Roommates- Laurmani

Chapter 1:

Today was the day Lauren had been looking forward to and working towards throughout high school, it was her first day at college and she would finally be away from her controlling and abusive parents. She stepped out of the Uber suitcase in tow and stopped to take a breath at the size of the campus. At her high school Lauren was the HBIC and she intended to be the exact same person here, the it girl, she was rich and had a powerful personality and she wasn't interested in making friends. Lauren's only intentions were to be successful. She had never really had a connection with anyone in her life apart from her late twin brother Chris who had unfortunately lost his life a few years ago when they was 15 to a drunk driver. Lauren had a cold and hard exterior to keep herself safe, love only caused pain in the end and that pain was excruciating. She often felt detached from the rest of the world knowing she was unlovable and her fate was to be alone. She hadn't realised she had gotten lost in thought until she felt someone knock into her shoulder and mumble a quick apology before continuing on her way. 'Rude' Lauren thought. She pulled out her small mirror to make sure her long dark hair was perfect and her makeup flawless, unsurprisingly there wasn't a hair out of place. She takes her first steps forward towards the reception, huffing at the line of students waiting for their schedules and room numbers. The first week of Houston College is used to allow students to get settled into their rooms, collect any books and adapt to their new schedules. Lauren would be lying if she denied that she was slightly nervous, not that she'd ever show or admit it. She had to be strong, always.
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'I'm sorry I think there has been a mistake or a misunderstanding, I requested the college room me alone!' the green eyed girl huffed. 'I'm sorry Miss Jauregui but all rooms are doubles and unfortunately at full capacity' the older woman behind the desk replied 'here is your key, room number and schedule, it's all a part of the college experience Miss Jauregui I'm sure you'll learn to enjoy it' she smirked. Lauren took the items without so much as a thank you and turned on her heels in search of the dorms. Lauren's attitude didn't go unnoticed by the students waiting in the line, she heard whispers as she passed them, a small smirk on her face. 'Urgh this is a nightmare' she said as she pulled her case behind her through the halls. 'Finally' she huffed as she found her door number, pulling out her key and unlocking the door. Thankfully she was the first one in the room meaning she got the pick of the beds. She opted for the left side of the room as it was furthest from the door which she assumed was the bathroom. The room was a decent size nothing compared to what she was used to but it would do and to her surprise both of the beds were double with draws underneath them and a window in the middle. There was a small desk on each side of the main door against the wall opposite the beds and window. Lauren popped her head into the bathroom, the room was small with one sink, a toilet and a shower. Lauren wasn't overly bothered by the size of the bathroom she was just thankful the college didn't expect students to use communal bathrooms. She shut the door to the bathroom and decided she would arrange her belongings, organisation had been drilled into her since she was young. As she was pulling her folded clothes from her black suitcase she spotted the framed photo she had carefully packed, it was of her and Chris when they were children, Lauren smiling brightly at her brother as he pulled a funny face to make her laugh. She knew Chris always did what he could to make his sister smile, they both had it rough but she was normally at the brunt of her parents discipline.
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Lauren was pulled from her thoughts of her sweet brother by the sound of the door opening and someone tumbling in, literally. 'Oh shit' the brown girl with curly hair said as she almost fell through the door before catching herself. She was sporting a leather jacket with ripped skinny jeans and a duffle bag almost as big as her draped over her shoulder. Lauren had assumed she would be with someone of the same class or at least similar to her, this girl was the complete opposite. Lauren had come from money and obviously this girl hadn't, she was used to looking down at people like this girl, not living with them. 'Hey' the stranger smiled as she had shut the door and slumped on her bed 'I'm Normani, Normani kordei." Lauren's face was blank as she made eye contact with the girl "Lauren Jauregui ". 'Nice to meet you lauren, this place is sweet' Normani said as looked around. Lauren just nodded in acknowledgement before turning around and continuing with her unpacking. She could hear the stranger ruffling around behind her, she assumed she was arranging her own belongings. Lauren took a glance over her shoulder noticing she was doing just that. 