AN: First of all I want to thank a very special user and friend, Lnaccari, who has been helping me with grammar and logic issues so that certain aspects of the story make sense in comparison to real life.

Secondly, thank you to everyone who has been reading and leaving a review, and to everyone who has been adding this story to your favourites and alerts subscriptions. It means a lot and it helps me write :)

CHAPTER 5

It was around 8 P.M. when the three girls finished eating their dinner, followed by dessert. They had already gotten to the part of the movie where most of the action starts to happen. Sara was watching with an amused grin on her face even though she already knew how the story would unfold, while Zari had her mouth hanged open in surprise and shock. As for Ava, well, Ava was just trying to tell herself that it was all a work of fiction and that she shouldn't be that scared, but the truth was that every time some more violent or gory scene would start she would shut her eyes immediately or cover them with her right hand, while her other hand would end up gripping the blanket that was now covering her and the other girls, seeing as the weather at night had become slightly chiller.

The movie was about to get to a crucial scene when suddenly the doorbell rings for the second time that night.

Ava jumps at the sound and swears loud enough for Sara and Zari to hear. The brunette looks at her surprised and says, "Relax Ava, it's probably just Amaya," she adds smirking, getting up to answer the door.

The blonde feels her cheeks redden right away and hides herself a bit under the blanket in frustration, letting out a groan. Sara laughs at the whole scene beside her, grabbing the soft fabric and bringing it down so she can look Ava in the eye, "You literally jumped at the sound," she says with mirth.

The taller blonde glares at her for a few seconds before her face turns into a pout, "It's not my fault that movie is filled with jump scares," she whines, pointing at the TV.

Sara can't help but find the whole ordeal cute and laughs softly at her roommate, "You haven't even been watching most of it. Don't think I didn't see you cover your eyes," she says, teasing the other blonde.

Ava gapes at her and was about to retort when Zari returns to the living room with Amaya hand in hand.

"Hey girls," Amaya greets waving her hand, "Sorry if I scared you but I forgot my keys so I had no choice but to ring."

Sara smiles up at her, "Don't worry, it's not your fault Ava is apparently a scaredy-cat when it comes to horror."

The blonde scoffs at the remark, "Hey! I'm not! I was just too focused on the movie that's all," she ends up saying and it sounds farfetched even to her own ears.

"Sure," Zari adds with a smirk which earns her a light slap on the arm by her girlfriend. She mouths a quiet "what?" and Amaya simply shakes her head smiling. She makes her way over to the armchair next to the couch and sits down, sighing softly.

"It's good to finally be home," she says, motioning for Zari to sit on her lap which the brunette gladly does, circling her arms around her neck and planting a kiss on her forehead.

"Welcome by the way, Ava," she adds, turning her attention to the blonde, "I hope these two have been treating you well, despite the teasing."

"Thanks Amaya, no complaints so far," she answers smiling, "So, you and Zari live here together?"

"We do yes, we decided we should get our own apartment when we were still in high school and we finally did it after we graduated."

"And your parents are okay with it?" Ava asks, a mix of surprise and curiosity.

Amaya turns her attention back to her girlfriend, who's looking at her with a serious expression on her face. They stare at each other for a couple of seconds before Zari nods slowly.

The girl turns to Ava once again, "Our families weren't exactly big fans of us dating each other, they even tried to keep us apart for a while," she says, tracing small patterns on her girlfriend's thigh to comfort her before she continues, "So we thought that once we got to college it would be good to get a place so we could be together everyday without having people telling us that what we're doing is wrong."

Zari looks down and her grip on her girlfriend tightens, which doesn't go unnoticed by Ava. She ponders for a while, at how it must feel to have someone telling you that love is wrong. It has got to feel awful and she suddenly feels a sadness inside her that she can't quite pinpoint where it is coming from, but she thinks it is probably due to empathy for the both girls.

She smiles at Amaya and says, "I'm sorry you had to go through that, but I'm glad that now you can be with one another just the way you always wanted to."

Zari looks up at her, surprised at the kind words from a girl who's practically a stranger to her, but her face quickly turns into a soft smile, "Thank you Ava," she says, and then turns to Sara, adding, "You got lucky with your roommate Lance, I hope you realize that."

Sara looks at Ava with a smile on her lips, "I do," she says softly, "But hey, Aves got lucky too."

"Aves? Already at nicknames?" The brunette asks and Amaya gives her a look that Zari knows translates to "shut up".

"Yeah..." Sara says, a bit unsure of herself, "I didn't think... I mean... Do you mind?" She asks suddenly a bit nervous, turning to Ava.

The taller blonde blushes but doesn't look away from her roommate's gaze, "No... I actually like the sound of it," she admits shyly, biting her bottom lip.

"Aw isn't that sweet?" Zari teases, earning another light smack from Amaya.

