THE INCOMING FRESHMAN walked down the hallway. It buzzed with the energy of eager students who each were embarking on their own journey towards higher education. It paled in comparison to Y/N's mood, who was more stoic and keeping to himself.

He carried a box and had a bag slung over his shoulder. The rental car he had for the day was outside of the dormitory and had the rest of his things. Marco would've been there to help, but he had to settle into his own job for the day.

As he walked up to the room he was assigned, he noticed that the door was already open. Y/N peeked inside, seeing another person unpacking their things. Y/N knocked on the door and got his attention.

"Hey." Y/N greeted.

The nineteen-year-old looked back and saw Y/N. The lanky young man, with a mop of untamed hair, spoke to him.

"Oh, hey."

Y/N walked inside. He gazed around the barren space, which contained two beds on separate sides of the room. A couple of small desks were beside them as well. A single window displayed an outside view of the city's skyscrapers. That was probably his favorite thing aside from the fact they even had their own bathroom.

"I'm Ethan. Ethan Landry." The boy said, walking up to Y/N and holding out his hand. "Looks like we're roommates."

Y/N shook his hand after putting down the box. "Looks like it."

"Y/N, right?"

"How'd you know?"

"I think I saw your name on the online student portal when figuring out where the dorm was."

He chuckled and Y/N did as well. Y/N put down his bag too. Ethan gestured toward the twin bed on the right side of the room.

"If you don't mind, I already called dibs on that." He said.

"That's all right." Y/N replied, going over to his bed and patting the top of it. "Unless that bed is one of those adjustable Sleep Number beds or something."

Ethan laughed. "I wish."

Y/N looked toward Ethan's side and saw one of the posters he had already put up. It was of star NFL quarterback, Patrick Mahomes.

"Chiefs fan?" He asked the boy.

Ethan glanced at the poster he was pointing at, letting out a chuckle. "Yeah."

"You from Kansas City?"

"Uh...no."

Y/N got up from his bed. "Ah, I see. Bandwagon."

"I am not." He butted. "My dad's been a fan so I kinda grew up with them."

"Might be hard getting used to you then. Since they beat the Niners a few years ago."

Ethan shook his head.

"What were they thinking? Pairing us mortal enemies like this?" He said sarcastically.

Y/N laughed. For the first time in the last few days, he was genuinely jovial. He was doing pretty well communicating with his new roommate.

"So...where are you from?" Ethan asked.

Before he can answer, Y/N cleared his throat. He put his hands on his waist and looked to the side.

"Um...up near San Francisco." He answered, not wanting to say Woodsboro.

"Should've figured that out based on the Niners comment." Ethan said.

Y/N shrugged.

"So you came all the way here?" He asked.

"Yeah. This is actually the only school that offered me a full-ride because of football."

"Ah. Nice."

"My dad actually came along too. Wanted to give the city a try with me. Who knows? Maybe after these few years are up we might stay here for good."

Ethan put his hands in his pockets and looked down.

"Just your dad? Uh...and your mom?" He asked.

Instantly, thoughts of both Veronica and Sidney filled his mind. His heart felt heavy. Y/N let out a quick exhale and shook his head, not wanting to answer.

"Oh...sorry." Ethan apologized. "Tough subject. I shouldn't—"

"Don't be sorry. It's fine." Y/N reassured him.

"But you and your dad? Get along well?"

"Yeah."

Ethan simply nodded. His silence after his question and Y/N's answer made the latter feel uncomfortable. Finally, the boy spoke.

"You need help getting the rest of your stuff in?" Ethan asked. "I already have all of my things here."

"I'd appreciate it." Y/N replied. "Thanks."

Ethan lightly smiled. He gestured toward the open door.

"Lead the way."

• • •

ONE OF HIS first classes for that fall semester was Film Theory. Y/N sat in the lecture room looking through his phone while he had his AirPods on. Just like he always would...he was listening to 21 Savage.

The class was starting to get full. Y/N was still alone at the table until two guys sat beside him since they were the only two open seats they saw coming in.

"You're not trying to sit at the front?" One of the boys asked his friend.

"Hell no. So we can be called on easily? Pfft."

Y/N could overhear despite having his music on. He then noticed one of them turn to him and he looked up.

