Ethan entered the organized chaos that was normally the dining hall at Central Pacific University. The cafeteria had been converted to a welcoming center for the newly arrived Freshmen during the campus’ Orientation Days Program. He stood back and watched for a moment, trying to gain his bearings and determine the flow of people.

Ethan fit right in. Dressed in a tee-shirt and jean shorts, and just a little taller than most, he seemed to not look out of place. He had his sunglasses hooked on the front of his shirt, retrieved from where he’d temporarily placed them atop his head, not wanting them to get tangled in his curly dark hair if they stayed there too long.

He watched parents shuffle their kids along and young adults lead their parents through the ever-moving crowd. Ethan was alone. He’d been fairly independent from a fairly young age. His parents were always traveling somewhere, or just working too much. Sometimes he wondered if they remembered he was their own flesh and blood. His parents hadn’t even been in town for his last week before leaving for the University.

Finally thinking he had a grip on the layout, Ethan headed toward the check-in tables.

“Name?” A young blonde woman with a bright smile greeted him.

“Perry, Ethan,” he answered, feeling an answering smile tug at his lips.

“Perry, Perry,” she muttered as she rifled through the manila file folders laid out in front of her. “Oh, here.” She handed him the envelope with his name neatly typed on a white label in the upper left-hand corner. “The ResLife table is over there.” She pointed across the hall. “You’ll get your room key, sign some forms,” she explained. “After that, the Campus Safety folks are set up to take your picture for your i.d. card.”

Ethan peeked inside the envelope while she talked. Nametag, forms, guides.

“You’re in group 11,” the blonde continued. “The big group meeting is out on the quad at 11, so you have a couple hours to get at least partially settled. You’ll want to put your nametag on, and wear it when you’re out of your room for the next few days.”

“Thanks,” Ethan, stepping out of the way for the person behind him. He moved out of the flow of people to an open spot on the wall and pulled the contents of the packet completely out. A bright piece of paper bid him welcome straight off. Underneath it he found a general schedule for the weekend, maps, and a profile of his group leader. Ethan stuffed the papers back inside, not taking the time to really read them over.

As he looked up, a tall curvy redheaded girl crossed his vision, a slightly shorter blonde boy in tow. He’s cute, Ethan remarked to himself, and idly made a note to try to remember his face and track him down later. A couple of older women trailed behind them, talking with an amused air as the girl led them around.

Pushing himself off the wall, Ethan made his way through the crowd to stand in the short line under the grouping for his last name. He waited patiently, but his fingers not clutching his packet tapped out unconscious rhythms on his thigh. He needed to find a practice room at some point during the day, he realized. He hadn’t played since the morning before. Without thinking about it, his thoughts drifted toward the concerto he was working on memorizing, fingers twitching slightly as the melody ran through his head.

“Next?”

The voice derailed Ethan’s concentration and he stepped up to the table. “Hi,” he greeted the older woman. “Perry, Ethan.”

“Okay Mr. Perry,” she said as she picked up a paper clipped bundle. “This is your room key.” She slid a small envelope free of the clip. “We have you in Spader Hall, room 216. If you have any problem with the key, let us know right away.”

“Okay.” Ethan accepted the envelope and tucked it into the back pocket of his jeans.

“I need you to sign here, for receipt of the key.” She handed him a pen. “And then here. This is a basic agreement, saying you agree to abide by the rules, etc. There will be a hall meeting soon and your RA will go over all of that with you.”

Ethan signed where indicated and handed the lady back her pen. She separated out the carbons and handed Ethan the pink copies. “Hold on to those. Just in case.”

“Thanks.” He slipped them into his packet.

“Welcome to CPU,” she said and Ethan stepped back out of the way again, moving toward the tables where the digital cameras where set up.

As he waited in line again, he remembered that old adage – everything you need to know in life, like waiting in line, you learn in kindergarten. Ethan continued to watch people stream in and out, wondering if he was somehow wrong for feeling exhilarated at being officially on his own, rather than lonely or homesick with no one to send him off.