'So...' Normani said without turning around 'what do you do for fun Lauren?'. Lauren sighed out loud 'look Miss Kordei I'm not here to make friends so lets not bother with the small talk'. 'Okayyy' Normani replied rolling her eyes, it was just her luck to get paired with a stuck up rich girl. The silence should have been uncomfortable but it wasn't, Lauren didn't care enough and Normani wasn't bothered by a rich girl that most others would have been intimidated by, she had dealt with a lot worse. The quiet was cut short by a cell phone ringing. 'What's up Justin?... Yeah I'll meet you there in five... okay bye'. And with that Normani just upped and left the room not even bothering with a goodbye to Lauren.
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Once Lauren was alone in the room again she felt more relaxed, she moved over to her desk placing her laptop on it and her books on the shelf above. She had decided that she would use the draw in her desk to keep her make up and skin care needing to only keep her toothbrush, hairbrush and toiletries in the bathroom. Once everything was arranged in a way she was happy with she glanced over to her roommates side of the room, her duffle bag was thrown on the bed with clothes spilling out of it, nothing Lauren would be seen dead wearing, a camera which caught Lauren off guard and a few books here and there. Lauren inwardly groaned she was brought up to believe being clean and tidy was the only way to live, messiness or anything out of place for that matter would lead to being extremely punished. It was 7pm and Normani still hadn't returned, Lauren decided it was the perfect time to get a shower and relax in bed with a movie on her laptop. She had nothing better to do, it had been a long day for her and she could finally relax a little without her parents breathing down her neck and watching her every move. Once she had settled in bed she pulled out the photograph of her and Chris from her bedside table draw and took a minute to look at it before putting it back and getting as comfortable as she could. The photo was incredibly personal to Lauren and that's why she kept it put away, it was something she didn't want people asking questions about, it could reveal a side to her that she had practiced keeping hid from people for years and she didn't want that.
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Normani on the other hand was spending her time with her friends Justin and Arin, she was glad at least a couple of her friends had been accepted into the same college as herself. Luckily for them though they had been roomed together unlike Normani who was stuck with a complete stranger who didn't even want to speak to her. 'Come on Mani it can't be that bad' Arin laughed. 'No, it's worse. I tried to ask what she liked to do and she told me she wasn't here to make friends and that I shouldn't bother with the small talk' she huffed. 'Ouch' Justin laughed 'wait until she finds out you're in a gang'. Normani just rolled her eyes. Lauren's assumption's weren't wrong, Normani didn't have a lot of money, she had to work two jobs while at high school to save for college and she'd have to work throughout college but she didn't mind it was what she was used to, she had lived in a trailer her whole life. But what Lauren didn't know was that although Normani didn't have a lot money wise, she was fiercely loyal and genuinely a nice and caring person unless someone got on the wrong side of her of course. Normani may be small but she could sure pack a punch. 'I better get back guys it's getting late and I haven't even sorted through my bag yet'. 'No problem Mani, do you need us to walk you back?' Arin asked, he looked out for Normani the best he could, he always had. 'I'm sure I'll be fine guys, I'll see you later' she smiled as she closed the door after her and made her way back to her room.

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Luckily when Normani had crept back in the room at around 10pm Lauren seemed to have fallen asleep whilst on her laptop. She quietly locked the door without making a sound and used the bathroom in complete darkness as not to wake the sleeping girl. She pulled a oversized tshirt from the bag on her bed before stripping down to her underwear and pulling it over her head. She moved the mess she had made earlier today from the bed onto the floor telling herself she'd clean it up tomorrow. Once under the duvet Normani got comfortable and faced the wall as she scrolled through her social media like she did every night before she fell asleep. She had to admit to herself this might possibly be one of the comfiest beds she'd ever slept in and sleepiness took over her quicker than she'd expected as she placed her phone under her pillow.