AN: Hey there! So I had this new idea and I felt inspired enough to try it and thought it would be fun to write it.
If I get something wrong about how Universities in the USA work is because I'm not from there. I'm from Portugal and things work very differently here, so please forgive any mistakes I will probably make.
Anyways, enjoy the new story!
CHAPTER 1
"Beep! Beep! Beep!"
Sara opens one eye and tries to adjust to the sunlight that's coming through the blinds covering her bedroom window. She rolls on her back to stretch, a yawn taking over her.
She grabs her phone and turns off the alarm. The screen shows her it's 7 A.M. sharp, which means it's time to get up. She gets up and makes her way to the bathroom to take a quick shower before getting dressed; once she's ready she holds her hair up in a ponytail, slides her phone into her jeans pocket and gets downstairs to the kitchen.
"Good morning people!" she greets her sister, giving her a kiss on the cheek. She makes her way to her father who's by the stove making some pancakes. Sara gives him a kiss as well.
"Someone's excited," her father says, dropping two pancakes on the plate in front of her and other two on her sister's plate.
"I have to agree dad," her sister says, "I think I've never seen you so happy about going to school."
Sara laughs at that. She picks up a pancake with her fork and points it at her sister, "It's not just school Laurel!" she claims, biting off a piece of her pancake, "I'm finally going to be learning what I want."
Their father sits down in front of them, eating his pancakes as well, "You're right about that kiddo! Hopefully from now on you won't cause so much trouble," he states half-jokingly, earning a glare from her.
"I'm going to Med School dad, not a Nun's Monastery," she retorts, earning a laugh from Laurel.
"She's right dad," her sister admits, "Besides, if anything happens I'll be close by. Don't worry," she tells him, trying to reassure the man.
"Alright, alright," he eventually concedes, "Just remember; studies first, boys later. Now finish your pancakes, both of you, we have to get going in a few minutes."
Both girls nod and return to their meals.
AFTER TWO HOURS OF DRIVING
Sara gets out of her dad's car and breathes in the fresh air, "Harvard University! Finally!" she says out loud with extended arms and a huge smile on her face.
Her sister joins her side, "Just wait until you have to do late night studying and attend early morning lectures," she whispers in Sara's ear.
Sara narrows her eyes at her, "Way to ruin the mood Laurel."
Laurel laughs at that, "I'm just messing with you Sara, I'm sure you're going to like it."
The younger girl smiles sincerely at her sister, "Thanks sis."
Their father clears his throat behind them to get their attention. They turn to look at him, surrounded by luggage already placed on the sidewalk, "A little help ladies?"
"Sure!" Laurel says, grabbing one of her sister's bags, "Let's escort Sara to her new house," she smiles at herself, remembering about her first day of College. All the excitement and fear of the unknown, and the great experiences that were to come. She's truly happy that her little sister can now experience that as well.
Once they get close to Sara's dorm's room they can hear some chatter coming from inside. They decide to wait a few minutes for the people to walk out but Sara eventually grows impatient, "Oh come on, let's just go in already!"
She makes her way to the door and knocks to get whoever's in there attention. Her eyes first land on a couple, a man and a woman, probably on their forties. Then she looks at a girl, probably her age, blonde and taller than her. Actually quite beautiful; who's suddenly making her way over to her.
"Hey there!" she greets her with a big smile, "You must be my roommate."
Sara smiles back at her, "I guess I am," she says, stepping inside the room with her dad and sister trailing behind. She puts her bags down and extends her hand for the other girl to take, "My name is Sara. And you are?" she asks with a charming smile on her face.
The blonde takes her hand, shaking it, "I'm Ava, Ava Sharpe. Nice to meet you," she then turns to the couple next to her, "These are my parents, Louis and Cindy."
Sara shakes hands with them as well, and then turns to her father, "This is my dad –"
Her father steps more into the room and cuts her off, "Detective Quentin Lance, pleasure to meet you both."
Sara eyes him suspiciously but lets it slide and instead turns to her sister, "And this is my older sister, Laurel." Her sister smiles and greets them.
Ava clears her throat, "Well, mom and dad, now that all introductions have been made, I think it's safe for you to get going," she motions to the door at her parents.
