I entered Mary's room and was alarmed to find it empty. All her things were still here which was reassuring, but I still felt uneasy. I spotted my shift leader and inquired about Mary, trying to not sound as nervous as I felt.
    "Oh, her daughter came and got her for the weekend," Latoya said calmly, giving me a caring smile. "She'll be back before your next shift, don't worry."
    "Thanks," I said, feeling my body relax. In this field, sometimes an empty room is a bad sign, especially for residents with more serious health conditions. I don't know her official diagnosis, but I know she's being treated for some form of cancer. She seems so happy and healthy, even when she's getting her treatments, that it's sometimes hard to remember that she's as sick as she really is. Seeing that empty room gave me a harsh reminder of the reality of her situation. I'm so thankful that she's alright. Actually, the fact that she's off the premises and with her family for the weekend is a very positive sign for how her treatment is going. That puts me back in my positive mood. I may not be able to see her today, but knowing she's alright is good enough for me.
------    
    "I'm off," I announce, walking out of the staff room.
    "Alright, Demian, see you on Wednesday. Thanks again for working late today," Latoya shouts from down the hall. I toss my dirty scrubs into the laundry bin and punch out for the day. I make my way to the parking lot and quickly spot my car. It stands out, with its rusty frame and peeling dark blue paint in stark contrast to the newer model vehicles that most of the staff have. It may not be a new car, but I'm proud of it. It took a lot of hard work for me to afford to buy a vehicle. I started working part-time at 17. My first car only lasted a year until the transmission died, but the time I owned it gave me the ability to work in the city which had better job options than in Deskus. After graduating high school, I spent a few years working double shifts almost daily until I finally had enough saved up to go to college without worrying about working full-time hours as a student. Someday I'll have to get another car, but for now I'm happy with what I have.
    As I drive out of the lot my cell dings and lights up, indicating I have a new message. I wait until a red light to check it.
    <I'll be at the dorms in 5 minutes. Sorry for running late>
    Shit, I forgot Adrian was coming over. I pull off to the side of the road and send a quick reply.
    <It's fine. I'm not back yet>
    My phone dings before I even put it down.
    <Want me to grab you a coffee?>
    That surprised me.
    <Sure. Iced mocha swirl, extra extra with whipped cream>
    <Got it!>
    
    


    Walking up to the dorms, I see Adrian standing there holding two cups. I honestly didn't believe he'd bring me one, but as he hands the cup over I can see it's exactly what I'd asked for. They'd even added some chocolate drizzle over the whipped cream.  "Thanks."
    "I didn't expect you to have such a sweet-tooth," he said quietly, giving me a shy grin as I let us in to the building.
    I shrug. "I like sweets," I stated simply, examining the drink before hesitantly taking a sip. Isaac says this guy doesn't have a mean bone in his body, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and believe that there isn't something wrong with the drink, like someone spitting in it or something gross like that. I grimace at the thought, looking into the cup again. I don't see anything but perfect swirls of chocolate drizzle and a slight line through the cream from where I moved my straw.
    "I-Is it not good?"
    I look over to see Adrian warily watching me examine my drink, his mouth tugging down, his bottom lip between his teeth.
    "No, it's good."
    He seems to relax after I said that, and we make our way to my room without further conversation.
    Once we're set up, we quickly get to work and the only sound in the room is the clicking of keys.
    "How does this look?" Adrian asks, turning his laptop to face me. I read over the paragraph he's been working on and point out a sentence that doesn't seem to fit correctly. He nods at my critique and bites his lip before deleting the line and typing again.
    Instead of a zombie story, we've managed to turn our project into almost a documentary of how zombies came to be. I have to admit, I thought it was ingenious when Adrian suggested that take, and not only because I hated the idea of writing about people being chased and bitten by the living dead. It's creative enough of an idea that I feel we'll get a decent grade, even if it's likely not what Ms. Sumner is expecting us to turn in.
    Isaac comes in a bit before 5pm, startling Adrian. I hold back a smile when I see him jump in his seat.
