The creaking sound of the door opening made the three of them instantly stop talking, their eyes focusing on the belated roommate at the door.
In the lower bunk closest to the door, a dark-skinned, muscular guy built like a tank reacted fastest, hopping off the bed and reaching Ethan in just a few steps.
With a familiar enthusiastic smile on his face, he couldn't help but take Ethan's backpack: "Bro! You made it! Last day of check-in—we thought we'd be stuck with just three in 208! Rough trip, right?"
Ethan's eyes fell on this face full of enthusiasm with a bit of a Southern accent, his pupils suddenly contracted, and he blurted out: "Holy shit! Marcus? What are you doing here?"
Then he subconsciously swept his gaze toward the other two—the tall, calm guy on the upper bunk by the window, and the guy on the lower bunk in back with an urban trendy style... Kevin? Derek?
Ethan was completely stunned!
His brain went blank in an instant!
A huge sense of absurdity and temporal confusion washed over him.
How could it be them?
These were his three roommates from his previous life in college! But in this life, he'd obviously applied to NYU, and they should have met at a completely different university in his previous life!
Could it be that the butterfly effect brought about by his rebirth had so mysteriously entangled the threads of fate again?
Marcus was startled by Ethan's reaction, touched the back of his head, looking blank and shocked: "Uh! Bro... dude? Do you know me? And you know my name's Marcus? How... why wouldn't I be here?"
He was completely confused.
Ethan suddenly snapped back to reality, realized his slip-up, quickly suppressed the storm raging in his heart, and changed to a natural smile to cover it up: "Haha, just messing with you! Isn't there a roster posted by the RA's door? Marcus, Kevin, Derek—I saw it all! First time here, just trying to break the ice!"
Marcus suddenly understood and slapped his thigh: "Damn! You scared me! I thought I'd met my long-lost brother!"
He laughed heartily and officially introduced himself, "Let me introduce myself properly! My name is Marcus, I'm from Georgia—ever heard of Southern hospitality? Climbing mountains ain't no problem for me!"
He patted his chest.
Then he pointed to the tall guy on the bed by the window: "This is Derek, straight-up Midwest boy! From Ohio!"
Derek smiled and leaned halfway out of his bunk, waving with a friendly Midwestern accent: "Hey man, welcome to 208! From now on, we're family—anything comes up, we got each other's backs!"
Before Marcus could introduce the last one, the stylishly dressed guy in the lower bunk had already energetically flipped over and jumped off his bed.
He was about 5'9", fair-skinned, wearing trendy brands, sporting a flashy G-Shock on his wrist, his hair styled with careful texture, his whole person radiating urban sophistication.
He walked up to Ethan, looked him up and down first, then exaggeratedly covered his chest and made a heartbroken expression: "It's over! I originally thought that with my model-like image, the throne of 208's most eligible bachelor was secure! But then you showed up, bro, and your looks are literally maxed out! I can only tearfully accept second place!"
He extended his hand, but with a genuine smile on his face: "Hey! My name's Kevin Park, born and raised right here in New York!"
Ethan reached out to shake his hand and joked: "Hey there, K-Park!"
"K-Park?" Kevin paused for a moment, then laughed: "Haha, that nickname's kinda fire! Alright, I'll take it!"
Ethan introduced himself casually: "Hey, I'm Ethan Miller, from LA."
Ethan raised an eyebrow and smiled. His three roommates from his previous life had reunited with him in this one.
His beautiful college life was officially kicking off!
Meanwhile, inside the girls' residence hall.
Ashley quietly organized her desk, her movements unhurried, with a unique cool rhythm.
Her roommate Rachel was sitting cross-legged on her bed, chin propped in her hands, looking at Ashley's perfect profile and aloof temperament with an almost artistic appreciation.
"Ashley, you're so gorgeous, let me tell you—when classes officially start, those guys in the classroom will definitely be like flies... ahem, I mean like bees seeing a flower, buzzing around you! But don't worry! From today on, I, Rachel, am your chief bodyguard and spokesperson! Those annoying admirers, I'll help you block them all!"
When Ashley heard this, she just paused what he was doing, turned his head toward Rachel and curved the corners of his mouth lightly and politely, but didn't respond.
This distant politeness added a bit of untouchable coolness.
As soon as Rachel finished saying this, her phone "dinged," alerting her to new activity on Twitter.
She immediately picked it up and looked—it turned out someone had argued with her point of view under a social news post she'd just commented on.
Rachel instantly entered combat mode, her eyebrows rising: "Oh! You dare to come at me!"
Her fingers flew like lightning across the screen, almost a blur, the tapping sound crackling in the air, her words sharp, her logic meticulous (in her own opinion), instantly "demolishing" the other person's arguments completely.
Like a first-generation Twitter "keyboard warrior," a fighter who never gave an inch on the online debate battlefield!
"KO!" Rachel flipped her hair proudly, as if she'd won a tough battle.
Still not satisfied, she clicked on the NYU Campus Forum app and scrolled through with great interest.
"Let me see what's new on campus today... Huh? Why is there one person all over the feed?"
She saw the forum homepage—trending posts, hot topics pinned at the top—eight out of ten titles all had the same name: "Ethan Miller!" The content was variations of:
"OMG! Perfect SAT scorer Ethan Miller spotted! He's so hot!"
"[Pics or it didn't happen] Saw the perfect scorer driving an Audi A4 to check in! Two gorgeous girls suspected in the back seat!"
"Anyone know which building Business 208 is in? Waiting online, urgent!"
"Rational discussion: Is freshman Ethan Miller's looks + IQ + family background the ceiling of NYU's new generation?"
Rachel sneered and said, "Please~ they're hyping him to heaven! What 'highest score in history and so handsome it's unfair'? These people on the forum make a big deal out of everything—they're definitely exaggerating! Probably some nerdy guy with glasses who the student council's propping up for enrollment PR!"
Another roommate, Grace, poked her head up—she was applying a face mask, and her voice was a bit muffled: "It's probably true though. The sophomore who posted is a student council member responsible for freshman registration! She must've seen Ethan Miller in person! She's got high standards, and for her to post three updates in a row marveling about how 'hot' he is, he's definitely actually hot!"
There are 120 advance chapters ahead in my Patreon. If you are interested can check it out.
patreon.com/B_A_3439