The sound of footsteps was echoing through the hallway of lockers. Someone faintly screaming “Get help!” and “He's loosing too much blood” were ringing in Tyler's ears. It was getting sharper and more high pitched as the phrases kept repeating themselves, overlapping it's booming noise. He kept running and running, faster and faster towards the door. He leapt forward towards the door and bashed into it to reveal a bright light that clouded his vision. However beyond that he could see a very faint face of... Wilkins. “Tyler, Tyyyyyyler. Wake up sleepy head!” Tyler jerked up almost instantly accidentally headbutting Wilkins right on the forehead. “OW! FUCK!” Wilkins fell back a bit. “Shit! Sorry are you okay? Oh my god, are you okay?!” Tyler said instantly panicking. “Yeah I'm fine I've had worse, I was just trying to let you know the mixer is starting soon. Jesus fuck you got a hard head.” He said with a laugh that turned into a groan as he rubbed his head. “ Oh yeah uh sorry! I'll get ready then?” Tyler took his earbuds out of his ears and placed them into the case. The sound of his music halted. “That was ZEDD right?” “Yeah, you heard of him?” “Dude Clarity helped me get through the roughest of my breakups.” Wilkins said as he took off his rough band shirt and grabbed another much nicer newer band shirt. Tyler on the other hand just slapped his flannel on and rolled up the sleeves and tidied up his hair. “So I don't need to tell you the rules right?” Wilkins said with a smile.

“What rules are there that I should be concerned about?” Tyler asked as he kept messing with his hair, trying to get it to sit right. “Well for starters, no sleepovers here in this room unless I get a heads up. I'm fine with it just gimme a reasonable amount of time so I can crash elsewhere. If you decide you want to get wasted, let me know ahead of time so I can set alarms to check up on you. And finally, give me a signal if you get a little overwhelmed or uncomfortable.” “Oh alright, what should the signal be?” Wilkins pondered a little bit and looked around the room. “Something that no one will question and is subtle. Like... oh got it! 'Dude the fridge is leaking'.” “The fridge... is leaking?” Tyler looked at him with the most blank expression he probably had ever used. “Yeah, like the ice maker? Mildew smells nasty dude.” “Okay alright sure.” Wilkins gives Tyler a thumbs up and looks around. “I'm gonna lock the room just for safety sake so make sure you got everything on you. I'll get a key copied tomorrow for you.” Tyler nods and shoves his phone and earbuds into his pocket and lastly puts his Polaroid camera around his neck. “Ready.” Wilkins gave Tyler a thumbs up and they left their quiet room and entered a hallway now littered with less people but more food, drinks, and polluted with loud music from the summer. Wilkins locked the door behind him and placed the key into his pocket. “Alright, time to go make some friends eh?” Wilkins said with a grin. They both turned to the area where Becca's door monument was, still in one piece. Tyler turned to Wilkins but was met with another person entirely who was stuffing their mouth with what seemed to be a sandwich comprised of 4 meats and cheeses. “Oh ha sorry.” Tyler awkwardly walked away and entered the common room area. Looking around the room it was covered by the same people he glanced and walked past earlier this morning, and in the middle of the crowd he spotted Wilkins. Tyler starts to shimmy towards Wilkins, surfing through the crowd of half drunk people he slams into something hard. “Oh shit!” Tyler fell backwards onto the floor as well as the brick wall he fell into. It was a girl in a leather jacket with long brunette hair. “I am soooo sorry camera guy, lemme help you up.” She held out her hand to Tyler and helped him get back to his feet. “Small newbie like you should be sleepies eh?” the now apparent quirky girl said as she brushed the dust off him.

