Emerald fire college

September seems to have changed the college entirely. The vibrant, variegated trees have lost their petals and have replaced their green leaves with iridescent, auburn ones. Instead of the intense floral aroma which had filled the air during my entrance assessment, the air is filled with a rich, comforting smell of soil. As I walk past the tall gate, butterflies enter my stomach.

Finally, I'm at Emerald Fire college - the school of my dreams.

The bustle of new students is almost overwhelming. Jay and I arrived a little late in the day as we expected that it would be a little less busy if we came later. Something told me that this wasn't exactly peak time. I guess such a big school would have an impressive influx of students every year. Except I'm pretty sure some of the students must be in the upper years as they looked a bit older than the rest.

The line to sign into the college is very long; from a glance, it looks to be about 30 people in front of me.

I recognise a few of the people in the line from the entrance exam but I'd never spoken to them.

'Why did I have to be such an introvert?' Times like these would have been great to make a couple friends, but I've never really been the type to open up to people easily so I keep to myself a lot. I don't mean to, I guess its just my natural disposition.

My hands grasp firmly around my suitcase as I walk toward the dorm rooms, excitement building up with every step I take.

'Apartment 3, Floor 5.' - I check my phone for my room and floor number as I enter the lift. My room has a white door which smells of fresh paint and there's music coming from inside - my room mates.

I only manage to knock once when the door flies open, and I am greeted by my first roommate. He's quite tall with short curly blonde hair and very deep hazel eyes. He has a welcoming smile that you can't help but feel good about.

"I'm guessing you're the last roommate, right?" His voice, full of energy and excitement, snaps me out of my daydream.

"Um. yea. I'm Amari." I stutter a little bit, but he doesn't really seem to care.

"Well, I'm Lucas. Lemme take that." Lucas takes my bag as he ushers me into the living room.

"Basically, there are three of us: me, you, and Zane. Zane's supposed to be taking care of the kitchen right now, but he's gone on a run. We came here together, and we decided that it'd be best if we renovated the place a little. Since we're gonna be here a couple years. Alas, Zane seems to enjoy shirking responsibility so, I've got to do all this shit by myself." Lucas huffs quietly and shows me the kitchen, small but cosy, and the bedrooms. Basically Lucas, Zane and I have a bedroom each and we share a bathroom together.

I remember Jay telling me that he'd managed to get me the perfect dorm, but I didn't expect it to be this good. I never told him that I was scared of living alone but I guess the fear was evident enough for him to get me a couple roommates.

After all the touring (five minutes' worth), Lucas lets me unpack my bags and get used to my room whilst he continues installing the TV.

About half an hour later, the door opens and Zane walks in. He's about 6 foot 3, and his braids hang effortlessly across his face. His bronze skin glowed a golden hue against the sunlight glaring through the windows.

"Who's this?" Zane looks at me as if he's expecting me to introduce myself. Then I realise that he does.

"Oh. Uh I'm Amari. I'm uh a year one." Damn it's hard not to be captivated by his eyes.

"Huh." Zane completely walks past me without introducing himself to me and I'm left completely dazzled.

"Don't worry about him much. Zane doesn't really talk much. But he seems to like you a little seeing as he asked for your name." Lucas looks at me with a half-smile that makes me chuckle a little.

"Hey, if you want, I could give you a tour around the college. I've been here a few times 'cause my older brother is in his 4th year here so I know my way around quite well."

***********

"So, how was your tour? You should have asked me to give you one. Lucas is hopeless when it comes to directions." Zane asks as I bring dinner round. Ramen – pretty standard if you ask me.

"It was pretty good actually. I can't say I took in everything cos it's a fucking big school but at least I won't be getting lost that easily."

"You're so rude, Zane. Plus, I think I did a pretty good job." Lucas' protest causes us to burst into hysterics. Zane's still an enigma to me but at least he's not completely cut off. Still, I want to know who this guy is. There's something odd about his aura, almost as if he's protecting himself.

Zane, Lucas and I decide to go for a run at about 8 just so we could prepare ourselves. According to Lucas there's a set of tournaments to determine classes during the first week. Important coaches in the school watch over the competitions.

"The students who show most promise get chosen for the school teams and get to compete in national competitions. You don't even need to be the best really, my older brother didn't win in his race but he got chosen cos the coach said he saw potential and that's how he got scouted." Getting put in the same room with Lucas seems to have its perks already.

I'm more than determined to get scouted. During the entrance exam my time was poor and that was not the first impression I'd wanted to give but now I have a chance to prove myself.

'Get yourself right, head. We've got this.'