the blog name says it all, really

just... robots... pretending to be.. not robots.. it's complicated (aka i started an rp tumblr to mess around with friends)

[mel-does-roleplaying]

i had to pass another recaptcha test for this... *sighs* the things i do for roleplay

[mel-does-roleplaying]

tumblr keeps telling me i have notifications here, and then won't tell me oN WHAT??? apparently something i did at some point is doing something, but the activity panel is just blank... sighs thanks guys, whatever it is you're doing, sadly i'll never know

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. ‘Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

‘Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

‘Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. ‘So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

‘My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. ‘The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

‘Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. ‘But only ‘cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. ‘And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

'It’s nice to meet you too,’ Niv’s mom smiled, 'I hope you and Niv will become great friends! S-seeing as his last roommate was… Well.’

'The absolute worst, you’re allowed to say that, mom,’ Niv snorted, 'Sunni called him way worse, remember?’

Siri laughed softly, putting Niv’s bag down. 'O-oh, yes, I remember that! Your dad and I still don’t know where she learned those words.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Biting back a laugh, Mel’s glance flickered between the two Larsons. “That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure I can do better than 'the absolute worst’, but I suppose time will tell.”

His gaze dropped to the bag she was holding, holding out his hand. “Shall I take that for you?”

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'O-oh, yes, thank you,’ Siri smiled, handing the bag over to her son’s roommate - before glancing at her watch. 'Niv, sweetie, are you gonna be okay…? I promised your dad I would be home in time to taste his and Helene’s homemade dinner.’

Niv chuckled, quickly hugging his mother, as tight as possible. 'Of course, momma. You’ll… You’ll visit soon, right? With dad and Helene?’

'Don’t worry, we will,’ Siri gently kissed his forehead, before letting go. 'I love you, pumpkin. Don’t forget to have fun.’

'I won’t,’ Niv smiled - Siri waved at him, before turning to Mel. 'And please take good care of yourself, Mel, have a great year.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“I will, thank you!” Mel shifted his grip on the bag to wave at Niv’s mother, watching her leave before turning back to the room. After a moment’s pause he caught sight of where Niv had set down the rest of his luggage, and he put the bag beside it.

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Thanks,’ Niv smiled softly, 'so… Yeah. My mom - you can expect her to call many times and invite you to dinner if we become friends. Well, that is if you have room for another friend; I’m pretty certain I do, people- um. People don’t really like me that often.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel’s eyes widened slightly. Stars, he’s moving fast– if only my last roommate had been so easy to befriend. “Uhh- yeah, yeah of course!” he responded, trying not to stumble over his words. Is this really a good idea? What if he finds out–

Shoving aside the intrusive thoughts, Mel mirrored Niv’s smile. “In my experience, being roommates with a friend is a lot better than being roommates with an acquaintance. So yeah, we can totally be friends.”

Yup, you’ve done it. You’ve sealed your own fate, Mel. Suffer the consequences.

He swallowed nervously, moving towards his bed and beginning to unfold the sheets. As he stuffed the pillow into its pillowcase with meticulous carelessness, he canted his head to one side in feigned nonchalance. “So uhm… what do you do in your free time?”

[mona-does-rp]

'I read a lot and bingewatch Netflix,’ Niv chuckled, 'oh, and me and my sisters play a lot of chess, but that was during break. My oldest sister is somewhere in this building too, but our youngest is still at home, sooo… Im pretty skilled if you ever wanna do chess with someone!’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The biology student bit back a laugh. “Chess, huh? I’m afraid I won’t put up much more of a fight than your average online simulator, but if you don’t mind winning effortlessly we can always try.”

He straightened out his sheets before sitting down on the bed, leaning back as he studied Niv once more. “So you have two sisters? Would that make you the middle child?”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv shook his head. 'No, I’m the oldest. My sister, Sunniva, is four years younger than me and Helene was born when I was, like, fourteen. I dunno why my parents waited that long to have her, but hey, they can be pretty stupid sometimes, so it’s pretty in character for them. What about you? Got any siblings?’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel restrained a chuckle at the way Niv spoke about his parents, shaking his head in amusement. "Nope," he answered the other's question, "it's... just me."

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. ‘Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

‘Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

‘Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. ‘So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

‘My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. ‘The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

‘Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. ‘But only ‘cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. ‘And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

'It’s nice to meet you too,’ Niv’s mom smiled, 'I hope you and Niv will become great friends! S-seeing as his last roommate was… Well.’

