4 Arrival

2019 ‖ Eckley, CO

one year later

The walls of the hallway are painted in a greyish white, the same color as the sidewalks in his old neighborhood. But instead of manhole covers, wooden doors are breaking through the silent noise. Realizing that his new life lies behind one of them, Cameron's stomach turns into a knot.

"Morning prayer is in the auditorium at 8am sharp, after that is breakfast and at 9 starts the first class. Lunch is at 1 and dinner at 6. After the trial period, you can apply for the lunch permit which allows you to eat outside of school. There's a pizzeria nearby which is very popular among our students. Bedtime is at 9:30 which means not leaving your room and being quiet. If you have any more questions you can either ask your roommate or me. You know where my office is, right? Okay, this is the room. I wish you a good start at our school."

The woman finally takes a breath and grabs Cameron's hand, shaking it while forcing her lips into something that is probably supposed to mimic a friendly smile. Then, without another word, she turns around and walks away in her blazer, skirt and perfectly polished shoes.

Cameron lets out a sigh while watching her disappear behind a corner. He still can't quite believe that he is here now and no longer at the public school back home. He isn't sure if he should be happy or annoyed.

The change definitely is a positive aspect. The thought of going back makes him feel sick in his stomach. So much shit has happened in Denver.

While staring at the light brown wood of the door, images flash in Cameron's mind.

His girlfriend screaming at him on the day after the party. Her spreading the story at school. The boys waiting for him after class. It wouldn't have been half as bad if the person she had seen him with was a girl.

Not a guy.

From a popular quarterback to the number one loser in twenty seconds.

The air gets stuck in his throat when once again he is confronted with the same question: Is he gay? And if so, does it matter?

Well yes. Now it does since his parents took him out of school because of the bullying and put him into an all-boys strictly Christian boarding school two hours away from home.

Although Cameron is a Christian, he never really felt a connection to religion. In his family, Christianity is as important as a honey-glazed turkey: Mandatory on holidays but completely irrelevant every other day of the year. Although he doesn't think that his involuntary coming out is the reason he landed here, his parents were quite supportive over the past few months. It's more likely that they hope all the well educated young men here won't do the same things to him as the cunts back in Denver.

A fresh start.

Cameron scratches his head and feels a bit embarrassed when he realizes that he must have been standing there for at least three minutes, just staring at the door. With the hope that nobody has seen him, the dark-haired boy raises his arm and knocks against the wood.

How will his roommate be? Hopefully not some asshole who can somehow smell his fear and turn his life into a living hell.

Great. He is overthinking again. It's going to be fine.

He doesn't even have to make friends with the person. He will be here for only one year before college starts. Everything is under control.

The door swings open so suddenly that Cameron flinches a little. "Look who it is, Cam the man! Welcome to our den." "Wait, what? I didn't know we shared a room, why didn't you tell me?"

Sonny had transferred to the boarding school last year when his problems at home had gotten too much for him to handle, so he had to move to his great uncle in Yuma. Sending Sonny to Eckley was the most logical option. Cameron can't help but to pull him into a tight hug.

"Woah, okay. Okay, dude." Sonny pats bis back and slowly pushes his friend away from him. "I wanted it to be a surprise. Isn't this awesome? Now you don't have to stay in a room with some weirdo who snores the whole time and sniffs your socks." Cameron lifts up his suitcase and steps into the room, holding back a laugh. He takes a few seconds to look around. It's actually not that bad.

Two single beds on either side of the room, a small table with three chairs in the middle, big windows and two closets on the opposite wall. The room is painted in the same dull cement color as the hallway.

"So, has someone showed you the school already? What is your first impression?" Sonny leans against the table and watches Cameron throw his backpack onto the empty bed before putting the suitcase next to it. "Not really. I went to the office of Mrs...?" "Wynter." "Yeah right. And she walked me directly to this room." Cameron opens his backpack and sees that a note from his mom is lying on top of all of his stuff. His face heats up and he closes the backpack quickly.

~~~~~~~~~~

After attending dinner, nothing else really happened. Cameron was hoping that his roommate would show him the school but Sonny apparently had already forgotten about his own offer. Instead, he took a long shower, so long that his friend started wondering what he was doing under there, and then left to look for someone called Seth, who Cameron hasn't met yet.

Now he is lying around, staring at his phone. It's barely 8pm but for some reason, he is feeling extremely tired. Sonny has been gone for half an hour already and he gets the feeling that he won't be coming back anytime soon.

What a great friend. Leaving him alone on his first day.

Cameron checks his social media and types his mom a quick text to let her know that he is still alive. After a hot shower and brushing his teeth, he decides to go to bed.

8:47pm. Wow.

While closing the curtains, Cameron takes the opportunity to examine the view from the window. They are in one of the buildings that are in the far back of the school grounds. He looks down at a small forest with a picnic area close to the building. A couple hundred meters in the distance the road shimmers through the trees and somewhere in between is a basketball field, if his eyes are not betraying him.

It feels like Cameron is somewhere in nowhere, especially compared to the packed streets of Denver, but he appreciates how quiet it is. Back in bed, he pulls the sheet up to his chest and it doesn't take long until his tired body accepts the sleep.

Way too early, only a few hours later, a loud knock on the door wakes him up. Without waiting for a response, it gets opened and a guy steps into the room, turning on the light switch at the same time. Cameron realizes that he had forgotten to lock the door. Living on the edge, eh?

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you up. Where's Sonny?" Cameron takes a few seconds to examine the guy. He is about the same height as him with messy black hair and broad shoulders. He is hiding his hands in the pockets of his grey hoodie. The boy smells strongly of cigarettes and aftershave; the scent fills up the room in only a few seconds.

"He left to look for Seth a while ago." "Oh. Great. I am Seth." He can feel his blood rushing into his cheeks.

"Why are you asking...?" "Oh, I just wanted to return this USB stick." He pulls the small silver device out of one of the pockets and puts it onto the table. "Tell him I said thanks." Cameron nods. Seth still doesn't move.

"Are you new here?" "Yeah. I'm Cam." "Ah." The situation gets more and more awkward until the guy finally breaks the silence. "I'm going to chill outside for a bit. Wanna join?" Cameron feels tempted to say yes just because he is desperate to find new friends quickly and Seth seems interesting enough but his eyelids are weighing like steel.

"Sorry but I'm really tired." Seth nods shortly. "Kay. Bye." He turns off the light again and leaves the dark room without saying another word.

Okay. That was interesting.