"Do you have to leave?"

Ventus paused in front of his car, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder, and turned towards his home. There stood Sora, halfway to Ventus's car already, with a pleading look in his eyes.

Heaving a sigh, Ventus dropped his bag on the back seat and turned back to his brother. "It's not like I'm leaving leaving," he pointed out for the hundredth time. "My dorm's a fifteen minutes drive from home. Ten if there's no traffic. And with college classes, I'll probably have a more flexible schedule." He shrugged with an encouraging smile. "I might be home more than I've been the past year."

He had been away from home a lot during senior year. There was always another extracurricular to attend, another event, another party. And with their grandfather insisting that Ventus start taking a more active role in the company, he had also spent half of his evenings in his parents' old office.

A good chunk of that time had been Ventus trying not to feel like an impostor. Another decent chunk, he'd been trying not to cry.

"Yeah, but why do you even need to live in a dorm?"

Ventus looked past him, to their house. It was theirs, legally speaking—though neither of them could do anything with it until they were all over twenty years old. For Sora, and his twin brother Roxas, that was still four years away.

The house had been their parents' before they died. Since then, Ventus and his brothers had lived their with their grandfather, Eraqus—though he was barely a presence in their lives. For the past five years, Ventus had basically been as much a dad as a big brother to the twins.

It wasn't like he minded. Ventus loved his brothers. It wasn't even a need for space—he doubted living in a small room, with a roommate to boot, would provide more space than the massive suburban house he'd grown up in. He just needed out. Maybe the fact that he couldn't even express why was part of the problem—as long as he lived here, it took all his energy to think about everything that had to be done for his brothers, and he couldn't even focus on what he needed.

But that wasn't something he could say to Sora. Not without sounding like he blamed him—which he didn't. So he just plastered on a smile. "I just want the full college experience, you know? It's just one year—I can always move back home next year if I don't like it." He shrugged. "Or even before that. Grandfather wouldn't even notice if he had to pay rent even though I live here."

"I guess," Sora conceded with a pout. "I hope you do. Not that I hope things are bad at your dorm," he added in a hurry, "I just want to keep seeing you around."

"You will. I promise."

Without warning, Sora clasped his hand with a grin, and pushed something in Ventus's palm. When Sora let go, Ventus looked at it: a star charm, a Wayfinder similar to his own. All three of them owned one, but this wasn't Sora's translucent red star: this one was made of seashells, and had a cartoonish face painted on it. Ventus looked up at Sora, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"It's Kairi's," Sora said. "She gave it to me with the promise to give it back. Now you have to keep that promise to me too." He shuffled awkwardly on his feet. "And, you know, don't break it or lose it. She'd kill me."

Ventus couldn't help but grin at that. "I'll be very careful with it," he said, latching it to his keyring as he spoke—the one place he was sure not to lose it. Then, as he noted that Sora still wasn't moving, an idea came to his mind. "Do you want to come with me?"

Sora looked up at him, eyes wide. "What do you mean?"

"I've got a ton of stuff to carry to my dorm room. I could use an extra pair of hands. What do you say?"

"That'd be so cool!" Sora said, his eyes shining with excitement.

Ventus chuckled at his reaction. "Hop in," he said, moving out of the way so Sora could get inside his car. "I'll drive you back when we're done." Sora was still working on getting his license—and besides, Ventus would need the car.

"That's fine," Sora said, pulling out his cell phone. "I'll just tell Riku and Kairi to meet me on campus. Riku will be so jealous!"

Ventus climbed in the driver's seat, casting a sidelong glance at Sora. "You do realize you're just coming with me, and not actually going to college yourself, right?"

"But I'll have been inside your dorm! It's basically the same thing!"

"If you say so," Ventus said, letting out a gentle, indulgent laugh as he turned on the ignition.

The truth was, when Ventus had said he was only a fifteen minutes drive away, that was a generous estimate. The Departure State University campus was located on the edge of Radiant City—just on the same side of the city as their suburb in Daybreak. The Between Highway was just a few blocks from their home and led straight to the campus, making it a short drive even under bad conditions. Right now, in the middle of the afternoon at the end of the summer vacations, the road was nearly empty.

