Chapter 3
At seven o’clock, Freya re-opened her dorm room door and turned off her mp3 player. The hallways were crammed with people going out for the evening and arranging parties. One of the guys she had met on one of her first days there ducked his head in and asked her if she wanted to go to a kegger with them, but she shook her head and said no thanks. He shrugged before turning on his heel and going back down the hall. As he turned the corner to head towards the stairs, he did a double take at the short, pretty brunette walking in the opposite direction. Freya instantly recognized Julie and got to her feet and waved before she stepped out into the hall, slamming the door behind her.
“You’re right, it is crazy down here,” Julie laughed as she turned and took in the scene around them. Girls were in six-inch heels and tiny mini-skirts, tottering along the hallway with bottles of vodka in their hands and their lips over plumped with shiny red gloss.
“It’s even worse at three am,” Freya joked as they started down the stairs. “Don’t you see any of this though, I mean, if you’re in 5C?”
“Have you seen where my room is?” Julie looked up at her. “I’m right at the end of a private corridor, part of the perks of being in my family.” She rolled her eyes and laughed.
“Oh?” Freya asked, interested.
“My dad donates a lot to the college,” she said, “so I was kind of given preference over the most private room, which also happens to be the biggest.”
“Lucky!” Freya laughed. “I wish I was out of all of that.”
“Well, you can stay any time,” Julie shrugged.
Freya felt herself blush and smiled. She was embarrassed to have such a crappy room when Julie obviously had their dorm’s equivalent of the penthouse.
As they stepped out into the warm evening air and crossed the quad, Freya realized she hadn’t even asked Julie where they were going.
“Oh, it’s just this little diner on the outskirts of town,” Julie said as she walked briskly in the direction of the parking lot. Freya jogged to keep up with her and felt her mouth drop open as she saw Julie flick her car keys and the flashy red sports car’s lights come to life.
“Is this yours?” she said as she ran her hand down the glistening metal.
“Yeah,” Julie shrugged. “Again, my dad…” She looked embarrassed this time.
They climbed into the car, and Julie started the engine with a loud roar. Freya laughed.
“So did your dad go here or something? How come he donates so much to the college?”
Julie shook her head and cranked up the stereo.
“No,” she began as she reversed and then put the car into drive. “We live close by…” She swung out of the parking lot and onto the main road out of campus.
“How come you live on campus then?” Freya asked, confused.
“I just needed to get away from home,” she shrugged again. “You know, I wanted the full on college experience…”
“Yeah, I get that,” Freya nodded. And she did. Even though she had been nervous and wary about leaving home, she still wanted to do it and feel independent. “But how come you didn’t choose to go away?”
“I like it here,” Julie smiled. “And I’m close to my family.”
“That’s really nice,” Freya said genuinely.
Julie pulled off campus and began down the highway. It was approaching dusk and Freya felt the cold nip at her skin. She was hungry and hoped that wherever they were going wouldn’t take them too long. She was even gladder to have met Julie now that she knew that she was local. It would be great to have a friend who could show her around and take her to all of the spots that she would unlikely find without her.
After a few minutes, Julie began to slow the car and turned off the highway and down a smaller road. The trees loomed above them high overhead and Freya noticed how their leaves hadn’t started to turn yet, even though it was the beginning of fall.
“Here we go,” Julie said as she pulled off the road at a small, old-fashioned diner that looked like something out of the movies.
“This is one of the best places around here,” Julie said confidently. “This is where all the locals come, and it’s like the town’s best kept secret.”
They got out of the car and made their way inside. A bell tinged over their heads as they stepped in, and Julie began waving at people who turned to look at them. A row of men sat high up at the counter next to big slices of pie, all wearing squared off caps and winter vests.
“Hey Julie,” one of the waitresses said as she thrust two menus at them and walked them to a table next to the windows.
“Hey,” Julie smiled and then gestured to Freya. “This is my new friend from college,” she said.
“Nice to meet you,” the waitress grinned before she turned on her heel and went back over to the counter.
“Everyone is so friendly,” Freya remarked as she opened the menu and looked down it. Her mouth was watering and she couldn’t wait to sink her teeth into something delicious.
“I recommend the ribs,” a gruff, deep voice came from behind her, as if whoever it was had read her mind.
Freya spun around to see a tall, muscly man, looking down at her with big, dark eyes.
“Oh God,” Julie rolled her eyes and pouted. “I should have known you’d show up!”
Freya turned to look at Julie as she burst into laughter and waved the man over to her. She stood up and wrapped an arm around him and kissed him on the cheek.
Freya looked up at him. He was incredible, and easily one of the sexiest men she had ever seen in her entire life. He turned to look at her and smiled a wide smile which flashed his perfect teeth. They looked pearly white next to his deeply tanned skin, and Freya found herself biting her lip as her eyes wandered down his thick, muscly forearms that were wiry with hair.
“This is Freya,” Julie grinned, turning the man towards her so he was close enough for Freya to catch the scent of his cologne. He bent down and took her hand in his before raising it to his lips and planting a soft, warm kiss on it.
“It’s lovely to meet you, Freya,” he smiled. “I’m Kellan… Julie’s brother.”