"Alrighty, well I think that is everything." Cody closed his truck door, turning to his mom first, before turning to Maleena.

        "Sounds good. Do you want me to go first, or would you like to?" Margaret asked, standing beside her packed car. 

         "You can go first. You drive much faster than I do." Cody chuckled. 

        "Okay, sweetheart. I am goin' to go tell your dad we are leavin'. Are you sure you don't want to come in and say goodbye to him?" Cody's mom pointed backwards, towards the house.

         "I'm sure." Cody's jaw tightened. Once his mom was walking away, Cody turned to Maleena. "I am so glad that you decided to come along with my mom and I to move me into my dorm at college. It really helps a lot, and it will make the transition much easier. Plus, it would be good for you to get to see the campus and see my dorm and everything." 

        "Of course. Thank you for inviting me." Maleena smiled. Glancing to the door of Cody's house, seeing his mom walk inside to update her husband, Maleena asked, "Are you sure that you don't want to go say goodbye to your dad? It'll be months before you see him again."

       "You and my mom, both." Cody chuckled. "I'm sure. After what happened last week with him passin' out..." He let out a heavy breath. "Let's just say that I have had enough of him coming home drunk for the last time. Especially since he knew you were staying over and he still chose to drink instead of staying to get to talk to you, to get to know you better. I have no respect for anyone who can disrespect my woman as easy as he disrespected you." He admitted.

        It meant a lot to Maleena that Cody was that protective of her, but at the same time, Jerry was his dad; even though things were tense between them, nothing would change their blood. As Maleena opened her mouth to tell Cody she understood his decision, though she didn't agree with it, Margaret walked out of the house, back down the steps to where the couple stood. 

          "Alrighty, y'all ready to move 'em up and ship 'em out?" She hopped into her car, leaving the door open so she could talk to her son and his girlfriend. 

        "All ready, mom. See you in Colorado." Cody winked, hopping into his truck after opening the door for Maleena. 

                                                                     ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

        "You're quiet." Maleena observed; Cody hadn't said more than a couple words in at least three hours. "What's botherin' you, love?" 

        "Just thinkin' about stuff." He hesitated, thinking for a second. "And I am nervous about meeting my roommate." 

       "Yeah, but y'all have been texting and such, right?" 

       "Yeah, but even still it isn't the same. He seems like a really cool guy, but everyone is different in person than they are over texting and whatnot. I'm just concerned that in real life, we won't get along." Cody shifted hands on the steering wheel, no longer having a hand resting on the center console for Maleena to hold.

        "Cody, you're a great guy. Just be yourself and he will love you. I know he will." She leaned her head back on the head rest, smiling at her boyfriend. Hoping Cody wouldn't notice, Maleena watched him a little longer than usual, just trying to completely engrave his face in her mind for the days that she would miss him while he was at college. 

         Letting out a breath that he didn't realize that he was holding, Cody's lips turned up in a grin. "You're right, sweetheart. Thank you." He reached his hand out to Maleena's. "I know I have said it, but I am beyond thankful that you are taking this trip with me." 

      "Of course. Goin' out of state is always a good way to end the summer. Besides, I am excited to see where you will be taking classes and living for the next year. And to you know..." Maleena wiggled her shoulders slightly in a teasing way as she looked out the window. "Scope out any competition." 

       "Competition? You mean other girls?" Cody chuckled, glancing at Maleena who was trying hard to not laugh. 

        "Yeah. Or maybe I mean your competition, y'know, I have a thing for guys a couple years older than me. College guys." Maleena teased, glancing at Cody for his reaction. 

          "Well I was about to give you a reassuring statement like, 'don't worry darlin', you're the only woman I have eyes for. My heart is too full to even think about anyone else.' But after that statement, I am thinkin' I have to up my game some." He chuckled. Though he knew that Maleena was joking, part of him was worried; what with the distance and time apart, who knew what would happen. As far as his feelings for Maleena went, he knew he would never even think of cheating, or even begin to imagine his life with another woman besides Maleena. Even though he knew she was kidding, a tinge of worry wrung through him.

                                                                   ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

         "Here we are." Cody announced, letting out a breath that he didn't realize he had been holding. Slowing his truck, Cody turned into the paved parking lot of the apartment dorms that he would be living in for the next year. Perfect timing on his part: Cody pulled in right behind his mom. 

         "Goden Hall." Maleena read the sign in front of the old, large brick building. She hopped out of the cab of the truck, her knees thankful for the ability to stand straight for the first time in six hours. Placing a hand on her lower back, she leaned back over it, stretching her back muscles. 