Ventus let Sora take command of the music player and listened to his new musical obsession of the moment—some kind of mixture between traditional island music and heavy synth. Ever since they'd come back from their maternal relatives' home on Destiny Island, that had been all Sora ever listened to. A connection to their roots—at least, Ventus was fairly sure that's what it was to his brother. Ventus couldn't blame him: sometimes, it was hard for him to even remember that part of his origins, since he himself had inherited their father's pale complexion and blond hair, unlike Sora and Roxas, who had gotten their Destiny Islander mother's darker coloring.

"Do you think anyone there will know who you are?" Sora asked, out of the blue, as Ventus was leaving the highway.

Ventus had wondered that himself a few times. He'd been in Radiant City a lot over the past year, but never near the university campus. Still, while Ventus had managed to avoid tabloids for most of his life, there was still a chance that people would know the heir of X-Blade Industries.

The family company was the largest employer in Radiant City—possibly in all of Departure State, really. Their grandfather Eraqus and his now-ex-husband had founded it decades ago. Then Eraqus's daughter—Ventus's mother—had developed it and pushed it past anyone's expectations. To compound to that, Ventus's father had been a professor at DSU, and his mother had made several significant contributions to the university over the years. That was a lot of connections to remain unnoticed now.

These things, Ventus knew, had all helped his application, even though he had made no mention of them himself. And he expected some of the faculty to recognize him—or at least his name—even if he hadn't seen any of them since his parents' deaths five years ago. But other students? Ventus had no idea how famous he really was. All in all, his existence in Daybreak had remained sheltered—something he'd come to realize during his year interning at the company. Everyone at his high school, and at the company, had known his family basically for as long as Ventus had been alive; he'd never even really met people who didn't know who he was.

Ventus realized he'd been silent for too long when he reached the dorm's parking lot without finding an answer to Sora's question. "I don't know if they'll recognize me," he admitted.

"Do you want them to?"

Ventus glanced at his brother. "What do you mean?"

"Do you want anyone to know who you are? If not, you should already figure out how you're going to introduce yourself."

"Good point," Ventus conceded. He found a spot, and pulled the car to a stop, but he didn't get out immediately. "I don't think I want people to know," he said. "I mean—not everyone. And not immediately. I'm sure people will find out eventually, but I'd like my first contact to be…you know, just me." Why else try to bring about some change in his life?

"I don't know if I'd do that," Sora said. "But it makes sense." He laid back in his seat, casually putting his hands behind his head. "Just don't give them your full name, then. You could have tried to change your looks, if you'd thought about it before, but it's too late for that."

"Any more social advice from my baby brother?" Ventus teased.

"Don't call me that to anyone! Just act like I'm your bro or something!"

"You are my brother, though."

"You know what I mean!"

Ventus chuckled. "I do. And I'm on to you. You're still sixteen, and I'm not letting you pretend to be a college student." He paused, ignoring Sora rolling his yes at him. "Actually, didn't you say Kairi's coming? Then don't get out of my sight until she's here. And if I hear you're doing anything illegal, I will call you my baby brother in front of whoever you're trying to impress. And pull out the baby pictures while I'm at it." With a pointed look, he added, "They're on my cloud. I can get them on my phone anytime."

Sora rolled his eyes with an exasperated groan. "Fine. But you really should trust me more."

Ventus gave him a skeptical look. "Do you want a list of all the reasons I have not to trust you on your own on a college campus?"

"I'm good, thanks." Sora sighed, and Ventus wondered if he wasn't just trying to delay their separation. Maybe, by playing along, Ventus was too.

"Come on," he forced himself to say. "We've got bags to unload. I'll let you carry the heavier ones, if you're so desperate to show off."

It took some time for Ventus and Sora to find the way to Ventus's assigned dorm room. And sure, most of that was Ventus's fault, since he'd forgotten to print out a campus map, or to memorize the name of the dorm he'd been assigned—although really, he should have remembered the name "King Mickey Mouse Residence", since it was pretty unique. And while he actually knew which room was his—room 7M—it turns out that the Mickey Mouse Residence's layout was a little less straightforward than he'd assumed. Rooms were organized in clusters of three, each cluster accessible via a different elevator shaft.

When they finally made it to the seventh floor of the fifth cluster, they'd been wandering around the campus for a good twenty minutes. With the afternoon summer weather beating down on them and their heavy load of Ventus's three bags and two suitcases, both Ventus and Sora were exhausted.