'The absolute worst, you’re allowed to say that, mom,’ Niv snorted, 'Sunni called him way worse, remember?’

Siri laughed softly, putting Niv’s bag down. 'O-oh, yes, I remember that! Your dad and I still don’t know where she learned those words.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Biting back a laugh, Mel’s glance flickered between the two Larsons. “That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure I can do better than 'the absolute worst’, but I suppose time will tell.”

His gaze dropped to the bag she was holding, holding out his hand. “Shall I take that for you?”

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'O-oh, yes, thank you,’ Siri smiled, handing the bag over to her son’s roommate - before glancing at her watch. 'Niv, sweetie, are you gonna be okay…? I promised your dad I would be home in time to taste his and Helene’s homemade dinner.’

Niv chuckled, quickly hugging his mother, as tight as possible. 'Of course, momma. You’ll… You’ll visit soon, right? With dad and Helene?’

'Don’t worry, we will,’ Siri gently kissed his forehead, before letting go. 'I love you, pumpkin. Don’t forget to have fun.’

'I won’t,’ Niv smiled - Siri waved at him, before turning to Mel. 'And please take good care of yourself, Mel, have a great year.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“I will, thank you!” Mel shifted his grip on the bag to wave at Niv’s mother, watching her leave before turning back to the room. After a moment’s pause he caught sight of where Niv had set down the rest of his luggage, and he put the bag beside it.

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Thanks,’ Niv smiled softly, 'so… Yeah. My mom - you can expect her to call many times and invite you to dinner if we become friends. Well, that is if you have room for another friend; I’m pretty certain I do, people- um. People don’t really like me that often.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel’s eyes widened slightly. Stars, he’s moving fast– if only my last roommate had been so easy to befriend. “Uhh- yeah, yeah of course!” he responded, trying not to stumble over his words. Is this really a good idea? What if he finds out–

Shoving aside the intrusive thoughts, Mel mirrored Niv’s smile. “In my experience, being roommates with a friend is a lot better than being roommates with an acquaintance. So yeah, we can totally be friends.”

Yup, you’ve done it. You’ve sealed your own fate, Mel. Suffer the consequences.

He swallowed nervously, moving towards his bed and beginning to unfold the sheets. As he stuffed the pillow into its pillowcase with meticulous carelessness, he canted his head to one side in feigned nonchalance. “So uhm… what do you do in your free time?”

[mona-does-rp]

'I read a lot and bingewatch Netflix,’ Niv chuckled, 'oh, and me and my sisters play a lot of chess, but that was during break. My oldest sister is somewhere in this building too, but our youngest is still at home, sooo… Im pretty skilled if you ever wanna do chess with someone!’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The biology student bit back a laugh. “Chess, huh? I’m afraid I won’t put up much more of a fight than your average online simulator, but if you don’t mind winning effortlessly we can always try.”

He straightened out his sheets before sitting down on the bed, leaning back as he studied Niv once more. “So you have two sisters? Would that make you the middle child?”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv shook his head. 'No, I’m the oldest. My sister, Sunniva, is four years younger than me and Helene was born when I was, like, fourteen. I dunno why my parents waited that long to have her, but hey, they can be pretty stupid sometimes, so it’s pretty in character for them. What about you? Got any siblings?’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel sighed. "Nope, just me." He paused for a moment, biting his lip awkwardly. "At least... from what I know. I... it's complicated."

He stared in the distance for a moment, and then snapped up, smiling as though nothing had happened. "Anyway, I should get some studying done before tomorrow. If you need anything let me know, I guess?" He began to dig through his bag, re-emerging with two textbooks which he set down on the desk.

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. ‘Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

‘Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

‘Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. ‘So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

‘My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. ‘The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

‘Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. ‘But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

'It’s nice to meet you too,’ Niv’s mom smiled, 'I hope you and Niv will become great friends! S-seeing as his last roommate was… Well.’

'The absolute worst, you’re allowed to say that, mom,’ Niv snorted, 'Sunni called him way worse, remember?’

Siri laughed softly, putting Niv’s bag down. 'O-oh, yes, I remember that! Your dad and I still don’t know where she learned those words.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Biting back a laugh, Mel’s glance flickered between the two Larsons. “That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure I can do better than 'the absolute worst’, but I suppose time will tell.”

His gaze dropped to the bag she was holding, holding out his hand. “Shall I take that for you?”

