“No,” Amber flatly said as Kris turned off their alarm that went off early Monday morning.

 

“Come on, sleepy head,” Kris said as he sat up and stretched in his bed.

 

“No. I’m not ready to face… people,” Amber said with dismay as she pulled her blanket over her head before Kris could turn on the light.

 

“First day of school! First day of school!” Kris squealed as he tugged Amber’s comforter off of her.

 

“Yah! It’s bright!” Amber hissed out as she shielded her eyes from the light like a vampire.

 

Kris rolled his eyes at her melodramatic behavior. “I’ll get dressed first, child, but I expect you to be up and moving by the time I’m done,” Kris warned as he grabbed his uniform from his dresser then made his way over to the bathroom. “If not, I will get a bucket of water and pour it on you.”

 

Amber shuddered at the thought. Kris was crazy and unpredictable so knowing him, he probably wasn’t joking. “Fine,” Amber groaned in defeat, “I’ll make us breakyfast, then. But don’t expect anything fancy! We don’t have much!”

 

“Whatcha talkin’ bout, Willis? I expect a five star meal from you, now get in the kitchen, woman,” Kris teased before he quickly closed and locked the door to get ready, missing the death glare Amber was shooting his way. If looks could kill, he would’ve been dead long ago.

 

Amber let out a deep sigh then sat up and stretched before she grabbed her uniform. It was identical to Kris’s; the only difference was hers was smaller since she was shorter.

 

Looking at the plain material, Amber let out another sigh, but this time in frustration. Since she was in the boys dorm and most of the staff thought of her to be a boy, she was given a male uniform which consisted of a button down deep blue shirt with a black tie and black shorts or pants instead of a female uniform which would’ve came with a skirt instead and a blazer instead of the tie.

 

She was happy she wasn’t forced to wear a skirt (they really weren’t her thing) but she wasn’t happy that she had another thing to remind her that most people didn’t know her gender.

 

Amber quickly got into her dreaded uniform before Kris could come out then proceeded to make them breakfast.

 

“Hey, Amber?” Kris called from the bathroom.

 

“Yeah?” she yelled back as she began to rummage their cabinets and fridge in search of something edible to sustain them until lunch.

 

“Can I borrow your hair gel? I think I left mine back home,” Kris asked.

 

“Sure,” Amber responded as she finally found something for breakfast.

 

A few minutes later Kris emerged from the bathroom as Amber finished making their ‘fancy’ breakfast.

 

“Oatmeal?” Kris asked as he looked at the two bowls on the small, rickety table. Amber nodded then walked past him into the bathroom. “Alright, I guess that will suffice for a five star meal, Willis.” Amber rolled her eyes and mentally reminded herself to slap him later.

 

After she finished getting ready, the two friends ate breakfast together with complaints about how they aren’t going to like any of their core classes and hopes that their neighbors aren’t in any of their classes.

 

“What classes do we have together again?” Kris asked as they stepped out into the hallway, school bags in hand.

 

“Algebra II second period, Rap IV fourth period, World History II fifth period, lunch, and Dance III last period,” Amber answered as Kris nodded his head and locked the door behind them.

 

The hallway was busy with students leaving their dorms to head to their first period class. Once they got to the only elevator they saw how long the line was and, considering how small the lift was, they weren’t likely to make it to class on time if they waited.

 

Kris took ahold of Amber’s wrist and led her to the stairwell, shoving people aside in the process.

 

“Do you think I’ll see Henry in any of my classes?” Amber wondered aloud when they were alone in the stairwell.

 

Kris smirked and looked over at the younger. “I’m sure you might have at least one class. Did he say what his specialty was for getting in to this school?”

 

Amber pouted as she realized he never did. He hadn’t even called or texted her at all the past weekend, but she just figured he was busy working and preparing for school. “No, he just said he was a second year here.”

 

Kris gave her a sympathetic smile and patted her on the back. “Don’t get discouraged, young grasshopper,” Kris began which earned him a glare from Amber, “you still have time to make him fall for you. After all, today is the first day of a promising school year.”

 

“I guess you have a point there, Sensei,” Amber said as she stepped into the crowded lobby.

 

Kris grabbed Amber’s hand and intertwined their fingers this time for better guidance and led her through the sea of boys. They had just barely made it out of the lobby and into the fresh air when someone caught Amber’s attention.

