Forever Wherever

Chapter 1

First days. Most students don't look upon first days positively. Most see them as a return to the constraints of classrooms and schedules and internships, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

Mike Warren, however, was not most students.

He waltzed onto campus with his backpack strung over both shoulders, a suitcase in hand, and a cheerful smile on his lips. He seemed to radiate sunshine, a stark contrast to the otherwise dazed students around him. That didn't matter, though, because he was here, he was prepared, and he was definitely going to conquer this college.

Fulls-Burry Institute (jokingly named FBI for short) was the best university on the West Coast and one of the best universities in the nation (well, in Mike's opinion, one of the best in the world). Mike had been valedictorian of his graduating class, on both the varsity track and football teams, and one the top debaters in the country. He liked to act like he was worried about getting in to Fulls-Burry, but it was no secret that he was their number one pick.

Mike stopped in front of the cluster of dorms before him and smiled a little wider. He had been at the top of the dorm request list, so his placement into the honors building, Declan Circle, was almost guaranteed.

"Hi there!" a chipper voice interrupted. Mike turned his attention to the voice in question, which belonged to a short girl with a nametag that read, "Carla." "I'm Carla," she announced.

"Hello," he answered awkwardly, giving a half smile. "I'm Mike Warren."

"Are you here for your dorm assignment?" she asked, her large grin never fading.

"Yup! I was told to come this way." He tried to hide his excitement, but failed.

"Great!" She pulled out a phone and tapped something in. "Alright, Mike Warren, it looks like you have been assigned to Declan Circle, room number 525!" Mike grinned wide. All of his dreams had come true. "Oh, wait, so sorry. It looks like you were moved to Grace Snyder Hall, room 312." Mike felt his stomach drop and couldn't help the disappointment that overtook his expression.

"You're sure?" he asked, hoping that maybe she'd misread something.

"Yup! Says right here." She turned her phone around so that he could see the screen. Sure enough, he was in Grace Snyder Hall. He knew from his copious studying about the university that that was upperclassmen territory.

"Thanks, Carla. I'll be on my way," he sighed. She was on to the next freshman in seconds, leaving Mike to navigate to his dorm. According to his map, the hall wasn't even located with the other dorms; it was on the other end of campus, next to the marine sciences building—and the shoreline. The university was on a prime slab of beachfront property, making the room and board prices even more astronomical. Thankfully, his scholarship was covering everything.

Grace Snyder Hall, it turned out, wasn't nearly as bad as Mike had pictured it to be: unlike the stone towers on the other side of campus, it was mainly glass, all smooth curves and modern architecture. Each dorm seemed to have either a great view of the ocean or a great view of the mountains a few miles away from campus. There were no tables for registration out front, nothing to indicate that anyone was even considering moving in in the near future.

After a moment of hesitation, Mike opened the door and glanced around. Despite the contemporary architecture, there was only one elevator, which held an "out of order" sign. He sighed and headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time. Once he hit the third floor, a little out of breath, he wandered through the halls to find his room. It was an eerie level of quiet. Well, at least for a moment.

"Briggs!" Someone pounded on a door down the hall. "I know you're in there!"

Mike jumped at the yelling, turning his head quickly to look behind him. A tall boy pounded on one of the doors, a sneaky smile tugging at his lips despite his harsh tone. He sighed and glanced towards Mike.