Her Knight In Rusty Armor

Chapter I

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My Moral Support
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I swear, this place was built for loners and loners solely.

And, of course, that just had to include me.

The sun hung as high as it could in the cloudless blue sky. I warily eyed the lofty, off-white building towering over me; I seemed as small as a pebble as compared to this damned monument. Other hostelites around me chattered on and on about how their summer holidays had been.

Passing the two swollen suitcases placed beside me a crude glare, I grabbed both their handles and let them noisily trail behind me as I strolled into my new home. 

Upon walking in through the automatically opening glass doors, I caught a glimpse of the desk attendant raising her thin eyebrows at me, making me raise mine too. Somewhere inside my mind, the song I'm Sexy And I Know It began blaring inside my head, and I almost laughed at myself.

The desk attendant suddenly realised what she was doing, for she frantically began collecting crinkled sheets of paper from the desk set in front of her.

"Name, sir?" she muttered as I came to a halt before her.

Some girls passed by me, giggling contagiously as they did so. Giving them no sign of attention, I replied to the desk attendant, unfazed.

"Ashton Miller."

Her eyes scanned across the pages messily scattered across the desk, and then they lit up, indicating that she had found my name amongst the sea of other As.

"Ashton Miller, room number 265 on the third floor."

Tossing me a pair a pair of rusty bronze keys, she began raking her eyes over the next student who had entered the lobby; a guy with pale skin and shaggy red hair.

Chill, woman; your judgement is leaking out of your eyes.

Sticking the keys into my ripped jeans' pocket, I clenched my suitcases' handles and continued walking towards my destination; room number 265.

Heaving a heavy sigh, I pursed my lips, my legs feeling stiff under my torso; perhaps driving till here by myself wasn't the most optimal decision after all. Despite the slight aching of my joints, my feet tapped onwards, leading me to a flight of marble stairs. The slight conversing of the other residents of the hostel seemed to lighten up the atmosphere.

Abruptly, I caught sight of two shiny metal doors parallel to the stairway, and my eyes brightened up: An elevator, my hero! 

On I trudged towards the doors, observing the colourful paintings hung on the polished creamy walls. They were way too abstract for my mind to comprehend, but they did have a soothing effect on my mind, making me feel at home.

The doors slid open before I got the chance to press the 'up' button. An elderly woman daintily stepped out of it, smiling sweetly at me, and I returned the kind gesture with a small grin. Slipping into the elevator, I stabbed the button labelled with a 3 and leaned against the metallic wall.

I glanced at my wristwatch. It was only half past ten in the morning.

Honestly, it would've been to my utmost pleasure if my mother had complied with me taking a gap year and taking part in paid internships throughout that time frame. But no, we aren't letting our son escape from the wrath of studying, are we?

The elevator door dinged open. A long, carpeted wall stretched out in front of me, the latter completely vacant of any students. I sighed as I took a few strides forward, glancing at each metal slab fixed on top of every room's doorframe.

269... 267... 265. My stop.

Sliding the bronze key into the lock, I entered the small room and switched the lights on.

A gust of stale air knocked me back effectively, making me scrunch my nose in retaliation.

To the left of the large room was a black and white themed kitchen lain with checkered porcelain tiles of both the colours, a marble counter surrounded by tall stools separating the kitchen from the sitting lounge. The sitting lounge, which had a foundation of a wooden, panelled floor, housed a 65-inch smart TV, with comfy sofas arranged around it. Further ahead was a balcony, through which the gleaming chestnut rays of the sun illuminated the whole dorm.

I didn't bother going into the room ahead; slipping my hoodie off to reveal my bare, toned skin, I tossed the hoodie onto a nearby sofa and slid into the area which thoroughly resembled heaven.

The kitchen!

In today's menu was my moral support and a lonesome cup of coffee, too... Although, the first option was out of stock.

I attempted to make myself a delicious cup of hot coffee. Stirring the lumpy mixture of coffee after popping it out of the microwave, I jammed the warm cup into my hands. It fit in my hands as if we were meant to be – How romantic.

Plopping myself onto one of the small couches, I took a sip of it, fidgeting with my ear piercing: A simple, black ring attached around my left earlobe.

After a moment of peaceful silence, the door clicked open, causing me to pinch the bridge of my nose.

"These helpers lack manners," I mumbled, but I jumped in my spot upon hearing the scream ensuing that comment.

Swerving my head a whole 180 degrees, I raised an eyebrow, only to see a girl, about my age, gaping at the broad guy sitting before her... Me. She had a cup of pink bubble tea clutched in her hands, which let out a yelp of suffering as the girl almost crushed it between her palms.

Hoping that first impressions were not the last impressions in this case, I quirked an eyebrow at her, bemused at this point.

But only then did I truly note the agitation lining her features. I stood onto my feet, unconsciously running a hand through my messy, flowing hair.

"Um, why are you here? I'm not sharing a dorm with a boy!" she almost yelled at me, her hazel eyes glistening rather fiercely. Sometimes I wish I had hazel eyes; my olive green ones had no competition to them, did they?

Disregarding that comment, I feebly replied, "Um... Coffee? Want some?" Sheepishly grinning at her as I simultaneously raised the mug in my hand, I shrugged.

She perched an eyebrow, raising the bubble tea in her hand as to prove a point. A moment later, she huffed before shutting the door, gone with the wind as quickly as she had arrived, leaving me alone with my thoughts and the cup of coffee once again.

"Guess that was a no," I mumbled bluntly.

Bet she's gone to change her dorm room, a sulking voice in my mind squeaked as I sighed defeatedly.

I sighed before unlocking my phone and trying to look for someone I could text from my contacts.

Aunt Muriel

Beth

Diana </3

Homeslice

Leonardo Bonucci

Momma

Mr Dave

Pizza Hut

And the list went on, yet none of the contacts seemed to be the person I was looking for.

Pursing my lips, I clicked my phone off and shook my head in dismay. Having friends must feel good here, no?