The line moved quicker than Ethan thought it would, and he was able to have his picture snapped and id card printed out right away. It was still warm when he slipped it into the same pocket with his room key. He once again stepped out of the way for the people behind him, and saw the same couple from a bit before at the end of the line. The cute blonde boy with the glasses looked like he’d rather be anywhere but the crowded room, but Ethan watched as the blonde seemed to find a smile for the girl.

With a smile of his own, Ethan made his way through the growing crowd to fresh air. CPUs campus was fresh and green, the redbrick of most of the buildings setting off the lushness of the landscaping. Colored banners hung from flag poles scattered around grounds. Ethan knew the campus well; he was from the area and had been to the university many times before for various music festivals and state competitions. The banners came out for special occasions, and he supposed that the beginning of a new year was an event to celebrate.

Ethan walked casually toward his car, parked on the street near Spader Hall. He had plenty of time to get his few things into his room, and possibly even put away before the activities really got started. He paused on the curb and let a car go up to the side door of the building, stuff piled clear to the top of the station wagon.

Ethan had only brought what he thought he wouldn’t be able to live without. His parents’ house was less than an hours drive away, so if he ended up needing something, it wouldn’t be a big deal to cruise up and get it. Most of what was in his car was clothes. Two suitcases, a duffel bag and a garment bag, plus a box of bedding, towels, and random things like a coffee mug, fork, and bowl, his tote bag of sheet music, books, and other musical paraphernalia, and of course, his laptop. He figured he could make it all in two trips.

He draped the garment bag over his arm, slung the duffel bag over his shoulder and hefted his two suitcases that didn’t have wheels. The doors to the dorms had been propped open for the day, which Ethan found fortunate. Their id cards let them into the buildings with a swipe, but only the front doors had a keypad. And really, Ethan thought, who wanted to walk all the way around the building when they could go in the side door?

Ethan made his way up the flight of stairs to the second floor, pausing once again to observe chaos. People in yellow shirts declaring “MoveIn Crew!” bustled about, carrying boxes, bags, guiding the lost through the halls. Parents and their kids stood around in doorways and hallways, and just like in the dining hall, it was a flow of movement. Ethan chose his path and started down the hallway, checking the numbers over the doors as he did, pausing frequently to let someone unburdened go by faster.

216 turned out to be in the middle of the hall, right across from the men’s bathroom. Convenient, he mused. There were two cute construction paper nametags attached to the doorframe. Ethan and Ralph were spelled out in silver glitter on dark blue paper, with a green border running around the edges.

Ethan set one of his bags down to retrieve his key, and when he pushed the door open, a warm gust of musty air greeted him. He flipped on the light just inside the door and looked around the bare room.

The floor was linoleum tile, scuffed from years of abuse. Blinds covered the windows along the East wall, facing out on the field below. A ledge ran the length of the room under the windows, beds backed up against it. Both the beds were a good four feet off the floor. Perfect for storage, Ethan thought. But he was most likely going to take most of his bags back up to his parent’s house. Under the beds he could see the heating vent in the ledge. A desk was against each of the opposing walls, and on the wall over each desk was a corkboard, and above that, shelving that ran three-quarters of the way around the room. A free-standing closet, dresser, and bookshelf made up the rest of the furniture on both sides of the room.

Ethan hefted his bag again and stepped inside, instinctively going to the left side of the room. He hoped it wouldn’t matter too much to his roommate, but if it did, he’d be willing to move.

He dropped his two suitcases and duffel bag on the floor and hung the garment bag in the closet. Making sure he had his key, he locked and shut the door behind him and headed down stairs to his car for the remainder of his belongings.

Half way down the stairs, Ethan found himself face to face with a large cardboard box with legs. Though Ethan was thin, there wasn’t enough room to get by on either side of the box, and it had stopped in the middle of the flight. “Uhm,” he said with a smile as he tried to peek around the edge of the box.

