(Formerly known as "When Our Paths Crossed")
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A tale of two lost souls brought together by pain, grief and trauma.
Atlas tries to find a place in a world he's worked so hard to escape. Elijah struggles to balance the life he's building and the...
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IT'S EASY TO get inside the building. I mean, it's a university campus, and students are studying, so it's always open. And with finals coming up, the place is bursting with students, and the art campus is alive with sounds, paint smells, and laughter. The only problem is getting into the audition room.
Desiree explained security keeps it locked unless there are performances or auditions, which means we'd have to break into it. The campus is crawling with students. The audition room faces the entrance, completely exposed. Not only are there witnesses everywhere, with security patrolling, there's also a high chance of getting caught if we're not careful. The idea of risking my second chance at getting into the program puts me on edge as we step onto the campus's main floor. Hardly anyone gives us a second look save a couple of girls who wave at Desiree.
"Alright, the audition room is over there," she says, pointing to our right.
"Don't any of these nerds have anywhere else to be this late?" Rin murmurs, eyes darting around the building. "How the fuck are we supposed to break in there?"
"We could always ask someone to let us in," I suggest, "maybe we lost something in there or something... which, we kind of did."
"It could work," Desiree nods, although the doubt is evident in her gaze.
We're standing in front of the audition room, not at all inconspicuous. As my eyes wander the campus, I notice someone walking towards us. "Or, we can ask Professor Langdon."
Desiree and Rin turn as the professor comes to a stop before us, the shock evident on her face. "Elijah, what are you doing here? I thought I told you that we weren't doing any further study sessions."
The conversation I just had with her earlier is still ringing in my head. I drop my gaze to my shoes. I had been hoping to see her again, but not like this. Not until after I finished the task I had set out to do. "I...um..."
"He came to help me study," Desiree blurts out suddenly, "he's been helping me practice, and with finals coming up, we both decided to study together. We were hoping that maybe we could use the space in the audition room since the other rooms are full, and it's big enough for the two of us to practice together."
It's impressive how quickly Desiree can come up with a lie when put on the spot. Langdon looks between the three of us, considering the truth of Desiree's words before she focuses solely on me.
"I must say, Elijah, I'm surprised that you're showing any effort at all," Langdon says. My heart thuds painfully against my chest. "But, perhaps studying with your peers proves more useful than studying with a professor. If the other practice rooms are otherwise occupied, I suppose it's okay to let you use the audition room for a few hours."
Thankfully, Desi had had the sense to stop at her place first to grab her backpack and her violin. Then we grabbed my backpack while Rin axed the idea of using one of Desiree's old bags.
