A knock came at the door, just before I yelled to come in, it opened. Mason came strolling in, Luke awkwardly followed.
"Sorry." He mumbled.
"That's Mason for you." I shrugged.
"We're bored, entertain us." I laughed at Mason.
"You really are crazy."
"What?" He could act so innocent sometimes.
"You act like my life revolved around you."
"Well, what better things do you have to do?" I could feel myself getting hot.
"Oh I don't know, get an education!" I snapped.
"Woah, okay." Luke slid himself into view between Mason and I. "So you can work on some homework and we can just relax until you're ready?" My eyes burned on Luke. He looked remorseful and only seems to try and keep the peace. My gaze switched to Mason, he didn't seem to care as much.
"No, if you want me to go out, you have to help me."
"I'll help," Luke said quickly. "Mason can," he paused.
"Clean up Ellie's side of the room." Mason looked at me like I was crazy.
"Hell no."
"Then you both can leave." My eyes stayed fixed on Mason. "I have things to do. Homework, cleaning the dorm, laundry. You know, adult things." I hissed.
"Mason can clean." Luke growled a little. I was thankful he was helping with Mason but it still bothered me they were here.

I did my homework as Luke proof read my latest paper. Mason was cleaning up Ellie's side of the dorm.
"Oh god these are hot." Mason held up a of black thong. My cheeks felt hot, that was mine. I grabbed it from him.
"You're a pig." I jammed it in my underwear drawer.
"Those are yours?" Mason gawked.
"Ellie doesn't wear underwear." He grabbed his chest and pretended to die of a heart attack. I rolled my eyes. He was so dramatic. They thought women were bad. Ha!

The guys got to much to handle in the room anymore so I gave in. The guys were casually dressed and so was I. We were walking around campus looking for something to do. They never planned anything and that bothered me. I planned everything! Luke and I sat on a concrete slab and waited for Mason. He was talking to a group of girls. He's gotten more girls than casinos have poker chips. I envied his confidence.
"Has he always been so sure of himself?"
"Mason?" I nodded. "Since I've known him, yeah. But we all feel awkward and unsure of ourselves at some point in ourselves." I laughed.
"Luke Sands I cant picture a day you didn't know your own reflection."
"I was a weird kid growing up." I glanced at him, he was watching Mason too. It was like a skeezy version of The Bachelor. Except for they don't get roses, they get him.
"I'm still not so sure of myself."
"Yeah, I know." The silence felt heavy between us. "I hope you know you're a good person and more people should be like you." I felt the dynamic change between us, like actually change between us. Not the fake power play when he was on his knees and begging. Whatever changed, was scary.
"Thanks." That was all I could think to say.
"Hey," Mason called to Luke and I. "we're going out to eat, come on." My eyes widened. These girls were gorgeous, all four of them. Two guys and five girls sounded like a disaster to me. I guess anything over myself could go wrong.

We sat at the diner all smooshed into one table. I sat next to a girl named Abby. Luke was across from me and Mason sat between the four of them. They all were into him. How does he even do that?!
"Miley?" I turned around.
"Hey, Liz!" I got up to hug her.
"Hi Luke." She smiled softly at him. He gave her a small hand wave.
"What are you doing out on a Thursday night?" I laughed.
"They roped me into this. I swear I have homework to do."
"Me too. I was just hungry." She looked at the table behind me. "Masons really working his magic and not saving a single girl for Luke." I looked behind me too. Luke wasn't looking at the table, he was looking at Liz and I.
"I don't think he wants the table of seconds." She giggled.
"Hey, we should do something this weekend. Yeah?" I nodded.
"Yeah, of course. Uh, I heard there was a local band playing at the bar just down the street from here."
"I'm in." My chest swelled.
"Cool. I'll text you details." She bumped me playfully with her hip.
"You better. See you later." She waved to Luke, Mason was, busy. I scooted back in with the table. Abby seemed annoyed I was back, that makes two of us.

The rest of the night went as follows; me hating my life, Mason flirting with all the girls and Luke not talking. Eventually I had enough and left. Luke chances after me.
"Miley, I'm sorry, he's not normally like this." I turned around to face him. His strong figure was a blur, almost plowing into me.
"But isn't he? And you're the one who's supposed to be apologizing?" My laugh was fake, plastic. "If anyone should be apologizing, it should be him, for not being more like you." I left without another word. I'm not sure what Luke did, but I went back to my dorm.

