..And Then All At Once

Surprise?

Surprise?

Wrong. I was so wrong.

Nothing good about England could overpower the bad of the Human Barbie. She's made me despise my college experience before classes even begin. I wouldn't at all be surprised if she had some 'voodoo doll' that made my life a living hell.

I was sitting on my bed, aimlessly throwing a ball around. Nothing to do on a hot, boring day in England. Mikey sent me a short text asking me to meet him in dorm 923 at 1:00, which was the room right down the hall from mine. Apparently there was someone he wanted me to meet, and they wanted to have a small "welcome hoe get together." It was already 12:52.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath, jumping up and finding another pair of clothes to wear. All day I had been sporting the "lazy hobo who hasn't showered in weeks" look, and I wasn't about to leave the room looking so grotesque.

Finally deciding upon a plain white t-shirt with black shorts, the time was already displaying 12:58. I ripped my room key and white iphone off my bedside table and quickly shoved it into my pocket.

The hallway was hot and bright, causing me to squint my eyes and miss my comfy, dark room. Mikey's green orbs met mine as I padded shoeless down the corridor. He was obviously waiting for me, which made me feel awkward for some reason. I hate when people wait up for me, I felt rushed.

"Hey," he whispered and opened the door, revealing a very plain looking dorm. The bed was perfectly made with two strange boys sitting upon it, the nightstand empty with nothing but a small lamp, and a tv was rested on the corner of the dresser. There was also a desk collecting dust in the corner of the room. Obviously whoever lived here never studied. Nothing on the walls, no knick-knacks, pictures, nothing. Just plain.

There were two males situated on the bed who never took their attention off of me. Suddenly I felt uncomfortably self-conscious. Upon instinct, I pressed my side up closer to Mikey's. His bold arm wrapped around my tiny shoulders.

"Guys, this is Viviana. But you can call her Viv...or Vivi works too," he smirked over at me, suppressing a laugh at our inside joke. His accent was something I could definitely get used to. It was so comforting, almost lulling me to sleep each time he spoke. His voice gave me a tiny bit more confidence, but not enough to overpower the immense awkwardness I was feeling.

"Hi," I attempted to get out, but merely whispered.

"Hello, I'm Ashton," A boy spoke in a thick accent. He had very curly hair with a red bandana bound tightly around it. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm Calum," A perky asian with yet another accent, much like Michael and Ashton. These boys and their accents will be the death of me.

A small beat of music from one of the boys' phones was coming from the portable speakers on the desk. Sounded like an All Time Low song, I would know. Apart from that. it didn't feel like a small "welcome home" celebration at all.

"Michael, what the hell is this," I said flatly, but still quietly, as I was still not comfortable with my surroundings.

His face twisted into confusion. After a few seconds, he replied, "a welcoming party..?" More a question than an answer. If this was supposed to be welcoming, I hope he's never in charge of my parties or get togethers.

"Okay, get your keys we're going to the store," I ordered him. He scrambled around the room for his keys as I walked out the door to go slip on my pair of black Vans.

"Ready?" He asked from the doorway. I nodded and exited, noticing the two boys behind him. I didn't feel as awkward and squirmy around them anymore, almost like when I first met Michael. I was uncomfortable, and then comfortable. It was simple, really. I just need a short time to warm up to people, that's all.

As soon as we left the University building, Ashton and Calum were already arguing over who gets front seat. It wouldn't have mattered, if I weren't there. I interrupted their petty little argument with a cough.

"Boys, I think I'll sit there." I walked up to the car and slid into the passenger seat. Calum whined and Ashton groaned like little boys. I laughed at their pettiness. After knowing them for barely 20 minutes, I could already tell that they were 11 year olds stuck in (how old were they again? I'm still not sure...) the bodies of grown men. At first, you're intimidated , but then you hear their voices, and then you can't help but giggle, because they were like little corgi puppies. They were cute, innocent little things. With huge smiles and hearts of gold.

It's amazing the way you can tell certain things about a person in so little time. Like I did with Calum, Ashton, and Michael. I can tell that they love their friend (whom I'll be meeting today) a lot. That they're passionate about what they do (they still haven't told me.) I can tell that they're the type of people I'm glad I affiliated myself with as soon as I stepped out of my comfort zone. I know they're good.

Michael pulled into a deserted parking lot of a small, run down store. He hopped out, and I followed suit. "So who is this party for, anyways?"

"Our best mate, Luke! He's the lead-" Calum was cutoff by Michael, who had slapped him in the back of the head and gave him a look as if saying 'what are you doing?'

"Oh...." I replied, feeling uncomfortable again. Were they trying to keep a secret? Was I not supposed to know something?

Michael and Ashton shook their heads, Calum rubbing the back of his head, as we all marched into the store. They led me to the party aisle, telling me to "do my thing." I rolled my eyes and grabbed a few streamers, balloons, welcome home signs, and tossed them into the basket on Calum's arm. Then, I ordered Ashton to go to the snack aisle and get a few things, that "Luke" would like.

Seconds later, I felt a tap on my shoulder from Michael. "Uh.... If we're getting things he'd like, we might as well go to the liquor store..." Confused, I scrunched my eyebrows, waiting for further explanation.

"The only thing Luke likes is illegal. Although he's only 18, he drinks like he's 21 and smokes like he's 50."

"Oh..." It seems as if "oh" had become my new favorite phrase recently. Head down, he nodded. I knew this was a tough subject for him, so I tried to change the subject.

"Let's go check out."

Once at the checkout, Ashton and Calum found us. They had their arms stuffed full of different assortments of snacks, mostly cavity-causing candy, of course.

Michael payed, and we headed back out to the car, landing our butts in the same seats as before. It was quiet this time, Michael seemed tense. I wondered if it was still about the whole Luke thing, but I decided to brush it off. I'd have to ask him about it later.

We got back to the dorm and right away I went to work. The three plopped their asses right on the bed, eating the food and watched while I worked. "I like her already," Calum not so secretly whispered. "She does stuff." I turned and glared at him. I threw a package of balloons at him and told him to 'blow.' He giggled and had them blown up within minutes. Finally, after about half an hour, I had the streamers hung, balloons floating, and snacks (I just saved them before they were gone) set up.

It was now 4:42 p.m. "20 minutes..." Michael said. Suddenly my heart began to race. I realized that I had no idea who this kid was, and here I was, in his dorm that I had just decorated for his coming home.

And then, at 5:07, the white door swung open, and in walked a smiling, giant, blonde haired hottie. Calum, Ashton, and Michael jumped up, greeting him with "bro hugs."

And, finally, he looked over at me. We made eye contact, my face noticeably red, eyes wide, and heart beating quickly out of my chest.

"Viviana, this is Luke. Luke, Viviana."

Yikes.