The road was silent, his footsteps sounded louder than they should as he walked toward his dormitory.
Today, was his first day at school.
His lean body wrapped in an oversized sweater, his dark hair brushed his shoulders, while his pale gray eyes focused forward as he pushed his suitcase.
His name, Raylan.
The school was huge, but with the map, he found his way more easily.
He took a breath. The buildings around him looked old, most of them worn out. What stood out even more was that not a single one had more than one floor.
Before long, he spotted a long building stretching ahead. A sign outside read North Dormitory, exactly what his room card indicated.
He stopped in front of the first room, and since it was class hours, he didn't expect anyone to be inside. He reached out to open it, but the moment his hand touched the lock, the door swung open.
The lock was already broken, bent outward as if someone had forced it open. For a moment, he hesitated to move further. The school was for all boys, yes, but was a lock unnecessary, or just negligence? He frowned.
He stepped inside and scanned the room. It was spacious, with three bunk beds, each paired with a small closet and a set of one chair and a table.
The air carried a faint stench of dust, like the room hadn't been used in a while.
He couldn't remember sharing a room before, and now there would be six of them. What if they were too different to get along, or worse, bullies?
The thought sent a shiver through him.
Reassuring himself, he walked further in, stopped at a closet, and began unpacking his clothes. He picked up his blanket, judging its size.
The school was in the mountains. Even now, the cold breeze cut through his skin.
They had said to bring a thick duvet, but never mentioned you would freeze without one.
He lowered his head, then sighed.
Then, he got up and dropped onto the bed. He pulled out his schedule and began reading. There were still three hours before the end of classes.
I should go to class... he told himself as his eyes slowly closed, as the weight of the journey finally caught up with him.
---
The door opened, and a figure halted at the entrance the moment he noticed someone on the bed. He also had a suitcase in his hand, and he pushed it as he stepped inside. The figure on the bed had to be one of his roommates.
He had rough silver hair, deep blue eyes, with a tall, solid body, slightly above the average of a teenager. Ethan.
He thought of pushing his luggage quietly, but then the figure on the bed jolted awake.
Ray woke up and sat upright as his breath came fast. He wiped the sweat from his neck and face. He couldn't believe he had just had a nightmare.
"Are you alright?"
Ray turned sharply toward the voice. A silver-haired boy stood there, and judging by the luggage beside him, they would be sharing a room.
Wait… sharing a room?
The door burst open again, slamming hard against the wall. His heart jumped at how hard it slammed.
"The right room?" The guy at the door checked his card once more. "North Room 1."
His bright hazel eyes flickered to the two inside. "Cool."
He had warm brown skin, with dreadlocks tied in a ponytail. Travis.
What was cool about it? Ray shouted inwardly, not daring to say it out loud.
Travis walked in and placed his suitcase by the closet.
Then another entered through the open door. Without saying anything, he threw his bag aside and dropped onto a bunk in the corner with a heavy thud.
"Peanut donuts? That guy's trying to kill me!" he grumbled.
He had a round body, slightly stocky, his dark hair flat at the sides and messy at the center. Jaxon.
Jaxon looked at the others and blinked. "Why the hell are all of you here?"
He was a little taken aback. Ethan, Travis… even himself. All of them from the same detention, and now in the same room?
Travis ignored him and walked straight up to Ray.
"You don't smell like juvie"
The door opened again. A green-eyed guy froze at the entrance as he looked at the room with disbelief. Maybe he didn't see well, so he pulled his glasses from his pocket and put them on. Alan.
Indeed, he was seeing correctly. His expression twisted, then laughter burst out of him, filling the room.
Those in the room gave him annoyed looks, but none seemed surprised.
"Why does he always laugh?" Jaxon muttered.
"What's so funny?" a voice said from behind Alan, casting a shadow over him.
Alan immediately stopped laughing and turned with a grin. "Khai, you're here too?"
A tall boy with dirty blonde hair and an athletic body stepped in, his hair neatly combed. He scanned the room with a tight expression. "They have got to be fucking kidding me. All five of us?"
"What a fuse?" Travis said and put his hand on Ray. "At least we've got one decent guy."
Ray didn't pull away, but he didn't relax either.
"What's nice about him being in this shithole?"
Ray could only stay silent, wishing he disappeared. When he saw these guys at the office, they were all wearing numbered uniforms. But now, they were in red uniforms like him, looking like average students.
Khai stepped further in, still frowning. Just thinking about sharing a room with five others annoyed him. What was the point of coming to this school if it felt no different from the place he had just left?
He glanced around, then his eyes landed on Ethan, who just watched him calmly. Khai glared at him, his jaw tightening. "You better stay out of my sight."
Ethan looked at Khai, but he didn't say a thing.
Ray moved his eyes between the two. Were those two enemies or something?
Jaxon suddenly got up. "Where's the washroom?" he asked, looking around.
"Damnit!" he cursed and rushed outside..
Ethan ignored the commotion went straight to a closet and pulled out his clothes. They were supposed to return to class soon, and he had no intention of missing it.
Khai chose a bed near the window, liking the spot, and began arranging his sheets.
Ethan glanced at Ray, his expression the same since he got in. Calm as ever, "I won't be using the upper bunk."
Ray raised his eyes. What made him think he could? Still, remembering who these guys were, he simply nodded.
Travis took the upper bunk above Khai. Their bed was close to Ray and Ethan's, so those on the top bunks, him and Ray, could easily move between beds.
Ray glanced around the room as he sat on his bed. The room fell quiet again. Khai was placing his shoes carefully in the lower section of the closet. Ethan had just finished unpacking and was putting his books into his backpack.
Travis was changing his shoes into slippers. Jaxon had still not come back from the washroom. Alan cleaned his glasses with a handkerchief, a faint smile still lingering on his face.
So far, they didn't seem bad, just not entirely nice either, and he couldn't say much since it was just the first day.
Now the question was... How would his classmates be?