Whatever Happens

Chapter 2

"Alright. I'm gonna go unpack. Text me when you're ready to get lunch," Ben said after depositing my second suitcase on the floor of my new room.

"I will," I said, sad to see him go. It was stupid to be upset already. We both had to get settled and had a lot of work to do. But I'd never been comfortable in unfamiliar situations, and I was starting to feel homesick. I hadn't even met my roommate yet. For all I knew, she would be awful.

To make matters worse, Ben's room wasn't close to mine the way I'd hoped it would be. He was practically across the campus. In all my life, I'd never lived farther from him than a quick trip across the lawn. Now it felt like he was going to be across the world.

Ben smiled sympathetically. He knew me so well, I wasn't surprised that he guessed what I was thinking.

"I won't be that far," he said, playfully cuffing my chin. "Any time you need me, I'll be here in a few minutes."

Sighing, I gave him as much of a genuine smile as I could muster. Apparently not satisfied, he poked me in the side, making me squeak and smile for real.

"See ya, Becks." He smiled before heading out.

Before he could reach for the doorknob, the door swung open and a girl with dirty blonde hair came through.

She paused, looking at Ben and smiled.

"You're not Becca, by any chance, are you?" she said playfully.

Already, I didn't like her.

Ben grinned and pointed to me. "That's Becca."

"Shame." She sighed.

Ben laughed and turned to leave.

The girl watched him go before she looked at me.

"No offense, of course." She laughed. "I'm Taylor. I guess we're roomies."

I guess I couldn't really hold it against her that she thought Ben looked good. It was a completely understandable opinion.

"Hi." I smiled and decided to forget that little moment.

"So, is that your boyfriend?" she asked. "'Cuz yum."

"No," I said. "Ben's just my friend."

She looked at me curiously for a moment before she raised her eyebrows. "Say no more." She laughed. "I guess he's off limits."

"What?" I felt myself flush.

"You have a thing for him, right?" she said. "Old boyfriend?"

"No," I said, feeling even warmer. "He's my best friend. That's it." I wasn't used to having to explain mine and Ben's relationship to people. Everyone usually just knew we were friends. Having Taylor guess at my feelings, when I barely knew her, made me nervous. Was it that obvious?

Taylor looked amused and clearly didn't believe me.

"Really," I tried.

She smiled and shrugged. "If you say so."

I was tempted to try and convince her, but I thought it would sound too defensive.

"So, you're a freshman?" she asked, going over to her bed that was buried under a mountain of stuff, and began picking through it.

"Yeah," I said. "Aren't you?"

"Sophomore," she said as she stacked some books in her arms.

I hadn't realized that they would put me with anyone but another freshman, but it was probably a good thing. If I had any questions about the way things worked, Taylor would know. And she did seem nice enough.