"Ah yes honey, you're right, we don't want to catch too much traffic on the highway," he says, kissing her forehead before leaving. He makes his way to the door but his wife stays behind, "Sweetie?" he calls to get her attention, but the woman doesn't leave Ava's side.
Ava sighs at her mother, "Mom come on, we already talked about this. I'm gonna be fine! Just go already," she says smiling softly.
Her mom steps closer to her and hugs her tightly, "Just one last hug honey!" her mom says, stepping away after a couple of seconds, "My little Ava, I can't believe you're finally starting College."
Ava's cheek turn a deep shade of red at that. She knows her mom has the best intentions, but did she have to say those things in front of complete strangers?
Sara stifles a laugh at Ava's red face, she actually feels a bit bad for her at this point. Not enough to keep her from mocking her about that later though, maybe when they're finally alone.
Ava's glad her dad finally decides to intervene, almost dragging her mom out of there, "Come on sweetie, we'll come visit her on the weekend. Let's go."
The girl sighs of relief when they're finally out of the room and sits down on the bed, "Thank God, they're finally gone," she admits chuckling to herself. She then realizes that there's still three people in the room with her, her face turns into one of guilt, "I mean, don't get me wrong. I love my parents, but they can be a bit too much sometimes."
Sara smiles at her, "It's okay, I get it," she tells her, looking sideways at her dad with a smirk on her face.
Ava laughs, "Can you believe that they wanted to make sure that I wasn't going to get stuck with some psychopath of a roommate? I swear they were not going to leave until you got here."
"Ahah! They can rest assured, I'm totally normal," Sara tells her. Silence takes over the room for a couple of minutes until her sister decides to intervene.
"Well dad, maybe we should go?" Laurel suggests to her father, "I'm sure Sara will be okay without us," she smiles kindly at her sister.
"Right!" Quentin nods in agreement. He hugs Sara, "Goodbye kiddo, I love you."
Sara hugs him back, "Love you too dad."
"And don't forget, studies first," he says after letting go of her.
Sara rolls her eyes at that and Laurel laughs, "Yes dad," she says, hugging her sister.
"Now go, both of you. I'll be fine."
They finally leave after saying their goodbyes to Ava as well.
"Well then, it looks like it's just the two of us now," Sara says turning to her roommate.
"Right. Your family seems nice," Ava tells her with a smile.
"They're okay I guess," Sara smiles back, "Have you picked your bed yet?"
Ava gets up from where she's seated, "Oh no, actually. I was waiting for you to show up."
"Alright. Do you mind if I take the one on the right?" Sara asks, pointing to the bed next to her.
"Be my guest."
"Thanks."
After deciding on that, both girls start to rummage through their respective luggage and place their clothing and personal items on the wardrobe and bedside table drawers next to each one's bed. Sara is the first one to be done, sitting on her bed watching Ava attentively. The latter girl is still putting her clothing away, taking her time neatly folding each piece.
"So, Ava," Sara speaks, clearing the silence between them, "Why are you here?"
"To get a degree and therefore find a proper, well-paying job," Ava answers her, looking at Sara over her shoulder with a smirk on her face. The smaller girl rolls her eyes, a smile finding a way into her face, "Ah, ah!" she says with sarcasm, a smile finds a way into her own face, "I meant, what are you in here for? In terms of studies?"
Ava finishes putting away her things and sits in her own bed, staring straight at her roommate, "Psychology," she says, a proud smile on her face.
"Ah, so you want to poke into other people's brains," Sara states, pointing to her head with her index finger.
"Wouldn't that make me more of a wannabe brain surgeon?" Ava asks, raising an eyebrow.
Sara narrows her eyes at her, "You know what I mean."
The taller girl chuckles at her, "I do, I was just messing with you," she says shrugging her shoulders, "But you're right, I am slightly obsessed with the way people think and act. Serial killers mostly."
Her roommate's mouth falls open at the confession, turning into a mischievous smirk seconds after, "Wouldn't peg you for a Ted Bundy fangirl. Should I sleep with one eye open at night?"
Ava scrunches her face at that, "God no! I said I'm interested in the way his mind would work, not in being like him."
