Students fill the lobby of the main hall as they pour in through the entrance, their chatter only seeming to get louder in the enclosed environment. The jumped crowd seems to organize the deeper they get into the building however, as they form three lines, yet they are still in somewhat of a mess as students still stand by each other, for it isn't exactly a single file line.
Regardless, the three lines proceed onwards while being slightly quieter than before, as they approach what seems to be a series of four silver metallic poles, which all stand three feet up in a horizontal line, expanded to take up a whole horizontal slice of the lobby in order to prevent students from simply walking around the construct.
. Between the poles is a wall of red energy, which creates three barricades, thus preventing anyone from seeming to walk past as there's no other open spaces to proceed. The red energy gives a soft hum as the walls act similar to a stable door, acting as a level of restriction straight past the door.
The first three students of the lines walk in front of the energy doors, and after waiting for about a second, the three red barricades suddenly vanish, as though being relinquished.
The three students then proceed past the poles, walking deeper into the room where they were restricted before, as they head towards a large arched doorway past the lobby into some room that radiates a yellow glow.
While there isn't a visible indication, the poles of each door had scanned those very students, analyzing them and verifying them to indeed be eligible for using the main hall. All freshmen were required to be eligible anyways, with upperclassmen having to take it upon themselves to achieve verification, all for a smooth process that seems nearly nonexistent.
The three energy doors reactivate, as the red walls reappear, barring the next students from entering without verification.
The students next in line then proceed forward, stepping towards the walls where the first students had stood. They stand in front of the wall for a moment, and just as before, the walls then vanish again after having scanned each of them individually. The students proceed forwards, only to be replaced by the next three students of the lines.
Rohan and Dexter stand farther in the back, watching the students take turns using the door system to get into the hall, where chatter still comes from. It seems that there's pleasant chatter, which relieves and excites the two, for it seems that the experience may not be as hectic as the rest of their day has otherwise been.
Rohan turns to Dexter, hearing him still panting from the run. He sighs, and advises "You should go running more if that had killed you. This is why you should've stuck with air hockey too. I heard they have a club here anyway so we could've done that."
Dexter nods his head a few times while repeating "I know" as an answer, as though he had been lectured about this a thousand times.
The line proceeds, bringing Rohan and Dexter closer to the energy stable doors. They follow behind the line, trying to conduct themselves more appropriately by staying right behind the one in front of them, listening to the chatter ahead.
The student in front of Rohan passes through, and once he does, the stable door reactivates. Rohan takes another step in front of the door, now being the one in front, and he waits as the metal pole begins scanning his body for verification.
The scanner stops, as indicated by the stable door then vanishing, as it seems to complete its search. Rohan smiles softly, and he approaches the arched doorway that he had seen everyone else enter through, moving at a pace slow enough for Dexter to catch up.
He steps through the opening, walking into the yellow light, ready to see what is on the other side.
Rohan enters the next room, to which he blinks twice and turns his head around, observing the room that he's stepped in with delightful surprise.
He finds himself in a room that's mediumly large, for it's definitely larger than the lobby, but not as massive as the rooms he's seen earlier that day. The room is shaped as a cube, and has white peach walls that emanate the soft yellow light.
On the far side of the room seems to be another open arched doorway leading to yet another room, although for now Rohan has to keep his attention to the room he's currently in.
What seems to be the most significant components of the room however is not the walls nor the exit on the other side, but rather a series of chrome tables along the edges of the room, with rows along the sides beside the doorways.
The tables however are not merely composed of hovering tops, but instead seem to be solid rectangular objects that stand a few feet tall from the floor. The tables don't only stand on legs, for the whole front, sides, and back is covered by the chrome walls. While they're irregular as tables compared to what is usual of this world, they seem to be uniform amongst each other, as there are ten of these tables on each side, totalling twenty.
In front of each table is a long line of eager students, who only seem organized close to the table, as their chaotic tendencies lead to a messy cluster by the center of the room, making it hard to tell which line each student is in.
With such a mass gathering of students all at once, it's nearly impossible to tell what is going on by the tables, as they're hidden from Rohan's sight due to the organic blockade. Besides a few glances of the chrome shell of the table visible between students, all Rohan could deduce was that it seemed that these tables were the servers.
While the center of the room is a disorganized sea of students, it seems that after a period of time, all of the lines projecting out of the center shift forward, and thus students from the jumbled center all spread out just a foot towards their designated lines, clearly having a path albeit one hard to tell.
