Ray wasn't entirely sure he could actually trust Jeane; after all, the kid seemed to tease more than anything else. Still, if nothing else he'd hopefully be less likely to be an idiot seeing as unlike most people, Ray actually did know exactly where he slept. "Alright, fine. I'll take your word for it."

---

Raine took in a surprised breath at the not at all concealed pat on her ass, her own steps stuttering just a little bit before continuing after Lana. Yep, this was sure going to be a very, very handsy arrangement. "I- Ah, how about we start walking towards some real food. Long day and all."

“Literally anything would be better than this trash. Even static,” Brynn mumbled, keeping his voice uncharacteristically quiet so the only person he was disturbing was the one he intended to. For some reason, she hadn’t said anything snappy about his hand, or shoved him off her shoulder, so he assumed this was going to be one of those things they didn’t speak about. Neither of them liked each other – that much was obvious – but he’d be lying if he said he’d never felt any sort of sexual tension with the redhead. They’d never talked about it; after-all, it felt pretty normal that two people who interacted all through puberty would have a few moments.

But they were older now and this was different. Brynn let himself get lost in the annoyingly dramatic movie and its drawn-out punchlines; they weren’t good for laughs, but they were a good excuse not to think. No matter what was happening on screen, however, he was still painfully aware of how she felt against him. “What are we…” His voice trailed off, ‘we’ wasn’t a word he felt comfortable using with her, since it made her feel like his peer. He preferred thinking of her as a pest, the way preschool boys did to make it easier to insult someone with no intervention from their developing conscience. “What are we doing after this? It’s too early to sleep. Unless we get drunk. Or watch more of your bad movie choices, I guess, that’ll knock anyone out.”

JEANE
"Curiosity,“ Jeane repeated, drawing out the word in an exaggerated, teasing tone. He slipped his small hands out of Ray’s cold grip as quickly as he could, gently shaking some warmth into it before he looked up at his roommate again. He leaned in, just in case the bedroom eyes weren’t enough to say I-really-like-thrills and you’ve-only-peaked-my-interest.

”I’m not here most nights. But I can be, if you make it worth my while.“ He chuckled, finally deciding to take himself - and the situation - seriously. ”Listen. Your sister is cute and all, but I do have other things to do. I can’t stare at her for the entire term. She’s safe, I promise. You, on the other hand..." Well, he was taking it sorta seriously.

LANA
"Buy me dinner? Oh, thank god, you’re a babe. I don’t eat much, so I won’t break your pocket.“ This time, she took the chance, ‘playfully’ patting Raine’s back ‘pocket’ and stepping past her with a satisfied smirk. ”So,“ she said, shivering from a brain freeze she should’ve expected with a mouthful of ice cream. ”Do you want to hang out here for a bit, or start walking to somewhere for dinner? There’s some decent places not far from here.“

Ray chose to ignore both of those statements, in honor of his promise to be nice, and gave Jeane's hand a firm shake. "So, Jeane. Not that this is an additional rule, but just out of curiosity, are you here most nights? Or do you spend more time out and about, checking out people's sisters."

---

Raine took her ice cream from Lana, shooting a quick smile at the cashier before returning her attention to her roommate. "Thanks! And I can buy you dinner tonight. It's no problem, really; It's the least I could do, honestly."

Brynn didn't seem to have any issue letting himself get comfortable, which really just reinforced the idea that he was just trying to get a reaction from her. A new form of psychological warfare, she guessed. Well, two could play at that game- oh, wait, god, his hand was moving higher up her thigh. Even with Alex knowing that this was just to get a rise out of her, she could feel her face burning up even more. Still, she did her best to ignore it, instead focusing on the movie; at least, until he spoke again.
Next time. The implication that there'd be a next time dragged her out of her annoyed (pannicked) reverie, earning a quiet scoff. "I can't help that your taste in movies is shit, Amador. But sure, if you think you can find a movie that surpasses the pure cinematography that is Deadpool, fuckin' show me."

Aria slid into the seat across from him, bemused by the way he kicked his feet up onto the table and almost immediately dropped them back down. She took an experimental bite of the pasta, which she quickly decided was firmly entrenched within 'edible' and would likely never get a higher ranking than that.