 

“Amber?” a familiar voice called. Amber and Kris simultaneously looked over to where the voice came from, but never let go of each other’s hand.

 

“Oh hey, Henry,” Amber greeted shyly.

 

“What are you doing over here? Shouldn’t you be at the girl’s dorm?” Henry questioned as he stole a quick glance at the duo’s intertwined hands.

 

“Oh, um, uh,” Amber tried to explain, but it was rather embarrassing and she wasn’t exactly sure how to say it.

 

“She came to pick me up,” Kris spoke up shooting her a look that said ‘just go with it.’

 

“To pick you up?” Henry asked a little confused by what the taller male meant.

 

“Yeah, well I mean to wake me up. She knows I have a hard time getting up early for the first week or so of school starting,” Kris explained calmly while discreetly unlinking their hands.

 

“Oh, I see,” Henry said then looked at Amber and flashed her a warm smile that made her heart flutter. His eyes wandered down a little and for the first time he noticed her uniform. “Why are you in a male uniform?”

 

“I like men’s clothing. It’s much more comfortable,” Amber explained. It was the truth, that’s why she was often mistaken for a boy. Not because of her features, which from some angles were masculine, but for her choice in clothing and short hair style.

 

“Yeah, I can’t argue that,” Henry agreed.

 

The three of them stood there in silence, not really sure what to say or do next. Finally, Kris spoke up.

 

“Well, we don’t want to be late on our first day. Shall we get going?”

 

Amber and Henry nodded in unison and the three of them began walking towards the school in the middle of the two dormitories in silence once again.

 

“So, Amber, what is your schedule like?” Henry asked once they entered the main building lobby.

 

“I have Chemistry II, Algebra II, Vocals, Rap IV, World History II, lunch, then The Art of Lyrics and Composing, and Dance III last.”

 

“Wow, are you sure you’re a first year? Most first years aren’t as advanced as you,” Henry commented.

 

“Yeah, I just had a mother who was very hard on me about getting good grades and moving up in my core classes, which comes in handy now because my third year I can get an early start on college courses.”

 

Henry smiled as they began to walk up the wide stairs to the second level where most of the core classrooms were located. “We have first period and third period together. And of course lunch, everyone has lunch at the same time here since the school is big and the student population is small.”

 

“Well, I’ve got The Basics of Art first, so I’ll see you later, Henry,” Kris said as he began walking up the stairs with the crowd of students. “I’ll see ya next period, munchkin!” he hollered over his shoulder and blew a kiss towards Amber.

 

Amber blew a kiss back then laughed and rolled her eyes as she walked off towards her class with Henry close by her side. His shoulders tensed when she blew a kiss back, but he quickly relaxed so she wouldn’t notice.

 

“Sorry I didn’t contact you at all this weekend. I was pretty busy with work,” Henry said sheepishly. Amber looked over and examined his face for the first time. His face looked drained of life and there were bags under his eyes she hadn’t noticed before.

 

“It’s alright. I kinda figured you were busy.”

 

Henry chuckled a little and smiled at her with a certain curious look in his eye. Amber could sense he wanted to ask something, but he held back.

 

“This is it,” Henry said as he stopped in front of their science class. He quickly grabbed the door and held it open for her. “After you, my lady,” he said in English.

 

Amber blushed slightly as she bowed her head and scurried her way into the classroom.

 

The two found empty desks next to each other in the back of the class and were quick to claim them as theirs, sitting down in them quickly.

 

“How long have you and Kris been friends?” Henry asked nonchalantly as he pulled a fresh notebook out form his bag.

 

“Ah, for quite a while now. We met the summer I was ten and he was eleven. He had moved here from Canada a month before I moved here from California. We just happened to move in to houses on the same street and became friends.”

 

Henry nodded along then asked another question that had been bugging him for a while. “Is he gay?”

 

Amber nearly had a heart attack at Henry’s blunt question. She looked at him sideways with wide eyes. “Uh, no? He’s had plenty of girlfriends in the past and has never showed any interest in guys.”

 

Henry tensed up when Amber said ‘plenty of girlfriends.’ “Did you two date before?” he asked a bit nervously.

 

Amber looked at him incredulously. “Never have, never will. We’re too good of friends to be romantically involved,” Amber explained. “Why do you ask?”

