Normally Luke Arbor hated getting the bus.

It was an echo chamber of jabbering voices you could never fully block out, not without blasting music loud enough to make your ears bleed. A giant, self-contained scuba tank of body odour, stale coffee and fast food. Seats were jammed so close together that you could barely tuck your knees in and were forced into running battles with strangers over the coveted middle arm rest. A place with broken air conditioning and ailing suspension that rattled your spine with every pothole.

But today this coach was a magnificent metal steed carrying him towards the first chapter of life that would truly be his. He leaned his head against the window and looked out, watching as the thick woodland slowly gave way to the outskirts of Lasquette Bay. Blazing afternoon sun lit up the silver-grey crescent of buildings that hugged the shore of Lake Superior. Luke could briefly see the colourful blips of sails and kayaks dotting the water before the road sloped down and they were swallowed up by the buildings.

He could feel his heart beating faster already. Not long now. He felt like a kid again. Well, he still was a kid if his parents were to be believed. Nerves jangled alongside his excitement. He remembered feeling the same sensation the first day he'd walked into his high school back in Milwaukee.

Though his body had started to fill out since then, he was a still a little gangly and a fresh swell of self-consciousness began edging into his mind. He glanced at himself in the window reflection; fiddled with the unruly fringe of his messy brown hair. He'd made sure it was clipped short before he left to keep things simple, but now that only seemed to highlight the roundness of his face and the pale shock of his skin.

Luke winced just thinking about it. His attempts at a beard so far had been an embarrassing failure, so he opted to remain clean shaven, but that only compounded his boyish features. His nose was broad, his mouth broader. His mom always said his expressions were larger than life and he didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing right now.

Oh, come on, get it together, Arbor, he thought angrily, determination overpowering those insecure thoughts and feelings in a surge. He'd worked too long and too hard to let nerves derail his first taste of independence now. It had taken a long, gruelling year after his high school graduation to scrape together the last of the money he needed and now, at a bright-eyed nineteen years of age, he was ready to strike out on his own.

He was ready.

The broad streets of the town swallowed him up and Luke drank it all in like a kid staring through a toy shop window. He'd been here before – once – for his orientation but that had been almost a month ago. He'd liked the place then, and he liked it more now. People flooded in and out of shops, diners and restaurants, clustered on street corners, and formed flocks of brightly coloured joggers in the sunshine.

A rattling guitar riff exploded from Luke's pocket, yanking him from his examinations. Twisting awkwardly in his seat, he dug his phone free from the pocket of his jeans and glanced at the screen. Then he thumbed the green circle and placed it to his ear.

"I told you, mom, I'll call you when I get there!" he chuckled as he slumped back in the seat, still idly watching the people of Lasquette Bay.

"You must be there by now!" she chirped back. "Sorry, hon', you know your dad would've driven you, but with work-,"

"Mom, I already said don't worry about it," Luke replied, rolling his eyes. "I can handle a bus ride by myself. We're in Lasquette – should be at the campus soon."

"Are you excited?"

She sounded more worried than excited – no change there.

"Can't wait." The bus made a ponderous right-hand turn, and a sign caught his eye.

E.L.U. CAMPUS DROP-OFF =>

"I'm almost there, mom, I gotta go. I'll call you once I'm settled, okay?"

"Be nice to the locals!"

He smirked. "I'll be on my best behaviour, I promise."

"You're going to have a great time, Luke. I'll speak to you soon. Love you."

"Love you too, mom."

Luke touched the red hang-up icon on the screen and took a deep breath, re-centring himself on the task at hand. He still had plenty of slogging to do before he could really relax. Orientation had been more than a month ago, and he suspected he'd need more than the campus map stuffed into his back pocket to regain his bearings in this place.

The bus turned followed the signs for the drop-off, and soon the buildings around him began to change. Local business gave way to the clean, crisp structures of academia. Tracts of bright green grass took over from concrete sidewalks, neatly scored by paved paths that wound their way through the university grounds like veins. ELU's campus sprawled across several blocks of the lakeside town, made up of half a dozen different residence halls, a sports complex, playing fields, a clutter of lecture halls, classrooms, labs, and two campus bars. It was a little, self-contained world.