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'O-oh, yes, thank you,’ Siri smiled, handing the bag over to her son’s roommate - before glancing at her watch. 'Niv, sweetie, are you gonna be okay…? I promised your dad I would be home in time to taste his and Helene’s homemade dinner.’

Niv chuckled, quickly hugging his mother, as tight as possible. 'Of course, momma. You’ll… You’ll visit soon, right? With dad and Helene?’

'Don’t worry, we will,’ Siri gently kissed his forehead, before letting go. 'I love you, pumpkin. Don’t forget to have fun.’

'I won’t,’ Niv smiled - Siri waved at him, before turning to Mel. 'And please take good care of yourself, Mel, have a great year.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“I will, thank you!” Mel shifted his grip on the bag to wave at Niv’s mother, watching her leave before turning back to the room. After a moment’s pause he caught sight of where Niv had set down the rest of his luggage, and he put the bag beside it.

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Thanks,’ Niv smiled softly, 'so… Yeah. My mom - you can expect her to call many times and invite you to dinner if we become friends. Well, that is if you have room for another friend; I’m pretty certain I do, people- um. People don’t really like me that often.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel’s eyes widened slightly. Stars, he’s moving fast– if only my last roommate had been so easy to befriend. “Uhh- yeah, yeah of course!” he responded, trying not to stumble over his words. Is this really a good idea? What if he finds out–

Shoving aside the intrusive thoughts, Mel mirrored Niv’s smile. “In my experience, being roommates with a friend is a lot better than being roommates with an acquaintance. So yeah, we can totally be friends.”

Yup, you’ve done it. You’ve sealed your own fate, Mel. Suffer the consequences.

He swallowed nervously, moving towards his bed and beginning to unfold the sheets. As he stuffed the pillow into its pillowcase with meticulous carelessness, he canted his head to one side in feigned nonchalance. “So uhm… what do you do in your free time?”

[mona-does-rp]

'I read a lot and bingewatch Netflix,’ Niv chuckled, 'oh, and me and my sisters play a lot of chess, but that was during break. My oldest sister is somewhere in this building too, but our youngest is still at home, sooo… Im pretty skilled if you ever wanna do chess with someone!’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The biology student bit back a laugh. "Chess, huh? I'm afraid I won't put up much more of a fight than your average online simulator, but if you don't mind winning effortlessly we can always try."

He straightened out his sheets before sitting down on the bed, leaning back as he studied Niv once more. "So you have two sisters? Would that make you the middle child?"

[per4mancecheck]

hello :)

would you be so kind as to list 5 things that make you happy then ask the last 10 people who reblogged your posts to do the same so we spread some positivity

please and thank you <3

Omg froggy yes!!!

Five Things that Make Me Happy

Hot chocolate. I didn’t drink it much as a kid because one time my mom made it with water I thought it was gross but when I learned that people made it with milk I instantly loved it. 🥰

Taking walks even in my neighborhood.

Singing 🎶 obviously. I love the high fast stuff the most

The Race to the Edge musical episode Tone Death!!! 🐉🎶 I know some fans really didn’t like it but I really do! The scuttlebutt around tumblr before it aired sounded fake to me so I had completely forgotten about it until Hiccup started singing and you can fuckin bet I screamed like a person who is not well. 😆 aside from the music which is fun, the Deathsong is my favorite dragon so it was great to meet Garf. Plus Hiccup invents the dragon blade in that episode which was always my fave of his inventions. AND you have Astrid doing standup comedy?! Amazing. It never fails to make me smile.

Getting on this website and making meaningful connections with fellow fans!!! 🥰

Thanks, small frog!!

Tag, you’re it!

@velociraptoraddict

@thegroundhogdidit

@dragonnnfly

@telescopes-for-cats

@higginsdoolittle

@herpderpdoctor

@hiccuphitdabong

@dotted-half-note

@animate-mush

And because it wouldn’t let me tag someone and because you so kindly started this game, @smallfrogpleasedtomeetyou ! 🥰

[dragonnnfly]

Ohhhh! Fun!

Reading, wether it’s fanfics, e-books, or physical books 📖. I find it relaxing and honestly sometimes I can’t put it down, I get sucked into that world I’m reading about.

Watching my regulars/mutuals interact with my posts🥹 I love all of you so much!

My dog being the silly little boy that he is.

Sour candy! Fight me, it hits just the right spot every time.