 

Before Henry could answer, the first bell rang and the teacher walked in, interrupting everyone’s side conversations.

 

“Welcome students!” a female voice greeted cheerily. “Shall we start off the new school year with introductions?”

 

Nobody said anything; they just sat in silence and starred at the teacher with bored expressions.

 

“Well don’t get too excited,” she said sarcastically. “I’ll start then I’ll pick random people to go, how does that sound?”

 

Silence.

 

“Okay then, my name is Ahn Sohee. You guys can just call me Sohee; I’m not really big of being called by my last name, it sounds too old for me. Noona or unnie are okay too, either of those three names are fine by me. I am twenty three years old and I will be teaching you guys Chemistry II, but don’t think I am only good in science! I am also an afterschool vocal coach for the third year students,” Sohee said cheerfully as she sat on her desk in front of the class.

 

The class remained silent with gloomy looks plastered on their faces. She seems pretty cool, Amber thought.

 

“Geez, lighten up you guys. I know it’s the first day back and you have a core class to kick it off but it’s not that bad,” Sohee said with a pout on her lips. Her eyes scanned the room briefly before her gaze settled. “You,” she said as she pointed to a girl in the back once she perked up a little, “introduce yourself to the class please.”

 

The pale girl stood up and smiled shyly at the class, a pink tint across her face indicating she was nervous about being called to go first.

 

“M-my name is Choi Jin Ri, but you can call me Sulli. Um, I am a first year here and I got in for singing,” the shy girl said then quickly sat down a covered her cheeks with her hands, trying to hid the pink tint.

 

“Nice to meet you, Sulli. Are there any other first year students in this second year class?” Sohee asked as she looked around. Amber and another boy raised their hands.

 

“Oh this is exciting, we rarely get first years in here and now we have three! Okay, you first,” Sohee said pointing to the boy in the middle of the class.

 

The boy stood up calmly and began to introduce himself.

 

“Annyeong, my name is Lee Byunghyun, but I go by L. Joe. I am a first year and I got in for rapping,” he said smoothly as if he were used to introducing himself on a day to day basis.

 

“Nice to meet you, L. Joe. And now you,” Sohee said as she looked in the back at Amber.

 

“Hello, my name is Liu Amber. I am a first year and I got in for rapping and dancing,” Amber said.

 

“Nice to meet you!” Sohee greeted cheerfully, the fact that she was a boy never fazed her.

 

Amber sat back down and let out a deep sigh. Clearly, no one was going to say anything.

 

“Next, person! You,” Sohee continued as she called each student out one by one.

 

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Kris walked into his first period, alone. He wouldn’t ever admit it out loud, but without Amber or Suho or Minho by his side, he felt vulnerable and lonely.

 

Kris scanned the filled room for an empty seat. It seemed as if everyone in the class were already friends and had chosen seats right next to each other, except for one seat in the row closest to the window towards the middle.

 

Letting out a light sigh, Kris strolled into the class and made his way over to the last empty seat next to a boy with weird colored hair who seemed to be lost in thought as he gazed out of the large window beside him.

 

“Hey,” Kris greeted once he approached the table, startling the poor boy, “uh, is it cool if I sit here? All the other tables are full.”

 

The boy looked around and realized, for the first time, that the class was indeed full. He gave Kris a wary look but nodded his head and turned his attention back towards the window.

 

Kris promptly sat down in the empty chair and a few moments later the bell rang and the teacher walked in, indicating that the start of the year had officially began.

 

“Good morning, students,” a male voice greeted, automatically settling down the rambunctious crowd, “I am Mr. Kwon and I will be teaching you the basics of art this year. Since most of you aren’t quite adept in art, but are better than stick figurines, I hope, I will be teaching you the basic techniques; how you apply it and what you apply it to is completely up to you. Any questions?”

 

“Will we have a lot of projects?” a student asked.

 

“Of course! This is art class, after all. I will assign projects and for one to three weeks you will be working on them in class for a daily grade and the final product will be your major grade.”

 

“Is this all drawing or will there be painting too?” another asked.

 

“Ah, good question. This is the basics of art, I will be teaching a bit of everything from sculpting to carving, from painting with oils to painting with watercolor, and from drawing with 2B pencils to shading with ebony. So, yes there will be painting involved sometime this year.”