         "Yep. It's pronounced go-den; I thought it was pronounced God-en, but it's go-den." Cody announced, joining Maleena beside his truck. He, too, was staring up at the two story building. 

          "Nice. So did y'all get to see inside of the rooms when you took your tour?" 

        "Yeah, we did. They're basically apartments, not dorms, so that is extremely nice." He wiped his hands on his jeans, not realizing they had become wet with sweat from his nerves. 

         "Y'all as excited as I am?" Margaret asked, bounding over to the couple. 

         "Not sure if excited is the word that I would use." Cody let out a nervous chuckle.

        "Oh, you are goin' to be fine; I promise you." Margaret rested a comforting hand on Cody's shoulder. "The welcome brochure says that they are doing the registration in the lobby. Y'all ready?" Cody's mom was halfway into the building by the time Cody and Maleena began walking. 

         "I think she is way more stoked about this than I am. I mean, she's fixing to be an empty-nester for the first time in eighteen years. Sure, Cory will be home a lot since he is going to college in the state, but still, she will have the house more to herself than ever before." Cody joked, slowly walking into the long brick building. 

        Right inside the door, Margaret stood, in her t-shirt, jeans, and ball cap. Blessed with young looks, Cody teased his mom that upon first glance, she could pass as a college student. 

        "Our line starts over here." Mrs. McClain pointed to the table that had a sign stating folks with the last name starting with "L-P" should register there. 

       Filing in the line behind two other students, who looked just as nervous, if not more nervous, as Cody, Maleena joined Cody and his mom as she looked around the large lobby. The building was old, but it was evident that the lobby had been recently renovated. From the couches, to the massive television, fireplace, and large kitchen, the lobby looked more like a huge living room, rather than the lobby of a student resident building.

         "What's the last name?" One of the two people seated at the table asked Cody, bringing Maleena's attention back to the table. 

         "McClain." Cody's deep voice replied. 

        "Cody?" The blonde held up an envelope in her left hand, a pen in her right hand. 

        "Yes ma'am." 

        "Alright, Cody, I just need you to sign and initial here and here." The greeter slid a paper to Cody, pointing to where he needed to sign. "This just says that you were given your keys and access cards so if they are lost, we know what number they are." 

       Cody nodded his head in understanding, initialing the slip of paper, pushing it back to the young lady. "Thank you." He took the little brown envelope from her. 

         "You are apartment number 26B." She said, checking off something on a paper in her binder. "And this is for you." She handed over a cloth pull-string bag, full of goodies for all the new residents. "If you need any assistance with moving your belongings, our team members will be glad to help." The college student pointed to the door to their left where groups of students wearing bright green t-shirts with 'move-in specialist' written on the backs stood. "And lastly, welcome home." A large grin was plastered on her face.

         "Thank you, ma'am." Cody replied, walking from the table. 

         "Do you want to see the room first, and then we can start bringing your stuff in?" Margaret asked. 

        "Sure." Cody motioned for his mom to go first into the resident hall. Reaching out a hand to Maleena, he quietly whispered, "What do you think so far?" 

        "I like it. I am really excited for you." She grinned up at her boyfriend who was now wearing a smile, most of his nerves gone. 

         "Thank you." 

        After walking up a flight of stairs, the group reached apartment 26B. "Here we are." Cody let out a heavy breath, inserting his key into the lock, turning it, and opening the door. 

        Maleena was surprised at the size of the space. It wasn't large by any means, but it was bigger than she expected. Walking into the space, Maleena looked to her left, seeing the bathroom; also to the left, beside the bathroom, was the bedroom. Straight in front of them, Maleena looked at the large living room. Directly to their right was the kitchen, fully furnished with appliances. 

         "Home sweet home." Cody said, taking in a breath. "Y'all ready to start moving stuff in?" The excitement was evident in his voice, though he still hadn't moved from his spot by the door. 

          "Sounds good to me." Maleena shrugged, following Cody and his mom back out the door. 

                                                                     ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

          Author's Note: Y'all, once again I apologize for the delayed update. My old laptop gave me the "blue screen of death" once and for all, and updating on my phone gets funky sometimes, so my apologies for the time when I was unable to write. Now that I have been blessed with a new laptop, I should be able to update a little more often. 

ALSO, these next few chapters are fixin' to cover a lot of stuff very quickly, and you will see a couple months skipped/left out as I begin to wrap up this boot. So, get your hand in the riggin' and hold on tight as this is fixin' to be one fun ride. Thanks again for your patience, and I hope y'all enjoy. 

As always, please let me know if y'all have any recommendations or suggestions. God bless. :)