Rohan lets out a soft sigh, seeing that there wouldn't be any easier way to go about a necessary task. He surveys the sea of students, and focuses on one of the lines closer to him. He then slowly moves his head and observes the students making up the line, watching as it gradually broadens towards the center.
While the line becomes unstable the closer towards the center, there is still clearly a line, or at least a group, connected to that original line leading to the table. As long as there is a precise beginning of the line, that is enough for Rohan to insert himself into.
Once he deduces the origin of the line among the crowd, Rohan approaches the great ocean of students, stepping into the violent waves of the raging storm as he vanishes into the clouds of the crowd.
Rohan assimilates amongst the other students, who are all rather close together, as Rohan feels other students brush up against him due to the lack of space. While he isn't very claustrophobic, the lack of space is still discomforting, as it only makes trying to maneuver himself more of a challenge.
Also, upon joining with the waves, he loses great visibility of the room, no longer able to detect where his brother is, concerning him as he's unsure if his brother will know what to do.
Before he could try to make a move to give himself a better view of where Dexter may possibly be, the line that he stands in shifts forward as it seems to begin moving again, and the students behind him step forward, knocking into him. Rohan's body is pushed forwards as he staggers in desperation to regain stability, his eyes widening as he lets his mouth open in fear.
In moments he stabilizes himself once more in the little space he's given, however he's now deeper into the line. He turns to try facing the entrance of the room to find his brother, however the density of the group allows no peaks through, making him effectively blind.
He lets out a sigh of defeat, and turns back towards the line, admitting that he wouldn't be able to guide his brother, and would instead need to hope that his brother knew how to maneuver himself into getting his food.
While he did trust his brother and knew he could take care of himself, Rohan had always dawned the protective role similar to an older brother, regardless of their same age. While his brother would complain and bicker back, he would ultimately follow Rohan's judgement and take his aid, a bond that they have had since as long as they could remember.
Now that they are separated without Rohan being able to help him, that strong bond feels weaker, which gives him anxiety of Dexter's well being. Even if Dexter is strong, Rohan still finds unease knowing that he wouldn't be able to help Dexter and guarantee his security and success.
However, he could do nothing about it, but move forwards as the line shifts again, hoping that Dexter figured his way to get his own food so the two could later reunite after this intense fight.
It feels as though minutes fly by while Rohan waits in the line, as it doesn't shift as fast as he'd like it to. He acknowledges that he has no control over it however, as all he can do is step forth when able to, keeping his eyes in front of the line.
Eventually, the line straightens and becomes more organized, providing him confidence in knowing his place in the line. He faces forward at the student directly in front of him, waiting patiently to get to the front while trying to focus with all of the chatter filling up the room.
Although, while most of the sound that comes to his ear is unclear chatter, he notices soft whooshing sounds in front of him towards the front of the line, which sound similar to the artificially generated sounds of moving holograms typical of Connects.
While standing in line as to not accidentally lose his spot, Rohan leans towards the right, peeking forward to try getting a view of the source of the whooshing. His eyes contract as he focuses, tuning out the loud voices and honing in on the whooshes.
It seems that the student in front of Rohan currently stands in front of the chrome table, as there's only one student ahead of Rohan now, for it appears that Rohan is close to the table. The student seems to be busy swaying his hands forward, his own eyes focused on the table in front of him, more specifically the contents it projects.
In front of the student and on the chrome table appears to be a holographic projection originating from the table itself, which hovers just slightly above the tabletop.
The hologram displays a long silver flat tray, with the long side facing the students. On top of the tray are three circular white flat plates, made to resemble real plates with crisp and realistic coloring; there isn't any lack of quality or detail due to the projection, as the only indication of it being a projection is the soft light that emanates from it, giving it a glow abnormal for a real plate.
On top of each plate is an artificial assortment of food, as one of the plates contain half a rack of sizzling ribs laying in the center of the tray, with a tender brown color that reflects light similarly to that of a juicy rack of real ribs as it perfectly simulates the appearance of the food. Even though the food wasn't real, it looks delicious, as the food appears hot and even gives off an artificial scent that seems to attract the student ordering it.
To accompany the rack, beside the steaming food is another circular plate, albeit this one much smaller than the one holding the rack of ribs, as this one instead holds slice of cheesecake with a layer of ice cream on top and hot pink strawberry syrup over it, or at least that's what it seems to be judging by the hologram. Even though it wasn't real, it still felt extremely unhealthy, yet the student didn't seem concerned over it. The thin crust has individual bread crumbs on the plate, yet the main cake slice is cut perfectly with perfect shape.