"Shut it Zari," Sara tells her, a faint blush on her cheeks while the brunette holds up her hands in surrender, a smirk on her lips.

"Can we just watch the rest of the movie?" The smaller blonde asks, pointing to the TV with the remote in her hand.

"Sure," Zari tells her, getting up from her girlfriend's lap, "We saved you some pizza babe," she tells her, "Pepperoni, your favourite."

"Thanks love," Amaya answers, smiling and leaning in for a light kiss on the brunette's lips before making her way to the kitchen.

"Do you wanna watch it with us Maya?" Sara asks her friend, turning around on the couch to look at her.

"I already watched it when it came out but sure, I don't mind watching it again with you girls," she tells her, grabbing the pizza and some water before making her way back to the armchair.

After the movie ended, they simply hung out talking about what they thought of it and the conversation eventually followed into other subjects like their classes, until they got to some childhood stories.

"And then I landed flat on my ass!" Sara finishes, talking about the time she miscalculated and instead of kicking a soccer ball she kicked the air and slipped, which made her fall hard on the ground. Ava was now laughing hard, she even wiped a few tears from her eyes, "Oh my Gosh Sara that must have hurt as hell!"

The smaller blonde shrugs her shoulders and waves it off with her right hand, "Nah, it wasn't that bad."

Zari scoffs at what her best friend just said, "Excuse me? You couldn't walk straight for at least two weeks and you even had a massive bruise to prove it," the brunette finishes chuckling.

Sara scowls at her slightly, "First of all, straight was never my style and we both know it," she states with a smug smirk, "And secondly, it wasn't that big of a bruise."

"No, it just covered both of your butt cheeks," Amaya adds with a knowing smile, earning herself a high five from her girlfriend and more laughter from Ava.

"I can't believe you two!" Sara scolds at her friends, shaking her head, "You're totally embarrassing me," she groans, covering her red face with both her hands.

Ava chuckles beside her, placing a hand gently on her roommate's shoulder, "Come on Sara, now we're even," she says, waiting for the girl to look at her. When she does she has a puzzled look on her face, "What do you mean?"

"Remember? When I told you about that time I kicked a ball right to my teammate's face?"

Sara's face turns into a smile at that and then she laughs at Amaya and Zari's reactions.

"You did what?!"

"How the hell did that happen?"

Ava shrugs and smiles sheepishly, "I'm just that bad at soccer, that's how."

"Hm, maybe you didn't have the right training Aves," Sara says affectionally and a blush makes its way to the taller blonde's cheeks.

"Are you offering to teach her Sara?" Zari asks her with amusement in her voice.

Sara looks at her and shrugs her shoulders, "Why not? I'm always up for anything that has to do with soccer," she says nonchalantly.

"No need to waste your time teaching me Sara, seriously, I'm really not cut out for that particular sport."

Her roommate stares at her for a while, a thoughtful expression on her face. She eventually decides not to pressure the matter anymore.

"Alright, but you still have to come and watch a game of ours," she tells Ava. She then grabs her phone from her pocket to check the time.

"We should probably go," she suggests looking back at the blonde, "It's getting late and I have classes in the morning. What do you say Ava?"

The girl nods, "Yeah I'm kinda tired to be honest," she answers, looking up to Zari and Amaya apologetically, "Not that I'm not enjoying hanging out with you girls."

Amaya smiles softly at her, "Don't worry about that Ava, we understand," she says, trying to leave the girl at ease, "You are welcome here anytime."

After that both blondes say their goodbyes and walk out the door. A couple of steps through the building hallway and they find themselves in front of the elevator once again.

Sara turns her head to look at Ava, "You okay?" She asks, tilting her head to the metal doors. Ava gives her a small smile, "Yeah," she nods, "I think it will be easier now."

A big, genuine smile makes its way to Sara's face, "Great," she tells her, pressing the lift button, "I can still hold your hand if you want me to," she adds.

Ava seems to consider it for a while, her eyes locked to Sara's bright blues. She likes the fact that all she sees in them at that moment is genuine concern. She eventually nods her head, "Maybe it's for the best... Just to be sure you know?" She adds, biting her bottom lip and casting her gaze down.

They hear the ping of the elevator signalling its arrival and Sara takes Ava's hand in hers. She tugs once again on it, "Let's go then," she tells her softly and her roommate follows immediately after her, this time feeling way more confident and safer than the first time.

When they are inside and the elevator starts to move down, Ava looks at her and whispers a small thank you, squeezing Sara's warm and comforting hand.

"You're welcome Aves," the smaller blonde says back and Ava feels her chest flutter at the fondness in the way that Sara says the nickname.

"You know," she starts, pausing to gather some more courage that night, "I believe no one ever called me by that before," she admits, and her heart is suddenly beating faster.