A blonde head poked around the side. “Sorry.” The head disappeared and the box shuffled to the side to give Ethan room to scoot past.

It was the same boy from the commons earlier, Ethan noted, feeling his smile grow just a bit. “No problem. Thanks.” Ethan moved around him, smiling brightly at the redheaded girl behind him, slightly less burdened. A few steps down, Ethan turned and looked up, watching a khaki-clad backside work slowly up the stairs with the box. With a shake of his head, Ethan turned back around and clattered down the steps.

Ethan’s second trip was much lighter. He walked around to the front of the building to the door with id card access. Ethan didn’t possess a great sense of direction, but his memory was good, and if he could find his room from the main stairwell after being there once, he’d consider himself good to go.

The front lobby of Spader Hall was decorated to reflect Orientation Days. A banner hung to the side of the main stairs, welcoming the residents. Construction paper lettering labeled the recycling room, guest room, and supply closet. A door off to the right led to more rooms, and the one to the left led to a common area and kitchenette. The main stairs were wide at their base and narrow toward the top, the carpeting well traveled. That flight of stairs was quiet, as most of the incoming residents were trying to use the side entrances to avoid having to carry too much too far.

Ethan found his room easily enough the second time. He let himself in, leaving the door standing open behind him and dropped his belongings on the bed, then slid the windows open to let the breeze circulate out some of the stale smell.

The first thing Ethan unpacked was his laptop; he didn't have a stereo and he needed something to listen to besides the background noise out in the hallway while he unpacked the rest of his stuff. Ethan plugged it in and turned it on, not bothering with the internet connection for the time being. He just wanted some music. In a few short minutes, Stravinsky's The Firebird Suite drifted out of the stereo quality external speakers.

He started unpacking his clothes, sorting the contents of his suitcases and duffel bag into piles on the bare mattress. Absently, he hummed along to the music emanating from his computer as the playlist advanced. Ethan retrieved the hangers from his box and began hanging up his shirts in the closet, shaking out each as he went to try to ease out some of the wrinkles.

Out his window, Ethan could see people beginning to gather around the various flags and tables set up in the lush grass of the quad. Official looking people had been milling around since Ethan had opened his blinds and peered out across campus, but they were slowly being joined by young people looking unsure of where they were supposed to be going.

"You two go on," a voice drifted through Ethan's open door. "We'll meet you guys for dinner. You can find your way?"

"Yes, mom," a male responded. "We'll be fine."

"Yup," came a younger female voice.

"Okay," a fourth voice chimed in. "We'll see you two tonight. Stay out of trouble."

"Who," the younger voice teased. "Us?"

Laughter and footsteps faded away.

Ethan decided it was time to join the crowd gathering on the field below. Someone was getting the sound system running as music started to blare. Ethan smirked. Verve Pipe’s Freshmen, he thought. How appropriate. He grabbed his nametag, key, and id card, and locked the door behind him.

**

“Everyone have a seat,” a voice boomed over the sound system. Around Ethan, people settled onto the grass and the noise slowly died down.

“Thank you. My name is Jonathan Winters, and I am the President of the Associated Student Body of Central Pacific University. I’d like to welcome all of you here for Orientation Days, and to CPU. Over the next few days, you’re going to be subjected to all kinds of boring speeches and presentations, so I’m going to spare you another one.”

There was laughter over the field, and Jonathan waited for it to calm down. “I’m sure that you’re all aware that the upperclassmen will be arriving on Sunday, and that classes start Tuesday morning. The next three days are for you to get oriented to the campus and meet some people and not get lost in the crowd. So,” Jonathan continued. “We’ve broken you up into groups, which are also the members of your Freshman Sem class, which we kindly call "Snooze Points” here at CPU.”