Sara grins at her and says, "Great! That means I can keep sleeping like I did at home."
"And how would that be?" Ava asks, genuinely curious.
"Full on naked," Sara admits with a shit eating smile covering her face.
Ava's jaw falls open comically, and she curses her curiosity. She feels her whole face reddening and decides to close her mouth. After clearing her throat she says, "You can't be serious?"
Sara rejoices in the way she left the girl in front of her all hot and bothered, "Oh but I am," she shrugs her shoulders, "You should really try it Aves. It's truly freeing. Besides, what's the point in sleeping with clothes on anyway? It's not like you're going out somewhere."
"Aves? Really?! This girl just met me and she is already calling me by a nickname?" Ava thought. She exhales deeply, trying not to snap at Sara.
"That might make sense while you're living with your family," she says, "But in here we both have to share this tiny room, and I most certainly don't want to be looking at your naked body."
Sara chuckles at that, getting up and walking closer to where Ava is, "Trust me," she whispers, holding the taller girl's gaze, "It would be a pleasure for you to see my fine piece of ass," she says confidently, gesturing to her body with her hands.
Ava swallows hard at Sara's words, finding herself lost in the crystal blue of her eyes. She swears to herself that she has never seen such a clear shade of blue on a human being. They look almost animalistic, like they should belong to a feline and not to her annoying roommate.
She catches herself being captured by them, and she only moves her gaze away from them when she lands on the group of light freckles that cover Sara's entire face.
Meanwhile, Sara's smirk falters slightly to a look of wonder when her eyes focus on Ava's, and she's lost trying to decide if they are green, blue, or a mix of both. In reality it doesn't truly matter, what matters is how mesmerized she is by them. A warm feeling settles in her chest, they remind her of prairies when spring starts to arrive, when the dry grass starts to grow and turns a light shade of green with a clear blue sky right above that seems to have no end.
She decides to snap out of her trance and notices that Ava is flat out staring at her face. She feels a bit self-conscious, "Ava? Hello?" She asks, waving a hand in front of the other girl's face.
Ava clears her throat and averts her gaze from Sara's, "Sorry... Were you saying something?"
Sara notices her discomfort and feels a tad guilty, "Listen, you don't have to worry about me sleeping naked. I was just messing with you, I promise I'll sleep with clothes on."
The taller girl looks directly at her again, "Oh, yeah okay. Thanks," she says, giving her a small smile.
"What about you?" Ava asks, gesturing at her with her hand, in an attempt to change the subject, "What are you here for?"
Sara smiles brightly at her, "Surgery!"
"Really?!" Her roommate asks rather surprised, "You know that's a very tough area to choose from."
"I'm aware. I didn't choose it randomly Ava," Sara tells her, crossing her arms in front of her chest, a bit annoyed at the other girl's remark.
"You're gonna have to study a lot, and then work for many hours. Your social life will probably almost cease to exist," Ava starts to ramble, not even realizing Sara getting madder by her words.
"I said I am aware!" She repeats, raising her voice. A frown is on her face when she asks, "Besides, what do you even know about it?! It's not like you chose the same subject."
Ava shrugs her shoulders, "My dad is a General Practitioner and he owns a Private Practice, so I grew up with him always working and not being around much."
Sara's anger subsides after hearing Ava's words, and she moves to sit next to her on her bed. Their bodies are not touching, but she's close enough to show a bit of support, "I know what that's like. My dad's a Detective so I also got used to not having him around much," she says, giving her roommate a small smile.
"Looks like we already have something in common then," Ava says, smiling back at her.
"True," Sara adds. Suddenly something else catches her attention when she feels her phone vibrate in her jeans' pocket. She unlocks it and a grin creeps into her face when she sees who texted her.
Z: Hey Lance! Are you done with the stuff in your dorm? They're having a party tonight at nine for the newbies and we absolutely have to be there!
Sara types out a reply quickly.
Sara: Yep! I'll be there! Btw, "newbies", really?
Z: Hey, don't blame me! I wasn't the one coming up with the name, the party is literally called "Party for the Newbies".
Sara: Wow, they really used their imagination on that one...
Z: Right? x) Anyways, what time should I stop by?
