Chapter Text
Toni tried to kick all the dirt off from her tattered vans onto the doormat below. Trekking mud into shared accommodation is hardly a great ‘nice to meet you’ statement. Then again, she didn’t really believe the introduction would be nice by any means.
First day of college. She willed herself to feel the excitement she knew she should.
Hand on the door she edged it open, barely managing to maintain her grasp on the one gym bag stuffed with every belonging she possessed.
“Oh silly! Let me help you with that!”
She steeled her gaze as her ears were bombarded with the deepest Southern twang her Minnesotan ass had ever heard.
“I’m good.” Toni kept her gaze firmly on the floor and noted the heels- God damn pink heels - that the girl wore.
Fuck.
“We were just leavin’!” A man’s voice with an equally stomach-churning twang called out. “Don’t have too much fun Shelbs, and remember, if I can’t be there to answer your call and hear you then-”
"God always can!”
Oh, fuck my life with a chainsaw.
Toni looked up just fast enough to catch the two blonde adults waltzing out of the room. With a huff, she threw the bag under the empty bed on the right, jumped onto it, and closed her eyes. She was rooming with a Stepford housewife.
“Do you want some help with your other stuff ‘nd all?”
Though her eyes were shut they rolled at the fake ass sentiment of help.
“This is my stuff.”
“I mean your other stuff like your blankets and whatnot, or are your parents bringing it up?”
Nope. Not today.
Toni opened her bag, grabbed a caramel denim jacket, and put her headphones on as she walked straight back out that haunted passage to the underworld. Everything was perfectly fricken splendid.
Food. Food would cure this. She rattled the change in her pocket as she stared up at the burger stand, her eyes watering at that unholy student pricing.
“And what can I get you, mam?”
“Mam.” Toni scoffed.
“Yeah, you don’t look much like a ‘Mam’ but company policy and all. What will it be?”
Toni might just like this girl. Her cargo shorts screamed ‘are these company policy or am I a massive lez?’ “Fries will do.”
“Fries it is.” She handed the greasy portion of potatoes to the girl and wiped her brow. “I’m Dot by the way.”
“Toni.”
The brunette wandered aimlessly for thirty minutes, telling herself she was exploring when, well, she was totally bloody lost. Her feet burned from the worn soles on her boots in this crazy Californian heat and suddenly her scholarship wasn’t the golden ticket out of her hell hole of a life they’d made it sound to be.
As she rounded back her eyes laid upon the entirely packed food court, her mind summing up if it was worth sitting among the masses or hiding behind a tree. Gaze settling upon the now cold potatoes in front of her she looked for a space in the zoo of college animals.
“Shit.” Mumbling under her breath Toni sat her ass down firmly in the only available seat next to some high school cheerleader looking bimbo who sat with the smallest portion of salad known to man.
The girl looked up, momentarily meeting her gaze with a furrowed brow and confusion that all too quickly turned into some freakily over-exaggerated smile.
“And here I was thinking you hated me.”
Oh dear Lord, not that southern voice. Shit, why didn’t I look at the girl back in the room? Fricken karma man.
“No free seats.” She proceeded to stuff the grimly cool fries into her mouth as fast as humanly possible.
The blonde looked around as pain clouded her vision before, oh, there it was again, that prize-winning smile.
“I see.”
Toni pushed the last chip into her mouth and stood, a lanky body hitting into the back of her with force. “Fuck, watch where the fuck you’re going!”
“Toni?”
She looked up and met the smug smile of her ex-girlfriend. “Fatin? See you took the leap at Cali too.”
“Eh, good ball scholarships. As long as you’re not captain again all will be well.”
Toni punched her in the arm. “Seriously when the hell did you decide you were coming up here?”
“Saw your ass on the recruitment page and decided I may as well follow a pal. Plus it’s tanning season and I’ve met at least 5 boys I’d like to meet real personally. Let them show me around perhaps.”
“Ah yes, the guided tour of Fatin’s vagina.”
“Shut the hell up dude. Accurate though.”
Toni had once tried to hold Fatin down in a relationship. It lasted all of two weeks before they broke up. Though, they were freshly out sixteen-year-olds and knew few other queer people, cementing their bond as ‘we used to fuck’ pals. One odd perk to the queer community was befriending an ex here and there, uniting them into your gay ass troop.
“Have you met your roommate yet? Is she hot?” A wink was shot in Toni’s direction as the girl sitting next to them- apparently eavesdropping- stood up.
“Hey! I’m Shelby Goodkind!” A Hand was shoved in Fatin’s direction.
She returned the shake before turning to Toni.
“If you need to get away you’re welcome to crash in my bed Shalifoe.”
Before Shelby could get too offended the girl darted, following in the trail of some attractive frat bro.