Baking. Though I don’t do it as often as I used to. I lost a lot of weight and I enjoy baking cookies and muffins, so I don’t want to gain the weight back by eating too much of it, so when I do make it I give most of it to my family and friends, and honestly it’s such a joy seeing their faces when I do😌

@ryupioupiou @wickedcriminal @evilwriter37 @rosiethedragongeek @howtodrawyourdragon @jgvfhl @literallyjustanerd @artinandwritin @howtotrainyourdragongirl @lilliths-httyd-blog

Go at it you beautiful people

[artinandwritin]

Oh this is so cute!! I absolutely love this idea!

My mom and maternal grandparents. Out of my entire family, I love hanging out with and being around them the most. They're the most loving and amazing people in my life and I can't be more grateful for them <3

HTTYD. This has been my comfort franchise for actual years and I always return to it with so much happiness. It was a great comfort to me in a lot of ways and it sparked my creativity by making me create my two little beans, Siri and Niv, and their family and such. It's just such a joy.

Looking at the world through the lens of an artist. I love how the world just looks so much more magical when you see it from a detailed perspective. Every little branch!!! Every little cloud!!! Every little human!!! Is just so magic!!! It's all here and it's all for us to see!!!

Reading. I don't really have the time to read currently, but when I do I just find myself being sucked into the story on the page. With this, I'll also add writing cuz that brings me joy.

Hugs. I just really love getting hugs, it's nice to hug the people you love <3

And now for the tags!!!

@mel-does-roleplaying

@allilcat

@dragonery

@rosebelikov

@dinochickrox

@lt-catbolt

@naathanuwu

@rosiethedragongeek

@memequeen-aka-eclipse

@crunchsoup

[mel-does-roleplaying]

awhhh look at all those wholesome things--

tempted to answer this one in character since this is an rp account, but luckily most of the things that make me happy overlap anyway so I don't even have to hehe

1: mUSIC-- it may sound silly, but music is my life. it drags me away to faraway worlds of dreams and disasters, and a day without some good tunes is a tragic day indeed. I love learning about other people's music tastes too and discovering new music, so if you have a song you really like always feel free to send it over!

2, Family & Friends-- I mayy be a bit of an introvert, but being around the right people is one of the surest ways to brighten my day. I'm very lucky to be surrounded by some amazing people in my life at the moment, and I cherish them greatly <3

3. Writing-- getting stuff onto a page is another way I process things and live out the craziest alternate universes, and writing is something I really am passionate about. Writing brings me much pain, but nevertheless the joy it brings always seems out to weigh out the balance enough that I keep going

4; ART-- kind of ties back into writing, really, but drawing comfort characters? always a great solution to most of my problems. much serotonin (bonus points if other people obsess over the comfort characters/art with me)

5... little things-- a cup of hot chocolate, a pretty flower, a shiny rock-- there's too many little things to name them all. A friendly comment on a post or video. An excited reblog from a mutual or even a complete stranger. A smile from a stranger in the passages. A random act of kindness can go a long way, cheesy as it may sound.

As for the reblogs-- I uhm... this account hasn't... really been reblogged much since it's an rp account? @mona-does-rp if you feel like doing it again you're more than welcome to heh. And if not I'm sure the love will be spread in other directions, keep up the positivity y'all <3

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. ‘Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

‘Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

‘Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. ‘So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

‘My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. ‘The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

'It’s nice to meet you too,’ Niv’s mom smiled, 'I hope you and Niv will become great friends! S-seeing as his last roommate was… Well.’

'The absolute worst, you’re allowed to say that, mom,’ Niv snorted, 'Sunni called him way worse, remember?’

Siri laughed softly, putting Niv’s bag down. 'O-oh, yes, I remember that! Your dad and I still don’t know where she learned those words.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Biting back a laugh, Mel’s glance flickered between the two Larsons. “That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure I can do better than 'the absolute worst’, but I suppose time will tell.”

His gaze dropped to the bag she was holding, holding out his hand. “Shall I take that for you?”

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'O-oh, yes, thank you,’ Siri smiled, handing the bag over to her son’s roommate - before glancing at her watch. 'Niv, sweetie, are you gonna be okay…? I promised your dad I would be home in time to taste his and Helene’s homemade dinner.’

Niv chuckled, quickly hugging his mother, as tight as possible. 'Of course, momma. You’ll… You’ll visit soon, right? With dad and Helene?’

'Don’t worry, we will,’ Siri gently kissed his forehead, before letting go. 'I love you, pumpkin. Don’t forget to have fun.’

