Come Back Home

Chapter One

-Liv's POV-

First days of school were always nerve wracking, but this one was especially so. Flickers of excitement mixed in with the fear as I took my first steps on campus – Everywhere I looked, people were milling about. Some, clearly not in their first year, were walking about casually, laughing with their friends on their way to their dorms. Others were quite clearly a basket case of nerves, carrying bags as big as they were and partaking in tearful departures with their loved ones.

I looked at the group of five boys that were trailing behind me. Mikey was holding my hand on one side and one of my bags with the other. Andy was carrying the bulk of them, mumbling something about being a pack mule under his breath, but I could tell that he was happy, judging my reactions. I tried not to feel too guilt about the fact that he had paid, in full, for me to go here, and that, if it weren't for him, I'd probably be lying in bed on my phone right now.

Brooklyn was looking like he was even more emotional over my leaving than I was – He'd confessed to me that he'd never been very good at goodbyes, and I didn't blame him. It wasn't going to be easy to leave them, especially whilst knowing that it would be a long time before I saw any of them. Not only would I be at university, but they'd be touring America for the next two months. I gripped the handle of my roller bag as it bumped along the pavement, trying to focus on the idea that saying goodbye to what I was used to would lead to hello's to newer, better things.

I heard the snap of a camera clicking and turned back around to see Rye, who had been documenting the entire journey so far. He gave me a quick smile and then went to retrieve Jack, who, bored, had wandered off from us a little bit, and looked as if he was considering whether or not to dive into the fountain at the entrance.

Somehow, the six of us managed to make it to my room in one piece. It would be another day until my roommate moved in, so, for the moment, it was just me and the boys, and they could be as loud and spread out as much as they pleased.

"Hands down, I have just seen the most beautiful girl of my life," Jack proclaimed, sitting down on a desk chair and spinning himself around. Whilst it was mainly bare, the room had been provided with the essentials: Two bedframes and mattresses with small nightstands placed beside them, and two desks with matching chairs. If you split the room in half, it would be identical, but that was soon to change, as the goal was to make it look and feel as home-y as possible.

"Thank God we're here," Andy groaned, dropping my luggage with a bang. "If I'd had to hold those for much longer, I think my arms would've fallen straight off."

"I don't think that's scientifically possible, but okay," I laughed. "I would've carried them myself, you know."

"And what kind of man would that make me?" I noticed that way that he looked at me now, the adoration that still lit up his eyes, and I blushed, looking away and turning to Mikey instead.

"Should we pack up first and then eat, or the other way around?"

"That's a strategic question," He answered, pulling out his phone. "If we eat first, we'll be energized for the task ahead of us. But I know that it'll make us starving afterwards, whether we've had lunch beforehand or not, so I say we wait. It's still pretty early, anyways."

"I, for one, am starving." Brooklyn proclaimed.

"You'll live," Rye said, searching his pockets and tossing him a candy bar to satisfy him for the time being.

"I want to see that girl again," Jack said, getting up and leaning out of the doorway as if, by pure luck, she would just happen to be walking by right at that moment.

"And what are the chances that you're going to find her in the lunchroom?" Andy asked, already leaning down to unzip one of my bags.

"Marginally better than the chance of her walking into here?" He asked, still keeping watch on the empty hallway. A group of girls walked by, giggling, and he perked up, but deflated once again once he saw that she wasn't there with them.

"You can feel free to go without us, then," Mikey offered, beginning to pull the bed sheet out of my suitcase.

"I don't want to be alone."

"Well, that's your problem, then." Still dejected, Jack gave up and began to join the unpacking effort.

Half an hour later, we were all knee deep in the decorating. All of my bags except for one had been unpacked, and all of my items were strewn across the floor. I thought nothing of it, being more than used to a chaos like this as I leaned down and picked up a notepad that had somehow slid halfway under the bed.

Andy had long since grown tired of renovating and was stretched out on the bare mattress across from me, playing a game on his phone. Rye, who'd grown to be another one of my best friends since our shared experience at the shooting, had acquired my eye for details, and growled at anyone who haplessly placed an object in a way that ruined the aesthetic.

I had set up some music, and the air was filled with not only my "university" playlist, but also Jack droning on and on about the mystery girl, who was supposedly the love of his life, even though he didn't even know her name yet, and his sentences were often punctuated by Brooklyn complaining that he was hungry.

I reached for the final, and most important, touch to make my room complete – A stack of Polaroid pictures, happy moments forever captured in time to string up on my wall. That way, no matter how far apart we may be, I would always feel close in heart to the ones that I loved. It was as I was getting ready to pull them out that Jack cut his monologue, which I had tuned out a little, mid-sentence. I looked up to see a pretty girl hesitating just outside of the room, clearly hesitant to disturb the little mojo that we had going on inside.

"Hi," I said, a little embarrassed by the scene that, invariably, lugging around five boys always created. I hoped that she wouldn't ask me for directions to her room, considering that I'd struggled enough to find my own. She stepped a little further into the room, and I felt myself tense up.

"I'm Coral," She said, quietly enough that I had to strain my ears to hear her. "I, um, was supposed to come tomorrow? But there was a change of plans." She self-consciously tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Oh, Christ," I said, fumbling around, trying to find my phone to turn the music off and praying that the boys would behave. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." Jack was blushing, even though none of her attention had been directed at him yet, and I suddenly knew that she must be the one. She navigated her way through the mess, which, thank God, we had mostly cleaned up already.

"I'm Liv," I added quickly, almost forgetting to introduce myself, and the boys followed – Jack went last, growing increasingly shy around her.

"Nice to meet you all. Uhm...Who will I be sharing with?"

"Just me. Sorry. These are just my friends."

"Just?" Mikey asked, pretending to sound hurt.

"And my boyfriend." Coral smiled. After that, the room settled into an awkward silence, which I broke by clearing my throat and saying, "So, this would be a good time for lunch, don't ya think?"