Toni took that as her getaway cue also, leaving to try and suss out her class schedule for tomorrow:
Anatomy with Dr. Patel Room 2 A East Wing
Biology with Dr. Foster Room 18 D East Wing
Basketball with Coach Treyan in the Trevor MConna Sports Hall
Not too bad. I’ll have plenty of time to chill before ball practice.
As she opened the door she took a breath in knowing the girl couldn’t have beat her pace back. Then again perhaps demons could teleport. She shuddered at the prospect.
Toni unzipped her bag and unpacked her few CD’s. The clothing she folded and neatly packed into draws before chucking her tattered teddy on her bed, under the covers away from prying eyes. Tonight she’d grab her textbooks. With what they’d cost her she’d be burning them for fire after leaving this place as the things had left her entirely broke until that next scholarship deposit came in.
Shaking her jacket off she stared down at a crumpled photo before sitting that in her top draw also.
Two draws. Toni Shalifoe could fit her life into two small ass draws. Now that’s some real minimalist living shit right there. She was ready for that tiny house life instagrammer’s swooned over. Sign me the hell up.
Two girls stood giggling in the hallway, the brunette shoved her headphones on and turned her music on full, rolling over and zoning out from those who wished to disturb her peace. Shelby. The name bit at her tongue and she groaned. Of course. Because her life hadn’t been shitty enough without the presence of some bible bashing southerner.
Toni didn’t normally care about religion. But white Christian southerners didn’t normally live up to the true components of Christianity. Most of them preached hate, violence against those who didn’t fit their ideals. They were modern-day colonizers. Everyone needed to conform to them or be wrong, have their rights or lives torn away; a fact Toni had dealt with too many times to count as one of few out kids. Luckily her town was pretty Left-wing.
Fuck that. Toni was awesome. Gay people are awesome, and they’re loved by anyone who has spent enough time reading, learning, and absorbing other values to leave their bigoted mindset behind. Toni’s mom was always left-wing. Though then again, she’d have agreed with anyone right-wing with enough booze or drugs in her system.
Come 5 pm She rolled over and sat on the edge of her bed, palms rubbing her eyes as she tried to wake up. Plane trips weren’t kind to anyone.
As the blur from her vision eased her roommate came into view. A tentative wave passed her way. The girl was yet to prove she was an ass. A wave back, however? Too inviting.
A barely registrable nod was passed back in Shelby’s direction as Toni gathered her stuff into her jacket pockets and left.
“Your books aren’t in.”
“What does that fucking mean?”
“Shockingly? It means your books aren’t in. Come Back in one weeks time, we have a slight delay on a handful of the med student's textbooks. They’ll be here soon though.”
“I need them tomorrow damn it! What the fuck am I supposed to do?”
“I’d say make friends but that doesn’t really feel like your vibe.”
Toni read the name badge of the girl in front of her. “Well… Leah, that’s unhelpful as shit.”
She whirled and intentionally knocked over the counter display as she left, willing anyone to try her.
Leah passed a look to the tall guy who stood next to her. “Well, I’m certainly not cleaning that up. I’m taking my break.”
“But we don’t get breaks h-”
Toni Swung the door open in rage throwing her stuff to her bed. “Fuck!”
“I take it the Lord hasn’t been kind to you today?”
Toni scoffed. “No the lord put me on a spit roast as a kid and let me live my life in fucking flames. ‘The Lord’. Fucking hell.”
“Whatever it is we don’t need to cuss about it.”
Toni grabbed a marker from her pencil case and began to draw a line on the carpet.
“That’s school property! What in the Lord's heavens are you playing at!”
“Stay on your side.” Toni made sure the line started at the wall and trailed to the door. “Everything stays on your side. Your voice, your Jesus spiel, your shit, EVERYTHING. Got it bible girl?”
“But-”
“But I literally don’t give a shit.”
“I was just gonna say the shower is on my side. I don’t want to assume how you like to live but I’m guessing you probably don’t want to stink the dorm out like meat in 100-degree heat.”
Toni groaned and reached for her phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Leaving.”
Once again slamming the door, she sunk down against the wall outside and started to count back from 100 as she called Fatin.
“Please pick up. Fuuuuck.”
“Hello hoe, you’ve reached the phone of this cool bitch.”
“Ugh, can I stay with you? Please. Justforlikeonenight.” She rushed the words out.
“Sure texting you my room details now.”
“And your roommates cool with it yeah?”
“Nora, you cool with a friend crashing here for one night? She’s escaping the devil.”
A laugh was followed by ‘Sure thing.’ in the distance.
Handily Fatin’s roommate Nora was bi, and more than understood the need for a night's stay in their room away from that whole mess. Toni curled up on the floor after realizing Fatin’s extravagant limbs in a single bed didn’t leave room for herself. This would be a long ass year.