Chapter One
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Nervous, overwhelmed, a little scared, but mostly excited - that's what Garfield was feeling as he arrived at his new college campus.
Garfield didn't have the best experience in high school. He got picked on a lot, didn't have many friends, and wasn't too smooth with the ladies. But he was ready to start anew, now that he was a college man.
He could instantly tell that college wasn't going to be like high school. The energy was different. Hugh school represented conformity. It was like a penitentiary, full of misunderstood teenagers acting out. College, on the other hand, embodied independence, a place where young adults could find themselves.
From the minute Garfield arrived on the campus, it was everything he imagined it would be, people lounging under trees, talking, and laughing to one another, pretty girls walking by him, giving him flirtatious winks and smiles, and guys doing ridiculous stunts either as a dare or to pledge to their fraternity.
Garfield was excited to be a part of it all. With a stuffed to the brim backpack over his shoulders, and a big box of his belongings in his hands, he animatedly headed to his college dorm.
It took him a while to find the right place. Directions were never his strong suit, but he did eventually find his dorm room. Upon entering the room, Garfield could see his new roommate had already made himself at home. The whole right side of the room was covered with sports memorabilia, posters, trophies, and medals.
Garfield started to get a little nervous. A jock for a roommate wasn't exactly what he was hoping for. In high school, most of the bullies that picked on him were athletes and the idea of having one as a roommate was met with visions of 24-hour swirlies and middle of the night wedgies.
"Hey, Roomie." Garfield heard from behind him, and he quickly jumped in response.
"Dude!" He yelled, quickly turning to who he could only assume to be his new roommate.
He was very tall with darker skin. He wore a gray hoodie with the school's logo on it. Regardless of the large hoodie, you could still see his big muscular body that would accompany an athlete.
He let out a small chuckle as he looked down at Garfield. "A little jumpy, are we?" He said playfully. "Here, let me help you with that." He said, and to Garfield's surprise, the man took the heavy box out of his hands.
"Um… thanks." Garfield said wearily, taken aback by the unexpected kindness.
The man put the box down and turned back to Garfield. With a friendly smile, he held out his hand to shake. "The name's Victor, but you can call me Vic."
"Garfield." He acknowledged. "But you can call me Gar." He said, shaking his hand before immediately wincing at the strong grip.
Victor chuckled again. "Man, we got to bulk you up. Get some meat on your bones."
Garfield liked the idea of being as big and strong as Victor, but realistically, he knew it was a long shot.
"Dude, that was my controller hand." Garfield complained, cradling his wounded hand.
Victor noticeably looked intrigued. "Really? What do you play?" He asked.
Garfield snickered. "What don't I play?" He said, walking over and opening his large box and proudly revealing a PS5, an Xbox One, a Gameboy, a Switch, and a bunch of games. Everything a boy with dead parents could ask for.
Victor's eyes immediately lit up. "Man, this is awesome!" He said excitedly. "Finally, someone to challenge me." He laughed, slapping his hand on Garfield's back.
Despite wincing at the gesture, Garfield smiled back at Victor. His new roommate really surprised him. Victor genuinely seemed like a good guy. Not only was he kind, but the fact that they shared the same interest in video games made Garfield feel like he really lucked out in the roommate department.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's set it up!" Victor said, eagerly digging in the box and pulling out the PS5.
"You don't have to tell me twice." Garfield said excitedly, grabbing the controllers.
Victor and Garfield were two completely different people. Victor was at the top of the food chain. He was a popular, athletic student that excelled in all academics. While Garfield was at the bottom. He got picked on a lot, he wasn't good at sports, and he struggled academically.
But the one thing they did have in common bonded them as roommates and friends.
...
Garfield's first day of classes wasn't the best experience. He must have reeked of freshmen because he was instantly a target for bullies. He was pushed into walls on his way to class. In class, he got spit balls shot at his head. In the dining hall, he had people cut him in line and was even shoved into a trashcan.