"Hey, man." He greeted.

Y/N lowered his music and sat up. "What's up?"

"Cool shirt."

The young man glanced down at his tee. It was of Star Wars, which Y/N was surprised he still had when first packing a couple of months ago.

"Thanks." Y/N replied.

"Favorite in the saga?" The other asked him.

"Rise of Skywalker."

They immediately reacted with disgust. Y/N snickered.

"I'm kidding." He added.

"Good. I was about to go sit somewhere else." The boy said, then chuckled before continuing.

"I'm Jason. This is my friend, Greg."

"Y/N." He replied with a nod.

"We're from Atlanta." Jason added. "Known each other since grade school."

"That's dope. And now sticking with each other through college?"

"Yup." Greg said.

Y/N nodded. Immediately, he thought of Chad and Wes. He'd known them for so long and would've been there with him in college too...if not for Anthony, Richie, and Amber enacting their plan.

"Got anybody who came along with you? Like from high school or something?" Greg asked.

"Yeah, a couple of them." Y/N simply answered.

As if fate stepped in, someone entered the classroom and was one of the last students. Y/N looked toward the door and saw Tara. She was enrolled in the same class as him, which came as a surprise to the young man.

Greg turned around and saw the Latina. He nudged Jason, who glanced at her too. He gave his friend a quick nod. Their silent exchange wasn't noticed by Y/N, who had his eyes trained on Tara.

The girl glanced at him for a moment, giving a quick smirk before sitting at a table across the room. Y/N let out a quiet exhale and slouched in his seat.

"She's pretty hot." Jason remarked, speaking to Y/N as well.

"Huh?" He reacted, seeing that he gestured toward the girl. "Oh, yeah. Sure."

Moments later, the professor came in. The blonde-haired woman had a slim figure and wore business casual attire. A few of the male students in the class immediately reacted to the sight of the attractive teacher, Greg especially.

"God damn. Now that's hot." He whispered, although still rather loud.

"Say it louder, bro." Jason joked. "I don't think she heard you."

"Hello, class. Welcome to CTVA 310: Film Theory." She said as she stepped up to the desk. Her Australian accent was prevalent. "I'm Professor Laura Crane, but you could just refer to me as Laura. We're all adults here."

She continued. "First off, how was everyone's summer?"

Students answered collectively.

"Good."

"It was all right."

"Mid."

"I went to Ohio."

Y/N stayed quiet. He had quite an interesting summer but wasn't going to talk about it for obvious reasons. Professor Crane folded her hands in front of her.

"That's great to hear. I actually went back home to Melbourne. Very nice this time of year." She said before going straight to business. "Now, I suppose you are familiar with icebreakers, right?"

An audible groan came from the students in the classroom. The professor chuckled and sat on the edge of her desk.

"Yeah, I had a feeling you'd have that reaction. But I don't want a whole biography or even where you're from. Just your name and...let's say....favorite film."

Professor Crane started with the students near the front. They all took turns saying their names and mentioning their favorite movie. She ended up going up the right side of the room until she reached Greg.

"Greg Bruckner. And uh...my favorite film is Stab 2."

"A slasher?" Laura replied. "Interesting."

"Me too." His friend added. "Jason Carvey. But I prefer the original Stab."

"I suppose the two of you are friends?" She asked them.

"Hell yeah." Greg replied and pat Jason on the back.

Y/N overheard all of this, sitting in his spot and resting his chin on the palm of his hand. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that someone (or in this case two people) had one of the Stab films as their favorite.

"Young man?" She called out.

Y/N looked up and saw the professor looking at him. Others were as well and awaited his turn. Y/N cleared his throat.

"Oh...uh..." He began. "I'm Y/N. Y/N...L/N."

The boy waited for a murmur or reaction to his name, assuming at least some knew about him based on news coverage of last year's Ghostface murders or the very fact he was outed as Sidney Prescott's son. But surprisingly, there was no reaction. He figured they either didn't know or simply didn't care. It brought a sense of relief to Y/N.

"And, um...my favorite movie is (favorite movie)." He added.

The professor nodded. "Ah, quite the taste."

Y/N nodded. "Mm-hmm."