The coach grumbled onward until Luke saw the rearing crescent of the East Lasquette University admissions office – all pale red sandstone and glass. A band of tarmac arced long in front of it, providing access to an immaculately swept staircase that cut through more grass right up to the front entrance. A train of cars formed up ahead of them, some dropping off students, others filtering away through the narrow campus roads that led to the more distant residence halls. Part of him envied the freedom of the students who had their own cars – it would be a little while before he could get the funds together for that on top of his tuition and accommodation.

Still, he was here to make the best of it. They joined the line and eventually the coach heaved itself up to the front of the admissions office. Luke sighed, smiled, and patted the arm of the seat affectionately.

Thanks buddy, hope the miles are good to you.

Then he rose from his seat, the stiffness of his limbs doing nothing to dampen his mood. He tugged a bulging rucksack from the luggage rack above the seat and slung it across his shoulders, taking care not to clobber the woman who'd been sitting beside him. He eased himself past her and saw that there were at least a dozen other young men and women disembarking for the autumn semester, just like him.

Luke joined the awkward, half-sideways shuffle to navigate the bus aisle, and out into the blazing August sun. He unzipped the front of his hoodie, revealing a black t-shirt emblazoned with the icy blue capital letters, A DAY TO REMEMBER, and blinked several times as his eyes adjusted to the brightness. Once he could see straight again, he took a firm grip on the straps of his rucksack and loped over to where the doors to the luggage compartment were creaking upwards on dodgy hydraulics.

The portly diver ambled through the passengers and began heaving suitcases and bags out of the bus with the speed and precision of an expert. Eager hands grabbed and luggage was cleared from the sidewalk as quickly as it appeared. Luke watched intently, feeling like a sprinter getting ready to run the hundred meters.

A moment later the driver deposited his hulking suitcase on the sidewalk, its navy-blue exterior gleaming in the sun. A moment later a long, crimson duffle bag joined it, emblazoned with a soaring bird of prey motif and with the word "Hawkshot" printed on it in thick white type. Luke scooped it up and thanked the driver, earning a toothy grin in response. As the man returned to his work, Luke turned away, took a firm grip on the handle of his suitcase with his other hand and breathed deep.

No turning back now.

He set off, his mind running through the instructions from his admissions email as he mounted the stairs, suitcase clunking along as he pulled it from step to step. The glass doors parted automatically as he approached, and Luke advanced into the foyer. Marble flooring shone out in front of him, and the echoes of his footsteps were swiftly swallowed up by the hubbub of voices from other students. The lights above him glared down more aggressively than the sun and his eyes wandered aimlessly as he took it all in.

Distracted as he was, Luke didn't notice the person coming in the opposite direction until they crashed into each other.

The collision almost flattened him. He let out a yelp of surprise, stumbled backward, tripped over his suitcase and went crashing to the ground in a heap. Luckily his backpack took the brunt of the fall against the unyielding marble, but the impact still jarred his spine and for a moment he just lay there, staring at the ceiling in surprise.

Then a girl's face appeared above him and he stared at that instead. His eyes widened and he wondered if he'd somehow thumped his head on the way down. She was beautiful, dark tresses spilling towards him as she looked down, her face ringed by a halo of blazing light from the ceiling. Ivory skin shone alluringly, and storm-coloured eyes searched his face. Her jaw and chin formed a gentle sweeping oval below pale lips, her mouth currently open in an expression of abject horror.

"Oh my God," she exclaimed. "Crap, crap. Are... are you alright?"

"I'm..." Luke blinked, snapping out of his daze. "I... yeah, yeah, I'm fine!" He clambered to his feet, rocketing upright so fast that he gave himself a head rush. He swayed unsteadily and the girl reached out, catching him by the hoodie and holding him steady. "Woah."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she blurted, flapping the piece of paper in her free hand. "I was looking at the damned campus map – I didn't see you."

Luke shook his head. "Honestly, it's okay, I'm fine." He gave her a sheepish smile. "I wasn't looking where I was going either. So... I guess I'm sorry, too?"

Her shoulders visibly relaxed, but she still looked worried. "You're sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, of course," he said, gesturing to himself. "Nothing broken, I promise." Looking at her then, he suddenly realised she was a good few inches shorter than him, and slim with it. A small twang of confusion plucked at the back of his mind. It had felt like running into a brick wall.