On the other side of the rack is what seems to be an entire lobster sitting on its own individual plate, which is about the size of the rack, having been steamed and cooked, with the shell completely removed to only show the meat inside, although maintaining the original shape. The near-white meat sizzles as it's cooked to perfection, although that's what the hologram shows.
While the three plates sit on the long tray, there also seems to be a bottle on the corner which has an open top to resemble a cup more. The bottle is made of a transparent material similar to glass as well, being quite tall, as it's a large bottle.
Inside the bottle, visible through the transparent material, is a pink liquid that fills nearly the entire bottle, with bubbles visible inside and on top. There are also white streaks inside the liquid, and at the top of the liquid, reaching above the bottle's top, is a mountain of whipped cream which also has hot pink strawberry syrup over it.
The bottle seems to contain a strawberry milkshake of sorts, as the icecream is visible as the white streaks, as though the cheesecake slice isn't enough.
The student in the front of the line observes the dish for some time, analyzing it while nodding his head. He seems to have taken full advantage of the vast inventory of food options offered at the main hall, as he has given himself more food than what Rohan could stomach for an entire day.
Rohan stares at the holographer platter with a blank expression, as he has a clear unimpressed gaze while staring at the creation that the student was holding up the line for. He can tell easily that the food was extremely unhealthy and not recommendable for a dinner, and it would be too heavy as well, for it's more than likely that not even half would be finished.
While Rohan usually doesn't like to focus on the business of others, for he found such distractions to be irrelevant and unproductive, he can't help but to find himself judging the student's choice of a meal, for it's highly unprofessional, especially since he's holding up a line while being carried away on his food adventuring.
He lets out a soft sigh, now finding himself to feel impatient while waiting for the line to move after invalidating the reason for its lag. He knows that trying to fit so much food together for an order would take time to set up, and thus explains why it seemed that the line never moved.
The student ordering the food nods his head, seeming content with his decision. He then lightly waves his right hand towards the holograms.
Suddenly, a whirring sound begins to come from inside the chrome table, as though a mechanism has been activated after the wave. A deep constant hum plays as well, coming from inside the table, as it seems there is an ongoing operation that isn't visible publicly, for the work is being hidden by the chrome solid walls that only seemed to make up an unassuming table.
A few moments later, a whooshing sound follows as the hum dampens and quiets down. The whooshing sound becomes louder however, with rapid whooshes becoming higher pitched as another process seems to have begun.
From the chrome tabletop, a blue light begins to project from the surface, shooting up into the holographic tray.
The light seems to halt before it could pass through the food however, as it only shines as high as the holograms still present with the tray, and the contents on them.
The light is just thick enough to create a perfectly sized pillar between the chrome surface and the tray, as though the holograms are now standing on light stands for a moment, for it seems that the beam is made to fit the size of the holographic constructs.
After a few moments of shine, the blue light then stops projecting, as the pillar vanishes from the tabletop. Also, as the pillar vanishes, the tray and food over the table noticeably seem to stop illuminating as they did before. Instead, they now passively hover over the table, although while they seem nearly exactly to how they were before, the lack of light indicates an absence of holograms being used.
The clear bottle holding the strawberry milkshake stands next to the plate of the lobster, ribs, and cheesecake, as the order has been completed, and the food has been finished.
The student waiting in front of the table then grabs the long silver tray with both of his hands, picking up the three plates and the bottle all at once.
He grips onto it tightly, and then turns to the side. He begins walking away from the table with the tray in hand, for it is completely confirmed now that the tray and platter isn't holographic, but instead truly solid and real. He walks past the other lines and towards the far doorway, approaching the next room.
Now that the student is gone, the line shifts forward again, allowing Rohan to step up to the table with no interruption. He does so, taking the step forwards to stand in front of the chrome table, before waiting patiently for the menu to no doubt pop up.
Just as expected via his intuition, a rather large three dimensional hologram projects from the table to Rohan's right side, shaped as a silver cylinder composed of three flat shelves, as the cylinder appears to be a rack of sorts.
Initially, the bottom shelf seems to have various bottles, with some being clear just like the one containing the strawberry milkshake for the student before, and others being shorter or opaque.
On the central shelf is an assortment of different types of plates, also having diversity. There are different shapes and sizes, as some are circular and others are square, some are large enough to hold a full cake and others are small to just barely hold a strawberry.
