Children of the Beloved

Chapter 1 - A New Beginning

Declan woke up to the sound of loud stomping and yelling outside of the walls of his dorm; groaning, he crawled out of bed wearing nothing more than his sleepwear. He walked over to the door while wiping the sleep off of his eyes before unlocking and peering outside, yelling something at the noisy residents of the 3B Dorm Hall. It was a normal fight for him, the damn kids were too noisy.

After coming back into his room, he looked up to the bright red clock only to find that he was already going to be late for his morning science class. This was the class that he shared with three of his friends, and he hated to miss it, but he knew that they were decent at distracting the teacher for him if he was a little late. He wouldn't be in the biggest rush to get ready.

Declan was a decently tall individual, but that was no matter for the high ceilings of the large dorm room. Each dorm room contained one bed, a small kitchen area, a private bathroom, a closet/wardrobe, and enough room to put a lounge if need be. Even if it wasn't ideal, Declan would be content no matter what the circumstance. This is his home.

The brown haired boy picked up his pace the second he stepped outside of his dorm, finding himself holding a granola bar in one hand while trying to fix his white collar with the other. While uniforms were not mandatory, they were encouraged, and if not the uniform than a nicer set of clothing. Declan usually opted out of the uniform, as he found it fit him a little baggy, and instead went for khakis and a green sweater with a white undershirt underneath it. Fashion was not his strong suit, but his friends helped him out when they could.

Speaking of friends, Nova's question to him from the day prior popped into mind.

"Could you help me show some of the underclassmen around? It's Sarai's first day as well! I'm so excited!" Nova asked with verbal enthusiasm. Showing people around and, well, asserting her position was one of her favorite things to do. And she was right, it was one of her and Declan's childhood friends that they would be showing around. Anything for Nova, and anything for Sarai.

Finally finding his way to his science class in the South hall, he was relieved to find that he wasn't actually late. Not that Declan cared; showing up to class on time was the least of his worries. He found himself wondering a lot, analyzing people or coming up with fun ideas for an adventure with his-

"-Uh, Declan?" Nash, asked from his side, nudging him in the arm softly. He was around the same height as Declan, standing almost 6'0". They both looked each other in the eye when they talked. He must have been drifting away in thought again.

"Oh, hey! Sorry, woke up a little late," Declan responded with an awkward half laugh. Another voice, feminine this time, chimed in from behind.

"When do you not?"

Nova, a curly haired girl with large circular glasses, suddenly came up from behind and punched him in the arm, only for Declan to respond with a sarcastic 'ow'. He enjoyed teasing Nova, and he knew that there was nothing she could actually do to physically hurt him. She was almost a foot shorter than him anyways, so the threat levels were low.

The three joined each other and found their seats, all laughing and talking about different things. Nova mentioned the tour to which Declan promised he didn't forget, Nash asked if he could tag along, and of course she agreed. Then, quicker than they had realized, the class had started.

All students in the class who were not already standing had stood up and faced the front, putting their arms down beside them and waiting for the teacher's assistant to initiate. Once the teacher's assistant was standing upright in the front of the class and everyone was in their respected position, he gently lifted his head up to the ceiling.