As Lexa followed her new roommate into the cafeteria, her stomach was tight with nervousness. So far, Arkadia had been the fresh start she was looking for, but there was still a chance that she could mess things up. Clarke was kind, just like Lexa had hoped, but deep down, she feared it was only a matter of time before that changed.
"So what are you feeling?" Clarke asked, snapping Lexa out of her thoughts.
"What?" Lexa asked.
"For food. What kind do you want? We've got a wide variety here."
"Oh," Lexa responded awkwardly. "I'll just take whatever you have."
"Okay," Clarke answered cheerfully as she pushed the door open.
The cafeteria was a huge room filled with large, rectangular tables spread about with a buffet in the back behind a counter. Students were milling about and eating, but it wasn't crowded. Lexa assumed it would be more so once the semester started. Her nose was overwhelmed by the smell of food, but once she got used to it, it wasn't so bad.
"Do you smell that?" Clarke asked excitedly. "They have pizza!"
Lexa chuckled softly as her new roommate darted towards the back. She followed after, her stomach rumbling. She grabbed a plate and placed two slices of cheese pizza on it, copying Clarke. "They have amazing queso here," the blonde informed her as she piled corn chips onto both their plates. "You need to try it."
Lexa laughed. "Alright," she agreed.
Clarke smiled happily as she handed her a cup and poured the queso in. After getting some for herself, she led Lexa to the salad bar. Lexa piled salad onto a separate plate, then followed Clarke to the cashier.
After paying, Clarke navigated her way towards a table in the corner. Three boys and two girls were already sitting down. Clarke sat next to a tanned boy with dark hair, and Lexa sat on the other side of her.
"Bellamy!" Clarke exclaimed. "You've gotten so tan!"
Bellamy chuckled. "Yeah. It's those Filipino genes I guess."
"This is my new roommate, Lexa," Clarke announced, motioning to her. Lexa smiled and waved awkwardly.
"Hey, Lexa," Bellamy greeted with a happy smile. "Nice to meet you."
"Likewise," she replied.
"This is John," Bellamy said, motioning to the brown-haired boy sitting next to him, who had food stuffed into his mouth. "Across from him is Nyko. Hey Nyko, you know No-Shave-November isn't for a few months, right?"
Nyko just grinned and stroked his beard. "Hi, Lexa."
"And that's Harper and Zoe," Bellamy finished, motioning towards the two girls across from her.
"I'm Zoe," said the girl with plaiter braids. "Harper's this one."
"Nice to meet you," Lexa replied.
"Oh, there's Monty," Harper announced.
A young Asian boy sat next to Lexa. "Monty Green," he introduced himself. "You must be Clarke's roommate."
"Yes," Lexa answered.
"This is Jasper," he said, pointing to the boy sitting next to him.
"Hey Bell, did your sister already take off?" Clarke asked.
"Yeah, they all went to see some action movie," he responded.
"Octavia and Raven share a bathroom with us," Clarke explained to Lexa. "So we'll be seeing a lot more of them later."
Surrounded by Clarke's friends, Lexa felt herself growing more anxious. She nibbled at her pizza, but she didn't have much of an appetite. She listened quietly as Clarke jabbered on, trying her best not to stare. Clarke was really quite pretty- dangerously so. In her head, she could still remember Ontari snarling "lesbian freak" and "stupid dyke" into her face. Ever since the incident between Lexa and Ontari's step-mother, the other girl had done her best to make her life hell; not that Lexa could blame her.
"There's Nathan and Bryan," Clarke observed.
"More friends of yours?" Lexa asked, looking where she was pointing. When she found them, her eyes grew wide. She coughed quickly, trying to cover her surprise. Across the room, the two boys were holding hands without fear of judgement; not that anyone in the room was paying any attention. "They're a cute couple," Lexa said.
"I know, right?" Harper exclaimed. "I remember it took me months before I was finally able to set them up."
"They still owe you for that," Jasper commented.
Feeling a little more at ease, Lexa took larger bites until her pizza was gone. Noticing her empty plate, Clarke asked, "Do you want to go back?"
Lexa nodded gratefully. Clarke turned to her friends and announced. "Lexa and I are heading back now. We'll see you in the morning."
The two girls walked away, followed by choruses of goodbyes. "That wasn't too overwhelming, was it?" Clarke asked as soon as they were outside.
"Not at all," Lexa replied. "Your friends seem nice."
"They are," Clarke said. "I just want you to feel comfortable."
Lexa smiled at her new roommate. "I do. Thank you."
Late that night, Lexa climbed out of the shower and wrapped herself in a soft, white towel. Drops of water fell from her hair and dripped onto the tile as she opened the door to the shower and walked into the main bathroom. Another girl with brown hair was standing at the mirror, wiping eyeshadow away with a cotton pad.
"You must be the new girl," she said, smiling. "I'm Octavia Blake."
"L-lexa Heda," Lexa stuttered awkwardly. "I just- uh- left my clothes out here."
"No worries," Octavia replied. "I'll be out of your way in a second. Why don't you come to our dorm once you're dressed? Clarke's already there."
Lexa agreed, and Octavia tossed the cotton pad into the trash and left. Quickly, Lexa got dressed into a plain black tank and grey sweatpants and threw her hair up into a messy bun. Her heart began to beat faster at the idea of going into the other girl's dorm. It had been a long time since she had tried making friends, and she wasn't sure if she remembered how. Still, she pushed back her nerves and opened the door with shaky hands.
Clarke and Ovtavia were sitting on the bed on the opposite side of the room, laughing together. When she saw Lexa, Clarke's eyes lit up. "Lexa! Glad you could join us," she said.
"You can sit here, if you want."
Lexa turned to see who had spoken. On the bed closest to her sat a dark-haired girl with a knee brace. The other girl shifted over, making room for Lexa. Timidly, she sat.
"My name's Raven," the other girl introduced herself.
"Lexa," she replied.
"Clarke tells me you're from Polis," Octavia piped up. "I've always wanted to go. Lincoln promised he would take me one day. Is it nice there?"
Lexa fought back a grimace as she remembered the cold glares of the people she passed on the streets. "The city is nice," she answered carefully.
"Do you miss it?" Raven asked.
"No," Lexa answered a little too quickly.
The other three girls stared at her in surprise. "Not even a little?" Clarke asked. "Not even your family?"
"I miss Anya and Gustus," she admitted.
"Who are they?" the blonde questioned.
"My aunt and uncle," Lexa explained. "They pretty much raised me."
"What happened to your parents?" Raven questioned.
Lexa swallowed hard. "They died when I was young," she said softly. She stared down at the floor. Her hands made fists around Raven's green sheets.
"I'm so sorry," Clarke replied. "My dad died when I was younger too."
"My mother died giving birth to me," Octavia admitted.
"I never knew my parents," Raven chimed in. "Just dear old foster mom."
Lexa smiled graciously at her new friends. It was good to be around people who understood her for once. She leaned back and examined the room. A pair of crutches was leaning up against the desk where two laptops were placed. She sighed softly. Everything so far about Arkadia had been like the answer to all her prayers. It seemed almost too good to be true, yet Lexa couldn't help but hope that she'd finally found a place to be safe.