Page 4 of The Golden Receiver

Evander Hemmings was a loud talker.

There were a few people working out in the gym with me, but they didn’t pay me any attention. I didn’t give them an ounce of my attention either. They weren’t important. The only thing that really mattered to me was getting through my training program and getting back to the suite. I worked out for about an hour and a half, and then I decided to take advantage of the quiet and shower in the locker room.

Probably a better plan than scaring off our new roommates with my post-workout stink.

After my shower, I trekked across campus. Every dorm I passed was full of people going in and out, mostly lugging boxes or looking tired as they made their way back to the parking lot for another load.

When I hit Karloff Hall, I started keeping my eyes peeled, trying to guess who was going to live with me. I didn’t have any idea who the hell my new roommates were. I’d been sent a letter with some names, but they didn’t mean anything to me. I hadn’t looked them up online or tried to reach out. Figured I didn’t need to know who was bringing what, because Pops and some people from the bar pitched in to get me my own mini-fridge. With the private rooms in the suite, I didn’t figure there’d be much need to share the stuff we brought, so I didn’t think there’d be a lot of need to coordinate.

So far, I was right.

But since I hadn’t looked up anyone I was staying with, I didn’t know why I was bothering to try to figure out who was going to be in my room from the people milling around the building. There was a line of people waiting for the elevator, so I took the stairs up to the fifth floor. Even the stairwells were crowded with people, mostly coming down from their rooms instead of waiting for the elevator. I wasn’t surprised when I reached my suite and found the door propped open.

One of the new roommates was already there.

I stepped inside, expecting to see someone my age. Instead, I found a small woman around Pops’ age in the common area with a vacuum. I knew me and Teagan had cleaned the night before, but I wasn’t going to say shit about someone doing a little extra. We hadn’t run the vacuum. I didn’t think we even had a vacuum. I hoped this lady was going to leave it behind with her son, because that would be convenient.

She looked up at me and smiled a bright smile. Her teeth were incredibly white against her dark skin, but in a way that was entirely human. Nothing like the eerie smile Coach Erikkson showed off every time he was pleased in practice. “You must be one of Zay’s new roommates,” she chirped as she turned off the vacuum. “I hope you don’t mind me vacuuming. I saw some crumbs, and since Zay and his father won’t let me carry boxes, I needed to be doing something.”

“All good,” I told her with a small nod. I didn’t wait to say much else before I went to my room to drop off my gym bag and change back into my street clothes.

Once I got changed, I had a decision to make. I could go out there and meet my new roommate, wait for our fourth roommate, and make a good first impression. That was probably the smart thing to do, but that required a lot more mental energy than I wanted to be spending. The other option was to do what Teagan was clearly doing. His bedroom door had been shut, and I’d be willing to put any amount of money on the fact that he was hiding in there. It sounded like a better idea than the potential of getting roped into carrying boxes for the new roommate or making small talk with his parents.

Besides, I could hear the low hum of the vacuum through the walls of the dorm, and I didn’t want to interrupt his mom if she was back to cleaning things me and Teagan hadn’t gotten around to the day before.

So instead of going out there and being a good suite mate, I collapsed backward onto my bed and pulled out one of my textbooks. Classes would be starting in a few days, and it never hurt to get ahead. I wasn’t going to risk my scholarship with subpar grades, and I knew I wasn’t going to have a lot of time to study when practices were really starting. I could hear people moving around in the background, and after an hour or two, I stopped hearing all the voices that came with people moving around in the small suite hallway.

I decided it was safe to go out and meet my new suite mate without the annoyance of small talk with a parent.

But once I got out there, I wondered if I’d made another mistake. I’d always been better at talking to people my dad’s age. A lot better than talking to my peers. I blamed it on the hours spent at the bar, but it was too late. One of the bedroom doors was propped open, and when I peeked in, I got my first glimpse of my new roommate. He looked like he was shorter than me. He had dark brown skin and a lean build. When he turned around, I noticed the silver glasses standing out bright against his face. He cracked a smile, and I could see the resemblance to the woman in the common room immediately.

This must be Zay. That was the name she’d said, right?

“Hi,” he greeted brightly. He wiped one of his big hands off on his jeans and stepped around some half-unpacked boxes to come to the door. “I was starting to think I was the only one here, except Mom said she’d seen someone come in earlier.”

I fought the urge to grimace. It seemed like this guy was another chatterbox. That was going to be a real pain in the ass. “Been here two weeks,” I told him shortly. He raised an eyebrow. “Football practice.”

“That could never be me,” he groaned. “I’m terribly unathletic, but I’ll make sure I come to cheer you on. I love football.”

We talked about our favorite professional teams and players for a few minutes before the conversation tapered off. “Teagan’s here, too. He’s probably hiding in his room.”

“Another football player?”

“No,” I answered. “Got special permission from Dean Yaga to come early.” I figured I didn’t need to tell him the reason there. He’d either see Teagan and recognize him or he wouldn’t. If he didn’t, then it was up to Teagan to tell him the reason he got to move in early. I liked to keep to my own business. “I’ll introduce you.”

He nodded and followed me down the hall to Teagan’s room. The door was shut, but I could hear music playing behind it. I knocked on the door, and Teagan shouted for me to come in.

I led our roommate in. “Figured I’d introduce you.” Teagan sat up on his bed. It was bigger than the one in my room, but that was because he’d had it delivered special. His dorm mattress and bed frame were taken apart and pushed against a wall. I didn’t know what he planned to do with them over the year, but just like telling people about the reason he moved in early, I figured it wasn’t my business. “Teagan Dae, meet…” I trailed off. I realized that in all the talk about football in the hallway, I hadn’t even gotten our new roommate’s name. I was only partially sure that his mother had called him Zay, nowhere near sure enough to call him that to his face.

“Isaiah Winters,” the boy supplied. “A lot of people just call me Zay, though. You can call me either.” I looked at Isaiah and watched his eyes go wide behind his glasses as he stared at Teagan. “Holy fuck, you’re actually Teagan Dae.” Teagan nodded. “I guess I can figure out why you got special permission to move in early.”

I really hoped this guy wasn’t going to make it a whole deal. Luckily, that was all the freak out he had. He looked a bit starstruck, but we all chatted for a few minutes before Isaiah said he needed to get back to unpacking. I followed him out of Teagan’s room, because honestly, I should probably do the same thing. Teagan’s room was already unpacked and unboxed, and it was making me feel like a real slacker.

Two hours later, our fourth roommate still hadn’t shown up. I made myself a sandwich with food I had in my room’s mini-fridge, and after I ate, I checked my campus email. There was something from housing. I read it over and went out to the living room. Isaiah was sitting on the couch with his computer in his lap. His long legs were stretched out under the small coffee table where Teagan and I had taken to eating our meals. Teagan was sitting in the armchair, his legs curled up underneath him.

“Have you guys seen the email from housing?” I asked. They both shook their heads. “Our fourth roommate isn’t coming.”

“Today?” Isaiah questioned.