Purple Ink (SatoGou)

Chapter 7

Let's meet here at eight! Looking forward to meeting you all!

Your new flatmate, Serena

Eight. Well, that gives me a little over an hour to unpack some of my things and have a shower. I go down and get the last of my things from the car, still not coming across anyone else, or at least no one from my own flat. My mom hovers for a little while longer, helping me unpack some things and making my bed, even though I insist I'm capable of doing those things on my own. When she can't stall anymore, because it's getting late and she still needs to make the drive back, I hug her and tell her I'll see her soon, and that I'll call her tomorrow.

Finally alone, I sit on the side of the bed and take everything in. Living on my own doesn't frighten me like I thought it would. I'm excited to meet everyone. I haven't let myself think about Red all day. I think maybe I'm finally starting to heal.

The room is pretty small, but big enough. There's a short hallway from the door, the door to the bathroom on the right, and then an open space. My bed- a double one, thankfully, is on the right, while the long desk and wardrobe takes up the left wall, a desk chair pushed under it. The window on the far wall looks out over the street below, though it's not much of a view.

I take a quick shower and try to pick something relatively nice to wear. I mess with my hair in the mirror for a while, but it always just does its own thing, so I give up eventually. I shoot Brock a quick text, asking what his place is like. I respond to Dawn, telling her I'm here, and that I'm meeting my flatmates soon. She responds straight away, telling me that she's already made friends with a girl named Zoey. I'm happy for her, but my chest tightens painfully.

I'm still texting Brock back when the sound of music drifts in from outside the door. I look up at the time, and see it's ten past eight. I shoot up, pulling on shoes and checking myself in the mirror one last time. I tuck my phone in the back pocket of my cargos and step outside, the door clicking shut behind me. Light and music filters out from the door to the kitchen, and I stand there for a moment, imagining what sort of people might be standing on the other side. I wonder if any of them will end up being close friends with me.

Already late, I make myself move. I push open the door, and everyone seems to go quiet, looking up at me.

Directly in front of me, there are two girls sitting on a sofa. One is blonde, and the other is a brunette, and they're both beautiful. They're sitting so close together that their shoulders are touching, holding full glasses of wine. On the other sofa is another guy, wearing round glasses, his curly blonde hair falling around his face, who seems nervous.

I look up over the sofa. At the kitchen cabinets, a tall guy with pale green hair is unpacking bags and bags of groceries into the cupboards, seemingly taking stock of it as he goes. He doesn't even turn to look at me.

Then, my eyes flick to the left, and my heart stops dead in my chest. I've experienced physical attraction so few times in my life that when I do, it hits me like a truck. It feels like a knife strikes me in the chest, and all the air rushes from my lungs.

Leaning against the counter with their arms crossed over their chest is someone I can only describe as androgynous, and devastatingly, heartbreakingly gorgeous. Blue, piercing eyes bore back into mine. Long, sweeping dark lashes almost touch their cheeks when they blink. Most of their dark hair is tied back behind their head, some strands escaping and framing their face, but two thick strands of red run through it on the left side. Their face is both sharp and soft at the same time. It's hard to tear my eyes away, and even though only a few seconds have passed since I stepped inside, I feel like I've been staring forever. It's a little difficult to remember to breathe again in their presence.