'I won’t,’ Niv smiled - Siri waved at him, before turning to Mel. 'And please take good care of yourself, Mel, have a great year.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“I will, thank you!” Mel shifted his grip on the bag to wave at Niv’s mother, watching her leave before turning back to the room. After a moment’s pause he caught sight of where Niv had set down the rest of his luggage, and he put the bag beside it.

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Thanks,’ Niv smiled softly, 'so… Yeah. My mom - you can expect her to call many times and invite you to dinner if we become friends. Well, that is if you have room for another friend; I’m pretty certain I do, people- um. People don’t really like me that often.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel's eyes widened slightly. Stars, he's moving fast-- if only my last roommate had been so easy to befriend. "Uhh- yeah, yeah of course!" he responded, trying not to stumble over his words. Is this really a good idea? What if he finds out--

Shoving aside the intrusive thoughts, Mel mirrored Niv's smile. "In my experience, being roommates with a friend is a lot better than being roommates with an acquaintance. So yeah, we can totally be friends."

Yup, you've done it. You've sealed your own fate, Mel. Suffer the consequences.

He swallowed nervously, moving towards his bed and beginning to unfold the sheets. As he stuffed the pillow into its pillowcase with meticulous carelessness, he canted his head to one side in feigned nonchalance. "So uhm... what do you do in your free time?"

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. ‘Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

‘Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

‘Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. ‘So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

'It’s nice to meet you too,’ Niv’s mom smiled, 'I hope you and Niv will become great friends! S-seeing as his last roommate was… Well.’

'The absolute worst, you’re allowed to say that, mom,’ Niv snorted, 'Sunni called him way worse, remember?’

Siri laughed softly, putting Niv’s bag down. 'O-oh, yes, I remember that! Your dad and I still don’t know where she learned those words.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Biting back a laugh, Mel’s glance flickered between the two Larsons. “That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure I can do better than 'the absolute worst’, but I suppose time will tell.”

His gaze dropped to the bag she was holding, holding out his hand. “Shall I take that for you?”

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'O-oh, yes, thank you,’ Siri smiled, handing the bag over to her son’s roommate - before glancing at her watch. 'Niv, sweetie, are you gonna be okay…? I promised your dad I would be home in time to taste his and Helene’s homemade dinner.’

Niv chuckled, quickly hugging his mother, as tight as possible. 'Of course, momma. You’ll… You’ll visit soon, right? With dad and Helene?’

'Don’t worry, we will,’ Siri gently kissed his forehead, before letting go. 'I love you, pumpkin. Don’t forget to have fun.’

'I won’t,’ Niv smiled - Siri waved at him, before turning to Mel. 'And please take good care of yourself, Mel, have a great year.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

"I will, thank you!" Mel shifted his grip on the bag to wave at Niv's mother, watching her leave before turning back to the room. After a moment's pause he caught sight of where Niv had set down the rest of his luggage, and he put the bag beside it.

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. ‘Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

‘Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

'It’s nice to meet you too,’ Niv’s mom smiled, 'I hope you and Niv will become great friends! S-seeing as his last roommate was… Well.’

'The absolute worst, you’re allowed to say that, mom,’ Niv snorted, 'Sunni called him way worse, remember?’

Siri laughed softly, putting Niv’s bag down. 'O-oh, yes, I remember that! Your dad and I still don’t know where she learned those words.’

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Biting back a laugh, Mel’s glance flickered between the two Larsons. “That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure I can do better than 'the absolute worst', but I suppose time will tell.”

His gaze dropped to the bag she was holding, holding out his hand. “Shall I take that for you?”

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. ‘It fries my brain.’

‘Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'H-hi, this is Niv’s room, right? He forgot one of his bags from our car-’

Niv shot up as he heard his mom’s voice, rushing to the door to greet her. 'Hi mom!’

A smile appeared on Siri’s face. 'I-I’ve got your bag, dear.’

Niv nodded, before turning to Mel. 'This is my mom, she’s really nice. And makes great food!’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel had stepped aside as his roommate sprinted up to the door, and now smiled fondly at what he assumed to be Mrs Larson. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” he beamed, straightening his shoulders respectfully as he addressed her, “my name’s Mel, I’m Niv’s roommate this year.”

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. ‘I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean… just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that…” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean… I know I can come off as a little… odd… sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back– accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

'I’m not really a rumour guy, don’t worry,’ Niv cracked a soft smile, 'it’s more likely people make rumours about me than that I make rumours about others. Kinda don’t like them, ya see? I-’

A knock on the door made him perk up.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel’s hand dropped back to his side as his gaze shot to the door. “I’ll get it,” he spoke quickly, conjuring up a friendly smile in preparation as he strode up to the door. He swung the door open in one fluid motion, leaning against the frame casually as he greeted the person beyond.

