hearts don't break around here | winrina

seven

Freshman Year (College)

"Hello? Snickers?" Karina asks excitedly over the phone. She's sprinting down the stairs of her dorm building, excitement almost overflowing out of her chest.

"Karina, where are you?" Winter answers, sounding just about as excited as Winter can sound. "I'm standing outside of Brady Hall."

"I'm coming! Just give me like two minutes. Is Brady Hall the one next to the giant statue of that fat guy?"

Winter chuckles. "You mean the headmaster's office? Yes. It's got ivy growing up the side."

"Cool cool!" Karina's feet are carrying her so fast she almost can't keep up with them. "I'll be there soon." Move-in day has been incredibly exciting. Karina brought way too much stuff for her tiny dorm room, which she was kind of expecting. She ended up having to store some of it away; even the floor length mirror with the neon blue frame, which she was super excited about. But it doesn't matter! Because she's officially a college student. No parents, no rules, no high school. And now she's buzzing with excitement because Winter is here; and they haven't seen each other all summer.

After finding out that they both made it into Garrison, Karina, and Winter had a long discussion about being roommates. They both agreed that maybe, for the first year of college, they should branch out and try to meet new people. Also, Karina's older sister always advised her to never live with her friends, because she'll end up 'wanting to slit their throats' by the end of the year. So Karina and Winter had both agreed to be put with a random roommate.

Winter's parents then proceeded to break the news that the whole family was going to be spending the summer with Winter's aunt, who has a condo in Florida. They wanted to spend quality time together before Winter went off to college. It was a cute notion, really. But after three months without seeing Winter, Karina misses her more than ever. She sees a brick wall covered in ivy and feels the grin spreading across her face.

Winter is standing at the front door of the dorm building. She's wearing her classic black v-neck and jeans. She still has her phone pressed to her ear and she's scowling into the sunlight, looking utterly confused. Her hair is a little shorter than it was when she left. Probably freshly cut. She's got a light sunburn on her cheeks. When she sees Karina running towards her, her face melts into a grin.

"Snickers!" Karina shouts, tackling her, quite ungracefully, into a dangerously tight embrace. "Oh my god I missed you!"

Winter giggles into her chest. "Hey, Karina."

"Never go to Florida again."

Winter hugs back. "I'm not planning on it, I don't think."

"Good." Karina squeezes tightly before letting go. "Look at you! New haircut?"

Winter is still grinning. She lifts a hand to her eyes to block out a bit of the sunlight. "Yeah. My mom said that my hair and overgrown bangs was...in bad taste."
"Sounds like your mom," Karina says fondly.

"Yeah." Winter laughs, taking a step back and looking at Karina. "Of course, I sit on a beach for three months and you somehow manage to get a better tan than me." She scoffs. "I'm just pink."

Karina shrugs. "Yard work with my dad. You know how it is." Winter smiles at her, rolling her eyes. Karina jumps happily. "Ah! I can't believe you're here!" She exclaims. "Have you walked around campus yet? We gotta go try the cafeteria."

Winter bites her lip, looking up at the building and moving towards the door. "Okay, I just have to get my wallet. Wanna come see my room?"

"That depends. Is it more or less boring than your room at home?"