She considered the question, using his slight bit of rambling to give her a few more minutes to come up with an acceptable answer. "I mean, I slept about as well as I ever do." She shrugged slightly, taking another bite of pasta. "I'll be fine in... a day or so. Probably."

"Yeah, you're welcome, but it wasn't a problem, really." He stuttered out, gesturing to the table they were both hovering around. "I'd like it if you sat with me, yeah - if you're okay with that, that is. You don't have to. But I'd like if you did." He shuffled to get comfy in his own uncomfortable chair, then kicked his feet up as he usually did.

Wait - don't do that. It was impolite (and just really counterproductive) to act that insolent in front of Aria, who probably wasn't a big fan of the 'bad boy' act. "Sorry," Kaimu switched to picking at his sandwich to avoid eye contact. "So, how was your sleep? I hope you weren't up all night, but the classes are pretty useless, anyways. It's just basics; the curriculum here is sorta lame and - never mind, it's your first day, doesn't even matter. Did you sleep well?"

When he returned carrying two trays of food and a bunch of apologies for the standard of food, Aria's last bit of hesitation about him melted away. Sure, he wasn't going to be receiving her life story any time soon, but, despite his mostly terrifying face and height, he seemed to be nice enough. "No, it's fine, orange juice is fine. Thank you for bringing me food."

Aria smiled at him, with a slight shrug. "I'm fine with eating in here." Wait, maybe that was his way of trying to send you on your way? "If- Uh- If you're okay with that. With me sitting with you. I can go if you don't, it's fine, I mean you just met me like yesterday so it's- Maybe I should just go. Uhm. Yeah." Still, she hesitated, before trying again, "If you want me to, I'd like to sit with you. If that's fine with you."

"No, it's fine. I'll be back, stay here," Kaimu gestured to his table, then ducked into the crowd again, only to get himself something possibly edible after stupidly offering her the last pasta meal. Luckily, he'd only gotten one bite in to the food, so he could offer her something decently warm and not half-eaten. She deserved better, but his hands were tied by lazy school cooks. The menu was small, so choosing something was a simple choice between a sandwich or questionable stew.

He returned with his (now, her) pasta and a sandwich of some sort, carrying two bottles of sweetened orange juice along with it. "It's not fully natural or anything," somehow, he felt as if it was his responsibility to apologize for the little nuances of life when the government wasn't happy you existed, "but it reminds me of home, personally, so I thought you might like it." With the disclaimer out of the way, he slid the food and drink over to her.

"You don't have to eat with me. Most kids eat breakfast outside." He didn't want to force her into anything, especially since she looked just as terrified as yesterday. "It's better weather out there, anyways. The air conditioner in here smells stale."

JEANE
"Alright, dad, I won't do anything without your permission. Study groups are unlikely, but I will try" - no he wouldn't - "to warn you if someone's trying to deflower me. Or did you want notice so you could join in, maybe?" He glared at Ray's hand for a few seconds before finally reaching out to return the handshake. "Ow. Cold hands. Guess it's not a surprise you're cold blooded. After all, you did threaten me, and I'm just too sweet for anyone with a heart to hurt."

LANA
"Sports bra, yeah? If that doesn't include a shirt, sounds like a good defense tactic. I'm easily distracted by round things, it's just, like, a side effect from playing basketball for too long." She skipped ahead with a grin after Raine wriggled from her grip again, taking the hint for now. "When you're settled, we'll test you out on the court. Don't be sad if I win too quickly. I'll buy you ice cream to make up for it - speaking of ice cream,"

She held the door open and nudged her roommate into the cute red cafe with a hand on her lower back. If she hadn't been shrugged off minutes earlier, she might have tested her chances with her hand a little lower. "I'll buy you ice cream, but you gotta buy your own dinner. And nothing too big - but, like, think of it this way: I'm saving you space for later." She slid the cashier a couple folded bills for two half-pint cups of ice cream. "One strawberry, one chocolate. Hey, Raine, come collect yours. Cause uh, I might eat it if I touch it, I'm sorry. I'm hungry."

