She was strong, in a way that everyone admired. Until he walked into the room.

Then, she became a stuttering mess.

• • •

I didn't recognize the black haired boy standing in front of the counter. I couldn't see his face from where I was seated but I knew I wouldn't recognize him even if I could.

He was tall and clearly athletic. Taller than Josh who happened to be one of the tallest people I knew. The athleticism showed in his posture, the way he carried himself.

I couldn't think of anyone who fit the description.

The girl manning the counter handed him a bag of takeout and he slid her some bills in exchange, then pocketed his wallet.

He was either yet to notice Josh's murderous glare or more impressively, he didn't care. I somehow knew it was the former.

I glanced at my best friend whose gaze was progressively hardening.

I was undeniably intrigued.

"Who is he? How do you know him?" I inquired, whispering even though it was physically impossible for him to overhear me from where he stood. "Why do we hate him?"

Or maybe not.

As if he knew we were talking about him, he spun on his heel suddenly, facing our direction. Without thinking, I ducked. It was reflex at it's finest and I felt very stupid as I sat back up.

If he didn't know we were talking about him before, he definitely did now.

Josh didn't bat an eyelash when the stranger noticed us, nor when he returned Josh's glare with an equally fierce one of his.

My brows furrowed.

"Who is that guy?" I pressed, subconsciously leaning forward, hungry for an explanation.

Being out of the loop regarding Josh was new to me and I definitely wasn't enjoying it. We usually told each other everything.

Apparently, except who this guy was.

Unfortunately, Josh was far too invested in the stare-off. It was doubtful he even heard my question.

I scowled, tossing a fry into my mouth as soon as the server set our plates down. Josh was too busy with his stare-down to notice that too.

Whatever was between him and the stranger had to be important because he didn't look away even after we had been served. It was a first. Food almost always came first in my best friend's book.

I was decidedly interested in this feud, whatever it was. I needed to be in the know.

I tucked in a few more fries as I studied the stranger, taking a second to appreciate the fact that he was dressed similarly as I was. Sisterhood, however, meant nothing to the girls in the diner because while I had gotten derisive looks for my wardrobe choice, he got coy smiles and flirtatious eyelash batting.

Give me a break.

Sure, he was handsome. I had to give him that even though I really didn't want to because best friend code stated that I shouldn't find anything nice to say about him. Unfortunately, it was hard to deny. He had a thin upper lip and a plum red lower one set in a thin almost angular but not quite, almost delicate but not quite face boasting a proud jaw and a nose that had been broken one too many times.

The red of his lips almost seemed like it was the effect of a lipstick but no sane person would go through the trouble of applying lipstick, -red for that matter-  only to wear sweats.

But again, I thought Ron was short for Veronica so I probably wasn't the best judge.

It could've been poor lighting but a black patch peeked out of the neckline of his shirt, part of what I believed was a tattoo. I couldn't tell the colour of his eyes but somehow I knew they would fit in perfectly with the rest of his face. More importantly, however, I couldn't care less. He could have been perfection in a human body and I still wouldn't bat an eyelash. Josh clearly didn't like him which meant I definitely didn't like him either.

I leaned back in my chair, eyes darting from the stranger to my best friend and then back again.

"Feel free to fill me in any time," I muttered before filling my mouth with my hamburger.

I felt the stranger's gaze land on me but I couldn't be bothered. Until I knew what Josh had against him, food was going to come first for me. I hadn't eaten a single thing all day. I could care less about their obvious enmity but at the moment I cared a lot more about my rumbling stomach.

I stuffed in fries till my mouth was at full capacity before stopping to chew and swallow, all the while aware of the stranger's gaze on me.

Soon enough, his gaze shifted and I heard the telltale jingle of the door, signalling his exit.

I, immediately, leaned forward, resting my elbows on the table.

"So?" I questioned. "What was that about?"

It took Josh a few moments but he eventually managed to tear his gaze away.

"That's Zach," he ground out, eyes still flaming.

I blinked.

"You're kidding." Disbelief coated my tone.

