Page 2 of Cheap Shot

“Where’d you come from?” she asked.

It was an innocent enough question. One I expected to answer a few dozen times over the coming weeks, so I gave my prepared answer. “A small private college in upstate New York.”

She raised an eyebrow but said nothing else.

“Are you a sophomore too?” I realized how dumb the question was the second it left my lips. I was told this was the sophomore dorm when I received my room assignment. Unlike my previous school, West Penn encouraged students to remain on campus through their junior year and provided a much more affordable housing option than living in a house or apartment close by.

“Obviously,” I said with her.

Emery smirked. “At least you’re a quick learner.”

I nodded and attempted a smile. “Right, so where are you from?”

“Allentown.”

Since she didn’t add a state, I assumed that was in Pennsylvania. Nearly two-thirds of the students here were in-state. An unfortunate statistic for someone like me who was trying to blend in.

“What about you?”

“Rochester.” Which was the truth. There just happened to be several cities in various states by that name. Including one that was only about thirty minutes from West Penn. She might eventually find out I was from Minnesota and about my family, but since she nodded and didn’t ask anything else, that wasn’t going to happen today.

I finished putting the remainder of my clothes in the drawers and then slid the empty suitcase under my bed. I glanced over my shoulder and found Emery staring at her phone screen.

I checked the papers I stacked on my desk to double-check the details. “I should head out. I’m supposed to meet a group in the quad for orientation.”

“You don’t need to go to that.” She kicked her feet up on her bed. “I can show you where your classes are.”

That was a surprisingly generous offer, considering her apathetic attitude toward me. I almost accepted just to keep from burning the tentative bridge between us, but I couldn’t.

“I might have to take you up on that later, but I have a few questions for my counselor, and the instructions say that we’ll have guaranteed time if we attend.” Meeting with an academic counselor had proven to be nearly impossible so far. I’d emailed mine five times and hadn’t received a single response. Even though I registered for classes a few weeks ago, I wanted to check in and make sure a few of my classes from my last school transferred. The last thing I wanted was to get stuck taking Intro to Biology or College Algebra again.

She shrugged a shoulder. “Just don’t fall for their BS about buying a student sports pass. They always try to push them before the semester starts, but they get discounted after the first football game.”

I nodded then paused. “You go to the games?”

She didn’t strike me as the school spirit type.

“What else is there to do around here?” She blew off my question, but at least she didn’t say obviously.

There was actually plenty to do. West Penn was a large school with more clubs and extracurriculars than most colleges offered. From the student interviews and articles I’d read, there were always activities happening on and off-campus. You simply had to close your eyes, spin, and walk in any direction to find something to do. Plus, we were only twenty minutes away from the restaurants and shopping of downtown Pittsburgh.

“Do you play any sports?” I asked, no longer trusting my initial impression of her.

She scoffed. “What, like roller derby or boxing?”

“Sure, or soccer or lacrosse.” The venom in her tone caught me off guard. How had I managed to offend her yet again?

Her eyes trailed over me, but I refused to look away or back down. If what happened to me taught me anything, it was that acting meek was a weakness that invited danger. I couldn’t let anyone ever see me as weak again.

“No, I don’t,” she finally said.

“Me neither.” I let out a sigh. I didn’t want to live like this for the next year. I wasn’t naive enough to think I’d instantly become best friends with my roommate, but this tension was already grating on my nerves. “I know I didn’t give you the best first impression of me, but I promise I won’t attack you again.”

She dropped her phone to her side. “I hope not.”

It would have been really nice if she could meet me halfway, but I didn't see that happening.

I offered a tentative smile. “So, you won’t hold it against me?”