Laura moved on and eventually made it to the other side of the classroom. She reached Tara and it was her turn.

"My name's Tara. My favorite movie..."

Scott Pilgrim, the young man immediately thought.

"...Scott Pilgrim vs. The World." She finished. "Edgar Wright did an amazing job with that."

Y/N lightly smirked as he looked down at the table. He could recall the few times they watched it together.

"That is a great film." Professor Crane replied. "And a perfect example of an adaptation."

Greg whispered to Jason. "Damn, she likes comic book films too. Think I got a chance before—?"

"Nah." He interjected.

Greg just shook his head. Professor Crane finished the icebreakers and decided to start the day.

"Now we're just going over the syllabus today. So, if you have out it printed out, good. If not, please pull it up on your device."

The students obliged, taking out either a sheet of paper or opening their laptops-slash-tablets. Y/N took his out too and was ready to continue the lecture.

• • •

IT WAS THE first game of the Blackmore Barracuda's college football season. Their stadium was packed with students, alumni, and fans from both sides. It was also being broadcasted locally.

They were once up 17-0 through the first 24 minutes of the game but their opponent, the Colgate Raiders, had come back and the score was now 24-23 in other team's favor. There were only 28 seconds left on the game clock.

They came out of a timeout and their quarterback got the snap. He stepped back and looked out at the field, finding the open wide receiver. He threw it at Y/N, who caught it by the 40-yard line before being stopped by the defense.

"Passed to L/N. First down. Seventeen seconds left."

The team ran the next play. Unfortunately, the pass didn't get caught and it wasted 7 seconds, leaving only 10 on the clock.

They were getting back on formation, but not before Y/N glanced at his teammate and pointed. The quarterback gave a quick nod.

The whistle was blown and the play commenced. It was do or die, as this would dictate whether the game could be won or not. The quarterback stepped back and watched his teammates run down the field and his linemen kept the defense at bay.

He stepped a bit forward and threw it.

"Medina steps into it...passed..."

Y/N was down the field and jumped up. A Raider tried tackling him, but he had hopped high enough that the opposing player missed and fell. Y/N ended up catching the ball.

The young man landed on his feet and stumbled a bit before getting into a full spirit towards the goal line.

"It's caught! L/N...on the sideline!"

The crowd erupted as he made it closer to the end. There was no one even chasing him and was all alone. Fans of the opposing team groaned and shouted at the sight of it. Y/N crossed the goal line.

"Touchdown! The Barracudas win it!"

He opened his arms, looking at the audience, and dropping the ball. He even took off his helmet and threw it aside.

He was embraced by a team manager and a couple of his teammates. They were soon joined by the rest of the squad and piled onto him. The crowd continued to sound off.

Fans started to rush the field, filling it with a sea of green and white, their school's colors.

Y/N celebrated with his teammates and coaches. They were all amidst the crowd of people that had come into the field. There was a smile on the young man's face throughout and he felt elation, something he hadn't felt in a while.

He felt someone hug him from the back. Y/N looked and saw that it was Mindy. She was joined by a girl she was currently seeing, Anika.

"Mindy!" Y/N chuckled.

"Holy shit!" She exclaimed as she parted. "That was clutch as hell."

Y/N laughed and embraced her again. He was riding the high of the win and felt so much pride and happiness. A far cry from what he was feeling a couple of months ago.

"Y/N!"

He heard the callout and turned around. Y/N immediately saw Tara, wearing the school's colors. She ran at Y/N and jumped up, to which the athlete instinctively caught the short girl.

This was the closest they've been in a while. There were still thoughts of months ago when he first broke things off and wanted time to himself, but right now...he seemed to forget all of that.

"Hey!" He greeted.

She spoke loudly because of the noisy environment they were currently in.

"You were great out there!"

All he did was nod, albeit still smiling. They stared at each other for a moment before Y/N cleared his throat and put her down.

"Thanks!" He said.

Tara feigned a smile and nodded. Y/N stood there before a teammate ran up and grabbed him. They wanted the team back in the locker room.

"Come on, L/N!"

Y/N nodded. He glanced at Tara and Mindy, bidding them an inaudible farewell before running off with his teammate.

The Latina looked at her friend, who simply shrugged. Tara let out a quick exhale before joining Mindy and Anika in the celebration.