Aria considered this, tilting her head to the side. "Uh. I guess pasta sounds fine? If you're really okay with going to get me something; I mean, I can do it myself." he already looked kind of.... nervous, almost, about talking to her again; she didn't want to put any more stress on him. Not after he'd tried to help her out last night, and she'd rejected it completely. Now that she was thinking about it, that might even be why he was kind of embarrassed now, since yesterday she told him to go away and today he was sticking his neck out again. Maybe she should accept his help so he didn't think she hated him? But it was rude to make him go get her food... Hey, you know what else is rude? Staring at him as you have a mental debate as to what's ruder.

Aria shook herself out of her head, shifting her eyes to scan the crowd. That's really what made up her mind. "If it's really alright with you, I- I'd like it if you could get my food. I- Sorry. You don't have to. Sorry."

"The only other rule I have is that if you have someone over, try and warn me in advance." Ray shrugged. "This extends from people you're going to have sex with to study groups, if for some reason you were going to have one over. Do that, and stay away from my things, and I promise I can be nice to you. Alright?" He held out his hand, offering it as a form of truce.

---

Raine laughed. "If I'm wearing a good sports bra and sneakers, I can jump around a bit. Shouldn't be too much of a problem." Once again, she shifted a little away from Lana; as amusing as this whole thing was, she wasn't used of this level of contact from people she wasn't related to. Not the worst thing in the world, but it definitely wasn't exactly comfortable.

Kaimu nodded awkwardly, having expected this but not planned for it. "It's all fairly bland, but you want to stick to something healthy. Wholesome. You need vitamins and enough food to get you through class-" He cut himself off once he realized he was doing it, again. He didn't mean to baby her, especially since she was his age and more than capable of simple tasks like eating, but her soft energy, shyness and big blue eyes that reminded him a lot of his sister - how could he not be worried about her?

'Really.' "I-I recommend the pasta. You can have something sweeter for lunch, it might give you some energy for the last few classes. At dinner, something light, like the fruits, before 8 pm." At this point, he couldn't stop himself, so he hoped she didn't think he was being controlling - 'just, she looks like she could use some help.' He could almost hear Keita snickering in his head. "Be careful, most of the fruits are spoiled or near it, so let the cooks know that you'll cause a scene if they give you bad food. You don't have to actually cause a scene, but, it's a good threat."

JEANE
"Just try to manage to leave me in one piece. You see, I don't like when my men are too rough. I have to be able to walk into classes, when I do go." Jeane winked. "I don't like messes. Don't out my incense. And if you drink in here, pour me a glass, too." He didn't think of himself as too picky with roommates; he'd just about seen it all, and there were few things that grated him anymore.

"Now, I'm assuming besides not touching your anything - sister, sneakers, hair - you have even more rules you're gonna force on me, since you brought it up. I always find the controlling ones. Pity. But go on."

LANA
"Great!" Lana let Raine slip out of her grip, fully aware that most people didn't enjoy her being all over them - but she couldn't help it, she was just a touchy gal, and Raine looked like the type of woman she'd love to have her hands all over. And she liked basketball? Hot.

Still, she smiled back, pressing her face up against Raine's cheek in her regular invasions of personal space. That being said, Raine's skin was about as chilly as hers, obviously not going to be an easy match for snuggling in winter. "Oh, we should walk quicker - I don't like being out when it's getting dark. If you want, by the way, I can show you a few tricks for shooting. Shooting balls, not guns - I'm not good at shooting guns, sucks. But I bet you have good potential - well, can you jump? Easy for me since I don't have much weighing me down, like, my bras are all just for show, really."

Ray couldn't help the snort of laughter, shaking his head slightly. "Good enough. Now, second, I think we probably agree that if we're sharing a room, we'd rather get along than not. So we should probably establish some ground rules that we both know not to cross, so no one's head gets bitten off. Yes?"

---

Really, it was incredible how quickly Lana had gone from passive aggressive annoyance to completely friendly and comfortable. It was amazing how quickly some people could adapt like that. True, Raine didn't really know Lana, but it was definitely better to be on her good side, even if that meant she was going to be touched. A lot. "I mean, I probably won't be much good at it, but that sounds nice." She turned her head to smile at the other girl, shifting slightly out of Lana's hands.

Aria had barely stepped inside the building before the crowd started to overwhelm her. She hadn't had to deal with this amount of people in one space in years; Unfortunately, the time away from crowds had done nothing to make her feel more relaxed inside them.