“What can I do for you?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. ‘If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

‘She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. 'I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So… do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV;

The young man thought for a moment. 'Well, as long as you don’t do weed or something like that, I’m fine. Oh, and you should probably know that my parents love to call me at random times, so if im ever not around and the phone goes, you can take it. And… What about you? Any boundaries?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Not really,” Melatron hummed, deciding he was satisfied and tossing the cloth back into the bucket. Dusting his hands off, he pursed his lips thoughtfully. “I mean... just don’t be a jerk, I guess? I tend to go to bed pretty late, so let me know if I’m keeping you up or something. Other than that...” He rubbed the back of his neck pensively, his eyes drifting to the ceiling. “I mean... I know I can come off as a little... odd... sometimes, so if something confuses you, please just ask.” He smiled awkwardly, laughing away his nerves. “I’d rather you risk offending me than you starting rumours about me behind my back-- accidentally or otherwise.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

‘It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, ‘and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. 'If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

'She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. 'I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life… interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true– life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'That’s one way to put it,’ Niv shrugged, 'life is pretty interesting. Mainly cuz there’s so many different… Types of lives people live. It’s fun.’

He grabbed his backpack, glancing around. 'Do you want the top or bottom bed?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

“Either is fine,” Mel responded, shutting off the tap and slinging the bucket out of the sink. “I’ll take the top one if you don’t have a preference.”

After tossing some soap into the bucket and stirring it around a bit, Mel dipped a cloth into the suds, wringing it out thoroughly before beginning to wipe off the windowsill and other surfaces. He stuck out his tongue in disgust at the amount of black dust that clung to the fabric, rinsing out the cloth repeatedly as he worked his way slowly around the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Niv claiming one of the beds.

“So... do we need to set any ground rules?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. ‘My brother is named Niv.’

'It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, 'and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. 'If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

'She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. 'I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

'Vikings, I guess,’ Niv answered, sitting down on the lower bunkbed and leaned back on his hands. 'But only 'cuz my dad and aunt and uncle kept telling stories about how the village we come from descends from them. We’re from Norway, by the way. That would probably make it make more sense.’

He yawned slightly. 'And you? What do you study?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

Mel paused, setting aside the broom as he finished with the ceiling. “Biology,” he answered after a moment’s thoughtful pause, before moving to search the cleaning closet and re-emerging with a bucket and cloth. He set the bucket under the tap, turning to face his roommate arms-crossed as he leaned against the wall, waiting for it to fill up. “Life... interests me, I suppose. Plus there’s a lot to learn about, and plenty of job opportunities.” It was a standardized lie, one he’d perfected over the past few years. Perhaps it came to naturally because it was partially true-- life did interest him, just not for the reasons people usually assumed it did.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, ‘I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

‘Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. 'My brother is named Niv.’

'It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, 'and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. 'If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

'She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. 'I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then– although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning– these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Niv POV

Niv nodded a bit, glancing around for a spot to dump his things. Eventually, he just decided to put them on the lower bunkbed, before turning to Mel.

'My name’s Niv. Uh, Larson. I’m starting my fourth year in the history course,’ he quickly introduced himself, pushing his glasses higher up his nose. 'The room… Looks clean. More clean than the last one I had, tho. My last roommate liked to smoke weed and invite every girl that interested him to smoke weed as well. This is a total upgrade.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

A short laugh escaped Mel at the other’s remarks. “I suppose any room would look clean in comparison.”

He picked up the broom, twirling it idly as he looked up to see which parts of the ceiling still needed cleaning. Spotting one last cobweb to his right, he reached up to sweep it into the broom. “So, history huh? Got any particular time periods that interest you?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. ‘Right?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, 'I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

'Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. 'My brother is named Niv.’

'It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, 'and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. 'If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

'She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. 'I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s– eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed– even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window… yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink– thank the stars – which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Niv POV

Struggling with the door for a moment - damn, this was one heck of an old building, he kept forgetting that - Niv was finally able to force it open. The sight he was met with, however, made him stumble back a bit.

A young man, standing on the top bed of their bunks, holding a broom tightly in his hands as he stared at Niv. A bit… Weird. Yeah. Weird.

