Texas, September 2017
I had only been here a month and I was sure I was going to die. Even September here was too warm. There's no way people were actually made for handling temperatures this high. That day I moved in, it was a whopping 37 degrees.
Pardon me. I should say 98 degrees instead since I'm here. Yeehaw.
I'd had enough of trying to study outside on the lawn at the quad. The sun was going down soon anyway and I'd lose my light source. Shoving my notebook into my backpack, I got to my feet and put my hands on my hips, trying to pop my lower back which was feeling stiff from sitting hunched over so long, then started making my way to my dorm.
Marshall University had a lovely campus if you felt up for working up a sweat and possibly panting the entire time you walked around to appreciated it. Sturgis hall, where my dorm was located, was one of the newer buildings on campus, only built last year. They'd grouped all of the study abroad students in Sturgis on the same floor, but had given us local roommates to help "Enhance our experience of embracing Texas culture" as Mr. Barnes, the guidance counselor had told us all. I'd rolled my eyes.
As ashamed as I am to admit this, I'd been disappointed when I'd heard I was being sent here for my year of studying abroad. When I had signed up, it was in hopes that I'd get send somewhere rich in culture and life. Maybe Singapore or somewhere in Spain. France or Brazil. Any of the places I'd longed to visit over the years. Maybe even New York or California if they wanted to send me to the states.
Instead, I ended up here. My new friend, Niall that I'd met at orientation convinced me to cheer up and try to enjoy the experience. From the way he didn't stop smiling, I thought he'd already adapted that mindset, but the more time I spent with Niall, I learned that he's almost always smiling in general.
When I got to my room door, I pulled out my keys and opened the door. My roommate Louis was in front of the mirror he had pinned up on his armoire, flicking the fringe of his hair to the side then plucking at some of the strands as he tries to arrange them.
"Hey," I greeted him, hanging my backpack on the corner of my bed before taking a seat. "You going somewhere and plan on pulling?" I tease.
Louis snorted. "Pulling what? I dunno what that means," he said, complete in his southern accent that I'd just now fully gotten used to. "But I'm going to a party tonight."
I'd gotten lucky when on the roommate draw. Louis and I got on from the first day we met. We both compliment each other pretty well, despite being polar opposites. His all black, skater-esque style of clothing against my patterned and colorful shirts. The way his side of the wall bared posters for grungy bands I've never heard of and his side of the floor a complete disaster of dirty clothes scattered about. My side of the room had posters showing my love for Stevie Nicks and The Rolling Stones, and not a single sock to be found on the floor. As I said, completely different, but somehow we just worked.
"Have fun," I told him, before leaning back on my bed, tucking my arms behind my head.
"Why don't you come this time? All you've done is stay cooped up in here, using homework and studying as an excuse not to come out." Louis turned, putting a hand on his hip as he glared at me, trying to be intimidating.
For a man of his stature, I have to admit, he did look intimidating. "Isn't that the point of studying abroad? I'm abroad and I'm studying." That made Louis roll his eyes. "I will join you one of these days. I'm just, still trying to adjust."
A knock came on the door, and Louis went to answer it.
As soon as the door opened, Niall came right in. "Harry, get the fuck up. Come out with us." Despite his demanding words, he was grinning as he walked over to Louis bed and took a seat like he's at home.
"Already tried. He isn't coming," Louis told him.
"Harry," Niall groaned. "Come to the Kappa Sigma party."
"Kappa who?"
"It's a fraternity. You guys don't have that in the England?" Louis inquired.
"Nope."
"I'm from Ireland, Louis," Niall huffed dramatically.
"I have a feeling you're going to remind me of that every chance you get," Louis spouted off.
"Damn right." Niall stood, coming over to my bed. He grabbed my right arm, trying to tug me up. "Please come with us."
"Yeah, Harry. Don't be a wanker," Louis added.
A balled up t-shirt came flying, hitting me on the chest from Louis' direction, and Niall was still tugging on me. Finally, I sat up, fed up with their ministrations. "Fine, I'll go. Let me shower and get dressed."
