"Here's your key. Just walk through the set of double doors and the stairs will be on your left."
The RA smiled and dropped the yellow envelope that held the move in papers into my hand, following the key on the lanyard that read '#TXSTMoveInDay'. Micah held one of my lighter boxes in his hands. He had barely spoken today. "You okay" I asked as we walked down the hall.
He only nodded his head. His silence scared me a bit. Micah was rarely ever silent. We followed the RA's instructions and took the stairs up to the second floor. I followed the number signs on the walls to find my room number. '217'. I unlocked the door and we walked in. It was empty. Aubrey texted me that she wouldn't arrive for another hour or so. I didn't mind it. It gave me a chance to have a little more time with my family.
I loved my dorm. It was sort of an apartment style. There was a common area, a bathroom with two sinks, and we each had our own rooms with full sized beds. I walked through the common area to my door and unlocked it. Micah dropped the box on the desk. I called my dad to let him know that he could start coming in.
I looked at Micah and felt a wave of sadness. His expression was the worst. I didn't want to make him feel more sad, or even trigger the waterworks in myself, so he and I looked around the dorm a bit more before my dad and Jenelle walked in. She didn't carry anything in her hands, but she was rolling a suitcase filled with clothes. The baby.
"This is nice, Kiki" Jenelle called out, admiring the space. I just gave a small smile. They dropped my things into my room and Micah went back out with Dad to retrieve more of my boxes. Jenelle stayed with me to try and help me unpack.
"Are you excited" she asked with a toothy smile. I laughed a little.
"Yeah." Although I still felt a bit uneasy around her sometimes, she never truly gave me a reason to. She always did her best to make me, and my little brother, feel comfortable and loved by her, and for that, I'm forever grateful. "My roommate should be here soon. I'm excited to finally meet her."
"I'm sure you will have a great time together."
I began to help her unbox my bedding. My favorite part about this dorm had to be the full sized beds. I had a twin bed at my mom's, so this kind of felt like an upgrade.
My dad and Micah finally walked through the door with the last of my things. They all helped me unbox everything and set up my room while we spent the time we had left together joking around.
I heard the main door creep open a little, so I peaked out to see. "Kiari?"
I looked to see Aubrey standing in the doorway. She screamed and hugged me as if we had known each other for years, but that's what it felt like. Since we met on Instagram and decided to be roommates, we talked nearly everyday about nothing in particular. Just about everything. She was just about everything that I expected. We were about the same height. She was just as energetic as she'd seemed over the phone, and it made me excited. She reminded me of one of my closest friends from Grand Rapids.
Her grandparents came in and introduced themselves to my parents. Her home life was quite different from mine. She was raised by her grandparents after losing her mom and never knowing her dad. We didn't tend to talk much about our home lives much, but I knew that she was the youngest of three children, and the only girl.
Hours had gone by and my room was pretty much set up, except a few small things and my clothes. Aubrey's grandparents were getting ready to leave, and my family was going to leave right behind them. Jenelle was the first to hug me, reminding me that she was only a phone call away. Dad was next. He gave me the same spill that he'd given on the ride here. 'If you need anything call me, and I'm on my way.' Lastly, there was Micah.
This was the hardest goodbye of all. We had never truly been apart, except summer camp one year because he was too young to go. I pulled him into me tightly and he wrapped his arms around my waist. I felt his tears on my shirt, which only resulted in my tears falling into his hair.
"I love you" I whispered while still hugging him. I couldn't bring myself to let go. "I'll come see you soon."
"Promise" he asked looking up at me into my eyes with tears threatening to fall from his. His face was already stained. He was supposed to leave for Michigan tomorrow morning.
"Promise."
That's a promise that I refuse to break. I refuse to let him down the way my mom did me. I'll be back for him soon.
I kissed his forehead and wiped his tears. The three of them grabbed their things and headed for the door, speaking to Aubrey and her grandparents one more time.
As they walked out the door, Aubrey walked over to me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder.
"Time to get this party started, bitch."
I smiled at her as she smiled at me. I can't wait to see what life throws at us.