'Um, hi?’ Niv tried to greet, awkwardly moving his hands around and bouncing on his heels. He glanced around, not knowing what to say. 'So… Roommate?’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Mel POV

For a moment longer Mel stood frozen, taking in the newcomer in a split-second analysis: dark curls reaching down to their shoulders, glasses perched precariously on the tip of their nose, their sun-tanned skin darkened by the bags under their eyes. Said eyes seemed dull with exhaustion, and the flecked green bore a mixture of demurral and awkwardness. A typical tired college student, then-- although there definitely was something fascinating about the air with which they carried themselves.

Satisfied, Mel slid off the bed in one fluent gesture, landing gracefully on his feet with only the slightest bounce as he hit the floor. Setting aside the cleaning supplies for the moment, he extended his hand towards the young man in the doorway. Halfway through the gesture he thought better of it, realizing his hand was coated in cobwebs and muddy dust, so he stuck it into his pocket instead.

“Heya, I’m Mel, nice t’ meet ya,” he beamed, rubbing the back of his neck with his less-grimy hand, “don’t mind the dust, I was doing some cleaning-- these rooms tend to be about as clean as the inside of a trash can at the beginning of the year, so I usually do some of my own cleaning before I move in.”

He gestured vaguely to the room. “Feel free to put your stuff down somewhere so long though, I’ll try to make it quick.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

The First Days of College

*Niv POV*

His hands in his pockets and his favourite music on way too loud, Niv walked behind his mother and little sister towards the college he had been going to for, what, two - maybe three - years. The summer holiday had ended way too soon and he hadn’t truly been ready to say goodbye to his homelife yet.

Certainly not knowing he would be getting a new roommate.

‘Niv?’ his mother - Siri Larson - called out, having stopped walking so her oldest child could catch up. ‘Are you okay, pumpkin?’

Niv shrugged, noticing his sister roll her eyes. ’M'fine,’ he said, pulling off his headphones and glancing down at his mom. ‘Just… A bit sad that dad an’ Helene couldn’t come with us.’

Siri nodded slowly, taking a deep breath as she grabbed his hand. ‘O-oh, I know, honey. I’ll have your dad call you when I get home, okay?’

‘Okay,’ Niv muttered, squeezing her hand tightly.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Just as Niv was about to sink back into the comfort of his music, he was nigh-bulldozered by what could only have been a titan-class dragon– except it wasn’t  a titan-sized dragon, it was a 5ft-something black-haired girl. With a sharp exclamation of surprise, she grabbed Niv’s wrist to make sure he didn’t topple over. She hastily stammered an apology, letting go as soon as she’d ascertained that he was standing on his own two feet again.

“I’m so sorry–” she apologized, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, “I wasn’t looking where I was going, and I think I’m late, and– do you happen to know where I can find dorm 42B?”

@mona-does-rp

[artinandwritin]

Quickly pulling his arm back, rubbing his wrist - damn, the girl was pretty strong - Niv wanted to react. However, his mother reacted a bit faster. ‘That’s the same dorm my daughter is going to stay in,’ she smiled, putting a hand on Sunniva’s shoulder. ‘Right, dear?’

‘Yeah,’ Sunniva muttered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face and pushing her glasses a bit further up her nose. She glanced Jazz over from head to toe, a frown appearing on her face. ‘I hope the dorm is big enough for us both.’

Niv cringed silently at the young girl’s comment, knowing she didn’t have the best social skills. This was probably her trying.

A nervous laugh escaped Siri, and she gently squeezed her daughter’s shoulder - when her phone rang in a strange tune. A groan escaped her as she picked it up. ‘Hi- yes. Yes, love, we’ve arrived-’

Niv chuckled as his mother took a few steps away from the trio to - apparently - calm her husband down over the phone, before looking over at Sunniva and the new girl. ‘So, is this your first year?’ he asked the latter, crossing his arms over his chest.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The girl’s eyes flickered between Niv and his sister, seeming to study them both for a moment before snapping out of her trance. “Hmm–? Oh, yeah, I’m freshman in Criminology.” She let her gaze wander back to Sunniva, inspecting her future roommate. Unfortunately, Niv wasn’t able to read her conclusions from her neutral expression. “What about you two?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

‘History, I’m starting my final year. She’s doing biology, first year,’ Niv answered, glancing down at his sister. 'Right?’

'Yeah,’ Sunni nodded slowly, 'I like how plants grow. I wish I were one sometimes. My dad made me a flower costume when I was six, but it was really ugly.’