Niall and Louis shared triumphantly smug grins.
*****
The Kappa Sigma house was large enough to contain the people already here, yet many had spilled out into the back lawn as well. I wasn't sure where I wanted to be. Niall had ran towards the ping pong table where people were tossing ping pong balls into red cups. It seemed everyone already knew Niall, but I wouldn't be surprised if it were the first time Niall had met them.
Louis was still at my side as we finally made it towards the backdoor. It wasn't as warm outside now that the sun had sank down. The backyard was spacious enough, the fence enclosing the place lined with Christmas lights that kept the yard lit enough to at least see who you were speaking to. The sofas and chairs on the porch were all already occupied, leaving Louis and I to lean against the house.
I tucked my hands behind my back and looked around for any familiar faces from my classes. Surely there had to be someone else I knew here other than Niall and Louis. My eyes locked on a brunette leaning against one of the support beams at the edge of the porch. Her left hand was to her mouth, chewing her nails as she nodded along to whatever the guy in front of her was saying. He must have been deep in some elaborate story as his eyes were wide and his arms were flailing about as he spoke.
From the way her eyes would look off behind the guy, before focusing back to him, I guessed she was ready for this conversation to come to an end.
"I'll be back," I informed Louis before I pushed off of the wall, heading towards the girl. When I got there, the guy stopped speaking, frowning at me. Not really having much of a plan, I stuck out a hand. "Hi, I'm Harry."
The guy's brown eyes assessed my hand before he stuck his own out and shook mine. "Liam."
"You're Liam? There's two lads inside looking for you," I fabricated.
"Who?"
"I don't know. But they were asking people if they'd seen Liam. That they needed to speak to him," I lied.
"Oh no. That's probably Brad," the guy told the girl. "I have to see if he needs anything. I'll see you later, Skye."
Once he left, I looked at the girl. "That worked better than I expected."
"What did?" the girl finally spoke. For the first time since I'd been here, I found the Texan accent quite lovely.
"Getting rid of that guy. I saw you across the yard. It looked like you didn't want to talk to him." She'd moved her hand back to her mouth, chewing her nails again. I reached out and sat a hand on her wrist, gently pulling her hand down. "Nail biting isn't good for you, you know?"
"Actually, when you bite your nails, any little bacteria you ingest helps strengthen your immune system. Sounds pretty healthy to me." The girl grinned, her hazel eyes lit with amusement. "And I don't mind talking to Liam. He's a nice guy."
"Then why did you look so bored?"
"Because I was," she answered honestly. "He's a freshman I met during rush week. He's friendly, but he gets excited about something and will talk about it for an hour straight if you let him. Don't let him ever know if you've read Harry Potter or you will never get him to stop talking about it. I'm surprised your English accent didn't start him up again."
"Are you a freshman?" I ask her. I tilt my head towards the red shirt she's got on, three letters across the front. I recognize the middle one as a Greek letter. "Are you in the fraternity too?"
She laughed at me. "Sorority. Alpha Sigma Alpha. I'm a Junior."
"I'm a junior too. Came here from Manchester for the year."
"I thought about doing a year abroad, but it didn't seem right. I like things here. I could try it next year, but I'm not sure about spending my senior year somewhere else. The idea of being that far from home for that long makes me anxious."
"It was a little daunting at first, but I wanted to do it. It's exciting being somewhere new. I'm glad you didn't go. Not this year at least," I told her.
"Why?" She rolled her eyes and grinned. "Were you going to say because you wouldn't have gotten the chance to meet me?"
"Of course not. I wouldn't say something like that this soon. We've only just met and we haven't even properly introduced ourselves yet." With a smirk, I stuck my hand out once again. "Harry Styles."
"Skye Carter," she introduced as she shook my hand back. "Now why were you glad I didn't study abroad?"
She tilted her head to the side and I tried not to grin but failed. "Because I wouldn't have anyone to talk to at this party."
