Grandmother Rose turned down a paved road that led to a tall, brass gate with the gold-encrypted letters "GR" in the middle. She pushed a button on the call box and waited for the gate to open. She then drove up the winding drive and helped Riley unload her luggage and get it to the door. Luckily, she only had one bag, but it was filled to capacity.

"Guess this is good-bye," Riley said, putting down her duffel to hug her grandmother.

"Oh, not for long, Riley. Thanksgiving is nearly here and before you know it, Christmas will be too!" Grandmother Rose said back as she hugged Riley, "I think you'll make many friends here." Giving a small wink, she climbed into her Sedan and drove away, leaving Riley with a suspicious feeling. Shrugging it off, Riley threw her bag onto her back and walked through the heavy wooden doors, feeling extremely out of place. The entrance hall felt like a palace compared to her own home and she looked around in amazement. On her right was a few reception and secretary rooms and two doors down on her left was Headmaster Pinely's office. She quietly approached it and knocked. From inside came a male voice, "Come in." Riley shyly did so and looked into the face of her Headmaster for the next year. He looked up from a book he was reviewing and closed it with a smile.

"Ah, you must be Ms. Brown," he concluded.

Riley nodded and extended her hand, "I'd prefer Riley, please sir."

He shook her hand in respect, "Good handshake. Very firm. A rare find in a woman."

Her eyes slightly narrowed at his, in her opinion, very rude comment. But nevertheless she answered him politely, "Thank you, Headmaster Pinely. Do you know what room I will be staying in this term?" He nodded and pulled a key from one of his drawers, handing it to her.

"It's on the fourth floor in the North Tower," he explained. "The elevator is right outside my office."

Riley thanked him and showed herself out, pushing the glowing "4" in the elevator panel. She rode up, thinking that this whole boarding school deal might not be all that bad. But she had yet to make a friend. Once the lift doors opened fully, she scanned her surroundings in yet more amazement. There was a hall covered in red carpet that wrapped around an atrium, overlooking the ground floor. But something was missing; people. She hadn't seen anyone besides Headmaster Pinely since she had arrived and no one was roaming the dorms except her. She tucked that thought away and followed the hall around until she reached the North Tower and a door reading "Room 432-North Tower". Riley unlocked it with her key and entered her room.

It was spacious and a lot different than she expected. There was a bed in the corner, a desk beside it, and an armoire next to the bathroom entrance. The whole room was decorated in an English motif, resembling a bed chamber of someone royal. The bed was even a four-poster.

Riley sat heavily on her bed and let her bag drop to the floor. She took it all in in one breath and sigh.

"Well, I hope Grandma Rose is right, because I haven't met one friend yet," she said aloud sadly.

For the next hour or two, Riley unpacked and settled herself in for a year of boarding school. She went into the bathroom and changed into some jeans and a T-shirt. Picking up the hair spray she had set on the counter, she began to style and set her dirty blonde hair into curls.

Suddenly, a door on the other side of the bathroom opened and a guy about Riley's age walked in. She pointed the hair spray at him in alarm.

"Who are you?" She yelped.

He put his hands up to block any spray that came towards him, "Whoa there! Let's not get hostile now." Riley slowly lowered her defense, but cautiously. "Who are you?" she repeated suspiciously.

He eyed her in amusement, smirking, "Ben Bonnely. And you?"

"Riley."

"Do you have a last name?" he half laughed.

"Oh, um, Brown," Riley answered, a little embarrassed.

"Why are you here?" he asked curiously.

Riley looked at him, "Um, for…boarding school?"

He laughed and smiled. Riley noted his smile; it was gorgeous. She grinned at this thought.

"I'll see you around Riley," Ben said goodbye.

"Wait!"

He turned around, eyebrows rose. "Are you-staying next door?" she questioned. Ben nodded, "Room 431-North Tower; that's me."

"Oh, ok, um, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," she said.

Ben laughed, "Right. Tomorrow." He exited the bathroom and shut the door. Riley set her hair spray down on the counter and went back into her room. Gram never said this was a co-ed boarding school, she thought to herself, Actually, she never said anything about this school. All she ever told me was that it was called Grove Ridge Boarding School. Tucking away that thought too, Riley drifted off to