Sara: Around eight, sounds good?
Z: Great! See you later ;)
When Sara finishes her chat with her friend, she notices that Ava is no longer sitting besides her but is now facing their bedroom window, looking outside with a soft expression on her face. Sara likes how the sunlight reflects on her long blonde hair, turning it even lighter, almost like gold.
"See something you like?" She asks, getting up to stand next to her. The taller girl turns to look at her, "I was just admiring how we can see the whole campus garden and how clear the sky is today. It makes me want to take a picture of it, with the window serving as a frame."
Sara lets her words sink in for a while, "You like photography then?"
Ava's face breaks into a huge smile and she blushes, "Oh, I love it! It's one of my greatest passions!"
Sara feels herself suddenly wanting to know more about this girl, "That's cool! What else are you passionate about?" She asks, her tone close to flirting.
"Well, you already know about Psychology. I also love History and everything that has to do with other cultures, including learning other languages, but my favourite remains the English one," she admits smiling down at her roommate, "What about you?"
The freckled girl shrugs, pursing her lips in thought, "Hm... I love staying active you know? Martial Arts are my favourite, I train at least once a week. I also used to play soccer when I was younger with some childhood friends, but I don't do it much nowadays," she tells Ava, a fond smile on her face at remembering the memories of it.
"Sounds great," Ava says, a sincere smile on her lips, "You should play again then, if it made you happy."
"Yeah, I guess so. Maybe I'll even invite you to join us."
The taller girl's face turns into one of dread, "Oh no! Trust me, you don't want me in the field."
Sara chuckles at her expression, "Ah come on! You can't be that bad!"
"Sara, I once kicked the ball towards my own teammate on the face because I thought she was an opponent."
The smaller girl is now laughing out loud, hand on her belly. Ava starts laughing along with her, "And that wasn't even the worst part. She started bleeding from the nose profusely and because of that she couldn't play the rest of the game. Since she was the best player, we ended up losing the game. After that she didn't speak to me for a whole month."
"Oh god, I can't with you!" Sara says, struggling to speak between laughs, "I'll keep that in mind whenever I think of inviting you along."
"I mean, you can still invite me, but I will just be there to watch," Ava says shrugging her shoulders, a smile gracing her smiles.
Sara eventually stops laughing and says, "Speaking of invitations! My best friend Zari texted me saying there's gonna be a party tonight for the newbies at the University. She's picking me up around eight, do you wanna come?"
Ava scratches the back of her neck anxiously, "Ahm... I better not, those parties are really not my thing. Besides, tomorrow I have some classes so I should get some rest."
Sara looks at her questioningly, "Hm, been to many parties have you?"
"Not really, I just –"
"Then how can you know that it's not your thing? That's the same as saying you don't like pineapple on pizza without ever having tried it."
Ava chuckles at that, "Are you seriously comparing a social situation with eating pizza?!"
"Hey!" Sara says, feigning being offended, "Pizza is a very important thing for me alright?"
That remark gets another chuckle from Ava, who shakes her head, "Still, there's too many people at those parties and everybody gets drunk or stoned. What's the point in going?!"
"That's not all there is to it. There's good music, mostly; food and you get to meet new people, maybe even make some friends, see some good looking boys," Sara wriggles her eyebrows at the last part, "Or girls," she adds, smirking at Ava's blushing cheeks.
"I don't know..." Ava says, moving to sit down on her bed again. Sara follows after, standing in front of her, "Come on! It's gonna be fun! Besides, how's it gonna look if you skip the first party on campus? You'll look like an outcast."
Ava shrugs her shoulders at that, "I don't mind about that, in fact I'm used to it," she admits, adverting her gaze from Sara, who frowns at the confession. She feels a pang on her chest, and something similar to pity, but not quite it.
"Look Ava, I know we only met today but you seem like a nice person and I think it would be fun to hang out of these four walls," she says, gesturing to the room around them, "But, I don't wanna pressure you into anything. If you really don't wanna go I respect it."
Ava looks at Sara, pondering all the pros and cons of going to the party. She knows it would be good for her to loosen up a little, after all she promised herself that this would be a new beginning, that she would try to have a different attitude towards trying new things. A welcome party to the new students does sound like the perfect opportunity to do it, and it's not like she would be going alone, at least her roommate would be there.
