American Love Affair (5 Seconds of Summer fan fiction)

Chapter 44

Chapter 44

Lee's POV

I toss my last pillow on the bed, exhausted.  I stare out at the boxes teeming on my half of the room and realize how much I still have to do.  Sure, my bed looks nice and my closet it filled, but my desk needs to be organized and the dresser needs to be filled with the rest of my clothes.  The light is streaming through the window, painting stripes on the floor.  I jump off of my bed, which is about five feet off of the ground and open the window, letting some air into the stuffy room.  My roommate still hasn't arrived yet.  I know that her name is Margaret and she's from Florida.  Towards the end of summer the dean of students sent an email to me, and probably every other student, saying who my roommate was and urging me to get in touch with her. 

More voices are heard outside my door, a scream, crying, but it's not Margaret.  I toss some empty brown shipping boxes outside of the door and stare left and right trying to catch a glimpse of a hall neighbor.  Back in my room I start setting up my desk.  My dad gave me enough free office supplies to start a small store.  I shove the notebooks, folders, and loose-leaf paper into one drawer and fill a cup with pens and pencils.  It's almost noon.

"Come in!"  I shout as three loud knocks ring into my room.

The door creaks open slowly.  A girl in a short floral romper and bouncy brown curls comes in. 

"Hey, oh I like the set up you did.  Umm...a couple of us are going to the dining hall.  We wanted to know if you wanted to come."  She says, her smile revealing her pearly whites.  "I'm Olivia." 

"Yeah, sure.  I'm Lee, nice to meet you."  One of the many pieces of advice my mom told me was to be outgoing the first couple days.  "Let me just get my bag."

I rummage around my room and find my leather messenger bag.  I shove some lip balm, my phone, my wallet, and my orientation days pamphlet in it.  Then I quickly look in the mirror at my high waist jean jean shorts, white tank top, and black sweatshirt that I'm not sorry to say I stole from Calum. 

"So...where're you from?"      

"Seattle...I mean Australia.  It's kind of complicated.  What about you?"  I say trying to keep it simple. 

"New York."  She laughs.  "I know what you're thinking: stereotypical black girl from the Bronx who's only here because of affirmative action." 

"I wasn't thinking that at all."  I reply honestly watching a dad try to pull a huge trunk out of the back of a Toyota. 

We step into the dining hall where I registered as a student this morning.  It looks like it could be Hogwarts: with high ceilings, wooden walls, an enormous fire place, arches, and circular tables.  Olivia waves to a group of students sitting by the window that looks out onto the quad.  I scan the dining hall food: the deli, soups, salads, pizza, pasta, hot foods, noodles and rice, and dessert, but decide to make myself a grilled cheese at the Panini press.  Someone taps my shoulder and I turn half expecting to see Luke or Calum, Michael or Ashton.  But it's just a short girl with light blonde hair and a plate of pasta.

"Hi, this is going to sound really weird, but you look just like Lee Castelle, Calum Hood's girlfriend."  She tells me, awkwardly keeping her eyes down. 

I nod, not sure if I should say I get that all the time and laugh or admit that I am dating 5SOS' bassist. 

"Yeah, I get that."  I say quickly, pulling my hair over my eyes a bit.  "I think I just have one of those faces."

I fill my glass with apple juice and walk over to the table.  I sit down awkwardly beside Olivia. 

"Guys this is Lee, she's my across the hall neighbor from Seattle slash Australia, and Lee these lovely ladies are: Emily, Harper, and Christine.  We met at a summer program here last year."