College bullies were like high school bullies, only much worse. High school bullies had their limits. Not only did they have the struggle to avoid getting caught by teachers, but their torment was limited to the school grounds. College, on the other hand, had no limits.
It had been a long day and Garfield was ready to go to his dorm, where he was hopefully safe from the torment. But unfortunately, his plans were brought to a halt as he ran into a couple of frat boys on his way out of the lecture hall.
Board, and looking for a way to express their superiority, the freshman became an instant target as two tall men with tight shirts and fancy hair arrogantly blocked his path.
"Oh, crap." Garfield said, his exhaustion quickly turning to panic.
"What do we have here?" The first boy asked.
"Looks like a freshman." The second answered.
"And you know what we like to do with freshmen?" The first boy asked.
"Look, guys, I don't want any trouble." Garfield said, nervously raising his hands and slowly backing up.
"We like to shove their heads into toilets." The second boy continued.
"Isn't that kind of juvenile?" Garfield asked, still backing up.
"Juvenile is such a harsh word." The first boy said.
"We prefer traditional." The second finished. "It is tradition that we shove freshmen into toilets."
"And I'm saying we should break the cycle." Garfield said, trying to reason with them. "Be better than the ones before you." He continued when his back hit a solid surface.
Knowing there was not a wall behind him, Garfield slowly turned around, only to discover that the pair of frat boys was a trio.
"Trust me, fresh meat, we are way better than the ones before us." The third said with a malicious grin as he popped his knuckles in front of him.
Garfield nodded in understanding, leading the trio to believe he had accepted his fate. But he hadn't. In the blink of an eye, Garfield bolted, shoving himself in between the two boys in front of him and running out the door.
"GET HIM!" He heard one of them yell and he didn't need to look back to know they were chasing after him.
Garfield bolted across the campus, his feet moving on instinct. He had been running away from bullies long enough to wonder if he should try out of track. He ran across the parking lot, the sound of running feet behind him telling him to keep going. With his eyes set on his dorm building, Garfield only hoped that he could make it to his room in time to lock the door behind him. He barged through the door and ran up the stairs, the rustle of feet quickly behind him. He reached his door and hurriedly pulled out his key, unlocking it and running inside, but the trio reached him before he could shut the door. The boys slammed the door open when Garfield realized he wasn't alone in his room.
The boys barged into the room, only to be met by Victor's tall stature. He stood in front of them, his arms crossed as he glared disapprovingly down at them.
Garfield tried to catch his breath, watching in shock from his bed as the trio meekly stubbled backwards out of the room.
"Oh, hey, Stone." The first boy said.
"Stone, we didn't know this was your room." The second added.
"We were just going after that freshman." The third said, glancing into the room at Garfield.
"Emmhhmm. Well, that freshman is my roommate. So, I'm going to have to ask you to leave him alone." Victor said sternly.
"Stone-"
"He's off limits, you hear me?!" Victor clarified.
With wide eyes and complete disbelief, Garfield watched as the trio of frat boys rolled their eyes and huffed before reluctantly leaving.
Victor shut the door before turning back to his roommate. "You let me know if they give you any more trouble, okay?"
Still in shock, Garfield could only nod his head.
Not only was having Victor as a roommate fate, but it was a godsend. Garfield couldn't have asked for a better roommate and friend. Not only did they stay up all night making jokes and playing intense rounds of games, but during the day, Victor continuously stood up for his freshmen friend. It was like having his own personal bodyguard.
Victor Stone was definitely king on campus. He was tall, good looking, and smart too. Despite his family having money, Victor was given a full football scholarship. His popularity got him lots of friends and an invitation to all the exclusive parties.
Garfield was leaning back on his bed, playing his Switch and eavesdropping on the conversation his roommate was having at the door.
A pretty girl twirled her pink hair around her finger as she noticeably flirted with Victor. "It's sort of an end of the first week bash. Anyway, I would love for you to come. It wouldn't be a party without Victor Stone."
"I'll be there." Victor said with a smile. He shut the door and turned to Garfield, who was still pretending he wasn't eavesdropping. "You want to go to a party tonight?" He asked.
