After putting on her contact lenses she started taking her route to the dorm with her broken luggage that kept making creaking sounds, wheels rattling on the ground as she made to go another stairs. Halfway down the stairs, someone called out, "Hey! First year?"
Aria turned to see a girl about her age, short red curly hair, bright smile, with beautiful bright green eyes. "I—yeah," Aria answered, breath a little uneven from the steps.
"I'm Malia Grace," the girl introduced herself, already reaching to take Aria's heavy suitcase without asking permission. "wanted to help you, I just got my things unpacked last two weeks, I'm a freshman just like you. What's your name?"
"Ariana Valerie, Aria's better."
"Pretty." Malia started walking. "So, dorm rooms are three per block. You're in 3C. Lucky. That side doesn't get the cold wind." Aria didn't really know what that meant, but she nodded politely.
They walked through a hallway filled with nervous-looking students and boxes of bedding. Some parents fussed, hugging too long. Others left quickly, pretending not to be emotional. Aria felt a small ache, thinking of her uncle's awkward expression and her sister's tiny arms. "So…" Malia continued, cheerful, "where are you from?"
"A small town Rockwood," Aria said. "Really small. Nothing exciting."
"Then this place must feel like Hogwarts," Malia laughed. "Minus the magic probably."
Probably.
Aria smiled, not quite sure why the word made her uneasy. When they reached the dorm block, Maila pushed open a wooden door. It creaked as though it hadn't been opened in decades.
"Room 3C," Malia announced, stepping aside so Aria could enter. Inside, A narrow bed. A tiny wardrobe. A wooden desk under a window. Sunlight dust floating gently through the room.
"It's…" Aria swallowed. "Perfect."
Malia leaned against the doorframe. "My room is right there." She pointed to the door next to Aria's. "3B. If you need anything. Or if you're bored. Or hungry. Mostly hungry come to me."
Aria felt her chest loosen just a little. "Thank you."
"No worries," Malia grinned. "We freshmen gotta survive this place together. Rumor says the cafeteria tries to poison us."
Aria blinked. Milia laughed again. "I'm kidding! …Probably." There was that word again. Probably.
"Anyway," Malia continued, pushing some hair from her eyes, "orientation is in an hour, but if you want help unpacking—"
"No, it's fine. I can handle it," Aria replied.
But Malia didn't move. She gave Aria that same gentle look her aunt had given her, like she could fall apart at any second. "You sure?"
Aria forced a small smile. "Yeah. I'm sure."
Malia nodded, tapped the door lightly, and left it open. "Well, my door stays unlocked. That's a threat and a promise."
Aria exhaled softly when she was alone. Her eyes wandered to the window, where sunlight painted golden shapes across the bed. Warm, peaceful, normal. Something she hadn't felt in a long time.
She placed her hand over her heart, steadying her breath, willing her body to cooperate, at least for today. Just one day at a time. Just this semester. Just enough to finish something before time slipped away.
Outside, a bell echoed across the campus deep, heavy, ancient. It reverberated through her bones, and for one second, she felt her blue eye the real blue eye at the left part burn beneath her eyelid. Aria blinked hard. Just normal again. Probably just nerves.
Probably.
_________
Aria followed Malia through the winding path of hallways that all looked slightly too old to belong to a modern university. The walls had carvings under the paint old symbols half-covered and forgotten, like someone tried to erase history but didn't succeed.
Students gathered slowly in a huge hall with tall windows and long velvet curtains that looked far too expensive for the rest of the building. Rows of wooden chairs filled the room. Aria sat near the back, feeling safer with walls behind her. Malia plopped down beside her. "Okay, rule number one never sit in front. It's where the strict professors scan for victims." Aria laughed softly.
Students whispered, shuffled papers, compared schedules, exchanged nervous looks. Everyone felt like they were beginning something enormous. The lights dimmed. A tall man wearing a long coat stepped onto the stage, his voice slow and deep.
"Welcome, new students. Westmoore University has stood for nearly four hundred years…"
Malia leaned close. "And barely changed since then." Aria tried not to laugh.
The speech continued, history, rules, values, warnings about the old building wings that were "restricted for maintenance."
Malia elbowed her gently. "Maintenance means ghosts."
Aria's heart kicked strangely. "Ghosts don't exist."
"Tell that to room 4A," Milia whispered dramatically.
Aria rolled her eyes but couldn't help the little chill that crawled up her spine.
Suddenly a sharp sound wood scraping against wood. Everyone turned as someone took a seat a few rows ahead, too loudly.
Aria didn't see his face, only the back of his head, dark hair, posture perfect and somehow intimidating even while sitting. People around him shifted as if making room without being asked. Malia leaned toward her again. "That's Rowan Graye. He is the most feared student in the school, he is trouble himself, he's like he finds this institution."
Aria blinked. "What? Like a donor?"
"More like an owner," Malia whispered. "He's…complicated. Don't ever get in his way. He doesn't like people."
Aria frowned. "Why?"
"He just doesn't like people," Malia said simply.
Aria stared at the unmoving figure ahead. Something about him felt off, but she couldn't name it. Like a shadow that knew it was being watched. Before he could turn to meet her eyes she turned, her heartbeat now very fast. Rowan turned his head to the direction of where she and Malia sat and didn't see anyone watching until he heard a heartbeat racing fast and his eyes caught her, he squinted it as he stared at her simple delicate face, she stared at her bright blue eyes, when she turned to talk to Malia he noticed something was off about her right eyeball, her pupils has another color at the corner, eager on seeing what the color is he got distracted by someone.