Veronica gathered up the remaining room assignments that she was meant to pass out and stood from the booth. They had their chance today. They'd have to sleep in their cars until tomorrow, because she was out.

She left the table and started briskly moving across campus. The girls dorms were a few buildings down from the boy's dorms, just to deture any funny business.

Not that Veronica needed to hear that rule twice.

After what happened with JD, and the murders of three of her classmates, Veronica had primarily avoided the opposite gender. She was still surprised at herself for giving that guy with the red streak in his hair her number. Maybe she was just being hopeful. Maybe she'd never pick up.

"It's time to move on, Veronica."

Veronica flinched as the once familiar voice echoed in her head. She continued forward, keeping her eyes in the same direction.

"Psycho trenchcoat boy is gone, what are you waiting for?"

"Shut up." Veronica hissed under her breath as she quickened her pace.

"You act like this is a challenge!" A different voice laughed.

"Yea, coach made us run way faster than this! Hey, Ram, do you remember-"

Veronica stopped her forward momentum to spin around. There, floating just above the ground with an eerie white glow surrounding them, were the three students that she And JD had killed. Heather was an accident, but Kurt and Ram were shot by JD in cold blood. Veronica had been there to see it.

Now, their ghosts continuously haunted her. Was it because she was now the soul witness to their sudden deaths? Was it because she somehow took part in their demise?

Who knows.

All Veronica knew was that they didn't bother anyone else, and they were an annoying reminder of a past she would already never forget.

"Stop it!" She hissed again as two girls walked past, giving her odd looks.

Heather rolled her eyes. "Now, what fun would that be?" She grinned wickedly at Veronica, "What was it you told me? Lick it up?" she shot forward, ending up in Veronica's face in the blink of an eye. "Now it's your turn."

Veronica held her tongue as Heather floated back to stand in front of Kurt and Ram. Her milky white eyes bore into Veronica, while Kurt and Ram just continuously shove each other back and forth.

"Just leave me alone." Veronica finally said before spinning back around and continuing to her dorm.

Of course, they wouldn't. They haunted her in highschool, and they'd probably continue to haunt her. Recently, however, they seemed to grow more persistent in their taunts.

"You're going to want us around, Veronica." Heather's voice was fading with each word.

"Yea, Veronica." The boys echoed.

Veronica looked back behind her, but the ghosts of her former classmates were gone; nothing more than residual whisps. She shuddered before spinning back around and running towards her dorm.

Entering the building calmed her nerves almost immediately. She tried to ignore the warning Heather had spoken before vanishing, but it stuck in her mind. What did that mean? In what world would she actually want them around? It was probably just another empty taunt.

She waved to her fellow students, offering occasional, verbal greetings as she made her way to her shared dorm room. When she reached number 1989, she knocked loudly, hoping her roommate was there to open the door. As she waited, she considered the room number. Parts of this place used to be part of some old hospital, but that was ages ago. What was left after the place had been shut down, and burned in a few places, had been restored and reused as dorms and classrooms for the college. It may be creepy to think about, but it was cheap. That was a big part of her choosing this school over some of her first choices.

Her grades had suffered during and after the whole JD incident... There went her dream schools, for the immediate future, at least. If she managed high enough grades, she could transfer in the next few years. She smiled at the thought.

The door in front of her finally swung open, revealing a blond with wide eyes and a pastel, yellow dress. "Veronica!" Heather smiled, "Martha is going to be on Skype any minute." She moved aside, giving Veronica access to the room.

"Thanks, Heather." Veronica smiled, hurrying inside.

Heather M, the one Heather she could stand. Even if she still maintained her cheerleader stereotype.

"Do I look okay?" Heather asked as she shut the door. She pinched the skirt of her dress to flair it out before giving a slow spin.

Veronica dropped the papers on her bed, sending them everywhere. "Like you need my fashion advice." She snorted, "You're a fashion goddess, of course you look okay."

A red tint filled Heather's cheeks. She let the skirt of her dress fall back against her legs. "I'm sneaking out with a football player tonight." She said as she absently teased her hair. It was down, flowing over her shoulders instead of just barely touching them. She seemed nervous.