Everyone laughed. ViewPoints was the survey course that all freshmen had to take, Ethan knew, and they would be studying the Middle East. They were the last in that cycle, he had been told, but not all the professors had taught the class before, so some of them would be coming to the material for the first time with their students. Ethan just hoped he didn’t end up with a biology professor or something.

“We’re going to split you up now,” Jonathan continued. “Around the Quad there are flags with numbers on them. On your nametag, in the lower right hand corner, is a number. Match up those numbers and you’re set. Ready, go!”

Ethan climbed to his feet. Around him, people moved in a mix of slow and fast, trying to find their marker in the field. Ethan found his – 11 – and moved toward it, trying not to jostle too many people on the way.

“Hi!” a tall girl with short blonde hair greeted when he approached his flag. “I’m Sara.”

“Ethan,” he said. “This is group 11?”

“Sure is,” she answered, a hint of a southern twang in her voice. “Have a seat. We’ll get to know everyone in a bit.”

Ethan smiled and did as he was told, plopping himself back down on the grass near a redheaded girl that looked vaguely familiar.

“Hi, I’m Ethan,” he introduced himself.

“I’m Lara,” she answered with a bright smile. She absently twisted a strand of her long curly red hair around a finger. “I think we bumped into each other in the hallway earlier.”

“Ah,” Ethan nodded. “I thought you looked familiar. Nice to meet you.”

“You too.” She shifted and settled her skirt around her. Lara was pale and freckled, clothed in a light skirt and top. Her shoes sat next to her; a pair of plastic flip-flops. She was pretty, Ethan supposed, but he couldn’t see her eyes, hidden behind sunglasses. And she wasn’t exactly his type anyway.

“So,” Ethan said after a moment. “Where are you living.”

“Spader 214,” Lara said.

“We’re neighbors,” Ethan grinned. “I’m in 216.”

“Really? Cool. My best friend Paul, he’s up on the third floor. He was carrying that box for me.” She blushed. “We’ll have to hang out.”

Paul. Ethan made a mental note of the name. “Yeah, we should.” People were still milling around. “What kind of classes are you taking?” They’d all pre-registered a month or so before, and received confirmation of their courses about a week before OD had started.

“Music classes, mostly,” Lara said, twisting her hair again. “Music theory and ear training, band, lessons, and some other things I can’t remember right now.”

“Really?” Ethan was amused. “I think we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other, then. I’m taking pretty much the same things. Throw in jazz, French, and some other random things, and I’m set.”

"That's cool," Lara said. "It'll be good to know someone."

"Yeah," Ethan agreed.

"Hi everyone," Sara joined them all on the grass. "My name is Sara, I'm a junior Politics major, and I'm your OD leader." She smiled at them. "Welcome to CPU. I know that things might seem a little overwhelming at first, but that's why I'm here. But first, I want to meet all of you. Let's just go around and introduce yourselves, where you're from, what you're thinking about majoring in, things like that. Let's start with you." She nodded to Ethan, on her left.

"My name is Ethan Perry, and I'm from Portland. I'm thinking about double majoring in Music Education and Music Performance. I play the piano and drums." He smiled.

Lara followed him, twisting her hair around her finger again. Ethan decided it was some kind of nervous gesture. "I'm Lara Flanagan, and I'm from central California. I'm pretty sure I'm going to major in music, but I haven't decided what specialty yet. I play the clarinet, primarily, but a lot of other things too. And I live in Spader Hall."

"My name is Joe," a boy continued. "I'm from Southern California, and I have no idea what I want to major in. I don't play any instruments," he said, and everyone laughed.

They continued around the circle of about 18 people, ending back on Sara. "Okay," she said. "Nice to meet you all. I know you probably need some time to get settled and all, so, after lunch, I'll let you go, and we'll meet up again later this afternoon. And since some of you still have family around, I won't make you eat dinner as a group tonight."

Ethan heard a few grateful sighs and giggles.

"Let's go eat," Sara said, gracefully rising to her feet.