Thursday night I texted Liz with all the detail for the band tonight. Now I was waiting on her to come to my dorm to pick me up. She promised to, I have a feeling to make sure my attire was okay. There was a knock at the door. I jumped up.
"Hey." It was Russ.
"Uh, hi?" He stood awkwardly.
"Listen, I know you don't break girl code but what if it was already broken?" I scrunched my brows together. "Ellie slept with Trent."
"For starts Trents a pig and I never dated Trent, Liz did. We are friends but that's still not breaking girl code. I'm sorry Russ. Under different circumstances, I would have love to." He nodded disappointedly.
"Yeah, yeah, right."
"Hey and I'm sorry I wasn't the one to tell you when we were supposed to go out. That wasn't fair to you." A broken smile flicked on his face for a moment.
"Thank you." I nodded. "You look beautiful, by the way." I smiled and leaned on the door frame.
"Thank you."

Liz wasn't far behind Russ departure. I told her about everything; how I hid, what Mason said, what Russ just told me. Everything. Surprisingly she was doing well with the Trent break up.
"You know, I don't think I really loved him. Trent I mean." I glanced at her. "I mean, I loved him, sure. I don't think I was in love with him. He cheated and lied and that still hurts but I'm over him. My trust for the male species is gone, but I'm over him." I believed her. Liz was honest about everything.
"Being cheated on does suck. I think it stops us from moving on sometimes. We think it's our fault, like if we were better. Did better, knew better, loved better; than it wouldn't have happened. But regardless it would have. It wasn't an us issue, it was a them issue." Liz was sadly looking at me.
"Someone hurt you bad." I nodded.
"I haven't dated since Josh. It's hard to trust a guy."
"You and Luke seem to get along fine." I laughed. "I would include Mason but, well." We both laughed.
"We met by accident. I mean, like we've met but." I shook my head. "He came and knocked on my door when he was naked from a party."
"Oh I remember that party. A bunch of guys dared him to strip naked and go out in the hallway." Her face saddened. "They took pictures, closed the door and locked him out. I felt bad for him. I brought his clothes to his dorm room but he wasn't there. His roommate Cole was." I nodded. "So that's how you two met and became friends?"
"Oh we aren't friends."
"Well you two hang out a lot for not friend." Liz smiled like she knew a secret.
"It's not like that. He made a deal with me that we would hang out once a week because he thinks I don't do enough." I rolled my eyes. "So thats what we do." I felt awkward.
"Luke has a strange way of bringing people out of their shell." I nodded. Looking back I hadn't realized how much more of myself I'd become since he knocked on my door. I talked more, made a friend. Went out! I actually leave my dorm now, for more than just classes. Like he said, I'm living for nothing if I'm not living for the moment.

The bar was packed when we got there. An entire crowd of people are age, packed into these four walls. Liz got her and I both a beer. We wormed our way close to the front. When the band was setting up people were singing along to the DJ they had playing at the moment.
"The drummer is cute." Liz yelled over the crowd. I looked back at the stage. He was cute.
"He looks like Joey Fatone when he was in *Nsync." We laughed.
"He's cuter than Joey Fatone." She squeezed her arms with my hand. "I think the guitar player is looking at you." She almost squealed. My eyes followed hers. I made eye contact the guitar player. He smiled at me.
"He looks like Justin Timberlake."
"What is this an *Naync reunion band?" She laughed. I think he looks more like Matthew Morrison or Shia LeBeouf. Goofy smile and messy, curly hair.

The band was horrible. Like bad. We left only a half and hour into their set. I tried to like them, I did. It was too high school and girl hungry. Even the guitarist ripped off his shirt after a song. He had ex girlfriends tattooed on his chest.
"Oh my god." Liz was laughing loudly. "They were awful!" We swayed as we walked back to campus.
"Like really bad!" I giggled too.
"I think I can read a children's book that's more interesting than them!" I tripped over a curb. Liz let me fall on my own. We both howled with laughter. "Did you not see the sidewalk?" She said between chuckles.
"I did, I didn't see the curb." She sat down next to me, still laughing.
"Tonight was fun, bad band, but fun." I nodded.
"Yeah, it was."
"I wish we had been friends earlier." I smiled at her.
"I think we met people when we need them." She sighed and looked up to the stars.
"Yeah, maybe so."