The dorm room was open by the time they arrived. Upon hearing he ruckus they made carrying all of Ventus's luggage out of the elevator, a young man came out.

"Hey! You guys need a hand?"

Ventus looked up at him—literally up. He towered over Ventus, easily a foot taller, and his build was equally massive. His brown hair was pulled back in a short, messy ponytail, though more than a few locks had escaped and stuck out at odd angles around his face, and he wore baggy, beige sweatpants and a grey T-shirt that hugged every muscle of his chest.

"Um—" Ventus found himself fumbling for words, feeling self-conscious in his sorry, sweaty state compared to the man's relaxed look. "Yeah, thanks. I'm in 7M. Are you the…um, the RA or something?"

"What? No, I'm—well, I'm your roommate, I guess. Here, let me," he said, reaching for Ventus's duffel bag. Ventus couldn't help but freeze when his fingers brushed against his shoulders, but he didn't seem to notice. "Name's Terra. I'm a senior."

"Oh. Oh, okay. I'm—I'm a freshman." Ventus had always expected his roommate would be his age. He'd even gone so far as to picture himself in a coming of age story, where he and his roommates became inseparable best friends over the course of four years of college. "My name is…" He paused, remembering his talk with Sora in the parking lot. Ventus was a distinctive first name; even if he managed to keep his last name under wraps, it would give him away. He glanced back at his brother, who shrugged apologetically. "My name's Ven," he finally settled on. No one had called him Ven since his mother, and it was weird to say the diminutive out loud, but he'd always liked it.

"Nice to meet you, Ven. But you guys should come on inside—I feel bad for you guys, carrying all that stuff."

Ventus gratefully followed him inside. When he finally laid down his bag and put his suitcase down, he let out a massive sigh of relief.

The room was bigger than he'd expected, which was probably just as well given how much he'd brought with him. There were two single beds, one on each side of the room, each with a nightstand and a desk at the foot of the bed. At the end of the room, on either side, were doors to walk-in closets—not huge, but big enough considering they wouldn't have to share. Near the entrance was a widescreen television and a couch across from it. No private bathroom—these were shared by cluster. Then again, with just three room per cluster, it wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

It was, as he'd known it would be, a step down from home, but it was nicer than he'd expected. Ventus idly wondered if the DSU faculty had assigned him to a dorm usually reserved for older, more prestige students. His roommate's age certainly seemed to point that way.

Sora introduced himself while Ventus looked around the room (as just "Ven's brother", Ventus noted, omitting the 'younger' part), and Terra took out soda cans out of a minifridge by his bed for all three of them. Ventus noted that Terra had already picked the bed on the left side of the room, and wondered if that meant anything—but then again, he didn't care about which bed was his, so he didn't comment on it.

"So, any idea what you're majoring into, Ven?" Terra asked as they sat on their respective beds, Sora by Ventus's side.

"No idea yet," he admitted. "I've got family pressure to go into business, but I'm not in any rush to decide." True enough, without the important detail that "family pressure" was his grandfather intending for him to take control a billion-dollars company.

"Business, huh? Yeah, I've been there. Though I switched to criminology before it was too late."

"Criminology?" Sora asked. "That sounds so cool!"

Terra chuckled. "Yeah, I guess it does. Business just wasn't for me, I guess. It felt like chasing a dream, you know? Ultimately you won't succeed in business because of what you learned. It's a lot more about luck and connections."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Ventus said, trying to remain noncommittal. 'Luck and connections' weren't really an issue for him. And truth be told, he really had no idea what he wanted to do; business sounded like just as good an option to try as anything else. "I still have time to…look for myself." He chuckled nervously. "That sounded less cliché in my head."

Terra, however, laughed heartily. "You're allowed to be cliché. They exist for a reason."

A buzz distracted Ventus, and he turned to Sora, who had taken his phone out again. "It's Riku," he said. "They're waiting for me outside."

Ventus couldn't help it—he stood up immediately. "I'll walk you out." Both to keep an eye on his brother, and, to be honest, so he could say goodbye to him without Terra watching. "See you later, Terra?"

Terra nodded, raising his soda can as if in cheers. "I can help you unpack when you come back, if you want. I'm done with most of my stuff."

The offer took Ventus aback, but Sora was already rushing to the elevator, so he had no time to ponder it. "Um…sure, I guess. Later."

