Far

two

I probably look ridiculous right now with my hair wet and tangled with my flip flops squeaking as I walk in.

"Ari, this Cole, Cole this my roommate, Ariana." she introduces us.

Cole's hair is dark and parted to the right, with that side being lengthier than the rest. His eyes are a deep shade of blue and his skin is tan. A loose black button up hangs over the grey tank top he's wearing. His long legs are in dark skinny jeans with boots.

We shake hands after I put my dirty clothes away in the hamper.

"Are you two..." I blush as I point between the two of them.

"No, we're just friends," Lili answers my question.

I nod my head and get my small purse from the shelf in my closet. I put my essential items in there before putting on my Vans.

"Where are you going?" Lili asks.

"I'm going to go and get some organizers for my studies and such," I say.

"Can I come with?" She hesitantly asks.

I nod my head and smile.

I patiently wait for her to get her things together and I make a little bit of small talk with Cole before we say goodbye to him and walk out into the hallway. I find my mothers, now mine I suppose, car fast enough and we make our way to Target.

"You know, the two of you would make a cute couple," I say to Lili as I get a cart.

She blushes, "I like him, but I don't think he likes me like that."

"How long have you known him?" I ask.

"We went to the same high school, my brother and him were close, so I was around him all the time. He's a year older." she explains.

"I think you should ask him, or I could," I say as I push the cart down the aisles.

"Oh, my god! I could not ask him that!" She looks at me with wide eyes.

"Okay, so I will! It will just be something casual, I won't even mention your name," I explain.

She finally agrees and we continue shopping, we get a small amount of snacks, and we end up looking at journals, even though we both already bought new ones.

I grab some pen holders, a few folders, as well as post-it notes and a few containers.

We stop and smell the candles and gush over them before we check-out, we find a small place to eat and head back to the dorms. We put everything away and as soon as we both sit down, there is a knock at the door.

I think that is one thing I will miss; having your own peace and quiet. Time to just be alone and in your own zone. No interruptions, no distractions, no one else is talking, no one else is bothering you.

Lili groans before getting up and opening, revealing the cute boy from earlier, Cole.

"You guys are going to your first college party tonight," he states as he walks into the room and laying in Lili's bed.

He crosses his ankles as he pulls a toothpick from between his teeth.

"What do you mean?" I ask quietly.

"You. Her. Party. Tonight,"

"Are the parties even good, Cole?" she asks.

"The best. And I know that both of you will have the best time tonight," he informs us, "especially because I will be there and parties are only good if I'm there."

"Ariana?" she looks at me for approval.

My stomach turns. I went to one party in high school and it was in the basement of this seniors house. It was basically a sweatshop with music and shitty alcohol. Not fun nor memorable at all.

But, college parties are different right?

"Yeah, okay, lets do it," I say hesitantly.

"I'll come back around eight, and don't overdress yourselves. That's something freshmens tend to do, and since it's your first party, I'm sure you don't want everyone staring at you," he advises before leaving.

"Then what do we wear?" I ask after he closes the door.

"Maybe jeans and a cute shirt?" she suggests.

I shrug my shoulders before pulling out some clothes and showing them to Lili. She tells me to wear black skinny jeans with a loose black buttoned sweater with a black tank top underneath.

I tell her to wear the skinny blue jeans and the burgundy top, there's ruffles around the shoulders and at the bottom. She takes a quick look and mouths "Thank you."

I look at the time and see it is almost seven, I decide to change and apply a little bit of makeup. I leave my long hair down in its natural waves, but I brush through it so it is less knotted.

After Lili pins her hair back, we take one final look in the mirror before we nod our heads in agreement.

"We should take a picture!" Lili says as she walks to her desk.

She picks up her pink Polaroid and holds it out in front of us.

"Now, listen, I don't know if this will actually get our faces but let's hope it does," she laughs.

She clicks the button and the picture slowly comes out at the top, she shakes it and then places it on her desk, giving it a minute to surface.

There's a knock at the door and I yell come in, and Cole informs us that the party has started and it is already packed.

I take a deep breath, trying to calm my inner anxiety, before following them out the door.