"Good, good." The girl exhaled a deep breath of relief and released her hold on him. She glanced quickly around; winced and looked back at him. "Sorry again."

Before he could get another word out she was past him, walking like a woman possessed straight out the door and down the steps where she disappeared from sight. Luke was left staring dumbly at the empty space where she'd been, trying to wrap his head around what just happened. He felt as though he'd been electrified by her touch, his body tingling from head to toe.

In the end, though, he didn't have much choice but to gather his belongings and carry on. The girl was long gone.

He heaved his suitcase back into a standing position, picked up the long bag and turned back towards the desks. Squaring his shoulders, Luke tried to bring his mind back to the task at hand, and joined the admissions line that looked to be moving the quickest.

In practice, it didn't make much difference as various lines ebbed and flowed depending on the awkwardness of the query in question. In the ten minutes it took to reach a desk the incident with the girl had slipped back in his mind, shunted aside as he tried to remember the arrival procedures and policies. An alabaster-skinned young woman with a bun of blond hair looked up at him brightly as he approached.

"Hi there!" she beamed with a little more enthusiasm than he'd expected. "Welcome to East Lasquette University. My name's Phoebe, how can I help you today?"

"Hi, Phoebe," Luke said, using the greeting to fill the void as he tried to assemble the right words. "I'm- my name's Luke Arbor. I'm moving into my accommodation today."

"Awesome!" The beam grew brighter. "Have you already completed your pre-arrival check in?"

He gave her a thumbs up. "I have indeed."

"And you received your student ID and email with directions to your dorms?"

"Yep, I got that, too."

"Then you can just head straight there. They'll have your room key all ready for you."

"No, no, I know that," he blurted. "It's just there was something I was told to do before I checked into my halls." Gulping down his trepidation he decided to dive right in. With a grunt of effort, he heaved the heavy, Hawkshot bag up onto the reception desk. "I'm supposed to be joining the archery team. I got a dispensation to bring my own, but it needs to be checked in and kept in the sports centre on campus."

"Your own...?" Phoebe recoiled slightly from the bag, her bright expression faltering.

Luke smiled nervously. "My own bow."

*

To Luke's relief, the dorm looked exactly as advertised. Where the main admissions office had been a little cold, the lobby of the Briar Lodge halls at ELU had been given a warmer makeover, with warm wood panelled walls, soft lights and comfy-looking sofas and chair scattered through the open space.

Phoebe had gotten over her initial surprise and after making all the relevant checks she had discovered that yes, he had indeed gotten dispensation to bring his own bow on campus under strict conditions.

He could have, he supposed, used the university's equipment. It would have been fine. But the top-of-the-line Hawkshot compound bow had been one of the few luxuries he allowed himself in the build up to his college excursion. Luke was used to the feel of the thing and knew that the best chance of him making the archery team was to stick with what he knew. A clutch of high school archery medals attested to his proficiency with the Hawkshot.

There'd been a good dozen hoops to jump through, but in the end, they'd allowed him to bring it along, so long as it stayed safely locked in the sports centre when he wasn't using it. Luke hadn't argued that condition. When he wasn't shooting at a target it wasn't exactly something he needed.

With his suitcase rumbling quietly along behind him on the green carpet, he walked up to the reception desk where an elderly woman with a formidable set of spectacles and pronounced Canadian accent took his name and student ID number. He waited for a moment before a room key materialised out of her drawers.

"B22," she croaked. "Second floor, end of the hall. The elevator's just across there." One hand shot out and a claw of a finger extended.

Luke glanced in the direction she pointed, spotted the elevator and looked back for just long enough to snatch up his room key.

"Thanks again!" he told her, flashing a smile before pivoting and dragging his belongings across the lobby towards the elevator.

He crammed in with four other students who were all chatting animatedly. They gave him as bright a greeting as anyone else and he wanted to speak, but when he opened his mouth, he found himself frozen for what to say. After a moment he eventually managed to blurt out a crushingly awkward "great to be here" which went down like a lead balloon.

They piled out of the lift on the first floor, leaving Luke red-faced and cursing his nerves. Scrubbing a hand across his face, as though it might help expunge the memory, he let out a heavy sigh as the elevator doors closed again.

Way to go, Luke, he chided himself. Way to mark yourself as the campus weirdo.