Beside the cylindrical rack and in front of Rohan also appears a silver holographic tray, which hovers off the chrome tabletop, similar to the one the other student had.
The tray seems to act as the canvas of the dishes, a single plate to put all his food on for easy transportation.
Rohan contemplates for a moment on what he needs, and ultimately decides to grab one of the medium-sized circular plates, pulling it out of the shelf and on top of the tray. He lets go of the plate, allowing it to sit on the tray, which is suspended in air similar to the tray of the student who was in front.
He turns back to face the shelves, deciding that he doesn't need a bottle, for he doesn't feel too thirsty, nor even hungry, as he just wants something small before the night, even though he had barely eaten today.
Rohan then extends his right arm towards the cylindrical rack, and he swipes his hand to the right, making a gesture to the hologram.
In reaction to the movement, the whole rack seems to spin quickly, gaining enough speed to the point where the contents on the shelves aren't visible.
However, in only a second, the rack comes to a stop, slowing from the spin and standing still. Although now this time, the objects on the shelves are different, as instead there are now various pieces of food on each shelf.
On the top shelf are various meats such as a fat piece of steak and a long chicken leg, both steaming with a fresh brown color as though they've just been cooked.
On the central shelf are different foods more loaded with carbohydrates, such as a small bowl of white rice and a whole piece of lasagna with several sheets sandwiching smoking meat.
On the bottom shelf are finally the miscellaneous foods, such as a slice of pizza with a thick crust and dense cheese on top, and a bowl of salad composed of vibrant green spinach and juicy pieces of tomato on top.
Rohan lets out a soft sigh to see how random the bottom shelf is, observing the pizza and salad being placed together seemingly haphazardly. He shakes his head, knowing that there's likely far more options if he were to swipe again, especially since he couldn't find the lobster that the other student had taken.
However, he lowers his head back down and focuses on the bowl of salad, as he contemplates for a few moments while trying to decide on what food he wants.
He makes his decision, and grabs the bowl of salad from the bottom shelf. He moves the bowl over to the plate on the tray and places it on the center, deciding on what he wanted to eat.
He watches as right after letting go of the bowl, a silver fork suddenly appears beside the bowl and on the tray, seeming to have been summoned after Rohan chose a food that required the following utensil. The fork shines in the light much like a real one would, although Rohan acknowledges that currently, all he's staring at is a holographic projection.
Rohan stares at the tray for a few moments, which only has the salad bowl and the accompanying fork, with nothing else, not even a drink. It was definitely not as creative as the other student with his lobster and milkshake, however creativity was not a priority for Rohan, who preferred optimization.
Knowing that the food would be adequate given his current appetite and what he'd need anyways, Rohan acknowledges that the dish he chose is enough to finalize. He knows that the other students would have far more, as he can't begin to guess what Dexter would have on his plate, but Rohan is content with what he has.
Rohan holds his hand up, and makes a waving gesture, similar to the one of the other students. He then watches as a circular beam of light projects from the chrome tabletop, beaming straight into the bottom of the tray.
He waits for a second as the blue light then vanishes shortly after, and the plate and salad bowl no longer illuminates, indicating that the hologram had been swapped out with the authentic meal.
Rohan grabs the plate with both hands, and picks it off of the table's light hold. He then turns to the side and begins to walk forwards, feeling the cold metal plate on his fingers, ready to begin eating once he could get to a table.
As he approaches the doorway on the far side of the room, he walks past several other lines of students waiting to get their own food. While walking past the line, he casts a glance at one of the students who seems to be picking up a plate of food, which has a large juicy burger on it, with two steaming patties and crunchy lettuce on top along with a vibrant slice of tomato and other ingredients.
Rohan's eyes suddenly fixate on the student however, who seems to be relatively skinny and dawns a formal posture, as Rohan finds strong familiarity with him, as he immediately feels as though he had seen him earlier the same day.
While it was highly risky to jump to conclusions, Rohan knew he didn't know anyone else, and so it wouldn't be a bad idea to try making a connection from the few people he knew, or at least has seen already.
As he watches the student begin to turn and walk away, Rohan recognizes that there wouldn't be any time to lose.
Desperate to try to reach out to the familiar face, Rohan calls out, "Hey, have we met?"
The student stops in his tracks, and he turns around to face Rohan, looking exactly like the student Rohan remembered from outside the dorm building. It had to be him.
The student wears a confused expression, and he asks, "Do I know you?"
