the flattery successfully brought a smile to her face . “thanks gabe , i appreciate it . just don’t send any weirdos my way or else i’m packing my bags and moving in with you ,” she joked . at least some of her self-imposed stress was melting away with the easy back and forth . sienna happily munched on the granola bar as she listened on . “aww i didn’t know you had a puppy ,” her tone immediately turned high-pitched as she cooed . “what kind of dog is it ?” after taking the final bite of the bar , she scratched her head in thought . “you think that could work ?” was she actually considering yelling in the middle of the quad … maybe . but if she was caught making a fool of herself in front of everybody on campus , it’d be entirely his fault . a light chuckle fell from her lips . “hey , it’s not my fault my professor has the most monotone voice in the world . it’s practically a lullaby !” she defended her actions with a grin . “sounds like you’ve been keeping busy , that’s good . i started on it with that mike guy but still had some problems i didn’t quite understand . how about you ?”

    mike cuts the shit.   part of getting what you want is knowing when to bail on one bit,  and move on to the next.  gabriel clearly wasn’t responding to sympathy,  so he tried to give it to him straight  (  or at least,  straighter.  some things he couldn’t give up on.  )   “  come on,  man.  we’re adults here.  plus,  i’m smart enough to know how to properly copy.  it’s a  ‘ devil’s in the details ’   kind of thing.  no one can tell you cheated if you change it just enough to throw them off your scent.  i’ll even get the hard ones wrong.  you’ll get a better grade than me,  and the good karma of helping out your fellow man,  ”  he pitched,  hoping a new approach would have some better results.  at this point,  it wasn’t even about the homework  ( though he did really and truly need that,  his semester hadn’t gotten off to the greatest start  ),  but about the rush of knowing he’d gotten the answers from someone initially resistant.

CAMERON DESERVED THE DORM DOOR SLAMMED INCHES from his nose . Hell , he might even have deserved the aggressive sound of its lock turning shut . But , after everything he provided for this guy last night, he did not deserve to be left stranded in a Greendale corridor in the possession of only one shoe . No matter how much he pleaded through the hinges that he didn’t know they were identical twins , the door didn’t budge , and the minutes until his next class were hurriedly ticking by . With great effort to keep his head held high ( and to dodge any peculiar stains on the floor ) , Cameron limped into the canteen and saw a sweetly familiar face stood by the vending machine of his choice . “ Good morning , ” he said , resting an arm against the glass and smiling at his newfound companion with more self-assurance than a man with only one shoe warranted , “ say , how would you feel knocking on Ryan Wallace’s dorm door so I can grab my left shoe back before Interior Design 102 ? ”

Gabriel had several friends that lived in the dorms of the school, a misfortune that he didn’t wish on anyone. Community showers were not his style even from the years of sharing showers with his teammates who were some of the dirtiest people he’d met, so he couldn’t imagine the public. They decided to hang out and watch their favorite basketball team lose (though he saw it coming and bet money against his favorite team) and eat 3 pizzas they all chipped in for. As he was walking out, Gabe decided to grab a coffee from the ‘fancy’ vending machine that had been put in place. While waiting for the beverage to brew, he leaned against the glass, hoping this wouldn’t take too long.. He’d been on his phone when the familiar face from his spanish class had been in front of him. Isn’t he kinda old to be in the dorms? Gabriel immediately thought to himself.  When he heard the name, Gabe chuckled. “Yeah. You’re more than likely not getting that shoe back. I don’t know this person, but if you pissed someone off so much to where you can’t get one shoe returned to you, that’s a level of rage not even my face and charm could convince.” His drink had still been brewing, but Gabe didn’t mind because this vending machine encounter got more interesting. “ But I guess I can take time out of my massively busy schedule and the rush that I’m in.” He was being super sarcastic towards the end, but he figured an act of random kindness might benefit him in the long run. “I’ll help. And quick question, and I mean absolutely no disrespect or to sound shitty, just curious, how often does that smile work to get what you want?” Gabe grabbed his drink which had finished brewing. “ Now, where is her door?”

    she expressed her amusement with a small scoff , shaking her head at his very valid point . “i’ve yet to figure out where i draw the line on dealbreakers . murderers are an obvious no-go but can i afford to be picky about sleepwalking ?” sienna threw her hands up in the air for comedic effect . “an overpriced one bedroom in this economy ? i think i’ll stick with losing my sanity ,” she jested with a soft chuckle . her bottom lip slotted between two rows of teeth , chewing nervously at the mention of craigslist . “whaaaat ? craigslist ? noooo … definitely not . that’d be totally crazy .” her tone was likely unconvincing especially since she’d never been great at lying . hazel eyes widened in appreciation before she happily accepted the granola bar . “are you encouraging my stress eating ?” her tone remained playful , “’m not mad about it . plus , i find your presence comforting .” while unwrapping the snack , her shoulders moved up and down in a shrug . “i’ve been good . took a nap in my psychics class earlier so i’m feeling super refreshed . what about you ?”

    it was odd to see the blonde hold such a serious expression on her features as if she was deep in thought . typically she carried herself with a careless disposition , but it was clear something was really bothering her . it didn’t take long for sienna to voice her concerns , though , as if she couldn’t bare to sit with her thoughts alone for any longer . “do you consider sleepwalking to be a dealbreaker in a roommate ? because , like , at first i thought i wouldn’t mind it too much . but then i started imagining that i wake up in the middle of the night and they’re looming over my bed all zombielike . or i’d have to catch them before they flip over the balcony or something . i dunno if i can handle all that …” she stressed . contemplating the pros and cons of yet another sketchy roommate applicant she got . filling the spare bedroom of her apartment with an adequate replacement after her best friend moved out was proving to be a near impossible task .

a dull ache rested behind his left eye,  the kind that was twisting his stomach,  and only amplified his desire to be somewhere other than greendale.  call it a hangover if you want,  but mike would rather see it as apart of his current sickness,  one that greendale only seemed to be making worse.  he took a sip from the tiny paper cup of shitty coffee he’d managed to procure in the cafeteria,  before he noticed one of his spanish classmates set up at a table.   he slipped off his sunglasses and hooked them in his blazer pocket before sitting down.  “   hey.  that homework last night was killer,  right ?  ”   he said,  before flipping open his spiral bound notebook.  “  i had a question about the second part —-  ”  he started,  digging through pages before making an incredulous face.  “  wait…  no…  shit.   i must have left it at my mom’s house last night:   she’s not been doing great,  lately,  and i hung around last night while i worked on it.  ”   he put his face in his hand  ( a little physicality in a lie always helps to sell it ).  “   look,  i hate to be that guy,  but would you mind if i copied your’s ?   i just can’t afford to drop the ball like this.  i mean,  you get it,  right ?  ”