Ethan rose and gave Lara a hand up. They followed Sara and the rest of their group, who like Ethan and Lara, had broken up into clumps of two or three people who had been talking before the group introductions. Sara stopped them in front of the commons. "Usually, you'll use your i.d. card for meals. Breakfast and lunch are pay by debit. Dinner is all you can eat, Sunday through Friday. Saturday's are funky," she grinned. "On Saturday brunch is all you can eat and dinner is debit. But until Monday, your nametag gets you fed. Any questions?"

When no one spoke up, Sara led them in. There were other kids in nametags wandering around with trays. Ethan watched as Sara grabbed a tray from a cubby under the counter and put herself in line to select what she wanted. They followed suit. Ethan saw that all the lines were serving the same thing – hamburgers and veggie burgers with fries. Probably, he thought, they weren't putting the effort for variety when only a fourth of the students were on campus. But the salad bar was fully stocked, with all the condiments on the opposite side.

Ethan got his food and a glass of water and made his way out. Lara, he noticed, had stuck to him. He didn't get the sense she was uncomfortable exactly; he felt like she was comfortable with him, maybe because they had so much in common, or because she knew he was her neighbor and would be a good friend to have. Either way, Ethan didn't mind. She seemed nice, and they would be in a lot of classes together, so it only seemed natural that they'd be friends.

They found Sara sitting around a circular table. Ethan and Lara took seats a few down from her. Other groups were seated similarly, talking while they ate, asking questions, getting to know each other. Sara engaged the whole group in conversation while they ate, asking questions and answering any that the freshmen had. Ethan knew the area fairly well, and being from Portland, he was able to help Sara answer some of the questions about things to do off campus. Lara warmed up to the group, talking to a few other people between bites of her veggie burger and salad.

Sara wanted everyone to meet up again at 3:30 at the Student Union to take them on a walking tour of campus before she turned them loose for the night. The next day they had a convocation in the morning, with their first meeting of ViewPoints at 12:30, the normal time it met during the week. "In your packets," she said lastly before she let them go. "Is an information sheet. All my contact info is on there, and feel free to call me if you need anything. I remember Orientation Days and I know it can be a little frightening and stressful. So if you need to talk, I'm here. It's one of the reasons I am here. With that," she said with a wave of her hand. "I'll see you all this afternoon."

**

"Do you have any plans for tonight?" Lara asked Ethan as they walked back to Spader.

"I was going to see if I could find a piano. I'd like to practice." Ethan shrugged. "I hadn't really thought about it."

"Your family didn't come down with you?"

"No," Ethan said as he swiped his card and held the door open for Lara and a couple people behind them. "My parents are in Europe somewhere, I think. I'm not sure. They haven't been home for a few weeks now."

"Oh. Well," Lara continued. "Paul and I are going out with our moms tonight, but maybe after we can hang out and watch a movie or something. Our moms are heading out early tomorrow to drive home, so they're not going to want to be out too late tonight."

"Sure," Ethan said. "I think that would be fun."

"Okay." Lara smiled. "I'll see you later then," she said as they arrived at their doors. They were both open, with people moving around inside.

"Sounds good. See you later." Ethan ducked into his room. A dark skinned pudgy boy with dark curly hair was moving around, humming absently, while a similar looking man worked to hook up a computer.

"Hi," Ethan said.

"Oh, hey," the boy turned around. "You must be Ethan. I'm Ralph. This is my dad." He waved to the man in the chair.

"Nice to meet you," Ethan said.

"You too. How long have you been here?" Ralph asked, turning back to putting clothes away.

"I live in Portland. I came in this morning, got here a few hours ago. How about you?" Ethan popped open his box; his clothes were pretty much put away.

"We flew in a couple days ago, from Alaska. We shipped some stuff down so it was waiting at the hotel."

"Alaska? Wow," Ethan said.

"Yeah."

