The Loudest Silence

Mason

I run one final hand through my damp hair before glancing up at the bathroom mirror. Green eyes stare back at me through my reflection in the mirror, as I push my weight onto my arms that grip the sink.

Physically, I look the same as I always have, yet for some reason as I look back at the person in the mirror, I feel unrecognizable. The same green eyes that used to look so dull and lifeless, suddenly had a twinkle in them that I hadn't seen in years. I wasn't the same Mason I was before my life made a 180 turn, but I could feel remnants of the person I once was. I knew that I'd never be the same person I was prior to Nick's passing, but I had grown to accept that, and I could feel myself beginning to move forward from the life altering events that had changed me.

As soon as this assignment was completed, I was ready to make the first step towards moving on. And it would begin with me visiting Nick for the first time since his funeral. 

Standing up straight, I adjusted my shirt, before stepping out of the bathroom, and into my dorm room. It was nearing sundown, meaning I needed to head over soon to Isabella's dorm. I had decided to take the initiative and ask her out again. I was hoping that tonight she'd finally drop down her walls, and let me in. I needed to know more about her before things between us became complicated. I was going into tonight with a goal to get her to open up to me, but I'd be lying if a part of me wasn't eager to see her again. It had been a few days since we had seen each other, and I couldn't help but miss her presence. 

A part of me wondered if I had never met her, whether I'd still be the same miserable person I'd been for so long. I never had the courage to reconcile with Brielle and my mother, yet with her around, things just seemed easier. 

While the circumstances that had brought us together weren't ideal, I couldn't help but wonder if I would have made the same progress I had without her. She invoked something in me that I had buried along with Nick. I could only hope that my suspicions about her were true, and that I could get her to let me help her. 

I was slipping on a jacket, when the door handle rattled, as a flustered Fletcher stomped in. His backpack was weighing down on his back, and his hands were full with a bunch of bags. I watched with amusement as he stumbled over to his bed, and swiftly dropped everything on top. He let out a sigh of relief, before flopping down onto the bed.

I couldn't help the small chuckle that left my mouth, as Fletcher opened one eye to look over at me. I couldn't deny that in the beginning weeks of me being here, Fletcher was nothing more than a pain in the ass, but over time, I had grown to tolerate the guy. In the short time that I did spend in the dorm room with him, he was actually pretty cool.

He talked up a storm through, and half the time, I couldn't keep up with it. 

"Got plans tonight?" He asked, as he sat up on his bed, and pushed his glasses up his nose. Picking up my keys and phone, I nodded my head at him.

"Isabella and I are gonna go to the December Nights event they're holding on campus." I answered him as I made my way towards the door, "You planning on going?" I asked him as he let out a shrug.

"I was considering it, but the weather is making me change my mind." He said as I let out a small laugh. He wasn't wrong. In the last few weeks, the temperature had drastically dropped, and winter was coming in full force.

"Well, I'll see you when I'm back then." I said to him, as he waved me goodbye and wished me good luck. Taking a deep breath, I headed out of the building, and made my way towards Isabella's building. The wind was particularly heavy tonight, and luckily I had worn a thicker jacket since the event was primarily outdoors.