The look on his face told me he wasn't, not by a long shot.

"That's him? The Zachary Anderson?"

Both my tone and expression made it clear I was having a hard time wrapping my head around it.

"As in your arch nemesis?" I specified.

Josh grunted a curse under his breath as he nodded. He was trying hard to get his emotions under check but I was too curious to wait.

My eyes widened and I replayed the scene in my head, saving every detail for future perusal. I should've pieced it together immediately. It made sense. Josh hated only one person. I should have guessed that this boy was that Zach.

It was hard to wrap my head around the fact that of all the universities in the world, Josh's public enemy number one had chosen the exact same university as us.

I had never seen the guy before because most of their history together happened before Josh ever moved to my little corner of the world, before we ever met but I knew both boys hated each other with passion. I even drove two towns over with Josh one time to egg Zach's car.

It never crossed my mind that I would ever get to see the 'English bastard' -as Josh dubbed him- ever.

On another hand, it also never occurred to me that I could get stuck with a scaredy cat for a roommate in a male dorm. Life was really full of surprises.

"He's in my dorm. I ran into him earlier," Josh bit out, shoving a straw into his drink with far more strength than was required.

"Wow." I blinked. "I didn't see that coming."

I chewed faster so I could swallow and talk freely but ended up getting choked.

I washed it down with my drink.

"You should have led with that instead of letting me go on and on about my roommate," I chastened.

"I know." He sighed, pulling his tray closer. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to see him again. It's a big campus and he's not on the team."

I immediately started to ask how he knew and how sure he was but I remembered before I got that far. All players had to attend a month-long training camp over the summer so they could get a headstart learning the plays, getting to know their teammates and 'bonding'.

It was the longest Josh and I had been apart since we became friends. Even though we texted and called the entire time, I felt his absence acutely but more importantly, Zach hadn't been there. Josh would've told me if he were. I was happy for him in that regard. At least he wouldn't have to deal with Zach on the team. Sports had always been Josh's safe haven and I didn't want to imagine how he would cope if that was tainted by Zachary Anderson.

It was a blessing that Zach wasn't on the team.

If Josh got lucky, he might get away with never having to deal with Zach. It was a big school. Chances of them running into each other were pretty slim, unlike me. I was stuck with a roommate I was slowly beginning to resent.

"Chances of you running into him again any time soon are pretty low," I informed Josh, swiping a chicken wing from his plate.

He scowled but didn't say anything, pulling his plate away from me.

I feigned innocence, occupying my mouth with the stolen goods.

The rest of our dinner went by uneventfully and we parted ways after agreeing to meet up on our free time tomorrow.

The diner was closer to my dorm so I got to my place first. I shot him a text to let me when he got to his as I unlocked my door.

The sight awaiting me as I pushed the creaky door open made me wish my hall was the one farther away.

I was torn between the urge to yell and the urge to punch something or preferably, someone.

Ron had divided the room into two halves with three Star Wars bedsheets, each depicting a different time in the series arranged in chronological order. It would've been laughable if this was happening to someone else. Or if I wasn't already so frazzled.

What exactly was he hoping to achieve with the bedsheets?

I crossed over to the bedsheet wall held up by a thin rope. I was a millisecond from tugging it down when I reconsidered. It was probably better up. I wouldn't have to deal with him or so much as see him and vice versa.

It was definitely for the best since I was feeling particularly murderous at the moment.

My phone buzzed with an incoming text from Josh saying goodnight. I sent a quick reply before reluctantly setting my alarm four hours earlier than my first class required just so I could take a shower without twenty boys present.

Fuck my life.

I changed into a pair of shorts, twisted my hair into a bun and went to bed hoping things would look better in the morning.

It had to.

This could not be how I'd spend my first year; stuck in the wrong dorm with a weird roommate, waking up several hours earlier just to bathe in peace.

I knew I didn't have the best luck in history but I was hoping, praying it wasn't that bad.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I'm sorry for the late update. It was a really busy past week.

Let me know your thoughts.