Rohan nods his head, smiling as he felt he was making progress, and he exclaims "Yes, well, kind of. We talked a bit outside of the dorm building this morning, remember? You told me you had a twin?"
The student stares at Rohan with confusion, but then moments later he bursts into laughter, which then causes Rohan to get confused.
The student shakes his head as he laughs off his confusion, and then states, "No no no, that probably was my twin. Are you in Dorm building A?"
Rohan nods his head, a bit slower however as he reddens from the embarrassment of mistaking the student for his twin. He lowers his head a bit, and responds, "Yes...sorry."
The student shakes his head, his laughter having ended, and he assures, "Don't worry, a lot of people get confused too. Then yes it was most likely my twin, Ara. He likes talking to people, so I could see how you may have met him. I'm his twin, Ari. What's your name?"
Rohan perks his head back up, and he nods, trying to get over his embarrassment to continue the conversation. He answers, "Rohan, I haven't met many people so I guess I jumped the gun. Sorry about that, you can go wherever you are headed."
Ari hums to himself for a moment, and he then asks Rohan, "Who are you sitting with?"
Rohan turns back to face Ari, and he shrugs his shoulders, responding "Probably just with my brother, Dexter. He's getting food right now so I'll probably just find a table and wait for him. Why?"
Ari shrugs his shoulders, and he offers: "You could sit with us. Both of you if you want. We already found a table, and you seem cool. They might be fine with it, they wanted to meet more people anyways."
Rohan tilts his head with slight confusion, and he asks "We? Like, you and your brother? It sounds like there's more."
Ari nods his head in response, and he says, "Yeah, sorry, I forgot to mention. I sat with Ara and a few others from grade school. You don't know them but you can meet them, they're cool. Come on, I'll show you."
Rohan shrugs his shoulders and straightens his neck, deciding "Well, sure then, I don't see why not."
Rohan turns his head back to see Dexter in one of the stations on the far side, and confirms that he was still finding food, so there was no need to bother him.
Instead, he turns back to Ari, and asks, "Lead the way then."
Ari nods his head, and he turns around, walking towards the next arched doorway on the other side of the food room, opposite from the lobby entrance. Rohan follows close behind, holding the tray with both hands as he looks ahead of himself to take in the room that all the voices came from.
The room Rohan enters next is enormous even when compared to the rooms that he has seen earlier today, for it is far larger than what he expected from a dining hall, being both incredibly vast in the size of its floor but also incredible in terms of its height, which is composed of multiple floors above which don't cover as much area as the ground floor, thus allowing visibility to the many levels above.
The distant walls are white, much like the rest of the university, and there are rows of large, curved windows higher up along the wall, allowing cyan light to pass through the window, helping to illuminate the room which is already lit up with soft yellow lights emanating from the walls.
A series of elevator pads seem to reside by the edge of the upper floors, which is by the open center of the ground floor, as the center of the hall is open to make the ceiling feel even taller. A few of the pads ascend and descend as Rohan follows into the room, carrying students as they explore the multiple floors while trying to find a proper place to stay for the meal.
On the base and largest floor is a collection of long hovering white tabletops which stretch on for about forty eight feet, which make up long rows along the room, composing many columns from one end of the hall to another, for they are the most prominent tables.
On each long side of the tables accompany long white hovering benches of the same length, as rows of tables run through the whole room. The benches don't have back support however, as they're a single board, although there is still a comfortable cushion over the steel frame keeping it off the ground.
On the far side of the hall seems to be a smaller room bridged with an open doorway, which appears to have a size more similar to a restaurant than the mammoth hall. The room is visible as there are transparent windows along the walls separating it from the hall, and behind those windows are visible tables, however they seem very different from the ones in the outer hall.
Instead of it being long benches and tables, the tables in the smaller room are circular and noticeably smaller. Around the hovering tabletops are also individual hovering chairs with back support, which are clearly higher in quality, yet seem to hold far less people than the table.
Whereas each table in the main hall could potentially hold twenty four students, there only appears to be six chairs hovering around the circular tabletops. It's clearly meant for tighter groups, such as friends, who may want to seclude themselves from the busy atmosphere, as it would be unfair for one person to take a whole table for themselves. There are only a few people residing in that room, as it seems some people are gifted enough to have already found friends to sit with, however the room is noticeably emptier than its capacity, though that's something likely to change.