• • •

THE TWO FRIENDS walked down the sidewalk of 3rd Avenue. Y/N and Ethan had come from their campus and made it to the AMC a few blocks away.

"I don't know, man..." Ethan began, hands in his coat pockets to combat the chilly fall weather. "You think they'll be cool with me?"

Y/N pat Ethan on the shoulder. He had gotten to really know his roommate-now-good friend the last couple of months. Today was the first time he was going to properly hang with Mindy, Tara, Anika, and Sam.

"Yeah, man. They're cool." Y/N reassured him. "And you're likable. Don't worry about it."

Ethan chuckled. "Likable?"

"You've got charisma. Charm...in a dorky way."

"Thanks." He said sarcastically.

Y/N laughed. He walked inside the theater with Ethan and stood in the lobby. The aroma of popcorn instantly hit the young man's nose. It'd been a while since he'd been to the movies.

They spotted the group in line for concessions. Mindy was the first to see the two boys and beamed.

"Ah! And now the posse is complete."

Y/N smiled back. "Hey, guys."

"Took you long enough." Sam remarked.

"Sorry. Got caught up with something."

Ethan chimed in. "He couldn't find his cologne."

Y/N rolled his eyes. He gestured toward his roommate.

"This is Ethan. I'm sure you've seen him around."

"Your roommate, right?" Anika asked.

The Caucasian young man nodded and held out his hand. "It's nice to meet you."

"Oh, I don't do that." She replied but then opened up her arms. "I do hugs."

Anika immediately brought him in for an embrace, which caught him off guard. It came as no surprise to the rest since she was always like that.

"Don't get too comfortable." Mindy joked to Ethan.

He awkwardly chuckled. Ethan parted and looked at the rest.

"You've met Anika." Y/N said, then motioned to the others. "That's Mindy. And this is Tara and Samantha."

"You can just call me Sam." The older Carpenter sister added.

He nodded, then put his gaze on Tara. She smiled at him but didn't say anything. Ethan had a sort of opened-mouth smile as he tried to come up with some words.

"Hi." He looked at the rest afterward. "It's great to finally meet all of you."

Y/N pointed at the concession stand. "So what do we plan on getting?"

"The usual. Popcorn. Soda. Maybe some candy." Mindy replied.

"Oh, can't do any of that." Y/N replied. "I got practice early in the morning. All that might slow me down."

"Ah. Forgot all about that. Sorry, Jerry Rice."

"Square." Anika added.

Y/N chuckled. "Fine, I'll get something. Maybe a Hershey bar...and some water."

Tara finally spoke. "Better than nothing."

Y/N smirked. The group continued waiting in line to buy their snacks.

They were midway through the new The Exorcist, which was, ironically, a requel to the original 1973 film. Mindy wanted to see the supernatural horror, so it differed from the usual slashers she'd often watch.

A/N: Since Scream 6 (supposedly) takes place in October 2023, I'm having them watch a film that basically hasn't even come out yet in real life 💀

Y/N had left to go to the restroom. Once he was done, he exited and took out his phone. He was looking at it as he walked through the empty hallway, making his way back to the auditorium the movie was playing in.

As he neared the door, he bumped into someone. He got startled and looked up, apologizing.

"Oh! I'm so sorry—"

It was Tara he bumped into. She had her empty cup in hand. The girl chuckled.

"It's okay." She replied.

He chuckled as well, kind of relieved he didn't embarrass himself with his carelessness in front of a stranger.

"I was going to refill my drink." She added as she held up her cup.

"Right..."

There was a moment of silence. Ultimately, the two spoke at the same time.

"Want me to come with you?"

"Would you like to go with me?"

They softly laughed at the exchange. Y/N nodded and gestured down the hall. He could see the soda machine nearby.

"Yeah. Sure."

Tara nodded and walked first with Y/N following close behind. The young man put his hands in his pockets as they strolled side-by-side in silence.

"Uh...how are you liking the movie so far?" He asked.

"I like the style." She answered. "The jump scares so far haven't been too cliche."

Y/N nodded. Tara glanced at him.

"I did notice one get you." She added.

"What do you mean?"

"And it got you pretty badly."

