Mr. Henderson frowned and lowered his voice.
“This is Caleb,” he said, as if explaining
something delicate.
The athletic RA just grinned. “I know who he is!
No need to whisper. Caleb, Room 601. You
know where that is, right?”
601? That sounded familiar…
- 8.
By the time I finished the paperwork, it was 7:30 pm. I didn’t expect anyone to be waiting for me at the dorm entrance. He was wearing jeans and flip–flops, a handsome face framed by messy hair. He leaned against the wall,
yawning. Seeing me, he walked over and took
my suitcase. His voice was low and smooth.
“I’m Leo Vance, your new roommate. The RA
asked me to come get you.” He turned and
walked into the building.
I stood there, stunned. I finally remembered why
601 was familiar. It was because of Leo Vance.
The campus legend. Tall, handsome, rich,
adored by girls, but openly gay. He’d single-
handedly cleared out his room of prejudiced
roommates through a combination of brains,
brawn, and cash. Room 601 was his and his
alone.
“Leo…Leo,” I stammered, hurrying after him,
2222
“You don’t mind me moving in?”
Leo glanced at me, not breaking stride. “Do you
have a contagious disease?”
“Uh, no… it’s just…” I wanted to say, “I like
guys,” but…who didn’t in this situation? It felt pointless.
Leo stopped, hefted my suitcase. “Is this all you have? Where’s your bedding?”
My face stiffened. I thought of my alcohol-
soaked bedding. “I threw it out.”
“Tsk,” Leo frowned. “Throwing out perfectly
good bedding? What are you going to sleep on tonight? My bed?”
It was pure coincidence that we were on the third floor, my old floor. And it was even more coincidental that Leo’s “My bed?” comment coincided with the door to 303 slamming open.
Ethan and the others stared at us, their
expressions a mixture of surprise and
something else. Ethan’s gaze was fixed on me,
dark and intense.
- 9.
<
Chad, my old RA, had clearly heard of Leo. For
once, he didn’t sneer. He just sized us up, then muttered sarcastically, “Well, well. Found
yourself a roommate, haven’t you? Perfect
match.”
Leo’s eyes narrowed, pinning Chad with a look.
No words were needed; the threat was
palpable. Chad flinched, turning away and
tugging at Ethan’s arm. “Starving. Let’s go.
Don’t wanna lose my appetite.”
Ethan didn’t speak, his eyes still on me, as if
waiting for me to say something. After a
moment, he just scoffed and walked
downstairs.
I tried to act casual as I followed Leo upstairs.
But my eyes kept drifting back to Ethan’s
retreating figure. It hurt, but…
“That’s the guy you like?” Leo’s voice, low and
amused, startled me. “He’s…average.”
I missed a step and tumbled down the stairs.
My bare knees and hands scraped against the
concrete. I gasped, pain shooting through me.
Leo remained impassive. He did, however, help
>
me up, patting my back. “What’s the big deal?”
he said. “I saw the forum posts. I’m not blind.”
I stared at him, pain momentarily forgotten. This
was the guy who’d conquered the dorm? He
was this…calm about it?