Rohan looks down at his plate to see the salad in the bowl he chose for his plate, avoiding the more exciting foods for something more plain but healthy. He didn't have any intention of playing with the baked goods, for he's absolutely content with what he has, regardless of the fact that he knows that there are other options that may be more popular due to their addictive tastes.
He raises his head back up as he continues to follow Ari, wondering where he was leading him, for it seemed that the room was so vast that they could be going anywhere. At least he knows very well that he wouldn't need to be concerned over a lack of seating for his other meals, which gives him a sense of relief.
Ari leads Rohan towards one of the closest tables out of the food room where he had just entered through, more specifically towards the nearby corner, not seeming to go very far even with the vastness of the room and its inherent possibilities.
As Rohan follows Ari towards the far edge of the table, he notices a group of four students already seated, with two on each bench, sitting across from each other.
They're already in conversation, as it seems they know each other or are at least making an effort to get to know each other, however their bodies seem comfortable and relaxed, making it out like it's the former option.
Rohan analyzes the group as he walks in their direction, for it seems Ari is directly approaching them, as it seems that they are the group that Ari mentioned he knows. His eyes immediately dart to the student on the farthest side of the far bench, for he finds immediate familiarization against all odds.
The student is the exact same that he had seen earlier in front of the dorms, and he was the one that Rohan had mistaken Ari for: Ara. He is even wearing the same dark yellow jacket as he was before, as he's clothed the same, and looks the same, making the confirmed connection.
In fact, just by staring at what is very likely if not precisely Ari's brother, he can see the intense resemblance between the two, as they're clearly identical twins, with there being only a slight difference in that the brother's hair seems to be more of an unbothered mess, whereas Ari clearly grooms his hair, as it lays flat in a formal manner. While it is a very small difference that can easily be ruined with a slight change in hair grooming, Rohan feels somewhat embarrassed for having made the mistake so explicitly to Ari, especially when he himself has a twin brother.
Beside the twin, Ara, sits another boy, however his appearance makes him seem far younger than the others. This is due in large part to the fact that he's noticeably shorter than the rest, being not too much over five feet, and he has a relatively youthful face and body.
Of course, to skip to the assumption that he is younger would be an even more egregious judgment, especially if incorrect, however it's a noticeable difference that sets him apart from the others. He has pretty short hair which is well groomed, almost as well as Ari's, and wears a gray jacket that appears similar to a windbreaker, fitted perfectly for him.
On the other bench across the table from the two, that being the side of the bench that Rohan is approaching, sits a man who, opposite from the youthful boy, is the tallest one of the group, being well over six feet tall. The man also has a much stronger build than the rest of the group, with large muscles exposed on his arms as he wears a half dark red shirt.
His back muscles also show even under his shirt, as he's built as an athlete. He has the shortest hair of the group, with only a smooth patch over his head, and he seems to be hunched over when he eats.
Finally, the last boy in the group is seated beside him, who unlike the other two, is built more averagely, even being nearly the same height as Rohan. He is slightly shorter and also has a far less athletic build, as while Rohan is no beast, at least he has visible muscles from his athletic past, whereas this final boy seems to have more of an average body.
The boy has relatively broad shoulders, and seems to have the longest hair of the group, as it runs down his neck. While it isn't so long to the point of being like a female's hair, it is still noticeably long just as it is noticeably messy, as strands of his black hair protrude out as signs of improper grooming.
He wears a light blue hoodie with the hood down to allow him to eat more easily, as he has a burger in his hands while speaking, as it seems like he might've only taken one bite from it.
Ari waves his hand and announces, "Hi guys, I'm back from getting food, and I found someone. Says he talked to you, Ara. I thought he was chill so he could stay with us."
The four other students all turn to face Ari and Rohan, as they all become silent after hearing the announcement. They turn straight to Rohan, and in an instant, their relaxed and enthusiastic expressions suddenly shift into uneasy and hesitant faces.
The short boy raises his head to look up at the newcomer, his eyebrow raised as though he's uncertain about this presence. He seems to be analyzing Rohan as he stares at his face, almost as if he was judging him, something discomforting.
The large boy turns his head to the two, and his eyes contract to a glare as he stares down at Rohan, letting out a deep hum as though contemplating deeply.
Rohan takes a step back as he watches the group stare at him judgingly, as though he was unwelcome, and as though they didn't want him anywhere near. They seemed completely fine and happy on their own, and that only changed when he arrived, leading to the conclusion that he was ruining their atmosphere.