They worked in silence for a time, only soft mutterings from Ralph's dad breaking the quiet as he tried to get Ralph's computer hooked up. Ethan got his box unpacked, stashing his linens on the top shelf of his closet and setting his few dishes on the bookshelf between his desk and his bed. Then he moved onto his own computer. He found a network hook up sheet in the small stack of papers that had been waiting on his desk and ran through the steps to get himself setup. He successfully got his email working and dropped a note to his parent's mobile account, letting them know (on the off chance that they cared) that he'd arrived safely and gotten settled.

"There we go," Ralph's dad announced finally. The machine whirred to life when he turned it on, making the appropriate sounds.

"Thanks, Dad," Ralph said. "Oh, hey." He glanced at his watch. "You probably better get rolling if you're going to make your flight on time."

"Yeah," his dad agreed. "Nice to have met you, Ethan."

"You too," Ethan said, though he was never properly introduced to Ralph's father.

"I'll walk you to the car," Ralph said, grabbing his key and card from his dresser top before leaving with his father.

It was going to take some getting used to, Ethan knew, having a roommate. He was an only child in a huge house with plenty of space and no real need to share. But as he glanced around the room, there wasn't a lot of clutter, at least not yet, but until he really got to know Ralph, or at lease lived with him for a while, he'd have no way of knowing if they'd get along. He had seen an instrument case among Ralph's things, so it appeared that they had at least one thing in common.

And there was one crucial thing he needed to tell Ralph as soon as possible. Because it wasn't fair to not tell his roommate he was gay. If for no other reason than to allow him to transfer if he wasn't comfortable with the situation.

Ethan had about an hour and a half before he had to meet back up with Sara and his group and was lacking anything interesting to do. He didn't suppose he was supposed to be bored, but then, he had really few things to put away, and no family to see off or visit with. He was considering going to purchase his books and supplies, before everyone else had a chance to have the same idea, but he was also tempted to track down a piano to use.

He wrote on the back of one of his information sheets, making a list of things he needed. Notebooks, staff paper, books. There was a dry-erase board already installed on the wall next to the door, so he only needed some pens. And regular pens and pencils, tape, paper clips, stapler, staples, glue (because he never knew what he might find himself doing), scissors, a bulletin board, push pins, and calendar. It was easier to pick it all up at once at the bookstore and not have to make a trip off campus, even if it was slightly more expensive. Not that Ethan really had to worry about it. Even if he hadn't received a scholarship for music, his parents wouldn't have thought twice about paying cash for his tuition.

Ralph came back and Ethan seized the opportunity, quelling the butterflies in his stomach. It wasn't that he was ashamed of who he was, but he chose not to share his preferences with everyone, and each time he did, he was wary of the reaction. His parents had been indifferent, the friends in high school that he could trust either didn't speak to him again, or didn't care. He hadn't had that many close friends in high school – he spent so much time practicing that he didn't hang out with many people outside of school. Most of his friends were out of the music program, and after graduation, they'd gone their separate ways. Just a few months and he'd already lost touch with most of them.

"Hey, Ralph. Close the door a minute, would you? And sit down."

"Sure," Ralph said slowly, giving Ethan an odd look.

After his roommate had turned his desk chair around to face Ethan and set himself down in it, Ethan started to speak. "I wanted to let you know now, straight off, that I'm gay. I want to give you the chance to transfer or whatever." He held his breath.

"That's it?" Ralph laughed a little. "Man, you had me worried there for a second. No, it's cool," he said at Ethan's look. "Just don't hit on me, yeah?"

Ethan laughed, relieved that it had gone so smoothly. "Sure. Let me know, okay, if something makes you uncomfortable?"

"My older brother is gay. Don't worry about it," Ralph shrugged it off with a smile. "But thanks for letting me know."

"No worries," Ethan said, glad to have that over with.

"Okay," Ralph stood and turned his chair back around to face his computer and went back to putting things away.