'Oh, yeah, I remember that.’ Niv grinned to himself, not really understanding how she jumped from biology to their dad’s stupid costumes, but it seemed pretty logical for her.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

The stranger chuckled, tucking a rebellious strand of hair away behind her ear. “Heh, so long as you don’t turn into an evil flower.”

She held out a hand toward Sunni, beaming a smile. “I’m Jazz, by the way– I guess we’re gonna be roommates, huh?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'I guess so. I’m Sunniva,’ the blonde said as she took Jazz’ hand, shaking it slightly. 'My brother is named Niv.’

'It’s nice to meet you,’ Niv grinned slightly, 'and 42B is in that building there, I’ll be staying there too. But, in a different dorm, of course. I think you’ll like it here, Jazz - there’s a lot of stuff to do.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

Jazz’s smile widened somewhat. “Awh, thanks, I hope I’ll like it here too.” She drew back her hand, sticking it into one of the pockets in her jeans. “Well, I’d better get going– I guess I’ll see ya in a minute, Sunniva? Unless you wanna come along straight away.” @mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva glanced back at Niv, who grinned ever so slightly as he pointed at his mother - who was still wrapped up in a heated phone call with her husband about who knows what. 'If mom’s okay with it, you can go ahead.’

'She’s too busy listening to dad being stupid. I think she’ll catch up to me later,’ Sunni said, before turning to Jazz. 'I can come with you. As long as you aren’t too loud all the time.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Sounds like a plan!” Jazz grinned, before faltering into a confused frown. “Wait, was I being loud? I hadn’t realized I was being loud, sorry about that.”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

'No, but I can’t handle a lot of noise,’ Sunniva explained, fiddling with a bracelet she was wearing. 'It fries my brain.’

'Yeah, our dad and sister always forget that’s a thing,’ Niv commented, shaking his head slightly. 'Anyway, you two have fun, I’ll just wait here for mom.’

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

“Ah… that makes sense,” Jazz hummed, “I’ll bear it in mind! And if I get too loud without realizing, feel free to just… I dunno, punch me or something.” She chuckled light-heartedly, gesturing over her shoulder with her thumb. “Shall we go, then?”

@mona-does-rp

[mona-does-rp]

Sunniva nodded, before walking towards the building Niv had pointed to, leading the way. Her brother waved as the two girls left, before turning to his mother and tapping her shoulder.

'Hey, I’m gonna put away my stuff. I’ll see you in a bit?’

Looking up from her frantic conversation with her husband, Siri smiled softly at her son, whispering; Y-yes, go ahead! This is gonna take a while, your dad forgot how the microwave works again.’

Niv chuckled, before kissing his mom’s cheek and walking towards the building as well with a few of his bags.

@mel-does-roleplaying

[mel-does-roleplaying]

He paused for a moment in front of the large doors, taking a slow breath. Time to find out who he’d be stuck with this year. It couldn’t possibly be worse than his roommate last year, right?

Right? ~ g a s p ~ it’s a perspective switch! *MEL POV*

The room was exactly like last year’s-- eerily so, in fact. The bunk bed was tucked away beside the same dirty window, the closets were just as creaky, the drawers just as jammed-- even the old mirror atop the splintering dresser was cracked in the same corner, although the jagged shards cut through it ever so slightly different.

Mel set down his two bags in the least-cobwebbed corner of the room, surveying the scene with his hands on his hips. It would need some work, but with a little love he’d be able to make it home. If he started with the cobwebs and some dusting, maybe aired out the place a bit and scrubbed the window... yeah. Yeah, it would work out.

It would have to.

He hummed a melody to himself as began searching the room for something to clean with. The room itself wasn’t large, but it came equipped with its own sink-- thank the stars -- which meant that if he could just find a bucket, or maybe a broom, he could get to work. After some digging around (and nearly tearing the doorknob off of a particularly stubborn closet door) he managed to find a duster, and decided to start with that.

He had just perched himself on top of the still-empty bunk bed to reach the webs dangling from the ceiling, when the sound of footsteps in the passage carried to his ears. He paused, paying no heed to the small spider that gratefully sprinted towards the window in the moment’s respite. It wasn’t the first set of footsteps that had wandered past his room, since plenty of students were moving into their dorms today, but he still preferred to be prepared. Sure enough, these footsteps halted in front of the door, and Mel lowered his arm to stabilize himself atop the bed as he glued his gaze to the entrance in curiosity.

@mona-does-rp