“Sleepies I-” Wilkins then gestured to Tyler to talk but in a weird way of awkward charades. “I mean yeah sleepies for me is something I should be doing ayyyy.” Jesus christ this was embarrassing was probably the phrase running through his head. “Hey! He's got jokes! The name is Wren.” “Wait... Wren?” “Yep just call me Wren, it's like Wrench but without the CH.” She then gave a wink and two finger pistols. “Ah a nick-name?” “Yeah, I don't like using my real name, makes everyone sound like my ma when they scream it at me. So you new here?” Tyler nodded back as a response and looked around. “Ahhhh awkward freshie. I'm also a freshie.” “Then why are you acting as if you're an upperclassmen?” “Well if you act like someone you're not, you'll eventually become them right?” “I mean... weird way to think about that but go off I guess.” “Yeah like look at that guy right there.” Wren grabs Tyler and spins him into the direction of another guy leaning against a wall drinking out of a solo cup. The way his soft looking messy teal hair sat on his head was almost looking at a pile of clouds. “He looks like a loner, you're awkward, go speak to him!” This Wren character was so beyond confusing it was almost as if she was from her own little world and Tyler was a party member in her RPG. “I mean sure I guess?” After a pat on the back Wren practically pushes Tyler over towards the Loner and then casually walks off going to the kitchen singing something about cheese puffs. The loner looks to Tyler then to the crowd and continues to stare off. “Can I help you?” Tyler still very nervous just shakes his head. “N-nope. Just looking around.” “Looking around, what you doin? Shopping for people?” “Shopping for people?” “Yeah... hook up?” Tyler's face went red with a mix of embarrassment. “Wait what? No! Jeez no.” “Shame.” The guy finishes his cup and turns to Tyler. “Nice camera. See ya round Picture-boy.” They then walked away after giving Tyler a tiny slip of paper with a number on it. “Oooooh, someone got a number eh?” Wilkins said walking over, slapping his arm around Tyler. “And here I thought I was going to be the only one tonight.” “Alright your innuendos are getting so out of hand right now Wilkins. Who was that guy?” “Well a lot of people here are new, he came in the middle of the semester last year for that high-school college program thingy. Smart kid he is.” Tyler's mind was running a mile a minute repeating that whole interaction.

“Yeah he can stay a smart kid but he's kinda fucking rude isn't he?” Tyler said rather brashly and loudly watching as he walked towards the door of the hallway and proceeded to leave. “I mean he's a bit abrasive but I guess it's overshadowed by his charming looks.” Wilkins said whilst taking a sip of the mixture of contraband in his cup. Tyler rolls his eyes and pulls out the slip of paper and examines the number that looked to of been quickly written down, the name however was blurred probably by his thumb, smudged and smeared. “Well can't save the number without a name so what do I put it as?” “Hmmm well put it down as your first impression of him.” Wilkins said trying to give some kind of good advice. So Tyler naturally put the number in and put the name as 'Asshole'. “Wow okay, glad I gave off a good first impression.” Wilkins said as he slowly turned away from Tyler. “Well to be fair, you didn't assume I was 'shopping for people', fucks sake.” Tyler shook his head, still pretty annoyed at the words that was said. On the other hand he did think that he was rather attractive but all roses have their thorns he guessed. “So other then that, you having fun Tyler?” Wilkins asked quite sincerely, maybe even possibly whilst a little buzzed. “I mean can't let one thing ruin the night right?” Wilkins responded to Tyler with a nod and a sip from his cup. “Precisely freshie!” It was Wren again. “Oh so you came back from your venture into the kitchen for cheese puffs?” Tyler asked with a joking demeanor. “Yeaaaaaaah but when I got there they didn't have any cheese puffs. They were saying something about puff puff pass so I thought they were passing around a bowl of cheese puffs-” “Oh no...” “Oh no is right, get this! So they weren't passing around a bowl of cheese puffs but this thing wrapped in paper so I thought 'yo it's cheese dust' so I opened it and they got real mad at me.” Tyler couldn't help but facepalm at the story that was entering his ears.

“So yeah. So how was your conversation with tall dark and handsome?” Wren said nudging Tyler's side with her elbow. “Riveting.” He said with the most plain smile ever that just screamed sarcasm. “Awwww it's okay freshie, maybe you'll get his number soon.” “Oh no don't worry, I got it. I didn't ask for it.” He then pulls out his phone and unlocks it to show her the phone contact. “Huh, Asshole? That's a weird name.” Wilkins practically choked on his drink from laughing at Wren's comments. Not sure whether she was just trying to be funny to cheer Tyler up or she was that dumb. “Alright I think I have had enough for tonight. Wilkins could you let me in? I guess you'll stay for a bit more?” “Yeah most likely if that's alright with you?” Tyler responds with a smile and a nod. “I think it'll be good for me to have some alone time for a bit. Just unwind from all the craziness.” That and he had the most splitting headache from the amount of polluted noise of a hundred conversations and blurry music that was now being turned into a cover by dozens of drunk messes. “Sure thing, alright let's go then.” Shortly after getting Wren's number, Tyler said his good byes to her and Wilkins as he closed the door and slumped to the floor. Thankfully now within a soundproof room, only being able to slightly hear the bass from the other side of the door. It had been quite a day and on top of that, classes started tomorrow and part of his anxiety was making him want to shut off his brain for a bit. He gets up from the floor after a few deep breaths and starts to shuffle his now shoeless feet to the side of his bed before slumping back onto it once more, staring at the ceiling, making out imaginative shapes within it's indentations. And soon enough he slowly drifted. Slowly and quietly he fell deep asleep with his phone in his hand, off it's charger stuck on the “confirm” button of his 9am alarm.