Shattered Illusions

Chapter 9

~Wren~

"Are you ready?"

My mom wraps her arms around my shoulders and squeezes me. I look up at the building and smile.

"Yeah, I think so."

I finally decided to move into the dorms and it's move-in day. I'm nervous but also excited. I turn back to the car and grab a bag of clothes. My dad has a box and my mom is carrying bags of food. I am on the second floor, and good thing because this building doesn't have any elevators. I pity the girls on the fifth and top floor.

"Here we are." My dad points to a door.

There's a dry erase board hanging on it with the word WELCOME written across it and two names decorating the door. I take my key and let us in. There are two twin size beds, two desks at the foot of them, and two wardrobes. There is no one in the room but one side is already set up and decorated so I assume my new roommate is around here somewhere. The room seems even smaller with the three of us standing in the middle of it.

"Just put everything on my desk. I will go through it." I tell my parents.

"Do you want us to stay and help?" My mom asks.

"I don't think so, but thanks."

"Ok let's go get something to eat before we head home." My dad puts his box down and heads for the door.

After I have dinner with my parents they drop me off at my dorm. When I walk in I am greeted by a girl sitting on the other bed.

"HI!!"

"Hi! I'm Wren."

She smiles and jumps up to hug me.

"I'm so excited to meet you. My name is Dakotah."

I walk over to my stuff and decide to start by making my bed, then hanging up clothes.

"Is this your first year?" I ask her.

"Yes, I'm a freshman."

"Cool, me too!"

She puts down her phone to look at me.

"Would you like any help?"

"Umm...not right now but I might in a little bit."

Why does everyone keep asking to help? It literally takes longer to clean my room at home than it will take for me to put my things away. I appreciate it though.

"So, where are you from?" She asks.

"Here, actually...or at least a small town about an hour away. You?"

"I live a little farther away than that. I wanted to be close enough to visit on the holidays but not close enough for random drop bys. I love my family but they can be a bit much and I'm ready to be independent.

"Are you nervous?" I ask because God knows I am and my home is only an hour away.

"Nah, plus my brother is here. It's the only way they would let me go so far from home."

"That's nice, at least you have someone close by."

I finish hanging my clothes as we continue to get to know one another. When I open a bag and start pulling out food Dakotah stands up.

"Here let me help. There is a mini-fridge over here and a bookcase to store our food."

I carry the rest of the food over to the corner and put it away. She follows me back to my things to help unpack my last box. I open it and she grabs the large framed picture on top.

"Paris! I want to go there someday!" She comments.

"Me too! I'm a little obsessed with it to be honest."

She grabs a hook off her desk and hangs the picture Austin got me for my birthday on the wall. I pull out the other two framed pictures, much smaller than the Paris one, and place them on my desk, next to my bed.

"Who's that?" She points at them.

"These are my parents and that one is my boyfriend, Austin." I smile fondly at them.

"Straight and taken, noted."

Her comment confuses me for a moment but her warm smile tells me she was just stating her thoughts.

"Are you..."

I wasn't too sure how to ask if she was gay. I didn't want to offend her somehow. I don't have any issues with someone who's gay, I've just never been around anyone who is. Or at least that I know of.

"Gay?" she finishes my question for me. "No. I was just making an observation. I prefer when everything is out in the open like that. Too much drama is created by misunderstandings."

I smile and nod. I think I'm going to like my new roommate.