"Alright," she says, nodding her head slowly, "I'll go to the party with you."
Sara does a little celebratory dance and smiles brightly at her, making Ava chuckle and roll her eyes at her.
"Great! Let's get ready then before Zari shows up, she hates waiting on people," Sara says, making her way to the dresser. She starts to pull some clothes out and laying them on her bed. Ava eyes her with curiosity, "Should I change clothes too?" She asks her, looking down at what she's wearing. A blue polo shirt with some old jeans and white sneakers, looks good enough for her.
Sara turns her attention to her, eyeing her up and down, "I mean, I'm sure you probably have an outfit that would look better to wear to a party."
Ava's cheeks reddens at that, "Not really," she confesses, scratching her neck nervously.
Her roommate stares at her with eyes wide open for a second before saying, "Well, I guess you're borrowing some of mine then!" She says smiling, making her way to her own bed again, "Come here," she motions for Ava to come closer. When Ava is next to her she picks up a sleeveless navy blue top and holds it in front of the taller girl, who in turn looks down at the piece of clothing being pressed against her.
"Do you like it? I think it goes well with your skin and eyes," Sara tells her, smiling up to see her reaction.
"Yeah, I like it," she says, smiling to herself, "Can I check it on the mirror?"
"Of course! Better yet, why don't you try it on? Take these white jeans as well, although they will probably be a bit shorter on you since your legs seem to go on for days," Sara says smirking.
Ava narrows her eyes at her, but her lips are formed into a smirk too, "I think you're just really short Sara," she tells her back, dodging a pillow the other girl tries to throw at her face, "Careful there! Don't forget I have longer legs than you, I can easily out run you."
"Just try the damn clothes already!"
Ava laughs and makes her way to the bathroom to change; she comes out after a few minutes. When she's done, Sara has already changed as well. She is now wearing black jeans that perfectly hug her curves – not that Ava would ever pay attention to that – and a dark red crop top showing a bit of cleavage. Ava quickly turns her gaze away when Sara turns her attention to her, "Well, let me see you!" The smaller girl says, "You look great Aves, I was right about that colour going well with your eyes," she says smiling at her, "Now all that's left is some makeup to really make them pop. You'll have all eyes turning on you when we reach the party."
If it were any other person telling that to Ava, she wouldn't believe it. She would think they were simply mocking her or lying straight to her face, but Sara's smile looks so sincere that she almost has no trouble believing her words.
"Thanks," she says blushing a little, "You look great too," she admits, gesturing at her.
"Thank you very much my lady!" Sara thanks her taking a small bow after, making Ava laugh.
"Now, let's talk makeup! How do you usually do it?" She asks Ava, making her way to the bathroom.
"I don't, actually..." she hears her say from the bedroom. Sara immediately comes out the bathroom with raised eyebrows, "Like, never?"
"Nope!" Ava tells her, shaking her head.
A mischievous smile makes its way to Sara's face, "Interesting," she says, a twinkle on her eyes, "Does that mean I will have the pleasure of doing your makeup tonight?"
"Sure, it could be fun," she agrees, smiling lightly at her, "Just don't push it too much alright?"
"Hey, don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I used to do this all the time with my sister," Sara assures her, returning to the bathroom to get a few extra things. She comes back with some lip gloss and eyeliner.
"Okay, sit down on the chair by the desk!" She tells Ava, enthusiasm evident on her voice.
Ava smiles and does as she says. She waits for Sara to settle in front of her, who's laying the make up articles on top of the desk.
The freckled girl picks up the eyeliner, "You ready?" She asks, smiling when Ava nods, "Okay, close your eyes for me."
Her roommate does as she's told and waits in anticipation, butterflies settling in her stomach, although she's not very sure why. She was never a big fan of wearing makeup, but somehow having it done by someone else sounded like a fun idea.
"I'm gonna start with your left eye alright?" She hears Sara ask, her breath itching a bit when she feels her coming closer, only a few inches away from her face. She relaxes when she feels the brush against her eyelid, telling herself to focus on that.