He frowns in embarrassment, for he didn't expect for what seemed like an optimistic opportunity to meet some people on the first day to go so horribly. He's unsure of what exactly about him was so undesirable, if it was the way he dressed, the way he looked, or his posture. There were so many possibilities, and he finds himself thinking through all of them, only further deepening this unexpected grave.
He lowers his head, unsure if he should just turn around and lead Dexter elsewhere, away from the uncomfortable encounter. He could find another table and eat with him, forgetting about this odd conversation, as the first day could be forgotten if he tried hard enough. He doesn't even need friends anyways, so he could just move on from this awkward moment, and continue on with his day. And yet, there was something still remarkably damaging by this stare of judgement.
However, that silence is shattered, as while Rohan stares at the floor in shame, he hears the voice of a boy, which sounds relaxed and inviting, much different from the rest of the atmosphere he was getting from the others, "Oh, hello! What's your name?"
Rohan's eyes widen, as he's surprised and perplexed by the extreme reactions he seems to be getting, which all juxtapose each other. The voice doesn't sound threatening or judging, but rather kind and friendly.
He slowly raises his head, fearing having to look once more at the annoyed group, as he still feels guilt for possibly ruining their mood with his presence. His blue eyes settle on the group as he stays a step back from where he was before, too anxious to reclaim his place again.
In front of his eyes is the boy in the light blue hoodie, who's turned to face him. While the rest of the group still have uneasy and judgemental expressions, he instead wears a gentle and pleased face, as he smiles softly with relaxed eyes. He doesn't seem at all bothered by Rohan's presence, instead wanting to speak to him, having broken the awkward pause to talk.
Rohan flashes a faint smile which immediately devolves back to a frown, and he answers, "I'm uh...Rohan...sorry if I'm bothering you guys...I can sit elsewhere."
The boy in the hoodie lets out a 'heh' under his breath and shakes his head, seeming to have taken the response more jokingly, even though Rohan was being entirely serious.
He looks back up at Rohan, and he retorts with an easy voice, "No no, you're fine my guy, don't worry. We should have space for you anyways; besides, if you passed Ari's 'vred' check, I trust you."
Rohan's eyebrow raises in confusion, as he's unsure of what a 'vred check' is, as he's never heard the term. While he thought he had a detailed understanding of the language he spoke, now he contemplates that understanding if there are words he has never come into contact with.
He slowly asks, "Uh...what's a 'vred check?' Sorry...I can look it up, I mean, sorry for asking."
The boy in the hoodie shakes his head, and he smiles more widely, as he doesn't seem to take any issues to Rohan's behavior. He instead informs, "Oh, sorry, I guess I shouldn't use that lanjo with people I meet for the first time. Uh, it's basically like, since Ari over here says you're cool, and I trust his word, I'm sure you're cool. You know what I mean?"
Rohan tilts his head, as he seems even more confused by the rise of other words he's unfamiliar with. However, it seems to be some sort of slang that he has, either it being a popular slang online, or one local to the group.
He slowly answers with hesitancy, "Uh...I...sure?"
The boy smiles, and he nods his head, pleased by Rohan's response. He then stops and his eyes suddenly shoot wide open, as though he had just had an epiphany during their conversation.
He immediately hastily greets, "Oh shoot wait, I didn't even say my name back when I asked for yours, crap I'm sorry, I forgot! Conversations are weird and whatnot, sorry about that, I'm Shuraj, nice to meet you or whatever people say!"
Rohan smiles softly, as now he finally knows the name of one of the unknown four students. He nods his head, as he seems to now be more relaxed, for the boy's kindness had eased him from an otherwise stressful encounter.
He softly responds, his voice more soothing as it's calmed, "I understand, no worries! Nice to meet you too, and sorry if I act weird, this is my first day here."
Shuraj chuckles softly, and he leans back before asking, "Isn't it the first day for us all?"
Rohan lowers his head in embarrassment as he nearly forgets, as his cheeks redden. He quickly responds quietly, "Oh yeah, good point, never mind."
Although, while he does show embarrassment, he no longer feels the same hostility as before, and he's no longer anxious when standing by the table. He feels more at ease, able to banter back and forth with this 'Shuraj' boy, to which he hopes that he'd be able to do such with the other students of the group.
While at first he had told himself that he wouldn't need friends for this college, and he really wouldn't as they'd only be an activity that'd take time from work, part of him felt a desire to stay and talk with them. Part of him was happy to be accepted, as he wanted to stay with them. Even if it's just for this one meal, he greatly appreciates it, as it makes for a nice first day.
