You Play the Field - I Play the Strings

Chapter 1

I find my dorm room already open and sigh. The roommate is already here. He better be nice and not annoying. Please don't be a smelly jock. What if he's hot? I can't crush on my roommate. I had taken an hour out of my day to take that stupid roommate quiz so hopefully I'm stuck with some sort of music nerd or just somebody who is into the arts.

I push open the door the rest of the way and take a look around. Finding the empty bed I set my stuff down getting a grunt from someone else in the room. I turn, finding what I assume is my roommate. His shoulder's broad and his arms very muscular. He's a jock. Damn it.

I look up and over his face. He's got a very defined jawline with straight black hair that at the moment made him look like he had just woken up. I want to to touch it. His eyes are way to fucking pretty. They're dark blue, very narrow and menacing and he's got a short stubble coming in that he made look really well.

"Are you going to introducer yourself?" He asks his voice gruff. He definitely just woke up. "Why don't you introduce yourself?" I ask crossing my arms. He smirks at my response and stands revealing his height which is a solid four or five inches taller than me. I refuse to show him how intimidated I am though. That'll just egg him on more. "Conner".

"Okay... my name is Callum but most call me Cal". He seems to think this over his eyes taking in every little thing about me.

"Callum? Your parents mustn't have liked you much" he chuckles. I roll my eyes not taking the middle school insult.

"Yeah um fuck you..." I uncross my arms as he just stares me down. I don't say anything else and instead pull the rest of my stuff into the room and towards my bed, placing my guitar on my bed carefully.

"You know you really shouldn't be trying to fight your roommate the first day in. This is going to be a long year if you do." I get a groan in return and turn around to see what's making him so upset.

"Please tell me you're not a band nerd" he sighs before motioning towards the case on my bed.

"Not really I just play acoustic guitar. Not like some huge nerd about it though" I don't bother watching his reaction and go back to unpacking my clothes, setting things in the dresser next to my tiny bed. I can already tell this is going to be a half and half thing. My half and his half.

I let my eyes wander to his side already seeing the pictures of him and sports teams. A poster of some football player and a flag of some kind. Once again probably a sport.

"Just don't play when I'm in here it's going to be annoying and I won't be able to focus". I freeze and stand from where I was shoving my shirts into a drawer.

"Dude I will play when I want. I like to play so I'm going to play. If you're studying for something then I'll be nice. I wasn't planning on just loudly playing to annoy you" I tell him. His face turns to one of irritation and I smile to myself.

"You seem to already be annoying me" he whispers. I pretend not to hear it instead I just finish silently before leaving our room. With my practically dead phone in my pocket I hurry down the the hall and soon the stairs, flopping down onto the couch in the common room.

Taking my phone out of my pocket I quickly go to my contacts and with a sigh call my mother. Yes going to straight to mom. I'm a mommy's boy. The phone rings and rings before finally she answers.

"Sweetheart! You landed alright? Are you at the dorms?" Of course. I was expecting this. Still I chuckle into the phone.

"Hi Mama. I made it alright. Um just unpacked in the dorm... I..." I trail off unsure on how to tell her.

"Callum what's wrong?" She asks and I move a hand to my knee squeezing it until my nails are able to ground me.

"I don't think I can do this... my roommate is already being a jackass. It was my first time leaving the fucking state and now all of sudden I have to go a whole year without you guys" I start to rant but I'm quickly interrupted by my mother.

"Sweetie you know we are going to come visit-" I can't take the lie. I tried to convince myself beforehand but it's not going to work this time.

"Mama you know we don't have the money for that- just don't lie to me anymore... I know. I don't think I can do this... I'll just come home and get a job" I explain as it goes silent on the other end.

"Mama"

"Callum you can't... we need the money. You promised you'd go through with it. Get your degree- chemical engineering. Then you'll come home get a good job and we can finally strive. Do this for us sweetheart. Please we need you. We won't survive without you" she begs into the phone. I rub my eyes before nodding to myself.

"Yeah- okay... I'm sorry I'm just stressed". I try to think of my father and brother. For them.

"It's okay sweetheart. Just try to see if you can switch rooms" she tells me and I sit up suddenly.

"Yeah. I can do that. Thanks mama. I'll call you later tell dad and Emery that I love them. I love you too" I tell her listening to her bustle aorund. I can hear my little brother running around as well and it makes me smile. I almost ask her if I can speak to him, but I know it's a waste of time.

"Of course. I love you too Callum. You got this sweetheart. Bye bye"

"Bye"

Her side goes silent and I watch my phone die literally seconds later. I just need to find my sort of people. Find a group to fit in with.

Hopefully it is easier than back home. Flying from Texas to Oregon for this stupid school just because it was the school that basically got me in for free. I was always known as the fat poor kid. 'How on earth could I be fat when I don't have money for food'. I got endless teasing for that.

I'm chubby. God I'm reminded all the time. My thighs are too big my stomach is pudgy and my cheeks puff out in what my old schoolmates would say is a permanent pout. Or when my teachers told me to stop hiding behind my hair. 'You can't hide ugly' is what my fellow students would chime in with.

I wrap one arm around my stomach my other going to pull at my long black curly hair. It went everywhere and I found it uncontrollable. My eyes a deep blue, something I share with my father. There's also these two moles I have on my throat that I use to love. Mama would tell me I was kissed by angels, but them some kid brought it up back home and they made jokes out of it. 'Only kiss I'll ever get'. 'Nobody but an Angel will kiss me and that's if I'm lucky'.

I reach up to run my hand over the moles and then go back to grabbing my phone. I should probably go back and charge it. Grabbing the hair tie off of my wrist I pull my loose curls back and up into a messy ponytail many strands falling out and framing my face.

I take the stairs again and slowly walk back into our room the door left open and Conner laying on the bed still his phone in front of him. I go straight to my side and grab my charger from my bag, plugging that in and then my phone.

With nothing else to do I get on my newly made bed and start to fidget with my instrument case. After thinking about it for a minute or two I give in and open the case up pulling my guitar out. I fidget with the strings working on tuning my guitar. I don't make it very far when Conner sits up with a huff.

"Really? Not going to be annoying?" He mocks my earlier words and I set the guritar back down with a sigh. I'm choosing to ignore the comment.

"I assume you play sports, probably football. Anything else?" I ask changing the subject to something he'll like.

"Yeah just football" he answers civilly.

"Do you do any sports? Professionally or for fun?" He asks turning and putting his feet on the floor. I wrap my arms around my stomach with a soft laugh. "Do I look like I do sports" I joke using a hand to gesture at my physique. He tilts his head to the side still staring straight at me.

"What do looks have to do with sports?"