Chapter 14

It felt like a godsend leaving that confining hotel room. With the stones securely stored inside my purse, and the rest of my bags in tow, I exited the hotel doors like a kidnap victim finally breaking free.

My eyes darted back and forth across the parking lot, then the rearview mirror as I drove. When I finally reached my new home, Franklin Hall, I pulled the car into one of the many parking spots and took in the enormous red brick building. Bushes and shrubbery lined the outside, and dozens of students stood in little groups, some sitting on the stone walls, others to themselves sat underneath the trees that filled the yard.

It looked like something from a movie, the exact way I'd expected it to. This was it. My fresh, fresh start. I patted the purse as I stepped out and walked towards the entrance. My dorm was on the third floor, room C. Long dark hallways lined with concrete floors connected it all, and elevators seemed to be a foreign concept.

The stairways were vacant, and my steps echoed as I made the climb. When I reached my floor, I found a note taped to the inside of the stairwell door.

Reluctantly, I pulled the paper and unfolded it.

Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

Hope you're enjoying this,

I'm watching you.

Love,

The Bad Man

A shiver shot down my spine, and I stood for a full minute, too afraid to move. He can't get to you. This is just his game. He wants to scare you. You're winning. No matter how much I tried to make myself feel better, it wouldn't work.

Brady was out there, somewhere, probably watching me at that very moment, planning. He'd figure it out, eventually. He'd win. If Owen didn't hurry, I'd be lost forever.

Slowly and carefully, purse clutched to my chest, I made my way down the hall, reading each letter until I found the right dorm.

My small, timid tap against the door might as well have been a sonic boom. A small girl surrounded in a mass of flaming red curls answered. "Are you selling chocolate?" she asked, her eyes moving first up, then down, then behind me.

"No," I gripped the purse even tighter. "I'm your new roommate."

Her eyes widened. "Roommate? They gave me a roommate?"

Her reaction confused me. She looked ready to explode, and I couldn't tell if it was for good reasons or bad. "Yes?"

"Holy shit!" she shouted, so loud I jumped. "Come in! What's your name? What are you studying? Does this mean you don't have any chocolate? I just assumed, by the way you were gripping your bag, that you had chocolate. If I had chocolate, I'd grip my bag like that. You've got to be careful around here. Fucking thieves, all of them." Her words ran off a million miles a minute as she walked into the room.

I followed reluctantly, unsure of what to do.

She reached into her bedside table and pulled out what looked like a giant red glass vase. "Do you get high?" She lifted it up, eyebrows raised.

"I never have." I stood awkwardly, taking in her side of the room, the multiple posters, multicolored bedspread, and what looked like origami hanging from the ceiling.

"No pressure. I don't peer pressure. Won't catch my ass in one of those lame commercials. No siree. Fuck that." She plopped down onto her bed and lit a lighter to the little silver part protruding out of the bottom, then, mouth to the opening, she began to breath in, causing the water to bubble up and smoke to fill the inside. After a long pull, she leaned back and blew it all out slowly. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

"I'm Amelia." I stepped forward and stretched my hand out to her.

She tilted her head, then made a fist and hit it to the tips of my fingers. "I'm Amber, but people call me Red." She pointed to her hair. "So, want to go to a party?"

I took a step back. "Uhh, no thanks. I'm not too good with those."

"No parties?" She gaped at me. "That's downright fucking sad! This is college! You've got to party!" She stood, set her still smoking instrument on the table, and puffed her chest out like a soldier. "If we don't party, then who will?"

What the hell? I watched her closely, as if she were an exotic animal, or more likely, a ticking bomb about to go off. Brady did this. I know he did. "Like I said, I've been to one. It didn't go so well." I looked over to my side of the room. Bare mattress, solitary dresser, and nothing else.

"I'm sorry," Red said, grabbing a set of keys off the dresser before rushing forward and linking her arm with mine. She began dragging me towards the door, surprisingly strong for her small stature. "I can't allow that. As your best friend, I must correct the wrong that has been done here."

"Best friend?" I choked out as I fought to keep up with her and keep hold of the precious purse.

Red stopped and looked at me. "Of course. We're roomies. That means we're best friends. I've been waiting to get a roommate for two years."

"Oh." What could I say? Regardless of her sporadic behavior, having someone refer to me as their best friend struck a nerve. It felt good. My chest swelled up with a warm feeling, and a rush of confidence descended upon me. A best friend. Like normal people. I eyed the red haired girl again. Or, almost normal. Kinda normal. "Where are we going?" I asked as she began to move again.

"Shopping." She lead the way, pulling me outside and all the way across the lot, stopping next to a cherry red corvette.

"Is that yours?" I took in the beauty that sat before me. College kids didn't drive cars like this.

Red shrugged her shoulders, and a bored look crossed her features. "Compliments Of daddy." She pulled out her wallet and flipped it open, revealing a charge card. "Who needs hugs when you've got fancy cars and endless shopping?"

While her words said one thing, the way she said them told another story. A twinge of pity hit my gut. My own father never having been around made me suddenly feel more connected to her. Maybe we had more in common than I thought. Maybe, this was a blessing. A true friend.

Red didn't linger on the topic. "So, shopping. Let's do it." She hit a button on her key, unlocking the doors, then climbed inside.

I hurried around and did the same, managing to close the door just as she was shifting the gear into reverse. The car roared as she took off, driving as sporadically as the rest of her seemed to be.

I gripped the dashboard. "So, urm, what are you shopping for?"

Red looked over and lifted a brow. "You, bitch. You look square as fuck. Not my best friend."

I bristled, but made myself shake off the comment. New start. New friends. Normal. Maybe, this was normal. She's being nice? She's trying to help me fit in. That's it. I looked down at my button down blouse and blue jeans. What was wrong with this? It was pretty basic. White shirt and blue jeans.

Red made a noise then hit the brakes. I looked up, fighting to see what had caused the sudden stop, when she rolled down the window.

Two guys were jogging down the sidewalk, shirts off, and Red didn't seem to mind holding up the cars behind us, regardless of how loud they honked their horns. "Yo! Hey! Yeah, you! How you doin'?"

I covered my mouth, unsure of whether to laugh or die.

The two guys looked over, then laughed between themselves, still jogging.

"What?" Red hit the gas, pulling up closer to them. Cars began to whip around, angry drivers glaring at me as if I had anything to do with whether or not the car moved.

Red didn't seem to care. "Don't run! I just want to love you!"

They laughed again, and this time, one of them actually stopped to approach Red's open window. "Sorry, ladies. We're both taken."

Red made a pouting face then smiled warmly, not seeming put out in the least. "Good answer. I like you even more now. You boys keep running." She blew a kiss, then hit the gas, peeling away like an indie driver on the final lap. "All the good ones are taken," she whined.

I nodded, back to gripping the dashboard.

I had the stones, a new place, another new start...

So why did I feel like things were only going to get crazier from here?

😜😘