Veronica walked over to her, placing her hands on her shoulders. "Hey, you're going to kick ass, okay?" She smiled at her friend. Though it was usually Heather giving the 'go get 'em' advice, every few instances Veronica had to pump some confidence into Heather. Part of the reason was probably due to how Heather had thrived under the other Heather's influence.

Of course, one was dead and the other was off trying to pursue a modeling career in order to keep making others feel inferior to her. Heather M was left alone. She had clung to Veronica and been ecstatic that they would share the same college. She easily made other friends in more popular groups, but she was genuinely happy to come back to her shared dorm with Veronica.

"I can always count on you!" Heather smiled widely. She pulled Veronica in a tight hug, catching her off guard.

"No problem..." Veronica laughed as she trailed off and hugged her friend. It may have been a different case if Heather knew the entirety of her involvement with Ram, Kurt, and Heather's deaths, but that was something she didn't intend to share any time soon.

"Go on, have some fun!" Veronica tapped Heather's back and pulled away, "I've got a movie night to attend to over skype."

Heather nodded, eagerly. "Okay. I'll see you later!" With that she spun to open the door and left Veronica in the dorm alone.

She let out a soft breath.

"Have fun with what's left of your secret."

Veronica spun around at the laughing taunt of the dead Heather, but her ghost wasn't there. A chill ran down Veronica's spine. What had them so riled up?..

She shook the thought away as her laptop pinged with the notification, most likely from Martha, of a skype call. At least she'd have something to take her mind off of things as they talked over The Princess Bride...

---

Evan was the first to arrive to the dorm room. Jared had already settled in his own dorm, somehow having managed to get a roommate who loved technology just as much as he did. Evan had left without really saying anything, not wanting to interrupt their conversation. He was nervous upon entering the bare space of his own dorm, but found relief to be the first one here. He wasn't sure who his roommate was, but he hoped they wouldn't mind his choosing of the bed that had a nice view of the large oak tree that stood tall outside the dorm building.

He sat on the bed, dropping the few bags he had brought with him as he smiled out the window. He could picture himself sitting under the tree to work on assignments. He could practically feel the bark under his hand.

"You don't plan to climb it, do you?"

Evan froze. His eyes widened as the bed sunk slightly next to him. No, no, no. This couldn't be happening.

"Y-y-you're not supposed to be here." Evan stuttered, refusing to look away from the tree out the window. He knew that voice. He hadn't heard that voice in almost over a year.

"I'm just here to look out for you."

Evan shook his head. "N-no! I'm fine, I'm doing better!" He shot up, but still refused to turn around. "I... I let you go. Just like you said I could... Back-back then..."

There was a pause. Perhaps Evan had imagined the voice.

"Things are changing, Evan."

Evan shut his eyes, tightly. Of course things were changing; he was in college now. He was an adult. He should be moving forward, not listening to a ghost from his past.

"Evan."

Evan spun around as a bubble of emotion felt ready to burst in his chest. Instead of being met by what he expected, he had turned in just enough time to see a guy with a red streak in his hair pushing open the door to the room.

Evan sucked in his emotion, attempting to get it under control as the newcomer pulled some boxes into the room. The newcomer groaned, pulling the boxes until he got close enough to the bed across the room to fall back onto it. He stuck out his tongue, catching his breath for a moment before he seemed to notice Evan. He grinned.

"Hey, roomie!" He pushed himself up before looking Evan up and down.

"H-hi." Evan waved timidly. So this was his roommate. colored hair, turtleneck, and camouflage cargo pants. He seemed interesting to say the least.

"I'm Rich." The newcomer introduced himself, sticking out his hand.

"Evan." Evan responded, quickly, extending his own hand to shake.

Rich nodded. "Mind helping me with the rest of my stuff, Evan? It's out in the hall."

Evan nodded, keeping his mouth shut. He didn't want to get caught in a ramble or stutter so soon after meeting the guy he'd have to spend quite a bit of time with.

Maybe if he was quiet enough, he could get through this entire experience without causing too much trouble. Maybe he could avoid hearing that voice again... Why now, after so long? He had hoped things were going to be better this year, but that ghost voice just left him unsure of what to think...