The sun from the horizon slowly set just below the academy's rooftops by the time Raphael left the gym.
His steps reached the locker room in the main hall of the building as he slowly paced forward while his eyes carefully scanned through the rows of metal storages with numbers engraved at the center.
There!
Locker 2154
His fingers held onto its handle as he lightly nudged it open, but it was locked. He grabbed his student key card given to him together with his class schedule, and tapped it on the mini screen just below the handle.
Ding!
A soft click chimed as the locker door popped open.
Inside his locker was nothing but empty except for a slip of paper inserted through the locker's slits.
He pocketed Elena's picture.
This could be a safe spot for this right now.
He placed it at the sides of his locker, securing it with a tape. Now, the locker seemed a bit better in his eyes.
With that resolved, he picked the piece of paper folded neatly like an invitation. As he revealed its contents, the slip read:
Room Assignment : Male Wing, 3rd floor, Room 5.
Just the room number and location. Nothing more, not even who is he assigned to share room with.
As the sun set finally dimming the corridors into darkness, beyond the school's courtyard and across the miniature garden, Raphael has arrived in front of the Academy's dormitory housing.
It was simple three storey building with rows of glass windows plastered to the boring white concrete, and brick lined trims adorned the edges for contrast. The entrance stood a thick dark oak double doors with intricate glass lamps hanging on each side, illuminating the place with warmth like a welcoming presence.
As entered the building, the foyer stood wide and tall with bunch of couches from different corners of the room and another grandiose statue of the founder in the middle of the room.
There were three double doors in the room.
One in the middle had a sign : Dining Hall.
The door on his left also had one indicated, Male Wing. On the other hand, the right stated Female Wing.
His direction quickly headed to the left door, opening it cautiously to observe the place before fully entering. He found a staircase with sign boards indicating the floors level, and ascended.
As he reached the third-floor hallway, it smelled like fresh laundry, faint smell of food, and strong scented male cologne. Doors stood a jar in some places: boisterous laughter, rhythmic guitar strums, electronic hum.
He passed by a vending machine along the way emitting this weird mechanical hum.
Room 5 was located at the end of the corridor.
As soon as he reached his destination, the door was left ajar like the other rooms, but a soft golden light slipped out, giving warmth and comfort in his senses.
Raphael knocked twice on the door's wooden panels before entering. Just for courtesy.
"Come in~" The voice in the room replied with an invitation. It was light and melodic, having this youthful and cheerful tone.
As pulled the door open, it revealed a room with beds at the central corner piled on top each other like a bunk, two desks across each other, and one wide window overlooking darkening lawns at the side of the bed.
What caught his attention is the top bunk's aesthetics. It looked like a piece of heaven have descended upon it with a pile of soft plush white pillows, thick furry wool blankets in cream and soft lavender, delicate white tulle with fairy lights draped along the frame like stars.
Perfectly giving dreamy and ethereal vibes.
In contrast to that, the side wall were taped with posters of popular performers, singers and musicians while a tiny plush cloud dangled over the edge.
Meanwhile, the lower bunk was modernly chic and simplistic: high-thread-count linens in charcoal and slate, built-in curtain drapery tied back neatly with a clasp on the bed's frame, just modern, simple and clean.
The desk held an orderly lineup of skincare bottles, lotions, make-up and colognes while the other one across the room is cleared and empty, most probably his desk at the moment.
A young man turned from adjusting a small Bluetooth speaker on his desk.
His fluffy white locks bounced and fell to his shoulders in soft waves, framing a face that looked almost too feminine to be in a man's dorm: big golden eyes, plump soft pink lips curved in a welcoming smile.
He wore a loose oversized sweater and joggers, radiating an image of a pure fallen angel who looked too cheerful and excited upon seeing him. His presence brought strange wave of calmness around the surroundings.
"Hey! You must be Raphael Kiersten." a voice gladly welcomed him with genuine warmth. "I'm Harian Beckett. I have been waiting for this day to come! A roommate~"
His ecstatic reaction gave Raphael quite uncertainty. Are roommates eager to meet their new roomies? The video he watched to prepare himself didn't mention anything about that. Usually, they just ignore each other.
