The Gift

Chapter Twelve-Dorm Mates

Coming up the stairs, I was staring at the tattoo. I heard mumbling, and then a rough "We can't" but then I got up the stairs completely and saw Gia all over Chase. I zipped my mouth and ran the opposite direction to my dorm. I ran up the stairs and ran right into Brad, and the box he was holding went flying on the ground. I quickly bent to help him put the things back inside, and he hefted it back up. 

"O-oh, Brad, hey." I mumbled. He smiled at me.

"Hey, Nichole." He said. I smiled weakly at him.

"What are you doing over here? Isn't your dorm downstairs? Where is your brother?" I looked back to see if his brother was around, but he wasn't. I turned back to Brad who was grinning.

"Um, no, I'm switching dorms. And my brother? Jake? He's coming, too, he's just still getting his stuff." He told me.

"Oh, okay. Where's your dorm? Need some help transferring?" I asked him. I heard running and I looked back to see Emma, waddling with two boxes stacked on each other in her arms, and Gia walking over with boxes themselves. Jake was right behind them. I frowned.

"Emma, your not even in Cole, Chase, or Brett's group. Why are you switching?" I asked her. "And we can't possibly fit everyone in the dorm."

Emma shrugged. "Joseph knows what he's doing. Honestly I wanted to question his methods, too, but I just left it alone. It's probably best."

I groaned and grabbed one of her boxes to help her. "Fine. Come on, lets get you guys settled."

We all walked over to the dorm, and I fumbled to get the key in the hole and then it took a huge effort to twist and unlock it. Then I stumbled inside, and dropped the box.

"Wow. What do you mean there was no room? I call that bed!" Emma dropped her box and ran over to the bigger bed. I frowned and looked around at the queen size beds that were side by side, down the one wall. Where did those come from?

I saw Cole writing furiously in something, not looking up to see who joined us. I heard Gia and Jake already start fighting over one of the beds, and Chase, Brett, Cole, and Brad already had settled. I hurried and got to the only bed no one was fighting over. I plopped down and put the pillow on top of my head to block everyone else out. Eventually I grew tired and I fell asleep, shockingly. I thought the noise would never stop.

"Nichole!" I heard my name get called, and I startled awake. I was still exhausted, and my eyes didn't want to open. When I looked at the clock, it was three a.m. I groaned and looked at Emma, who was smiling sweetly at me. Behind her, everyone else sat in a circle with candles lit, the only light out of the entire dorm, and they were waiting for me to wake up,

"What?" I snapped.

"Come on, we're playing a game," she said happily. Always so damn happy...it's three in the morning, how the shit does anyone want to play a game? 

"I'm tired. It's three o'clock in the morning, don't you guys see the time?" I said madly. Emma giggled and nodded.

"Yeah, we have, grumpy-pants. Come on, it'll be fun." She said excitedly.

"I think I liked it better when it was just me and the boys," I muttered madly, as I forced myself out of bed, yawning and brushing the hair from my face. Emma grinned and I followed her to the circle. I sat down, trying not to look back to my bed, that longed for me to lay back down on it. I just waited for Emma to start talking, because she looked like the only one awake. The rest of us were still yawning and still trying to wake up at least enough to listen clearly.

"Don't worry, she woke all of us up. And if you didn't get up when you did, she would have pulled you off the bed. It's what happened with me and Cole." Gia whispered in my ear, before Emma started talking.