FAKE Ficlet: Freshman
Title: Freshman
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Bikky.
Rating: G
Setting: Not long after Like Like Love.
Summary: Bikky is off to college in California for his freshman year.
Written For: The dw100 prompt ‘Fresh Start’
Word Count: 580
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
Another fresh start; Bikky wondered if that was just the way life went. He and his dad had started over in a new place after his mom died, then after his dad was murdered, Bikky had made another new start when Ryo took him in. Now here he was, California bound, about to start on the next stage of his life as a college student. It was exciting, but a bit scary too; he wouldn’t know anyone there, and he’d be at the other end of the country from Ryo and everything familiar. He already felt a bit homesick.
Still, he wasn’t a kid anymore, he was eighteen, and Ryo was just a phone call away if Bikky needed him. So was Carol. It was a double wrench leaving both of the most important people in his life back in New York, but he was chasing his dream of a basketball career, and he knew both his foster father and his best girl were rooting for him. Carol was still living with her aunt, and Ryo would be moving in with the perv in just over a week, so he didn’t have to worry about either of them and could concentrate on adjusting to college life. He could do this; he was ready.
The flight was blessedly uneventful; he stayed in his seat, watching the in-flight movie, then listening to music over his headphones as he stared out the window, glad that Ryo had been able to book him a window seat. He liked flying, enjoyed looking at the world in miniature far below, and almost before he knew it the plane was coming in to land at LAX.
Juggling his bags, he made his way out of the airport into bright sunlight. Ryo had made arrangements with the college for someone to pick him up, so he didn’t have to find a taxi, and he climbed aboard a minibus with several other new students, settling in for the long drive. L.A. was even more spread out than New York.
Arriving at the college, there seemed to be hundreds of other new students, all of them looking as lost as he felt, milling round, checking in, getting assigned to dorm rooms, and signing up for classes. The next few hours were a bit of a blur, involving a lot of standing in queues, filling in paperwork, and signing his name, but eventually he made his way to his assigned dorm, located his room, and found the rest of his luggage was already there. So was a pile of stuff that presumably belonged to whoever he’d be sharing the room with, although whoever that was, it looked like they hadn’t arrived yet.
Tired though he was after a long day made even longer by travelling between time zones, Bikky unpacked all the bags and boxes, putting everything away, and then made up his bed. Ryo had taught him well, and by the time he was done, his familiar belongings arrayed around him, the place looked much more homely. He’d find out where everything was first thing tomorrow; he had a whole day to get acclimatised and find his way round before classes started. The campus was huge so it was probably a good thing he’d brought his rollerblades with him; he’d be able to get around a lot faster with them. Leaning on the windowsill, he stared out at the unfamiliar view and smiled to himself; his adventures were just beginning.
The End
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Bikky.
Rating: G
Setting: Not long after Like Like Love.
Summary: Bikky is off to college in California for his freshman year.
Written For: The dw100 prompt ‘Fresh Start’
Word Count: 580
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
Another fresh start; Bikky wondered if that was just the way life went. He and his dad had started over in a new place after his mom died, then after his dad was murdered, Bikky had made another new start when Ryo took him in. Now here he was, California bound, about to start on the next stage of his life as a college student. It was exciting, but a bit scary too; he wouldn’t know anyone there, and he’d be at the other end of the country from Ryo and everything familiar. He already felt a bit homesick.
Still, he wasn’t a kid anymore, he was eighteen, and Ryo was just a phone call away if Bikky needed him. So was Carol. It was a double wrench leaving both of the most important people in his life back in New York, but he was chasing his dream of a basketball career, and he knew both his foster father and his best girl were rooting for him. Carol was still living with her aunt, and Ryo would be moving in with the perv in just over a week, so he didn’t have to worry about either of them and could concentrate on adjusting to college life. He could do this; he was ready.
The flight was blessedly uneventful; he stayed in his seat, watching the in-flight movie, then listening to music over his headphones as he stared out the window, glad that Ryo had been able to book him a window seat. He liked flying, enjoyed looking at the world in miniature far below, and almost before he knew it the plane was coming in to land at LAX.
Juggling his bags, he made his way out of the airport into bright sunlight. Ryo had made arrangements with the college for someone to pick him up, so he didn’t have to find a taxi, and he climbed aboard a minibus with several other new students, settling in for the long drive. L.A. was even more spread out than New York.
Arriving at the college, there seemed to be hundreds of other new students, all of them looking as lost as he felt, milling round, checking in, getting assigned to dorm rooms, and signing up for classes. The next few hours were a bit of a blur, involving a lot of standing in queues, filling in paperwork, and signing his name, but eventually he made his way to his assigned dorm, located his room, and found the rest of his luggage was already there. So was a pile of stuff that presumably belonged to whoever he’d be sharing the room with, although whoever that was, it looked like they hadn’t arrived yet.
Tired though he was after a long day made even longer by travelling between time zones, Bikky unpacked all the bags and boxes, putting everything away, and then made up his bed. Ryo had taught him well, and by the time he was done, his familiar belongings arrayed around him, the place looked much more homely. He’d find out where everything was first thing tomorrow; he had a whole day to get acclimatised and find his way round before classes started. The campus was huge so it was probably a good thing he’d brought his rollerblades with him; he’d be able to get around a lot faster with them. Leaning on the windowsill, he stared out at the unfamiliar view and smiled to himself; his adventures were just beginning.
The End