- new chapters soon -

It was my first day at university. Like Phoenix had told me on the ride her, the noun university meant a high-level educational institution in which students study for degrees and were academic research is done. Not like high school, I was done with high school, done with immature kids. I was ready for sophisticated young people and university was the perfect place to find them.

The hallways seemed busier, the students seemed less friendly and, the teachers didn't seem to care that I didn't know my way around. Finally, the lunch bell rang and I was freed from the art class I was unable to understand. I slung my backpack over my shoulder and picked up my map, determined to find the cafeteria without help. Big football players raced past me in an effort to get their lunch first and cliques of girls clotted the stairs. As I walked into the lunchroom alone, looking desperately for an empty table, someone tapped my shoulder. "You look lonely," a blonde headed girl smiled at me, a bright smile that made my day a thousand times better. "Would you like to eat with me?"

"Yes, I mean I'd love to," I stuttered but my smile didn't fade and neither did hers, I followed her as she scooted between tables until finally finding an empty one.

Together we plonked our trays down and sat, I watched as she grabbed her sandwich. Her blonde hair tumbled forwards over her face, bleached whiter by the sun and looking more pale against her summer tan. From under long blonde bangs shone eyes the colour of wet earth, and below that a nose so freckled that the brown splotches overlapped much like fall leaves after a wind storm. Her smile was warm with a hint of shyness. I liked her already.

"I'm Emma," she licked the crumbs off her lips "Emma Johnson." Emma extended her arm over the table, I shook it while giggling this all seemed to be living up to my expectations of university. Sophisticated young people, check.

"Andrea Clark but you can call me Andy," I smiled and let go of her hand.

She bobbed her head up and down, "Andy like a guys name, that's cool" Emma giggled as she took a sip of her water.

"Yeah because of it I ended up leaving with these guys. You might know them Enzo, Sebastian and-" but before I could finish my sentence the bell rang.

"Shoot bio next, you'll have to finish that story soon. See you tomorrow same time?" Emma grabbed her bag and grinned at me, I nodded in reply and with that I was alone again.

Crowd by crowd the cafeteria became emptier, quieter. I picked at my nails before walking back to the art class.

"Art is creativity. Our creativity brings our dreams to life; inspiring, enchanting, bringing us closer to God." Mr Jefferson (not Mr clockelson) continued his empowering speech about art. "In art our spirits rise, in stories we are enthralled and elevated."

Enthralled and elevated. What did that even mean? Resting my chin on the palm of my hand I gaze across the classroom to see if I was the only one who was completely lost. The students nodded in agreement with every word Mr Jefferson said, yep I was the only one lost. Great.

I bet Phoenix would understand, he always did. He was so smart. How was it possible for one guy to be so intelligent yet he always looked like a Greek god. There was something about Phoenix, something about the way his eyes closed slightly when he laughed. The way his nose crinkled before he sneezed. The way he tapped the top of his watch three times before checking the time. The way-

Stop! What was I doing? I was in class and all I was doing was thinking about my roommate, my hot roommate my brain corrected. I rolled my eyes and tried to focus on Mr Jefferson.

"With creativity we make connections between disparate people, we learn that through our many lenses-." Boring! He carried on for god knows how much longer but I couldn't listen anymore. If I did my brain would explode and that was definitely not how I wanted my new classmates to remember me.

As I imagined the pain of my brain literally exploding a tap of the window on the door caught my attention. It was Emma, I grinned and gave her a little wave. She waved back and motioned to the professor and yawned, tapping her open mouth with her hand, I giggled.

"-we are seeing the same whole, only the path before our feet is still blurred". I rolled my eyes in his direction but kept my face perfectly in line to the door and it's window. Grinning, I watched Emma's eyes squeeze shut as she burst with laughter. I had to bite my bottom lip to hold back the laughter.

As we both laughed silently at each other I realised for the first time since arriving here maybe I wasn't so alone after all.

• Mr Jefferson, Mr clockelson, tomayto, tomahto •