Welcome to the academy

"It was a party, they knew they were going to get caught if they didn't act with caution", Theo thought aloud.

He paced the floors as he thought about what fate would meet those who were caught at the abandoned library. It was a Winnington tradition to host a party after orientation and he was just continuing the legacy of those who came before him.

The party was a success and he knew the consequences that came with it . Not for him though, actions for him for the longest time have come with no repercussion.

"Haummm",his attention went to Mia who was hacking in her sleep.

"Why can't she just stay put, even in her sleep she causes trouble", Theo couldn't help but stare at her. Her dark brown hair was plastered on her forehead, he stretched his hand to move it away from her face.

"Maybe that's why she can't sleep well".

Some part of Theo felt guilty and the other part felt accomplished.

Morning approached slowly and the hands of time seemed to have paused, leaving Theo to recollect his thoughts . He had a glass of alcohol which he used to swallow two tablets of diazepam. If sleep couldn't come naturally, it would be induced .

***

7am, she tossed and turned like salad in a bowl and finally, she got her eyes open. An unfamiliar room it was. Immaculate white paint and bright light shooting through the floor to ceiling windows of what seemed like a high-rise condo. The sun had just began to rise, a beautiful sight it was.

She attempted to stand but the wheezing sound in her ear and the oscillation of the chandelier which she stared at pushed her back into the king sized bed.

She recalled the burning sensation in her chest and every gulp was a friendly reminder of what had occurred the previous night. As she stared at the clothes on her body and this unfamiliar perfume consumed and derailed her thought process, she said a silent prayer making sure to promise God never to take another sip of alcohol in her life.

Her eyes darted the mirror who was mounted besides her . It had a gold frame that matched the dresser. She squinted her eyes to take a closer look into it, absently noting. By the time she was done with her observation she had finally noticed a number of things that were wrong . Her senses had finally found her .

Mia didn't own an oversized turquoise hoodie. Anything she wore that wasn't her sized was probably owned by her dad .She loved going fishing for clothes in his closet, In fact he particularly hated the color, turquoise. So how could she..?

A lot had eluded her, who was this strange figure that laid next to her. She made an attempt to see his face, racked her brain for long but couldn't still place her finger on it. She recalled the last image she saw before everything went dark.

"Theo?", she whispered like she expected a response.

"What am I --?".

"Did we--?", she had all these questions but couldn't get an answer because the person she directed her questions to was out cold .

Relief washed over her pale face when she heard him snore.

"He's alive", she let out the breath she was holding for a while.

"Oh, you're awake", a soft voice from the door frame spoke. It was Breanna.

The feeling of embarrassment slowly creeped in when Mia remembered who's bed she was in .

"It's not what you think or what I think cause I really don't remember –", a giggle from Brie caused her to pause .

"I know dude, I was the one who put you in that hoodie. That's Theo's favorite thing in the world. You should have seen the look on his face when you puked all over the first one", she laughed hard and almost uncontrollably.

She raised the hoodie a little and released another sigh, this time heavier. Her underwear was still intact.

"Why did you let me sleep here, Where's Darby?", she inquired.

"Ummm, its obvious you like the guy and he didn't protest either, he insisted it was his fault you were intoxicated and wanted to watch you", Brie said with a shrug .

"He what--?", Mia whispered.

"And yeah, Darby is with me, she's still sleeping. Can I get you a coffee or something?".

"That would be nice". Mia stood up and followed behind her like a little minion. The kitchen in this apartment was huge, it had an industrial coffee maker . Mia wasn't into coffee much, she hated the idea of caffeine . But right now, she had no choice , she needed to get something in her system, fast.

"Black coffee?, I thought you'd love experimenting", Mia chuckled.

"I'm lactose intolerant", Brie said with a straight face. She dropped a coaster and placed the piping hot coffee.

Brie washed some rice and poured it into the rice cooker then asked, "Are you into carbs?"

"Yeah, why", Mia responded.

"Cooking seaweed soup, its great for hangovers . Trust me ", she said with a smirk that really showed how thick her eyebrows were.

"You're into Korean?", Mia asked.

"Yeah, family vacation—every other year", she emphasized. She had a faint smile on her face. From where Mia sat, even though everything was mostly foggy, she could she Brie's blue eyes shimmer. The girl had wild curly hair that sometimes covered her eyes.

"Stop staring, you'll get my hoodie wet", Theo said as he walked into the kitchen.

"Great!, the douche is awake", Brie said sarcastically.

"Whatever", "Seaweed soup,? Really!", Theo asked with a slight irritation.

"Currents, I'm making pho noodles. Want any?", he asked without even glancing at her . She still couldn't believe this guy who acted like a glacier could care for anyone, let alone her.

"I could eat", she said in a reckless abandon.

"And I'm still on the rice too", she added making sure to stare at Brie for long till she held her eyes.

After hours of banter and insults thrown back and forth, they were finally ready for a date with destiny. The after-math of the after-party.