

“Uh, hi.Yes,I’mBlair.Thankyou.”Inervously let out, hoping it didn’t sound as awkward as it felt.Aredhead pops her head into the door and doesn’t look or sound nearly as enthusiastic asAspento have a new roommate.

“Hey,I’mLorelei.AspenandIlive on the other side of the house.Verenais down the hall from you.We’llgive you our numbers in case you need anything.Justwanted to give some ground rules and tidbits.Laundrymachines are in the basement and garbage goes out everyMondayandThursday.

Weeach take turns doing chores so we will add you into the cycle.”Shegoes on about daily duties and what every roommate is responsible for.Ifeel likeI’mbeing lectured by my mother, butIsmile and nod and wait for her to shut the fuck up.

Finally, she’s interrupted by a third voice.

“AlrightLorelei, she’s a big girl.I’mpretty sure she’s washed some dishes and mopped some floors right?”Thedark haired girl asks.

Inod and she laughs.

“I’mVerena.Thegirls call meV, but you’re not one of the girls…yet, so you can stick toVerena.”Shesays with a sarcastic smile.Myhope for sisterhood dies at this moment andIrealizeAspenis my only chance at friendship.Verenagave little hope with that comment andIcould already tell thatLoreleiandIwould not be exchanging friendship bracelets anytime soon.

LoreleiandVerenaretreat to their rooms leaving me withAspen.

“So, are you heading to orientation later?”Shequestions.

Inod while replying, “Yeah,I’mheading out in a few.”

“Perfect!I’llcome with.I’mactually an orientation guide.Wecan grab coffee atCozyCupbefore we go!Didyou see it on your way here?”Sheinquires as she turns and makes her way out of my room.Ishake my head and give a quick no, grabbing my things and following her out the front door.Iguess we’re leavingnow.

Webegin to make our way towardsCozyCup, the campus’s local cafe.It’snot very far from our place, so it doesn’t take long to arrive.Everythingis designed to be close and convenient for students.I’mcertainAspentakes full advantage of that because she hasn’t stopped talking about how great their coffee is.

Shegrabs onto the door handle and begins to open it as she squeals, “Ipromise, soon you’ll be addicted.”

Ifeel my heart start to swell a little.I’veonly been here a couple of hours and she hasn’t even known me for one, but she’s doing her best to make me feel welcomed, solely based on a mutual love of coffee.

Theinside ofCozyCupis just that, cozy.Immediately,Ican see why it's her favorite.Thewarm aroma of freshly brewed coffee beans and honey fills my nose asIwalk through the door.Thequiet ambiance of murmured voices and laughter fills the surrounding shop.Thelight beige walls and high countertops littered with assorted pastries, create an atmosphere that fits the name.Wehead up to the register and order our drinks.Iget my signature iced caramel macchiato and wait forAspento receive hers.

Withour drinks in hand, we begin to make our way out of the cafe and to orientation.Takingmy first sip of the coffee,Iinstantly widen my eyes.

“That’sreally fucking good,”Isay with a slow nod.Aspenlaughs and links her arm with mine as we head in the direction of the main building where orientation is being held.

Therest of the walk consists ofAspenpointing out different buildings and explaining their purpose, what classes are held where, and the different clubs the school offers.

Shebreaks off into a story about her first year atBlackwoodandIgo to take another sip of my iced coffee, she wasn’t joking about it being addictive.Idon't get very far asIunexpectedly slam into a hard wall.No, not a wall.Achest.Arock hard chest.Ihear a low curse asIput my hands out to brace myself on the stranger’s chest beforeIstumble.Atthe same time, a strong arm is wrapped around my waist to steady me.

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