Her attention was quickly drawn away fro the crowd and back to the present when the boy from before- Kaimu? -walked up to her, saying something she only really caught the last bit of. She tilted her head, considering the offer. "I- Uh." Calm down, don't stutter. "I mean. That's... very nice of you. But, uhm, I'm not entirely sure what's good." If anything here is even edible. "So I don't wanna inconvenience you or anything."

Brynn was more than a little shocked Alex didn't chew him out for tasting her soda, but he wasn't going to complain about it. If anything, her sudden calm was nice, if mildly worrying. She had a nice shoulder, even if she was pretty bony, and her thigh was the perfect size for his hand, even if she could've been curvier. He felt her relax further, and he shifted to get even more comfortable as he heard the movie thunder to a start.

Alex was weirdly warm; for a second, he thought she might have a fever, but then it wasn't hard to see how red she was. He couldn't comment on it, since he could feel his own face warm up lightly. "This movie is dumb," he grumbled, moving his hand further up her thigh idly. It wasn't that he liked her, or how she felt, but it was nice to be this close to someone after an extended period of empty beds — of course, extended period just meant a couple weeks. But someone like him wasn't meant for weeks of just hugging pillows. "Next time, we're watching something I choose, okay?" Of course, that implied there was going to be a next time.

It wasn't that he liked her, but even Alex would feel good after all that time, right?

JEANE
"Fine." Jeane deflated fairly easily, not wanting to test how deep his roommate's irritability ran. "I like to think of the sex as the romancing, but, I guess that's just me. If you want to romance me, you're more than welcome to go ahead - but I'm gentle, so don't bite." He smirked, "If you want me to romance you. Then, well. Prepare to be swept off your feet, Ray."

LANA
"New York? Where's the obnoxious accent? No fun if you're not even going to dress the part," she teased, "I'd visit, but it's a bit far away for my pocket's tastes. I guess I get enough of it from television, anyways. And now I have you," She lightly shoved Raine by the shoulder; her roommate didn't seem the type to enjoy that sort of thing, but far be it from Lana to change her habits.

"The offer to be on the team's always open, but if you want something more intimate," she leaned in from behind, resting her chin on Raine's shoulder and grabbing the young woman's hips for a second. "I'm always ready for some 1 on 1 action. Haha, but really! You should try me. I'm the team's star player, I can hit a 3 pointer like no one you've ever seen."

A couple shoves and near fights (prevented only by teacher interference) later, Kaimu managed to get the last of the only decent food on the menu. If they allowed them to go out, he could've gotten better ingredients and made his own breakfast, but as it was, he was stuck dealing with the inconsistent recipes they served.

Today, at least, the pasta seemed not to taste like cardboard - or maybe that was because of focusing on the food, he had already managed to single out a certain someone in the crowd and stare her down. Keita had already moved off with his usual crowd, preferring to eat outside, so Kaimu was left sitting alone (as usual) in the sterile and sun-free environment he preferred.

Of course, he could invite her to sit with him. But, judging by how their previous conversation ended, he assumed she would rather have her spa- wait, would she even be able to get anything good? With just the excuse he needed, Kaimu headed towards her, already softening his expression as much as he could before he spooked her. "I don't mean to be insistent, I'm sorry, but well. Since it's your first day, and I was assuming you wouldn't want to push your way through the crowd. Unless you do, then, go ahead. But, if not, I can order for you. If you tell me what you want."

Aria, dressed for the day, managed to tame her hair back into a ponytail of sorts, although the standard loose hairs managed to show up within five seconds of her tying it back. She sighed, straightening out her skirt before leaving the room; she'd sent her roommate ahead to see if she actually absorbed any information from yesterday, or if she was going to get hopelessly lost in the campus.

Luckily enough, she managed to locate the cafeteria with only a few wrong turns. She could already hear the other teenagers talking in an indistinct hum inside the hall, which did absolutely nothing to make her feel like she should actually go inside. But she managed to get this far, so she might as well actually get something to eat. After all, she didn't want her sacrifice of waking up at an insane and unreasonable hour to be for nothing. With a sigh, she walked inside the building, fingers already twisting slightly in the hem of her cardigan.