Let's Get Ethan ✔

Chapter 4

They entered the crowded gymnasium. Both were surprised to see it was nearly packed. There was only a bit of room between the large swaths of individuals. The gym seemed to echo the laughter and good times. In the very back the boys could see refreshment tables and they both went to investigate.

Once they weaved through the crowds, they saw what they had been looking for, the holy grail of any party, the food table. It was no wonder why they didn't put that thing in the front, they needed to lure students in. They each took a plate, well, Lincoln took two.

They grabbed everything they could, chips, dip, candy bars, granola bars, Gatorade, crackers, brownies, and more. Their plates were beginning to sink down from the sheer weight of the food. At last they got to the pizza and they each got a slice. Or in Lincoln's case two slices.

Ethan looked at Lincoln's plates, he wondered if the guy could actually eat all that in one sitting. Sure, Ethan had packed on the food, but Lincoln's plate was next level binging. The time flew by at the party. Between mingling with other students and eating the refreshments, they had both gotten their social and physical fill. Surprisingly, Lincoln didn't leave Ethan to go find someone cooler to hang out with, instead he opted to bond with the scrawny loser.

The music at the party was good but mislabeled. Their version of classic music was original Justin Timberlake albums, which were not exactly classic music. Then again, he wondered if classic music is just orchestra music, not the Beatles or Queen. What did people back in the 1800s think the "classics" or "oldies" were? Mozart? Did they say, "ugh, Beethoven is so mainstream!" It seemed a better term for Timberlake was a "throwback," but as the DJ stated they were, 'Bringing it back with some classics.'

Ethan had met many people with Lincoln by his side. The extroverted roommate always seemed to sneak his way into other people's conversations, but Ethan didn't manage to make a lot of friends. They all exchanged phone numbers, but that was about it. Perhaps he would have more luck the next week, but for now he was just left with half-baked interactions. Ethan then told Lincoln that it was pretty late, which wasn't entirely true it was only eight o'clock, but Ethan felt the need to go back to his dorm to sleep for a bit.

"Yeah, yeah, you can head back, I'll find you after I'm done talking to these guys." He motioned over to a bunch of slightly overweight, but muscular guys that were so clearly not on Lincoln's level. Could it be Lincoln liked hanging out with average joes instead of the fraternity, football playing, testosterone machines?

"I'll text you when I'm there," Lincoln said. His eyes went back to his new group of friends.

"Yeah, okay," Ethan said feeling relieved he could go rest in his dorm for a bit before the party started.

As Ethan walked back, he noticed the crowded campus wasn't so crowded anymore. It was almost a ghost town. The buildings in the background darkened, the dorms were lit up in multicolored lights, décor, signs, and posters. Some lights were off entirely; however, they were probably out with friends or maybe there was a huge beach party, and whole dorm floors were invited. Ethan figured this was why practically each person on his floor had their lights out, and this was a trend with numerous levels of Kent Hall. Nobody could be staying in the second night of college.

The night was windy, but still very warm. Under the cover of the dark summer night the unfamiliar land before him, looked less so.

When Ethan walked up the stairs to his room, he noticed a familiar face, it was Stephanie. There she was after months of silence on the same flight of stairs he was. She didn't even look up to see him. Stephanie was wearing a short denim skirt that rode higher than expected on her thighs and a large denim jacket that draped over her body, covering her completely. She also wore some heels that were short enough so that she could run down the stairs as she was currently doing.