"Anne, is that seriously all you brought?" Mary asked her elder sister, raising an eyebrow at the small pile of bags on the floor.
"Yes." said a voice coming from behind of a mountain of books. Eighteen-year-old Anne Elliot was sorting through her things, attempting to make order out of chaos in her new college dorm room. She straightened up and pulled back her long black hair, which had unfortunately gotten frizzy from the heat.
"When I go to college I'm bringing more clothes than you." Mary said picking at her manicured finger nails. "Jesus, it's hot in here! Can't you get a room with air conditioning or something?"
Anne rolled her eyes. She immediately regretted inviting Mary to her college move-in day. Her sister, though energetic enough to complain, couldn't really muster the strength to get up and help her.
"Mary," she said. "All freshmen have to live in these dorms. They're traditional."
"They're old." Mary corrected.
"It'll be cool soon." Anne said, placing a box fan on the window sill and plugging it in. "At least, I hope it will..."
"When I move into my Ivy League dorm, I'll spring for an air conditioning unit."
Anne was tempted laugh at the idea of her sister's higher education, but she refrained. Though the thought of Mary going to this school seemed ridiculous, Anne knew that the Elliot family legacy would probably ensure her acceptance. Nepotism was funny that way.
A clear voice sounded from the door. "Hello? Anyone home?"
Anne turned to see a very pretty girl. She reminded Anne of a model from a J Crew catalogue. Her hair was strawberry blonde, stick straight, and miraculously shinny (despite the humidity). She gave off an air of sweetness that almost made Anne suspicious.
"Hi." Anne said a little more meekly than she would've liked. "I'm Anne. You must be Lisa."
Anne held out her hand, but Lisa just walked briskly over and hugged her new roommate enthusiastically. Mary smirked at the awkward display from her spot on the bed.
"I'm so happy to finally meet you!" Lisa said breaking contact. "You sounded so nice on the phone." Anne noted her mild southern accent.
"Like wise." Anne said smiling. She glanced down self consciously at her athletic shorts and old field hockey shirt. "Sorry, I'm kind of gross. I've been moving in."
Lisa laughed. "No worries. Gosh, how excited are you? College!" She flopped down on her bed.
"Oh, Lisa," Anne gestured toward Mary. "This is my sister Mary. She's a senior in high school."
"Oh! Which high school?"
"Kellynch Academy in New York." Mary said popping her gum.
"Wow!" Lisa said. "That's really something! I went to school in Texas."
Mary put on her infamous fake smile. "Do you miss the farm, then?"
"Lisa!" Anne intervened before Mary could say anything else pretentious. "Could I help you carry up some bags?" Anne noticed that Lisa had come upstairs without her things.
Lisa smirked. "Don't worry, darling. They'll be up shortly."
"Did you hire movers?" Mary asked. "That's was Anne should've done." she glared at her sister.
"No, dear." Lisa said with a sparkle in her eye. "I just asked some boys from downstairs if they'd be so kind as to help me. People are so friendly here!"
Anne laughed. She couldn't help but admire that. She knelt down in front of her things and began unpacking again.
After some time, there was a soft knock on the open door and two boys came in carrying what Anne assumed were Lisa's belongings. "Hello?" the first one called out.
"Oh, hello." Lisa drawled, standing up to greet them. "You can put those right there, boys." She pointed to the floor next to her closet. "Thank you." her voice sang out sweetly.
The first boy set the suitcases down and moved aside. There was another taller one behind him who was attempting to place down the three boxes he was balancing.
"Let me help you with that." Anne said, hurrying forward.
She grabbed the box on top which was covering his face. As she did so, she caught a glimpse of him and yelped, falling to the ground in a less than graceful manner, taking both boy and boxes with her.
"Oh my gosh, Anne, are you ok?" Lisa rushed over to help her up.
Anne's eyes were fixed on the person in front of her. She saw all the familiar features she'd remembered: his dark eyes and hair, his expression, his chin... everything.
"Sorry-" Anne managed to stutter. From the corner of her eye she caught her sister walking out of the room on her cell, not doubt distracted by other things. "I'm really clumsy." she faked a smile and stole another quick glance just to make sure it was really him.
It was.
She was about to say something when the first boy, who had gone unnoticed by Anne to this point, spoke up. He seemed shy, but his longish chestnut brown hair and delicate features gave him a friendly look.
"Hi, I'm Ben." he said. "This guy causing all the trouble is my roommate, Rick."
"Nice to meet you both." Rick nodded and shook their hands.
Was he serious? Anne thought as she nodded back. She seemed composed on the surface, but her stomach was churning nervously.
"This here is my roommate, Anne- wait, what's your last name again?" Lisa asked.
"Elliot." Anne said looking directly at Rick. "Anne Elliot."
The four stood there in an awkward silence, though only two could truly identify the complicated cause of it.
"Well, I guess we should go." Rick said slowly.
"Thanks for bringing my bags up!" Lisa followed them as they walked out. "Let's all hang out soon, ok?" she called down the hall.
She turned back to Anne. "Wow." she said. "How cute were they. I love college! Did you see his eyes?"
"Whose eyes?" Anne asked, attempting to unpack and return to normalcy again.
"Rick's!" Lisa crooned. "I heard that he's in Navy ROTC here. Can you imagine seeing him in uniform..."
"Would you excuse me please?" Anne asked politely.
"Sure, hon."
Anne calmly walked down the hallway to her new bathroom, entered a stall, leaned over the toilet and threw up.
This was not how Anne had pictured her first day of college.