"Perfect," she hears Sara whisper and goes to open her eyes but her roommate's voice stops her, "Not yet Ava," she says with an amused voice, "Let me finish your other eye first."
Ava nods and keeps her eyes shut, waiting for Sara's order to open them. After a few minutes she speaks again, "Okay, you can open them now."
Ava does as she's told and looks at the tiny table top makeup mirror that's settled on the desk. She takes a good look at herself, "Uau..." She whispers, admiring Sara's work, "I almost don't recognize myself."
Sara laughs at that and tells her, "I'm flattered, but I can't take all the credit. Your eyes are already pretty, I just made them pop out."
"Still, you did an amazing job, thank you," Ava says, smiling shyly at her. She looks at the lip gloss on top of the desk, "Can I?" She asks grabbing it, and applies it on her lips after Sara nods at her.
Sara stares at her through the whole scene, her gaze fixed on her roommate's plump lips. When Ava's done she immediately adverts her gaze, afraid she might notice her staring.
"What do you think?" Ava asks her, a shy smile on her face.
"You look great! It looks like I will have some competition at this party," Sara says, earning a chuckle from the other girl.
"Well then, seeing as we're both ready I should text Zari to let her know she can come by!"
"Okay," Ava agrees, smiling. She gets up from the chair and goes to her backpack by the bed, taking a camera out of it.
"Wow! You weren't kidding when you said you were passionate about photography. That's a monster of a camera," Sara states, admiring the object on Ava's hands.
"Yeah, I saved up some money and bought it for my birthday. I was a bit tired of only using my smartphone, wanted to upgrade you know?"
"That's cool," Sara says, smiling genuinely. She observes Ava making her way to their bedroom window, bringing the camera to her eyelevel and adjusting the lens, her right index finger moving to press on the shutter button. She hears the camera making a few clicks, before Ava moves it away from her face and down to check the pictures she took. Sara finds herself mesmerized by the whole scene in front of her.
"Can I seem them?" Sara asks, moving to stand up next to Ava.
"Of course," Ava tells her. She's blushing a little, but her lips are turned into a soft smile.
She moves the camera closer to Sara and starts swiping the mix of photos she just took. Sara's face lights up at watching each picture, "I like this one better," she says in a low voice, her index finger pointing to the screen. Ava looks at the picture and then at Sara, "Yeah, me too."
Sara looks up at her, a bright smile on her face, "Hey! I have an idea..."
Ava eyes her with raised eyebrows, "Yes?"
"Why don't we take a picture together? You know, to celebrate the fact that we're going to our first University party! Besides, it would be a shame not to preserve all the work I had doing your makeup."
The taller girl rolls her eyes at that, "Fine! But only because you did a really great job."
"Yes!" Sara shouts happily, "Okay come here!" She says, hooking her right arm with Ava's left, who in turn lifts the camera up so it can capture both her faces.
After a number of clicks, they stop posing and check the pictures. In one of them Sara's sticking her tongue out and Ava has a goofy smile on her face while glancing at her.
"Oh I love this one!" Sara tells her immediately, "We look good, especially you. We should get it printed."
"Please... You look way better than me," Ava says, "But you're right, we have to get it printed."
Sara was about to say something but is interrupted by the sound of her smartphone, "That must be Zari!" She says, grabbing the device and unlocking it, "Yep, told you! She's downstairs waiting for us to go," Sara finishes, putting her phone away on her pocket and grabbing a leather jacket, "You ready?"
Ava suddenly feels her anxiety rising and starts to think about all the things that can go wrong. She feels herself stuck to the ground, not being able to move.
Sara seems to notice the shift in her mood and steps closer to her again, "Hey?" She asks, her voice soft, "It's okay Ava, I promise you'll have a great time!"
The taller blonde takes a deep breath before speaking, "Okay," she says, her anxiety now a bit lower, "Let's go," she nods, placing her camera on her bedside table and grabs a jacket as well as her phone.
Sara smiles softly at her and reaches for her phone to text an answer to Zari telling her they'll be right downstairs.
AN: I hope you liked it! Next Chapter, Party!
Anything you would like to say, you already know the drill. Just leave a comment! :)
