Hot guy tilts his chin down, really hitting me hard with the full force of his fantastic bone structure. “I’m Zarar, Zarar Jafri. Did you just arrive?”

“Wow, full-naming it. I’m Jamie. James George Federov for long, apparently the last student of life to arrive this session.”

He studies me. “Your eyes are … captivating.”

I waggle my brows. “I see you’re single.” I shoot him a smile before standing up. “I’m not here for that, but it was great meeting ya, I’ll see you in class.” I step out of the boat and shove my bag over my shoulder. “Peace.”

“Wait—”

I start toward the cabins. “Don’t worry. I’ll face this way so you don’t trip over my eyes on the way out.”

The words CABIN TEN are carved into the wood beside the flimsy screen door of my assigned house. I throw that open to get to the plain brown one behind it, and use my key to get inside.

Cabin ten is one room. There’s a window on the far wall allowing a flood of gray decaying light to fall across the wooden floor. A single bunk is on the right wall with a desk underneath it where a bottom bunk would be. A small old-fashioned lamp with an on/off beaded string sits on the desk. A green yoga mat is unfurled across the floor along the left wall.

“Wow, roughing it.” I chuck my bag near the yoga mat, take a seat at the desk, and exhale. “What now?”

I flip open the journal Terry gave me and click on a pen.

Really thought we’d have roommates. Looks like I’ll have to leave the cabin in search of human interaction. =P

I close the notebook and stick my head outside. It’s getting dark, but the trail along the cabins is lit up every five feet or so. All is quiet. I drag the desk chair out the door and set up camp outside for a bit.

It takes five minutes, but eventually we have liftoff. There’s a girl headed in my direction, about a hundred feet down the trail with a towel and a shower caddy. I duck back into the room and emerge a minute later in flip-flops with a towel over my shoulder and a Ziploc full of shower tools just as she’s approaching my new abode.

“Hey hey hey! I’m Jamie!” I skip onto the trail. The girl’s eyes widen a bit as I fall into step beside her, but it looks like she’ll tolerate my presence. She has dark skin and long braids tied back in a low ponytail. “How’s it going?”

“It’s going,” she answers with a wry smile. “I’m Thalia.”