Sara snaps her head at her, a puzzled look on her face, "What?! Aves? Not even your family?" She asks surprised.

Ava nods quickly, turning to look back at her, "Mhm-hm..." she mutters, her cheeks getting warm, "They have called me other things, but never Aves."

"Oh, I see," Sara answers, going silent for a couple of seconds before saying, "Do you really don't mind it though? Me calling you that... Because if it bothers you I totally understand and I'll stop it right away," she says, her voice coming out in a rush.

"Not at all..." Ava confesses and the freckled girl can tell she is being honest, "Like I said back at Zari and Amaya's house, I like it," the taller blonde adds, feeling a blush make its way to her face. The realization of it makes her blush even harder and she moves her eyes away from Sara's.

"Okay then, Aves it is," Sara states, a happy smile in her lips, "Don't mind about what Zari said by the way, she is always teasing everyone; especially people she likes."

Upon hearing that, Ava moves her head up to look at Sara again, "Do you really think she likes me? She doesn't even know me that well, not even you know me that well yet."

"Of course she does!"

The taller blonde smiles sheepishly at hearing her roommate's words, but she's still not totally convinced, "How can you be so sure?"

"Because she invited you along tonight. Trust me, I've known her for years and it's not everyone that gets to hang out at her house. Besides, she's a very good judge of character."

Ava nods at that and both girls don't say anything more until the rest of the ride.

Once they get to their dorm room, they let their things by the door, change quickly into their pyjamas, take turns using the bathroom and then finally lay down on their respective beds, each one turning the lights off on their bedside tables.

They both lay on their sides, facing one another. Sara already has her eyes closed and is almost falling asleep when she hears Ava's voice directed to her.

"Sara? You still awake?" The blonde whispers.

"Yeah," Sara whispers back, her voice clearly laced with sleep, "You okay?"

Ava nods even though her roommate can't see her in the dark.

After a couple of seconds the taller blonde speaks again, "I just wanted to thank you."

Sara awakens a bit at hearing the girl's sudden words and opens her eyes, her face one of surprise, "What for?"

Ava shrugs her shoulders, "For... For making all of this easier."

"What do you mean?"

"You know, starting college, having to call this dorm room my new home."

Now it's Sara's turn to shrug, "I get it, change is never easy. No need to thank me though, I'm just fulfilling my duty as a roommate," she teases, earning a chuckle from Ava."

A shy smile makes its way to the taller blonde's face, "We both know there's no such thing, you are in no obligation to be nice to me."

"I know, I was just messing with you. The truth is, why not help each other out right? College is already hard enough on its own and I always told myself that once I got here I would be nice to whomever I got paired up with as my roommate. With that said, you can rely on me anytime Aves."

"That actually makes a lot of sense," Ava answers, smiling softly, "Thank you Sara... And I'm here for you as well."

"Good to know," her roommate says, smirking, "Now if you don't mind, I really need my beauty sleep. This face just doesn't happen on its own," she adds, earning a small chuckle from Ava.

Ava wakes up in the morning to an annoying sound that she realizes can only be an alarm going off. She grabs her sheets and covers her head, trying to muffle out the sound, "Sara!" She calls from under the sheets, "Can you turn that thing off?!"

A couple of seconds later and the room is once again quiet, making Ava sigh happily at that, "Thanks," she mumbles, her voice thick with sleep.

She hears the other girl laugh softly and walk around the room, "Sorry, I have a class in an hour and a half. I thought you had to get up as well," she says, trying to keep her voice as low and as soft as possible to not disturb Ava. She gets a muffled nope in response from the girl's bed.

"Lucky you," she whispers, sighing before walking to the bathroom to get ready for the day. It takes her about thirty minutes between showering, brushing her teeth, dressing and arranging her hair before she's back into the room. She steps closer to Ava's bed to let her know she is leaving when she glances at the girl's phone on top of her bedside table and notices the screen lighting up.

"Ava," she says, trying to get her attention. When she gets only a grunt in response, she decides to insist. She places her left hand on the blonde's shoulder and shakes gently, "Come on sleepyhead, someone is trying to call you on your phone. You should probably get it."

After hearing that, Ava reluctantly gets out from under the sheets and grabs her phone to check who the caller might be. She sits up and runs a hand through her hair, frowning upon seeing the name. She slides to unlock her screen and presses the call button. While she waits for the other person to pick up Sara takes the chance to speak, "I'm just gonna go now, I'll see you later okay?"

Ava covers the phone with her left hand and moves it slightly away from her ear to answer her roommate, "Yeah, have a good day Sara," she tells her softly, her voice still a bit raspier than usual due to sleep, which earns her a small smile from the blonde who's out the door in a couple of seconds, not wanting to eavesdrop on the conversation.

Once Sara is gone Ava presses the phone back to her ear and in a matter of seconds the other person picks it up.

