His dorm stood at the far edge of campus, in a huge gun-metal building with heavy beams. It looked formidable, matching the security concentration perfectly. Walking through the doors she went for the stairs, not willing to wait for the elevator. Trudging up the four flights calmed her a bit.
She followed the narrow gray hall and knocked on Marco’s door. It wasn’t until the door opened that she remembered it was Reed’s room too.
“Ari.” Reed’s eyes widened. “What are you doing here?”
Ari wiped the sweat from her brow and tried not to think that she looked even worse when Reed had seen her plastered at the club. “I’m looking for Marco.”
“Sorry, he’s not here. He’s in class.”
“Oh, yeah.” She was supposed to be there too. “Why are you here then?”
“Study hour.” Reed leaned against the door frame in a plain white tee, jeans and socks. Ari thought it unfair that guys could look so good with so little work. He probably didn’t even have to run a comb through his short hair.
“So ...” he said as he tapped the door lightly. “Do you want me to leave him a message?”
“Message?” Somehow, ‘Marco your little sister is crazy as a loon,’ wouldn’t be great for a message. That’s why she hadn’t messaged him to begin with. “No, don’t worry about it.” She glanced down the hall, unsure of what to do next, or where to go.
“I’ll go.” She pointed down the hall and turned to walk away.
“Hey.” Reed caught her by the wrist. “What’s wrong?”
She glanced down at her wrist, and he dropped her hand.
“Nothing.” She shook her head. “It’s just ... we had virtuals today.”
“How long did you last?”
“Enough to see the hell that was the Never-Ending War.” She blinked back the raw tears threatening to overflow. Her body didn’t want to listen to her at all today.
“I’m sorry,” he said, holding her gaze. “The programs the teachers use here are never pretty. They’re trying to prepare us for the future, I guess.”
Stunned into silence, Ari didn’t want to imagine any reality or future that horrific.
“Do you want to come in? I have thirty minutes till my next class.”
Her art design class was starting soon, but she didn’t care. Ari was about to take him up on his offer, when she noticed someone approaching, a pretty blonde girl with a little too much make-up.
“Hey, Reed.” The blonde waved. Ari hoped she was a neighbor, but she kept heading towards them.
“Oh, I forgot. Ari, I have this thing with Talia,” Reed said before the blonde made it to them.
A date or something like it, Ari realized, feeling stupid and small for thinking anything of Reed’s offer to come in. Why was she even bothering Reed? “No big deal,” Ari turned to leave. “I’ll catch you later.”
“Wait.” He reached a hand out to her but then pulled back.
“It’s fine, really.” She assured him over her shoulder and kept walking. She shouldn’t feel rejected. There was nothing between Reed and her.
Blaming her emotions on the VR, she hurried down the stairs and out the door in relief. Clouds drifted over the campus, casting shadows on the ground. Following the paved path, she curved around the building, through campus, and even past a small park she hadn’t known existed.
The sun had set by the time she headed back to the dorm. She wanted to climb into bed and find some comfort in sleep. The first thing she noticed as she opened the door was her school bag that she had forgotten in the virtuals. Someone must have picked it up for her.
Thankful for her bag, she pulled out her tablet and flipped it on. A bright green message instantly popped up.
Thought you might need this. ~ Garrett.
Maybe she wasn’t completely alone.
Chapter Five
Tessa pulled out her earbuds for the first time the next morning, and repeatedly blinked her eyes until her gaming contacts cleared. Tessa had her hair up in a messy bun, exposing the shaved underside of her hair and the port in the back of her neck. Grabbing her coffee, she turned to Ari. “What was the deal with you leaving the VR lab early yesterday?”
“I had to get out of there. You know?” Ari gathered her bag, ready to leave for morning classes. She really didn’t feel like getting into it this morning.
“No, I don’t.” There was a brief, awkward pause that Tessa was in no hurry to fill.
“I have a problem with being in the program ... like I want to tear out my port.” Ari didn’t know why she told her roommate. Maybe she was looking for sympathy? Help? She got neither.
Tessa laughed. “That’s a good one.” She continued laughing as she grabbed her bag and headed out the door.
Ari swore under her breath as the door hissed shut. It was going to be a long day.
Her first two classes sped by in a flurry of notes. It helped that she came in just before the bell rang and sat on the opposite side of the room from Wake. She was up and gone before he could say a word.
Arriving at her third period class, she settled in the chair and pulled out her tablet to go through her schedule. The guy next to Ari uploaded a file directly to his desk and began manipulating his notes. The desks had ports to upload to and write on whenever they needed. Ari preferred holding her tablet in her hand, almost like a real book.
Her HUB vibrated with a message from Garrett.
Heard about Dr. Coleman’s class yesterday. Wanted to see how you were doing?
She moaned and wondered just how many people knew about her meltdown.
How did you find out?
I know the TA, Mica.
I’m not as crazy as it probably sounds.
Don’t worry. All the hot girls are a bit crazy.
Ari’s mouth dropped, not sure how to take that. She didn’t have time to reply before the