Raphael stepped in, setting his bag down. "Yeah. Nice to meet you."
Harian's smile widened, soft and disarming. "Same! I usually end up solo because of my schedule. "
"Really? That's not too bad in my opinion." he blinked.
"And ... the school keeps a tight leash on whoever becomes my roommate due me being an idol and stuff." His cheerful tone shifted slightly to a quiet dread as he shared his experience.
Raphael stared at him from head to toe, studying him carefully. This man in front of him is an idol ? He might be living under a rock since he knew nothing about him. " I see." he spoke up in reply.
"But hey, they finally paired someone up." he beamed up once again as his eyes sparkled in happiness.
He got up of his chair and approached Raphael, leaning in closer to observe him thoroughly with his golden orbs scanning all over him.
" Low-key worried it'd be a stalker or crazy fan, but you don't give off that energy at all." He laughed lightly, rubbing the back of his own neck. "No offense. Just... relief."
Raphael's mouth twitched—almost a smile. "It's fine. I'm not into that. Just here for school."
"Perfect." Harian gestured to the beds with a playful demeanor. "Here are the beds. As you can see, I already claimed top. I designed it to give something that screams a good place for sleeping like in a cloud with the fairy lights and all the pillows."
Raphael just lightly nodded at the visuals of Harian's bed. "It's really pretty."
"You fine with lower bunk though?" he asked.
Raphael glanced at the lower bunk, simple, high-quality, grounded. It suited him. "Yeah. Lower's fine."
"Sweet." Harian climbed the ladder with grace, settling onto his pile of soft blankets like it was his natural throne.
"First and foremost. Bathroom's communal style down the hall. Just remember to wear flip-flops. " he held two fingers as he gave a reminder.
"Another one of those, huh?" Raphael sighed after recalling the incident from a while ago.
"Honestly, it's not so bad. You get to meet fellow floor mates that way." Harian encouraged with a beaming smile.
" Second, There is a common room in the middle hall where the real chaos happens: all genders gather, vending machines, games. Gets loud and rowdy sometimes after nine, but it's quite fun if you're into it."
Raphael quietly nodded as he listened through Harian's reminders while he unpacked his things slowly, placing notebooks and books on the desk. "Quiet's more my thing."
"Same here when I'm off-duty." Harian leaned over the edge of his bunk, golden eyes gleamed beautifully beneath the fairy-light's glow. "Performing drains my energy sometimes, so I rather need to calm myself in my dorm."
A slight pause came in as his golden orbs observed him this time.
"You seem chill so I guess you're a good match." he added.
Raphael glanced up from folding a shirt. Harian's smile was gentle, almost breath-taking in the soft lighting. Something about it eased the tension in Raphael's chest.
"Thanks," Raphael said quietly with a small smile. "Appreciate the welcome."
Harian grinned that soft warm smile that could probably make anyone question their type for a second. "Anytime. Need extra pillows, charger, or just someone to vent to about dorm food? I'm here."
Raphael nodded, climbing onto the lower bunk after taking off his shoes before pulling the curtain drapery half-closed for a moment of privacy.
The mattress was soft and comfortable, the linens felt cool against his skin.
From above, Harian hummed softly while adjusting his pillows like a gentle lullaby tune while Raphael stared at the underside of the top bunk as the fairy lights filtered through in tiny golden dots.
The dorm felt alive around them with the distant laughter from rooms further down the hall, faint guitar strumming, banter of sorts drifting up from the second floor.
For the first time since arriving, the loneliness gently reminded him of the calmness in his room as well as his mind. It gave him ease for sometime.
Across the partition in the Female Wing, separating it from the Male Wing, Yana Hawliet sat cross-legged on her bed in Room 4, staring blankly at her phone while Natalie, her roommate organized a mountain of makeup and hair products.
She hadn't seen Raphael since the pool, but knowing he was in the same building and probably same floors.
She could feel her skin prickle as the thought crossed her mind.