 

Everyone seemed excited with his answers and began whispering things to one another. Kris looked over at his partner, hoping to say something to him, but found that he was still looking out the window with a blank expression on his face. This class seemed fun, but his partner wasn’t very promising.

 

The teacher smiled and looked around at all the students, waiting for more questions. When none came, he moved on to the class objective.

 

“Alright, since there seems to be no more questions, we will be getting into our first project.”

 

The class got riled up even more that the teacher had to calm them down so he could explain the outline.

 

“Since you are sitting in pairs and since it is the first day, this project is going to be between you and your partner getting to know each other. The person you chose to sit next to is who you will be sitting by for the rest of the year. I want you two to share as much information as you can for these first three days, really get to know each other, then on Thursday I’ll explain the rest of the project, but for now mingle away and take lots of notes! Lots!”

 

Everyone immediately dug into conversations with their partners, but Kris and his partner hadn’t even exchanged one word since he sat down. Kris looked over at the shy boy to find him looking at him for the first time and not out the window.

 

“So, uh, shall we get started?” Kris asked.

 

The boy shrugged then nodded, but made no attempt to engage in a conversation. Instead he looked straight ahead and not at Kris.

 

“Well,” Kris said after a long awkward silence between the two, “my name is Yifan, but I go by Kris. I am a first year here.”

 

The boy just looked at Kris with a blank face and blinked multiple times, until finally he spoke.

 

“Do you speak?” Kris teased with grimace on his face.

 

“My name is Junhong, but I go by Zelo. I am a first year too, but I have an older brother here that is a third year.”

 

“Ah, you do have a voice,” Kris joked, “Well, Zelo, how should we go about this whole getting to know each other thing?”

 

Zelo shrugged and looked back straight ahead.

 

“How did you get in to this school?” Kris asked, tired of hearing the other groups talk so freely to one another while he and Zelo had barely exchanged names.

 

“For rapping and dancing,” he answered simply as he looked back at Kris. “You?”

 

“Same, bro. Well, not the dancing, just the rapping part.” Zelo let out a slight chuckle when Kris admitted the last part.

 

“Can’t dance?”

 

“Eh, I can, but I’m not that good,” Kris admitted.

 

“Like me and art. I can draw and paint well, but I’m not all that good at it,” Zelo said.

 

“Same, bro. I love art. It’s a passion of mine, but I’m not the best at it. Isn’t that the reason we come here though? To improve our artistic skills?”

 

Zelo laughed and nodded in agreement. “True. I guess none of us are that good, but by third year we should be amazing since we’ve had so much practice.”

 

Kris nodded and looked around at the other groups. This class was going to be something.

 

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“Yo, Yifan!” Amber said in a deep voice as Kris walked into their second period class.

 

Kris looked over towards the back to see a smiley Amber sitting in a desk, motioning for him to sit in the vacant desk beside her. “Hey, girl, hey!” Kris said in a girly voice.

 

“Hey!” Amber repeated back and he took the desk next to her in the back. Luckily not many students had come in yet so all the good seats were still open.

 

“How was first period?” Kris asked.

 

“Promising. I think I’m going to enjoy science a lot more this year. What about you?”

 

“Same. I think I’m going to really improve my art skills this year.”

 

More students began to come in a fill up the empty seats as Kris and Amber rambled on about things from their first period class.

 

“Oh my gosh!” a voice squealed, gaining Amber and Kris’ attention immediately. One simply does not forget that voice.

 

“Please, for the love of Pablo, please tell me that isn’t who I think it is,” Amber said as she kept her gaze on Kris, refusing to look over at the approaching figure.

 

“Amber, Kris, I haven’t seen you guys since last Friday!” the voice said as it sat down in the seat in front of Amber. “How are my dorm buddies?”

 

Amber tensed up when he sat down in front of her, but at least it wasn’t Key. This one she could actually have a conversation with and tolerate.

 

“Doing fine,” Kris answered for both of them, not wanting to be rude, “How are you, Sungjong?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A/N: Sorry if this chapter was a bit boring, Kris and Amber weren’t together for the majority of it which is when the funny stuff happens. :3

And Key’s roommate is revealed! The two divas being roommates! No wonder it’s too much for Amber and Kris. But in all honesty, Sungjong is baby <3 he’s not that much of a diva.

 

Have a nice day!! And comments are always welcomed!! <3

 

-Jayde