    "Adrian, my man, welcome back!" Isaac says, patting him on the shoulder. He vaguely resembles an owl, sitting there with his eyes wide, barely blinking.
    "Ah um, y- hello, Isaac," Adrian stutters after a moment, his head sharply turning to face the floor.
    "Dems, do you know where my black gym bag went?"
    I sigh and stand up. By now I've learned that it's easier for me to grab it for him than to go through the process of explaining where it is, only to have to grab it for him anyway more often than not. He shoots me a lopsided grin and takes the bag, tossing it over his shoulder.
    "Thanks man. Dunno what I'd do without ya," he laughs. "I'll be back in like an hour. Wanna order take out from the cafe? I want chicken."
    I shrug, turning to face Adrian. "Chicken?"
    "Huh? Uh, um," he stutters, looking up at me then off to the side. "Y-you don't have to f-feed me."
    Sighing, I glance back at my roommate. "Chicken," I nod.
    "Sweet! I'll order, you get it from the door yeah?"
    I nod again and he leaves the room, shouting that he'll text me when it's ready so I can meet the delivery guy at the door.
    "You guys seem close," Adrian almost inaudibly whispers.
    I suppose he and I are close. After things went down with James and Ashley, I really didn't bother getting close to anyone again. I pretty much ignored and avoided Isaac for the first few weeks, but it gets difficult when you share a room. He'd heard all the rumors and one day he cornered me, stared me dead in the eye, and asked why I was avoiding him and if the rumors were true. First, I didn't think he'd believe me, so I didn't really answer with much more than a 'no' and saying I just don't like being around people, which he seemed to accept. He then probed deeper and asked if I'd really hit my ex girlfriend. At the time I was still really sore about Ashley, and hearing him call her my ex...it didn't go over well with me. I'd replied 'She's not my ex. I'm gay, and I never hit her.' He took a step back from me and his expression looked pensive. It occurred to me that he might not like having a gay roommate, even if he believed what I said, but he surprised me by holding out his hand and saying 'I believe you. Name's Isaac. Wanna get pizza?'
    I shrug at Adrian, feeling my lip curl upwards into a half smile. "I guess we are."
    He smiles at that, and I felt that flutter in my chest again. He really has a cute face.
    We go back to working on the paper. With how close we are to the final draft, there is the need for an increase in communication between us again. As we banter back and forth about the right way to finalize the story, it's obvious to me that something has changed. I wouldn't go so far as to say that we're on friendly terms, but things are noticeably less awkward between us right now. By the time Isaac texts me, we're just editing for punctuation and spelling mistakes.
    "I'll go home for dinner," Adrian says, gathering his things and following me out of the room. I almost want to ask him to stay because it's so refreshing to be around someone other than Isaac who doesn't treat me like I'm terrifying scum.
    "Okay," I say instead.
    When we exit the building he's approached by someone who works in the campus kitchen.
    "Here's your order of chicken," the guy states, shoving boxes towards Adrian.
    "O-oh, I - uh, it's not my-" he stumbles over his words before pointing over towards me. "I-It's Demian's order."
    The guy glances warily over at me as I walk closer, then looks back at Adrian before turning to me and handing over the boxes.
    "I need you to sign here," he says, keeping his eyes turned away from me. I sign the paper, feeling peeved as he grabs the clipboard back the moment I finish my signature, hops on his delivery bike, and leaves, glancing over his shoulder at least three times before he gets around the first bend. I scowl in the direction he'd left, feeling my jaw tense.
    "I-It was nice working with you."
    I blink in surprise, not realizing Adrian was still standing there. His head is slightly down-turned, but I can see a faint blush on his cheeks. His comment caught me off guard and in the time it took for me to register what he'd said, he'd already started walking away.
    "You too," I manage to state, and he freezes. Glancing briefly over his shoulder he gives me a tiny wave, a small smile on his face. 
    "S-see you tomorrow," he quietly says before continuing on the path to the parking lot.
    I watch him leave, feeling a bit of my anger from the encounter with the delivery guy leaving with him.