He scoffed. "No, it didn't."

"I felt you jump from a couple seats away."

"Must've been Ethan. You assumed wrong."

She let out a wry chuckle. They made it to the machine and Tara began to refill her drink. Y/N made sure the counter wasn't wet and leaned on it.

He saw her refill the cup with her favorite soft drink. Y/N knew that was what she liked. He smiled to himself which Tara took notice of.

"What?" She asked.

He shook his head. "Nothing."

Tara closed the lid. She stood there for a second before speaking again.

"You're doing that more."

"Hmm?"

She clarified. "Smiling."

Y/N looked down at his hands that were resting on the counter. He fiddled with them.

"You've noticed?"

She nodded, also smiling herself. "It's nice."

Y/N, again, smiled. She had a point. He had been more cheerful and in high spirits the last several weeks since arriving in Blackmore. Like she had said before, it would be a fresh start...and it felt just like that.

There was no mention of what transpired back in Woodsboro, there was calm in all the hoopla about his relation to Sidney, and he wasn't even asked a single thing about Ghostface. And through it all, it had been a while since he'd had those talks with Anthony, Mickey, or Dylan.

Everything was seemingly all right. He was doing well in school, doing great on the football team, and he was having a great time with his friends. There was a part of him...this small part...that thought maybe he was well enough to be with Tara again.

Y/N finally spoke up. "It is nice. Everything feels...good."

Tara softly smiled again. She kept looking at Y/N, who was still leaning on the counter also staring at her...their faces only six to seven inches apart.

They were just there, seemingly waiting for the other to make a move. Amidst this, Y/N glanced over her shoulder at the other soda machine, and through the hazy reflection of the metal plate...he saw a figure.

It was Anthony. Even through the metal blur he can tell it was him.

Why was he there? Why now? After all those weeks...why did he decide to show up at that exact moment?

Y/N let out an exhale and blinked his eyes, looking to the side. Tara noticed his reaction.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah...yeah. I'm fine." He replied, now standing up straight and getting off the counter. "Um...we should get back. I don't know how much of the movie we've missed already."

Tara feigned a smile, chuckling. "Right."

Tara picked her cup up and walked passed Y/N. The young man exhaled and rubbed his face, looking back at the metal plate where he saw the apparition.

It was gone.

Y/N kept staring at it for a moment, before turning around and following Tara back to the auditorium.

• • •

Y/N SAT ON the blue sofa in front of the grey-bearded man. The room felt cozy, which was likely what the therapist was going for when having his appointments with other clients.

"It's great to finally see you, Mr. L/N." He greeted. "Again, I'm Doctor Christopher Stone."

"Nice to see you too." He replied.

It was his first visit with the therapist. His last session was with Doctor Thompson months ago back in Woodsboro. He only had a few sessions left and since he moved to New York, he now had Doctor Stone.

"How has life been for you? Like...school, socially..."

"It's been great, actually." He admitted. "My grades are good. The football team is 5-2. I got friends."

Doctor Stone nodded as he wrote something down.

He looked at his notes again and even took out another sheet of paper.

"And your visions?" He asked. "Doctor Thompson mentioned it here."

"Right." Y/N said, exhaling.

He thought of the apparition of Anthony he saw a few days ago at the movie theater. Y/N felt that he should mention it, but since it was the first vision he'd seen of them in a while, he assumed it was just an oddity.

"I haven't seen them in quite some time now." He lied. "Thank God."

"That's good." The therapist replied. "So would you say you're making significant progress in this process?"

"Yes."

Doctor Stone nodded. What Y/N was feeling and detailing differed from his sessions with Sam, who he had started seeing recently as well. He felt like the nineteen-year-old was fairing well in the healing process.

"That's nice to hear. A young man like you shouldn't be brought down by the events that transpired. You got a whole life ahead of you."

Y/N nodded. The therapist continued.

"College life...the city...athletic aspirations, so much for you."

The young man agreed. For the first time in a while, he felt like he could finally move on with his life. The tragic experience back in Woodsboro...the trauma from it...Y/N now believed it was possible to get passed all of it.

Where he was now...it served as a fresh start for him after all.

"Yeah." Y/N responded to Doctor Stone. "And I'm making the best of it."