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She walked down the empty halls of the campus, looking for the secretariat. The non-helpful map depicting the grounds was left open on a sill made by the many arched colossal windows, a hopeless expression worn on her face as she yet again completed a circle around the floor.
How was she so bad at reading a basic map?
She hung her head, accepting defeat, folding the piece of paper so she would not have to read the useless instructions anymore. Maybe she was bound to stay within these corridors, lost, walking on the old wooden flooring for the next four years she had to attend college. She produced a loud sigh, taking in the view of grass and benches shaded by trees and pouting at her incapability.
"They won't be out for another five minutes."
The voice bounced over the vacant room louder than expected and shook her to the core in absolute fright.
"Jesus Christ!" She exclaimed, fighting to find her breath with closed eyes as she held onto the stoned ledge.
There was a gush of air, the person moving his hands for her forearm but not actually touching her. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you."
Rose peaked from under her lashes, longing to put a face on the crystal voice with the fair British intonation. She found fluffy, curly dirty blond hair over light-colored skin that flushed on the cheeks, his irises the same shade as hers only merrier in their depth. He caught her gaze and held it, a staring contest of a kind, but not played so that only one would win.
Her grip left the rocky surface, falling limp, bottom lip crushed by her front teeth. "It's fine. I was startled."
"Yeah, I probably should have kept my voice down." His tone dropped to a whisper. "I forget how creepily echo-y this building can be."
"I don't believe the creepy and eerie end with the weird echo." She reached for the map, holding it out. "I am either notoriously bad at following instructions or this floor is a never-ending circle with no exit."
"You're new. I don't go here but I may be able to help. Where do you want to go?" More blood rushed to make the skin on his neck red.
"The secretariat office."
"Ah, I know that spot by heart at this point." He moaned and began walking the opposite way Rose had earlier.
She fell into step with him, his long legs taking smaller strides so she would not have to run. Pulling on the straps of her backpack, she watched as the boy's hair bobbed with the up and down movement, the wild curls extending and drawing short again, barely gracing the back of his neck. "I was not told new blood was coming in today." He snickered at his comment, straitening when she frowned in confusion. "Sorry, I have an idiot of a friend that says that all the time. It's funny when he does it with a weird accent."