"Oh Ava, sweetie, thank God you called."

"Mom, you called me, remember?" Ava says, the frown back to her face, "Is something wrong?"

She hears her mother sigh from the other side of the line, "I'm sorry to be bothering you this early in the morning, but it's just..."

"Mom, can you just spit it out please? You're scaring me..."

She hears some noises and her mother talking to someone else, even though she can't figure out what she's saying. After a minute her mother turns to her again.

"It's Caleb, honey, he's having one of those days and I didn't know what else to do but to call you. You always know the right thing to say."

Ava tugs on her bottom lip, exhaling to prepare herself before making her decision, "Okay mom, you can put him on."

She hears some rustling before a boy's voice greets her, "Ava!"

"Hey buddy," she greets back, a soft smile tugging at her lips, "What's going on?"

"Mom says I have to go to school but I don't want to..."

Ava sighs upon hearing the child's voice. She ponders for a couple of seconds on what to say.

"Caleb... We've talked about this before, you know it's important to go to school so you can learn new things."

"I know that Ava... But I don't wanna go if you're not here. I want you to take me to school like you used to do!"

Ava's free hand goes up to the bridge of her nose and she pinches it softly, trying to manage the stress she's starting to feel taking over her.

"Buddy, you knew things would be different once I started college. We talked about this, mom is going to be the one to take you to school from now on."

After the words leave her mouth, she can already imagine the boy's face turning into a pout and when he speaks again, her suspicions are unfortunately right.

"But it isn't the same thing Ava!" She hears him whine, "It has to be you!"

"Caleb, come on, you know you can do it honey," she tells him, trying her best to be encouraging, "Remember what we talked about before I left? I told you that the fact that you were able to go to school was all thanks to you. Because you are strong and brave! I was just there to keep you some company."

There's a pause on the other end of the line, and Ava tugs on her bottom lip, trying to keep her anxiety at bay.

"Do you really think I'm strong and brave?"

A smile breaks on Ava's face before she speaks, "Absolutely! In fact, I'm going to let you in on a little secret; you are the strongest and the bravest person I know."

The little boy laughs on the other side, "No way, you are, Ava!"

"Nah-ahn! Not a chance! You totally outrank me."

Caleb chuckles at that but when he speaks again is voice is a bit more serious, "I still miss you..."

Ava swallows the lump forming in her throat before answering her little brother, "I miss you too buddy... I'll tell you what, let's make a deal! If you want to, you can call me everyday after school is over."

"But what if you're busy? Or what if you don't wanna pick up and talk to me?"

"Caleb...I always wanna talk to you, I promise. You're my little brother, I love you."

"But you still might be busy..."

"Listen, if I can't pick up the phone right away, I will send a text letting you know. Deal?"

"Deal!" The boy answers and there's silence between them after that, where Ava can only hear some rustling and then a female voice in the background.

"I have to hand back the phone to mom now... But we will talk later right Ava?"

"Of course buddy, have a good day!"

"Thanks, you too! Bye now..." She hears her brother say and then her mother is back on the phone with her, "Hey sweetie! Thank you so much for talking to Caleb, I knew you could help."

"Mom you don't have to thank me he's my little brother, you know I'm always here for him."

"I know honey, you're such a great sister."

"Well he's a great brother," Ava says shrugging her shoulders instinctively as if her mother were able to see it, "Anyway, you should probably hurry up and take him to school, you know how he feels when he's late for something."

She hears her mother chuckle softly at that, "Yes, well, he definitely takes after you!"

"Mom..."

"I can't wait for the weekend honey, so you can tell us how your first week is going. I'm sure you have a lot to tell us. Have a good day Ava!"

"Thanks mom, you too! And say hello to dad for me!"

"I will sweetheart, don't worry. Take care."

Once the call is over, the blonde clutches her phone to her chest, a bittersweet smile on her face. She thinks of the mornings where she and her brother would walk together to school. How he would excitedly tell her all about the classes he would have that particular day and with each classmates he was starting to get along better. Thinks about how her brother improved so much, from a shy kid who barely talked to anyone to someone who has now at least a couple of close friends. She knows that if this was a few years ago, Caleb would have ended up skipping school due to being too afraid of going without Ava being by his side. She still can't help but feeling a bit guilty for not being as present in his life as before, but it was inevitable. They both knew things were going to change once Ava got to college; it's nobody's fault, and that's what she tries to tell herself from time to time, even if sometimes it's hard to convince herself about it.

After a couple of minutes she decides to stop dwelling on the matter, feeling a headache coming her way. She checks the time on her phone and sees that it's still too early for her to get up so she chooses to sleep a few more hours before having to get ready for her 1 P.M. class. She falls asleep quickly, tiredness taking its toll over her mind and body.

AN: I hope you enjoyed it! I'm already working on the next chapter, so it will probably be posted soon :)