When he stepped out onto the second floor, he'd steadied himself somewhat. It didn't matter so much, so long as he got himself under control to meet his roommate. He knew the guy's name from the admin email he'd received, but that was about it, so all he had to do now was hope.

He trekked along to the end of the hall as instructed, to a corner bend where a wooden door emblazoned with a black B22 waited for him. Turning his eyes skyward for a moment, Luke took a deep breath, then swept his key over the door lock.

When he stepped over the threshold his attention was instantly snared by a huge, colourful block of ... something in the centre of the room. His eyes narrowed in confusion, and he cocked his head to one side. It took a few seconds before he realised it was an antique arcade machine, which for some reason had ended up in his dorm. He didn't recognise the game, but the artwork on the outer casing depicted a lot of hyper-muscled men, and even more guns.

The door clunked shut behind him.

"Hey, somebody there?" said a voice.

Luke blinked; looked at the arcade machine again and his eyes dropped to discover a pair of legs protruding out of its side casing.

"Err ... yeah, hi," he ventured as he examined the jumble of circuits and wires strewn on the floor around the legs. "You okay in there?"

"Just ... great." A snapping sound echoed through the room. Followed by a curse.

Luke shook his head. "Well, you're either a repairman who's gotten very lost, or you're Kenny Matlock. I'm your roommate."

"Guilty as charged!" After a few seconds of wriggling, Kenny's top half emerged, and he slumped back into a sitting position. His hair was cut short down the back and sides, left longer on the top with the fringe wrestled into an almost wave-like shape. His face was squarish, with bright green eyes and tapering down into a clearly defined jaw. He looked up; grinned. "And that makes you Luke Arbor."

"Nice to meet you." Luke dragged his suitcase forward into a standing position and leaned on it, smirking. "I didn't realise we'd rented the arcade for the semester."

"Oh, that? Sorry, sorry," he chuckled nervously, nodding to the machine. "I... well, we all have our hobbies."

"How did you even get it up here?"

"I'll tell you if I ever figure it out." His grin broadened and he scrambled upright, wiping his hands on the worn fabric of his jeans before sticking one out to shake. "Welcome to hotel ELU. I've been here for two days now – got to scope the lie of the land, you know? You got any questions, just ask Kenny, okay?"

Luke couldn't suppress a smile. "That's good to know."

"You're from out of town, right?"

"Milwaukee," he confirmed with a nod.

"Oh, man, love that place – go Bucks, am I right?"

"I'm not really into basketball."

Kenny looked relieved. "Oh?" A wink. "Me neither."

Luke let a grateful laugh escape, and felt his shoulders begin to relax. Slinging his rucksack onto the empty bed he turned back to his roommate.

"You're from Lasquette then?"

"From, and shall remain." Kenny struck a triumphant pose. "Call me unadventurous but I like this town."

"I like it, too."

Kenny clicked his fingers, pointing. "You and me, Luke, I think we're going to get on just fine."

"Well, that's a relief."

"You alright, man? Looks like you lost a little colour on the way here."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good." Suddenly Luke's mouth felt very dry. "It's just been a long day, you know, on the bus, checking in, dragging all my stuff up here."

"Sure, sure." The other student made a sudden bound across the room to the fridge nestled in the diminutive kitchen area. He retrieved two cans of soda; passed one to Luke and cracked open his own. "I had some nerves when I arrived, too. Get some sugar in you, Luke. It'll level you out a bit."

There wasn't much point in arguing. Luke raised the can in toast and opened it, taking a big gulp. It fizzed its way pleasantly down his throat. He gulped down two more mouthfuls and felt his nerves begin to settle.

"I guess it's always pretty weird on day one, right?" Kenny continued. "New town, new people – new life if you're feeling dramatic."

"I guess so."

"I figure the best way to get over that is to make this place feel a little less new, huh? Friday night, there's a freshman mixer down at the gym," he explained. "Everybody gets slapped with a name tag, we can do the rounds, meet and greet, see some of the extra stuff they've got on offer. It'll be good for you." He clapped Luke on the shoulder. "Can't imagine either of us have anything else going on."

"You're right about that."

"Great. I know a couple of people on campus already so just stick with me. We'll be making new friends before you know it."

"Alright, alright, save the hard sell," Luke laughed, raising his hands in acceptance. "I'll be there."