Happy anniversary! A year ago today I posted the first chapter of my first fanfic, and a year and 114 chapters later, here we are. Thank you so much to everyone who has followed this story from the beginning, and to everyone who joined along the way. I can't believe I'm still telling this story after a year. I'm so glad I never gave up on it. Anyway, enjoy the extra chapter this week, it's just some fluff to show where Mallory's at in her life. Review and let me know what you like most about this story as an anniversary present! :)
The next day, Mallory, Megan, Zatanna, and Raquel zetaed to Metropolis and caught a bus to Metropolis University. The girls helped Mallory carry her bags to the check-in tent, where Mallory got her dorm key and her campus ID. They went to the building and piled into the small dorm room. It had two beds, two alcoves in the wall with a pole in them for hanging clothes, a small dresser, and a desk.
"It's nice," Megan said, looking around.
"Yeah, and look, you don't face campus, so maybe you can sneak out the window for partols," Zatanna added.
Mallory went to the large window and tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge. She looked at the lock and rolled her eyes. It was just like the lock that had been on her window at the boarding school. Well, she would just have to find somewhere else to sneak out.
"Do you want help unpacking, or do you want to do that yourself?" Raquel asked.
"I could use some help, thanks," Mallory replied.
She and Raquel unpacked her clothes, and Megan unpacked her shampoos and makeup. Zatanna, despite Mallory insisting that she didn't have to, started saying some spells to decorate the room. When she was done, Mallory had to admit that it was really nice. There were light blue curtains, a white shaggy rug, fairy lights on the walls, a white shaggy ottoman under the tall bed, a white coffee table by the ottoman, a blue lamp on the desk, and white, blue, and pink bedding. It looked like winter, and it made Mallory think about Brek. She touched the bill of his cap, pulling it down a little farther over her eyes. She'd grabbed it at the last minute, and now she was glad that she had.
"Thanks, it looks great," she said, pulling her friend into a hug. "You too, Megan, Raquel. I'm glad you came today," she said. The other girls joined in the hug, and when they pulled away, they looked over their work, making sure that everything was ready.
"Are you going to come back to the cave with us?" Megan asked.
Mallory shook her head. "No, I still have to go pick up my books and make sure I know where all my classes are," she said.
Megan nodded and gave Mallory another hug. "We're going to miss you," she said.
Mallory laughed. "I'll be there this weekend, I'm not quitting the team," she said.
"Yeah, but you moved out of the cave. Now I'm gonna be alone with Megan and Conner again. How could you do that to me?" Zatanna asked with a smile.
"Hey, you've got Gar this time. I didn't leave you completely alone," Mallory pointed out, returning the grin.
"True," Zatanna replied.
The girls left an hour later, giving Mallory final goodbyes and telling her that if she didn't come home for the weekend, they would send Conner to drag her back by her hair if they had to. When they left, Mallory stood by the door, looking at the dorm room. She felt like her life had gone in a circle. After everything she'd been through, she was right back in a small dorm room in a boarding school, only this time around she felt very lonely.
She sighed and pulled on a jacket, deciding to go get her books and look around campus for a while.
That evening, Mallory was getting her supplies organized for her classes when she heard a key turn in the lock. She spun around, getting to her feet, and grinned when the blindingly blond hair came through the door.
"Jen!" she squealed.
Jen looked up and her face broke into a grin. "Mallory!" she shrieked, throwing her bags down and running into Mallory's arms.
"I missed you so much!" Jen said when they finally let go.
"I missed you, too. If you hadn't left the school, I could have kept coming to visit you," Mallory said.
Jen sighed. "I know, but I really wasn't getting anything out of it anymore. I'm sorry about my parents" Jen said. Mallory had tried to visit her friend when she went back to live with her parents in Coast City, but they hadn't wanted Jen to have anything to do with anyone who had been in the school when she left it. They'd been afraid that it would ruin her reputation and opportunities.
Mallory shook her head. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'm just glad we're both going to the same school again!"
"I know, and this time we're roomies!" Jen said. They sat down, and Jen chuckled.
"What?" Mallory asked.
"Oh, nothing. It's just gonna take me a minute to get used to you with black hair," she said.
Mallory pulled her ponytail over her shoulder, looking at the jet black hair. "Yeah, secret identity and all," she said.
Jen grinned. "So, tell me all about it. How's the team? How's Wally? Oh, and where's Brek?"
Mallory winced. The last time she'd really caught up with Jen, the Legion had still been there. "Well, the team's ok, we've had a lot of changes recently. Wally quit."
"Oh, no. Why?" Jen asked.
"He and his girlfriend moved in together, and they didn't want to keep taking risks. It's fine, though, we all understood."
"Well, what about Brek? Have you two talked about getting a place together?" Jen asked, leaning forward a little.
Mallory shook her head, fingering the bill of the cap. "He's not in the picture anymore," she said simply. She didn't feel like going into all the details, and honestly, she didn't even know how to without sounding crazy.
Jen winced. "I'm sorry, Mal. You just seemed so happy when you told me about him, I guess I just thought…"
Mallory smiled sadly. "Yeah, me too." She straightened up and tilted her head. "So, what about you? Any guys after you and Andrew broke up?"
Jen's lips spread into a smile, her dimple deepening as she tried to contain the grin. "Well…" she said slowly.
"Come on, spill! Who is he, does he go here, and how long have you been seeing him?" Mallory demanded.
"His name is Brandon, he's a sophomore here, and we've been dating for two months," she said.
"So, when do I get to meet him?" Mallory asked.
"We're going out with some of his friends this weekend. You can come along if you want and meet him and hang out with at least three single guys."
Mallory rolled her eyes. "I'm ok with being single, thank you very much. And I can't go this weekend, I have to go back to the cave and touch base with the team."
"Oh, can't they get along without you for one weekend? Come on, girl. You're in college, you need to have some fun, make some memories."
Mallory laughed. "Jen, we're gonna be in college for four years, I think I'll be ok if I miss one weekend of getting thrown out of bars for being underaged."
Jen shook her head, laughing. "That's not even what we're doing. We're going to the docks, there's supposed to be a street show down there Saturday night. Come on, Mallory. I've never met most of these guys, I'd love to have someone to hang out with if things get awkward."
Mallory sighed. "I'll think about it, ok? If there isn't anything important going on at the cave, I should be able to go."
Jen squealed excitedly and gave Mallory another hug. "It'll be just like old times, going out on the town," she said.
"Yeah, only now we don't have to worry about getting past the secretary on our way back in," Mallory replied.
She helped Jen unpack, and Jen complimented Mallory's side of the room, and by the time it got dark, the girls had the room set up and went down the hall to the community room to watch a movie. Mallory decided that it felt good to have a normal friend in her life again. For the past four years, all of the people who really knew her, except for her parents and brother, were involved in the hero life in one way or another. With Jen, though, she could just relax and be normal. Jen knew about her superhero life, but she didn't constantly ask about it, and she wanted to make sure that Mallory got a shot at having a normal college experience. That was something she needed right now, with everything around her feeling like it was coming apart at the seams.
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