The Next Big Thing [#Wattys2016]

Chapter Two

"Friends are a great thing to have at Hawking. I have Dana. Whether you have one friend or one hundred friends, they're pretty much essential. As a given, you're going to have enemies here, since it can get pretty competitive. They're going to try and tear you down, so you need those friends to support you, and help build you up so you can be your best.

"I know I'm not the best filmmaker at Hawking. There are people better than me, but they push me to be better, so I can at least try to be the best. Dana also helps me get there. Since he's not in the same program as I am, he can look at my work through the eyes of someone who isn't going to nitpick my every move. It really helps to know what the average person would think of my work.

"Nonetheless, no matter what program a person at Hawking is in, they're going to need friends to help them get through the curriculum. I think that's why it's a good thing we have roommates. Lots of people every year complain that they want their own room, especially when people want peace and quiet to work on their art, but the older we get here, I think we realize it's a good thing we have roommates. Liking them, well, that's a different matter. Although, I've only met a few people who hate their roommates, most get along fairly quickly, and become the best of friends."

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With so many students coming in, the majority of them would be nervous. But nervous didn't even begin to describe how a blonde haired, blue eyed girl by the name of Athena Riley felt as she walked in. Athena had always been shy, but the one thing she was thankful for was that she didn't have stage fright. Performing came naturally to her, but actually talking to people made her nervous. She didn't even know how she managed to get through talking to the staff during her audition before performing. It was probably one of the most terrifying moments of her life so far.

When she walked into the courtyard, Athena was immediately overwhelmed by what she saw. There was so much motion and sound that she found herself frozen in the spot by the doorway, much to the annoyance of some of the people around her. As they all pushed past her, Athena kept a tighter grip on her guitar case, and didn't hear the people around her telling her to move out of the way. She didn't even hear the desperate cry of a kid on a bicycle, who would of run her over, had it not been for a hand that reached out and grabbed her, pulling her away.

"Are you crazy?" The voice asked, as Athena became more aware of what was going on, "I mean, I know the curriculum is hard, but at least try to get through it first before trying to get run over by a bicycle."

"I'm sorry, what?" Athena asked the girl in front of her.

The girl shook her head, "Never mind." After thinking for a moment, she held out her hand, "I'm Zaria. Zaria Blu."

Athena took Zaria's hand, and shook it, "Athena Riley."

Athena took the opportunity to look at the girl in front of her. She was slightly shorter than Athena, with a slight tan, most likely from over the summer. She had short, loosely curled, brunette hair, pulled back into a small ponytail. She had one blonde streak in her brown hair, going down the front of her face. She had sparkling brown eyes, that were full of kindness and mischief, which slightly scared Athena. The girl was dressed in ripped jeans and an old tee-shirt as well as old sneakers, all of which were covered in paint. Athena could only guess the girl was an artist.

"You're new here, aren't you?" Zaria asked, and Athena nodded.

"That obvious, huh? How could you tell?" Athena asked.

"You were completely entranced by everything going on around you. Only happens with newbies." Zaria informed her, "Don't worry about it, we all went through it. So, are you a freshman?" Zaria asked her.