Her eyes rolled again, but I could tell she was amused. She shoved my arm playfully. "I'm sure you'd have found someone else to talk to. American girls love English accents."
"Do you?"
"What?" For the first time since I spoke to her, she seemed slightly flustered. Her cheeks had blushed a lovely shade of pink and her gaze had flickered down to the grass for a moment. "They're okay."
"Just okay? Skye, I'm wounded," I teased her with a chuckle and rested my hand over my heart like it really was broken.
"Sorry." she shrugged, then admitted. "But I love dimples."
She looked right at my cheek, and as if on cue, I gave her a dimpled smile. She asked, "Do you want to grab a drink?"
"Sure." I hadn't planned on having a drink when I arrived, but the idea of it suddenly sounded better when I had this pretty girl wanting to me get one with her. Not to mention she had me intrigued. I wasn't ready to leave her side yet.
We made our way back inside the house, which seemed more crowded than earlier. I laid a hand on her shoulder, causing her to stop walking as she glanced back at me, her brows slightly furrowed.
"I didn't want to get lost in the crowd," I explained.
"I don't think you'd be too hard to find." She pinched the fabric of my red button up shirt, as she eyed the many black and white animals printed all over, along with the blue planets scattered among the animals. I couldn't tell if she hated my weird shirt or loved it.
She placed her hand on top of mine on her shoulder and I took it as a sign to keep mine there. We started walking again, finally making it to the kitchen. It was the most popular room clearly since it held the alcohol.
"What do you want?" She asked me.
I glanced over the bottles of liquor sat on the counter.
"There's beer in the keg too, if you like beer more than spirits."
"I should be asking you what you want. I'm a gentleman." I gave her shoulder a squeeze and stepped around her as I gestured towards to bottles. "What can I get you?"
"I'm sure the Kappa Sigma doesn't have the ingredients for a tequila sunrise. That's my favorite drink," she said.
Hard liquor mixed with a tangy sweetness? That seemed to fit her. I opened the fridge just to check. "No orange juice," I frowned.
"We can do a tequila shot instead," she suggested. She grabbed the bottle of Patron, unscrewing the top and she looked at me and shrugged. "If you want."
"I'm up for it." There weren't any shot glasses sitting around so I grabbed two of the red solo cup from the stack and sat them on the counter.
Skye poured a shot worth, or close to it. We lifted our cups. "Ready?"
"Wait, I want to make a toast," I interjected.
Her melodic laugh sounded through the noise of the party. "Do people toast tequila shots? It's not like it's champagne."
"Why can't we? There's no rules," I protested.
"Fine, go on then. Let's hear it."
"To going to a new place and to staying in the same place and the friends you can find there."
She gave me a thoughtful look, then taps her solo cup against mine. We tossed them back, and I laughed when I saw her wince after swallowing it down. "You alright?" I rubbed a hand over her back.
"Yeah. Just missed the orange juice masking some of the potency."
"Pretty smooth, really," I chuckled. "But you're right about the potency." I examined the bottle, trying to find the alcohol percentage. I knew tequila could hit you hard and quickly.
Her eyes were cast down, looking over my arms when I looked over at her.
She tapped her fingers against the rose tattooed near my elbow. "This is pretty."
"Thanks." I rubbed by hand over it. "Do you have any?"
"Not a one." She shook her head. She then plucked the bottle from my hand and poured us another round, all the while I stood there, watching her like an idiot. "Let's take one more shot then call it done."
I must have been grinning enough that my dimple was showing, because she stuck her finger out, gently poking my cheek before grabbing her cup.
"My turn to toast. To English boys with dimples who think girls are in fraternities."
"Hey!" I drew out. She was already giggling and I wondered if maybe the first shot already had her feeling tipsy.
"I might have fibbed earlier," she said quietly.
I leaned forward to hear her better. "About what?"
"I do love English accents. I'm as cliché as the other girls."
She really wasn't but before I could tell her so, she had her cup lifted, taking the shot, so I lifted my cup and joined her.