"Um... I don't really think that invitation included me." Garfield responded.
"I'm making it include you."
"I don't know." Garfield said hesitantly.
"Hey, man. Don't worry." Victor reassured. "I will be right by your side the entire night. And I'll make sure you won't get roofied." He added playfully.
Garfield didn't take much more convincing. He wanted to experience everything college had to offer, and college parties were one of them.
...
In a large house in the rich part of the neighborhood, loud music blasted through speakers, shaking the ground. Not quite league adults drank cheap liquor and ate Jell-O shots. Reckless partiers danced like no one was watching and did ill-advised stunts. Couples made out in every corner of the property, while some eagerly took it upstairs in hopes of finding a bedroom.
Being that Garfield was new to the party scene, he found all of this very fascinating, a little overwhelming, but exciting none the less.
The music was loud and obnoxious as he watched his intoxicated peers do crazy and stupid things. They screamed and shouted. They danced on tabletops and puked in vases. They tested their alcohol limits and experimented with their sexuality.
"Here." Victor said, pulling Garfield out of his party trance and handing him a drink. "Is this your first party?" He yelled over the music.
"I went to a few in high school, but none were like this." Garfield responded, taking a drink. He instantly winced at the bitter taste, the Kool-aid doing nothing to mask the vicious taste of alcohol. But even though it tasted horrible, he continued to drink.
Victor couldn't help but laugh as he watched Garfield chug his cup. "Slow down, man. You don't want to overdo it." He advised.
"I'll be fine." Garfield responded, gagging as he finished the cup. If he was ever going to be a party animal, he needed to build up his tolerance.
"Don't say I didn't warn you." Victor said with a chuckle. If he hadn't already planned on keeping a close eye on his friend, he definitely was now.
Garfield grabbed another cup, only to choke on his drink as a group of giggling girls ran past them, ripping off their shirts and jumping into the backyard pool. He whipped his spilt drink from his chin as he stared with wide eyes and his mouth slightly ajar.
"I love college."
"You act like you've never seen a pair of those before." Victor said with a raised brow and a teasing smirk.
"I have." Garfield quickly defined. "Just never in person." He finished quietly, causing Victor to laugh.
"Don't worry, man." Victor said padding his friend on the back. "I'm an excellent wingman. I'll help you get some notches in your belt. By the end of semester, you will be killing it with the ladies."
"Yeah, I will believe that when I see it." Garfield huffed, taking another drink.
As the night went on and the party progressed, Garfield had one drink after another, each one going down easier than the last. Before long, the freshman was living up to his party animal goal. He was reckless without a care. He danced on tabletops, disregarding how stupid he might have looked. He ripped off his shirt and jumped into the pool, paying no mind to his wet shoes. He did body shots off girls and even some guys. He danced with frisky girls, letting them kiss and grind against him. He was living his best college life without a care in the world.
But as the fun night came to an end and the early morning crept over the horizon, Victor picked up his past-out friend from the floor, slinging him over his shoulder and carrying him home.
…
A loud obnoxious noise harshly woke Garfield up as he fell off his bed with a thunk!
"Vic? What the hell?" He winced, groaning loudly as he held his throbbing head in pain.
Victor stood across the room, blending a drink in a noisy blender. "Protein shake." He said, holding up a green liquid in a glass. "Want one?" He asked.
Garfield took one look at the lumpy green drink, before grabbing a trash can and hurling.
Victor shook his head before gulping a big drink of his shake. "Told you not to overdo it."
Garfield contorted his face as he rested his head on the side of his mattress. "What time is it?" He groaned.
"6 am." Victor responded. "Gotta get some training done before practice Monday." He said before hopping down to the ground, doing rapid push-ups.
"You have fun with that." Garfield said, laying back down on his bed.
But despite being exhausted and severely hungover, Garfield struggled to go back to sleep. Between the putrid smell of the protein shake, and the grunts coming from his roommate's workout, sleep was hard to sustain.
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