In the lobby of the King Mickey Mouse Residence, Sora paused, and turned back to Ventus with teary eyes. It was only then that Ventus realized his brother probably wanted some privacy to say goodbye as well.

"I can't believe this is it," Sora said, his voice cracking a little.

"I'm still really close," Ventus said, reaching out to cup his brother's cheek. "If you need anything—"

"I know, I know. It's just not gonna be the same thing without you at home."

"You still have Roxas."

"But Grandpa will be the one making all the rules."

Ventus couldn't help but sigh with commiseration. "He probably won't do anything differently from when I was around. And if he does change, and you think it's not working out—" Ventus shook his head. Legally, he had no recourse—Eraqus was still the twins' legal guardian for two years, and Ventus doubted he'd cross any line that would make him lose custody. Their grandfather was severe, not abusive or negligent. "Just call. I can talk to him. Or you can at least vent at me. All right?"

Sora nodded slowly, but a few tears ran down his cheeks nonetheless. "I'm still gonna miss you."

Ventus couldn't help but feel his heart break. He pulled his brother in a tight hug. "Me too, buddy. Me too." He was pretty sure he was crying a little himself.

They stayed like this, until Sora's phone buzzed again and he pulled away like he'd been burned. He hastily wiped his face, trying to regain his composure. "Um. Thanks for the ride and everything."

Ventus smiled back at him. "Have fun. And please, stay out of trouble."

Sora chuckled. "Yes, Dad," he teased.

He walked out the residence at a brisk pace, and through the glass door, Ventus saw him meet up with his best friends, Riku and Kairi. He considered going out himself to greet them, but decided against it. He and Sora had just said goodbye—he didn't want to ruin that by forcing his presence on his friends. There would be plenty of occasions to see them again.

Turning back, he saw his elevator's doors were about to close, and ran towards it. "Hey! Hold the elevator!" he called out, and to his relief, the doors reopened.

There was only one person inside, and his looks gave Ventus pause. He was the same height as Ventus, and looked about the same age, too, but that was the end of their common ground. The boy's hair was jet black, and styled in messy, yet evidently controlled spikes. Two rings were pierced into the arch of his right eyebrow, three more in the cartilage of his right ear and another one in the lobe of his left; and there was a stud pierced into his left nostril, and another below his lower lip. A black, tribal motif was tattooed on his face, along his jawline on both sides and clawing up to his cheekbones, crawling down the left side of his neck and below his collar.

Ventus couldn't help but stare. He's never seen someone with tattoos or piercings before—not in the homogenous, upper-class suburb where he lived, and definitely not working at the X-Blade Industries offices. It looked strange to him, but an intriguing sort of strange. The piercings marked his his features, the tattoo framed the sleek shape of his jaw, highlighting his handsome looks.

The boy raised his pierced eyebrow, and Ventus realized he'd been staring.

"Um—thanks for holding the door."

A half-grin formed on the boy's lips. "Are you gonna tell me which floor you're on?"

"Oh, right. Um. Seventh floor."

"Really? Me too."

Ventus's eyes drifted to the elevator's buttons, and took in that indeed, the number seven was already lit up. "Oh. Um, okay."

The boy let out a chuckle. "Don't worry about staring. It happens a lot." Ventus turned back to him, and felt himself blushing. "At least you have the decency to feel bad about it."

"I'm sorry," Ventus mumbled. "You look great, it's just…I've never met anyone like you back home."

"Never heard that from your type of good boy," the boy teased, his grin widening. "You're lucky you're cute yourself."

Ventus was pretty sure his entire skin was going to permanently turn red at this rate. It wouldn't be his fault, if the second attractive guy he met at college started to flirt with him. "Heh. Thanks."

He managed to wait all of three seconds before looking at the boy some more. He wore a black leather jacket, with a red t-shirt underneath, which was taut over defined muscles. His jeans were made of dark grey denim, and skinny enough to reveal the exact shape of his legs—as well as a defined bulge between them. Ventus quickly looked away, clearing his throat in embarrassment that he'd even looked. The boy's chuckle let him know he hadn't been stealthy in the least. "You checking me out?"

Mercifully, the elevator doors opened, absolving Ventus from having to answer. He stepped out of the elevator, but just as he opened the door to his room, the boy brushed past him from behind. "See you around, 7M."