Ari walks over to Ara on the other side of the table, and as he does he tells Rohan, "Go ahead and grab a seat. There's enough space for everyone. We'll probably find a better table another day."
Rohan raises his head up to Ari after hearing him speak, and he nods his head as he watches Ari take a seat next to his brother. He then turns back to Shuraj, and walks over to him before taking a seat next to him. He places his tray in front of himself and begins picking the salad with his fork, ready to eat.
However, before he does, he lifts his head back up to look at the group, recognizing that he still didn't know anyone else. He decided to ask early, as he was already feeling confident, and didn't want to wait until the window would close.
And so he asks in a friendly and calm voice, "So, what are your names?"
The short kid on the other side of the table speaks up first, his voice gentle yet energetic reflecting his youthful appearance, "My name is Vrey, hello."
The larger and more muscular student on the same bench as Rohan speaks next, introducing himself with a deep and serious voice, especially deep for a freshman, "Name's Sriya."
Finally, the brother of Ari speaks, greeting with "We did talk in the morning, cool to see you again. I'm Ara by the way if you don't remember, even though uh, Ari already said that."
Rohan turns to Ara, and he nods his head, saying "I remember, I sort of mistook your brother for you actually."
Shuraj chuckles from the mistake, and he advises Rohan, "Ara has a slightly different hair style than Ari, that's how I tell the difference. If they one day chose to switch hairstyles, I think we'd all be done for."
Rohan smiles, and he too had noticed that slight difference, and he too understood just how easy it would be to lose such a precious indication. He is able to feel some relatability with Shuraj after hearing that statement, helping him feel more comfortable with the group, especially after they all introduced themselves to him, as now he knows who they are.
However, his string of thoughts are interrupted by the voice of his brother, which comes from behind him, as he hears the familiar voice greet, "Hi, sorry I took so long."
Rohan turns around to see Dexter behind him, holding a tray of his own filled with stacks of bread and potato fries sitting over a series of cooked ribs, far more food than Rohan could see himself getting. He smiles and shakes his head, assuring "Don't worry, you're all good. You can sit next to me."
Dexter nods his head, and he walks next to Rohan, and takes a seat on the bench next to him. He then proceeds to begin eating his bread, seeming hungry from the long day and especially their sprint to the hall.
Ara notices Dexter's entrance, and he asks him, "You're Rohan's brother, right? I think I saw you earlier."
Dexter takes a bite from his bread before looking up at Ara, and pausing for a moment, confused. He then remembers, and nods his head, answering "Yeah, Ara, was it? I'm Dexter. Nice to meet you."
Ara smiles and nods his head, responding with "Nice to meet you too."
Rohan takes a bite of his ribs, and then turns to Shuraj, as he had the instant desire to connect to the group as best he could, seeing it as his golden opportunity to integrate into a friend group so early.
He asks, "So, what major are you in?"
Shuraj turns to Rohan after taking a bite out of the cake he picked up from the pastry section. He answers, "Computer Science, you?"
Rohan's eyes light up in surprise, and his voice raises as he exclaims, "Wait, really? Same!"
The other four in the group all turn to Rohan at once with surprise at the answer, and Rohan turns to them, confused by the sudden reaction.
He nervously laughs, asking in a much lower tone, "Uh...did I say something...wrong?"
Ari shakes his head, smiling brightly, as he says, "No, not at all. It's just that, well, all of us are doing computer science. So that means we're all going to be taking the same classes!"
Rohan smiles even more now as his eyes widen once more, and he puts his fork down, as though no longer occupied with his food. He asks with excitement, needing confirmation, "Really? Wow, that's perfect! We could definitely work together!"
Ara responds first, agreeing "Exactly, and we can do so much more! Wow, well it looks like Ari picked out the perfect person to sit with us."
Ari shrugs his shoulders, and he simply says "He was the one who started talking to me, praise him."
He then returns to eating, as he had the burger on his plate waiting for him.
Rohan smiles as he looks at the group as a whole, now knowing there was potential for them to be in a way his college family, and he was now even more excited to start his journey.
Dexter watches the conversation from behind, and he smiles softly, happy that Rohan had seemed to effortlessly find a group. He then turns to his own food, frowning slightly, as he knew he was still stuck at square one.
He wouldn't leave now as it would be awkward, but he knew that he wouldn't fit into the group due to the fact that he just wasn't going to be with them as much, and he would have to quickly find his own place before it felt like he was overstaying.