"(Y/n)...? (Y/n)! Hey...! Earth to (Y/n)...?" A familiar voice suddenly snapped you out of your thoughts, your chin resting on your hand as the bell obnoxiously rang for lunch. Oh, Amber...Wait a second, Amber...!? Oh, yeah! You'd walked to your psychology class with Michael this morning...!

"Oh, hey there, Amber." You warmly greeted, trying your best to seem completely with it as you shot everyone a feeble smile. "Something you needed from me...?"

"Uh...Well, not exactly..." Hesitating, the dark-haired girl glanced to the side and acted awkward, Amber remembering what had happened last time she'd confronted you.

—

"Okay, you'd better start explaining. NOW!"
"Hey! Class literally just ended."
"So? What does that have to do with anything? Why have you been ignoring us...?"
"It wasn't intentional, I...I swear." "It's...well, it's...just with moving house and all..."

"You've got to be KIDDING me!" "This can't just be because you moved house! I...I mean, you were missing for three whole days!"
"This does all sound rather suspicious." "After all, that Skype call was supposed to explain what was going on - and yet you never showed. Can't you just tell us what's going on? Aren't we all friends here?"

"Apparently not, considering she doesn't want to hang out with us anymore!" "Do you have new friends or something? Is it these "new roommates"?"
"Hey, that's not it at all!" "Why would you say that? It's not even been a week—"
"I don't know WHAT to think of you anymore!"

"From supposedly "moving house," to never visiting me at the hospital like Cadie and Amb did - and then missing classes out of nowhere! You NEVER miss classes!"
"Um, Laura, that's a little—"
"I'm allowed to spend time with other people too, y'know."

"My roommates are...different from other people. They're...They're introverts - and that's why I've been so secretive about them, okay!?"
"Amber, Laura, c'mon." "All we wanted to know is the truth, and I think we've pushed enough—"
"Your new roommates being "introverted" doesn't explain why you won't tell us!"

"In fact, that just makes them sound even more strange!"
"Why can't you tell us anything about them, huh? Their names, their occupations - anything!"
"Because they don't WANT people to know about them, Amber!"

"For God's sake, can't you just leave my other friends alone? Or do you always have to go poking your nose around in other people's business?"
"Hey! All she wanted to do was make sure you weren't dealing with something serious!"
"Poke my nose around in other people's business...?"

"Yeah! Are you that full of yourself that you didn't even recognise it?" "You've always been that way! From planning a party and inviting people just because they invited you to theirs last year, to just inviting boys because they're "cute". I mean, sheesh, how shallow can you get?"

"What the Hell, (Y/n)?"
"What's gotten into you? Amber and Laura were just worried about you...You're our friend, and—"
"Well, why don't the three of you just stop harassing me about my new friends and leave me alone!?"

—

"It...It doesn't matter...Sorry to bother you..." Amber bit her lip and held her hands up; throwing you a regretful smile in return and making you feel slightly guilty afterwards.

"Laura, Amber and I were all just wondering if you were feeling okay, that's all." Cadence commented kindly, doing her best to calm the mood and lighten the atmosphere. "This last week you've seemed so...so stressed lately. And these last two days it's looked like it's only worsened. Is everything alright, (Y/n)?"

"Mmhm...!" You told them cheerfully, your smile widening once you thought back to how casual you seemed to be around your partners fighting. You were almost completely used to it, to be perfectly honest. "The only reason I'm feeling tired right now is because I...Well, because I...have to rely on Rose for notes. And then use them to catch up on our psychology classes. Not to mention our upcoming test."

"Well, if that's all it is..." Buying your lie, Laura suspiciously dipped her head as a nod and accepted your remark; her black curls bouncing between her shoulders whilst she joined in said conversation. "Still though..."

"Thank you though...For worrying about me..." Repeating your words from this morning, you thanked your friends with genuine sincerity; gratitude flowing from your voice while giving them each a heartfelt hug. "Really. It means a lot. So please try to ignore my words from a week or two ago, m'kay...?"

"Sure." Laura smiled warmly, her caution crumbling as she leant back and picked up her bag. "We know you didn't mean it."

"We all noticed that you were under a ton of stress." Cadence chipped in with her usual, cheerful characteristics. "So it was our fault for pushing you so hard."

"Mostly mine..." Amber shamefully sighed, hugging you again and acting massively embarrassed. "So please don't hold it against me...! I enjoy being your friend more than anything...! Through elementary, middle school, high school, and university too—!"

"Okay, okay...!" You laughed in amusement, pushing her away a minute after and stifling another laugh. "Enough already, Amb. Any more and you'll embarrass me. Chill out, girl."

"Why don't we just go back to how we used to be, 'kay girls...?" Cadence wryly offered, finding Amber's desperate plea to be somewhat funny. "Anyway, the bell's already rang for lunch, so let's just go to the cafeteria and unwind for a bit, y'know...?"

"Sure thing." You replied happily, slinging your bag over your shoulder before waiting for Amber and Cadence to pick up their bags like Laura had. "It'll be great...! We can catch up, reconnect, rekindle our friendship, even—"

"Afternoon, (Y/n)." Another sudden voice interrupted you affectionately; said person forcing you to jump after you'd opened the classroom's door. "How're you feeling today...?"

"Billy...? Stu...? What are you two doing, standing right behind our psychology class's door...?" You curiously wondered, catching your breath while you recovered from your jump-scare.

"We can explain." Billy responded uncomfortably, him and Stu both looking regretful whilst they joined your group. "Really, we can. We were just...just worried about you, that's all. So the moment our cinematography class ended, we waited for yours to finish too. Sorry if that was kinda creepy..."

"Are you serious...? Of course that's creepy...!" Laura spoke to them firmly, acting on-edge once you six had entered the cafeteria. "But it's not just that, you and Stu have been behaving hella strange...! Ever since you've gotten here."

"Hey, hey, hey...I'm sure that they've just had a lot on their mind at the moment as well..." You nervously defended, trying to stop Laura from becoming suspicious of any more people. "Right...? It's probably your cinematography course, isn't it...?"

"Yeah...Yeah...!" Sitting down at the cafeteria table, Stu answered you straightaway; sending you a very sweet smile and discreetly nudging Billy in the process. "We thought the cinematography classes here would be easy, but it turns out that we were way over our heads. At least for the moment."

"Oh, I get it." Cadence's expression cleared, the easy-going girl catching on quickly as she started to eat lunch. "You're probably not used to our university's unusual teaching techniques yet, are you...?"

"You're tellin' me..." Billy playfully answered, both boys chuckling at her response whilst they began eating their meal too. "Our arrogance was definitely uncalled for last week, that was for sure."

"If you need help learning our university's unique studying methods, I wouldn't mind helping you guys find someone in the cinematography club. Y'know, to help you understand how they go about learning the specific subject. Really, it would be no trouble at all." You suggested softheartedly, wanting to be of help and keep the situation under control. "I'm positive somebody would be able to—"

"Thank you, that's really kind of you." Billy thanked sincerely, his eyes gleaming with gratitude as he gazed back in your direction. "We really appreciate your help. It means a lot."

"It's nothing, really—"
"Not only to me, but to Stu too. Right Stu...?"
"Mmhm. Especially since you've seemed so out of it recently...Speaking of which, is everything okay...?"

"I'm fine, everything's fine...! Things at home have just been a little bit hectic, that's all..."
"You sure...? You look a little paler than usual."
"You could try being less blunt, mate."
"Still though, you might want to go to the Nurse's Office."
"No, no, no...! Really, I'm good..."