𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋𝐒 [a rini au]

TWENTY-FOUR

What Ricky didn't anticipate when he arrived at Kingston Hall was his inability to get in.

Guards posted up at every dorm at seven in the morning as well as seven at night, and if you didn't live in a certain dorm, you would not be able to get in during that restricted period. He figured most of the students attending this party were Kingston natives, but at the same time, he had no idea how any girls were getting into that fortress at this hour. But, as Ricky arrived to the terrifyingly tall building, he spotted some girls sneaking around to the back. That was when it hit him. Well, more like when he remembered.

I can't, Ricky thought to himself as he reluctantly traveled to the rear of the dormitory. I literally cannot. When he rounded the building's back corner, almost every first floor bedroom window was open. There were girls and guys climbing through them, just as Ricky recalled Nini doing a few weeks ago when he first "formally" met her. The boy was almost shaking at the sight, a blizzard of possible scenarios whirling through his mind. But you made it this far. You can't go back now.

Ricky practically held his breath as he joined a random line of kids piling into one of the windows. He was bumped and nudged by various strangers, some of them already tipsy. By time Ricky got to the front of the window, he was regretting everything. He was frozen in front of the ledge, contemplating his entire existence as he delicately placed his hands on the wall. "C'mon, bro!" someone behind him whisper-yelled, giving Ricky a shove. "Move it!"

The boy would've let the push topple him over if it weren't for his rigid nerves. Instead, Ricky ducked, slinging one of his long legs into the room. He snaked through the small space, catching his left foot on the ledge which caused him to smack face first into the wooden floor. He shook his foot free as quickly as he could, propping onto his hands and knees so he could stand up. When he rose, Ricky's brow knitted. The room was entirely empty.

Ricky stood mindlessly for a few moments, taking in the blank scene that he didn't know how to process. Soon, he heard rustling behind him, and he turned around subtly to see another boy emerging from the outside. The kid, a dirty blond with a borderline unibrow, shot Ricky a befuddled glare as he brushed dirt off of his jeans. "All good, man?" he asked passive-aggressively.

Ricky didn't want to appear clueless, but his puzzled stance inevitably gave him away. "I, uh, I'm new," he timidly admitted, grabbing onto his songwriting book in his hoodie pocket for a sense of comfort. "I'm not really sure where I'm supposed to go."

The blond put a hand on Ricky's shoulder. "I gotchu," he sort of slurred that phrase, and Ricky confirmed he was drunk by the sudden stumble in his step. "Follow me."

Ricky trailed the kid as he headed towards the room's door. They walked out and made their way towards the nearest stairwell. "You can't party on the first floor," the makeshift tour guide explained as he held the stairwell door open for Ricky. "Guard will bust you for excessive noise immediately. No one patrols on the top floor, so that's always where people go."

Ricky nodded in understanding, even though the blond couldn't see him. Ricky followed him up the flights until they reached the top floor, the kid pushing the door open for him again. The second they stepped foot on the eighth floor, Ricky was body checked with party life. There were too many songs blaring from random rooms, Ricky unable to differentiate between the melodies. People weaved in and out of rooms, but rarely did anyone linger in the hallway. Ricky figured it had to serve as extra protection from possibly getting caught, but he didn't think that was too wise considering how loud everyone already pounded their feet as they moved between rooms.

"Find a room!" the blond leading Ricky yelled back to him, the boy eventually peeling off to the right and following a girl into the nearest door.