Ethan called up his schedule on the computer and jotted down his classes on his list of things to pick up. French, ViewPoints, Music Theory and Ear Training, Introduction to Music Ed, and Basic Composition made up the classes he needed books for. On top of those academic classes, he was enrolled in Symphonic Band, University Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, and his private lessons.

But he didn't think he had time to go get his books and get them back before he had to meet up with his group. So, he opened up a browser on his computer and idly surfed to some of his favorite sites until he had to leave.

**

"Hey," Lara poked her head around Ethan's door.

"Hey," Ethan responded from his bed. "This is my roommate, Ralph. Ralph, this is Lara. She lives next door."

"Hi," Ralph said. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Lara smiled. "We were going to watch a movie. You're welcome to join us."

"Sure," Ralph said with a nod.

"Whenever you're ready," Lara said. "We'll be next door."

"Thanks," Ethan answered.

Ethan hadn't done much in the time since the group meeting had broken up. He hadn't been able to find a piano, but he had found the music department schedule so he knew he would likely be able to practice the next day. So, he'd left campus while Ralph was gone and found a local bookstore and picked up a couple of novels to help keep himself occupied in the meantime.

Ethan stuck a piece of paper between the pages of his book to act as a bookmark before sliding off the bed.

Ralph shut off his monitor and stood, stretching his arms up over his head. "Shall we?"

"Yup." Ethan tossed his book onto his made bed and followed Ralph out. They didn't bother to lock the door, since they'd only be next door.v

"Lara, next time why don't you try plugging in the TV before you load up the bookshelf?" Ethan recognized the boy from the hallway.

Lara giggled as they stepped through the open door. "Hey guys," Lara said cheerfully. "Aimee, this is Ralph and Ethan, they live next door. Guys, this is Aimee, my roommate." She gestured to a mousy looking girl sitting at her desk, with straight brown hair that fell to just above her shoulders.

"Hi," Aimee said, tucking a strand of hair behind one ear. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Ethan answered, echoed by Ralph.

"And this is Paul," Lara pointed down to a figure crouched on the floor, trying to plug the TV into the socket on the wall. "Gallantly doing battle with my bookshelf."

Paul looked up. "Hey."

"Hey," Ethan answered.

"Can I help?" Ralph offered by way of greeting.

"I've just," Paul grunted. "about." He sighed. "Got it," Paul said, rocking back onto his heels and standing. "But thanks."

"Sure," Ralph replied, settling himself down onto the floor. "So. What're we watching?"

Lara blushed. "I have mostly chick flicks – Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Clueless. I also have a couple of other things. The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Velvet Goldmine, Trainspotting." She shrugged.

Ethan grinned. He'd seen all of those films at some point or another. Lara certainly had eclectic tastes.

"The Priscilla one?" Ralph asked. "Is that the one with the guy from the Matrix in drag?"

"Keanu Reeves?" Aimee piped up, moving from her chair to the floor.

"No, the bad guy," Ralph elaborated.

"Hugo Weaving," Lara said. "Yeah, that's the one."

"That could be interesting," Aimee said.

"Yeah," Ralph agreed, looking around. "If everyone else is cool with that, I'd like to watch it."

Ethan shrugged. "I've seen it before."

"Me too," Paul said.

"Works for me," Lara said, digging around until she found the video.

Ethan settled himself on the floor with the others. The next year was going to be interesting, he decided. After only a day, he felt more connected with people than he had in high school. Everyone he had encountered so far, at least the people he figured would probably become his circle of friends, seemed to be open minded, or at least open to new things. That his roommate was so accepting of his sexual orientation surprised Ethan, and he hoped that the others would be so as well.

Ethan smiled at Paul as the blonde sat next to him on the floor and Lara switched off the light, though light from the hall came in through the open door. Paul returned Ethan's smile shyly before turning to the movie that was beginning.

Oh yes, Ethan thought as he also turned his attention to the movie. Things were going to be interesting indeed.