The last box.

The brown haired girl sighed as she eyed up the box that was sitting in her backseat. It was the largest she had brought, and the heaviest.
"I didn't know I had so much stuff," she said with a sunken face, "Well, at least this is the last one, finally."
Christiana had been carrying boxes from her car to her dorm room, for about an hour. Nothing was unpacked, it was all just piled up in her living room. She dreaded unpacking it, and thought about only unpacking the necessities for now. That would be easy, she did label all the boxes.
Who's gonna see my room anyway, she thought, there isn't gonna be anyone to care.
She sighed one last time before climbing into the car and grabbing onto the box, pulling it as she slowly slid out of the car. She hoisted it up and cradled it in her arms. The size of the box was massive compared to the small girl. It took over her arms and almost completely covered her face. She stepped back from the car and hip-bumped the door closed. She slid her feet across the pavement slowly, due to the fact that she couldn't see, making her way towards the girl's dormitory.

Richard wasn't in the best of moods. He was sitting in his room earlier in the day, his fingers flying on the keyboard, letting loose the story that was contained there. Usually, he didn't think about what he was typing (which lead to a bunch of typos, but those could be fixed in the revision), but this time he had taken a pause. This pause had caused him to reflect upon what he was writing, which eventually led to a case of writers block. His initial enthusiasm about the story was long gone by the time this realization came, and, rather angry about this, he had decided to take a walk.

The trance music was pounding in his earbuds, and he wondered if it was loud enough that other people would hear it. He shrugged at the thought, and continued on his way. So what? At least his music didn't contain any vulgar lyrics or annoying pop riffs. Although, the endlessly repeating beat could be construed as annoying to some people. Eh. There wasn't anybody around to hear his music, so he didn't give it any mind.

As he progressed on his walk, he noticed that he had made his way over to the girls dormitory. He rounded a corner, and saw that there seemed to be a box with rather feminine legs walking towards the dorm. He stopped for just a second, pondering this. When he saw the hands grabbing the box did he realize that it was just someone holding the box, someone who had no idea where they were going. He began walking in their direction, lowering the level of his music as he did so.

"Excuse me," he said the person, "Can I help you carry that box? Or at least help tell you where you're going?"

Left, right, left right... Christiana thought to herself. She hadn't gotten far from her car before she realized she was mentally telling herself which foot to pick up and move forward. She felt so stupid, she couldn't see a thing in front of her, and hoped to god she didn't run into anyone. She placed all her focus into keeping her feet moving towards the dormitories.

As she continued along her set path, Christiana believed herself to be close to the sidewalk when she heard faint thumping, "Music," she said, "Is that, music? It sounds like music. A car? No it would be getting louder. But this is getting, softer?"

She thought she heard a few footsteps before somebody spoke.

"Excuse me," the voice said, "Can I help you carry that box? Or at least help tell you where you're going?"

Her face flushed with embarrassment, It just had to be a boy didn't it? She shook her head, "Um... No thank you. I"m fine," she lied. Chrissy just didn't want anybody to really see her like this, "Uh oh," she said.

Chrissy had taken her focus off of her feet too long. She tripped over them, and braced herself as she started to fall. Luckily, she caught her balance, but she dropped the box in the process.

"Are you sure, because it looks like-" He rushed forward to catch the box before it fell on the ground. His iPod fell to the ground, taking the earbuds with him. He wasn't fast enough, and saw it fall on the ground. "Shoot. Sorry, wasn't fast enough,"

He picked up his iPod and walked over to girl. He could see that her face was flushed, but he couldn't tell whether it was from carrying the box or from being embarrassed about dropping it. He also noticed that he hadn't seen her around before. He had overheard some of the faculty talking about some new students coming in the next few days. Maybe this was one of them?

"Are you the new girl? My names Richard, Richard Diagon. Here, let me take this for you," he said, bending down to take the box for her.

"It's alright," Chrissy said. She was standing oddly, holding her arms out a little to make sure she was stable, and staring wide-eyed at the ground, "I think it's just books. It should be fine."

Once she knew she was not going to topple over, Christiana stood up normally and began to look up at the boy, "Thank yo-," she stopped as she met his eyes. Those are the prettiest green eyes I've ever seen... When she realized she was staring, she mentally slapped herself in the face and shook her head, "Uh, thank you, Richard?"

Christiana scanned the boy over. He was dressed really nicely, in clothes that she guessed a lot of guys might not wear regularly, this appealed to her. His hair was a shade close to hers, and was neatly parted above his right eye. He had a holly hair piece in it, different. And those eyes... He was, in her eyes, very, attractive.

"Oh, yes," she smiled shyly, "Yes I'm new. My name is Christiana," she paused, "Christiana Kirsch."

"Christiana. Nice name. Good to meet you," he said, putting his iPod in his pocket before he lifted up the box up in his arms, "Oof, it certainly feels like there's books in here. So, where are we going?"

He turned his head toward her as he said this. He took a moment to look at her, seeing what was hidden behind the box. Her hair was what caught his attention. He liked the way that it was a similar shade as his, and the way that she wore it. Cute, was how he would describe it.

"So, what year are you Christiana? I'm a sophomore myself. If I had to guess, I'd say...senior, or maybe junior? Yeah, that sounds about right," he said, adjusting the box so it was a little easier to hold.

She blushed, "T-thank you. Are you sure it's not too heavy," she asked, noticing him shifting the box.

Christiana was hanging on Richards every word. He spoke so differently, very proper and polite. It was definitely not something she was used to.

"Oh yes, where we're going. Sorry. Dorm number," she started, "Dorm number," her face went flat when she couldn't remember her own room number. She reached in her back pocket and pulled out a piece of paper, "That's right. Twenty-nine. Dorm number twenty-nine."

Laughing at herself, Christiana took a few steps forward before she stopped and turned around, waiting for the boy to follow, "You said you're a sophomore," she verified, "I'm a junior. My first year here actually. How about you?"

"Your welcome, and it's not too bad," Richard responded. He shifted the box one more time and began to follow Christiana. He laughed a bit as she couldn't remember her dorm room, mostly because he remembered his first days here on campus. So far he was liking her. As he listened to her speak, he thought he could hear some sort of slight accent, but maybe he was just imagining things. He decided he would bring it up later.

"I've been here for nearly a year, but it certainly feels like it's been much longer than that. So far I've enjoyed my time here, really enjoyed it. The classes are great, the people are nice, and the food! Oh, the food here is much better than public school food. Sometimes it feels like I'm dining in a five-star restaurant. But I come from a fairly middle-class family, so I haven't quite gotten used to places that the upper-classes send their kids.

"Mind if I ask what brings you here to good ol' Whisper Hallow?"

Christiana smiled at him and continued walking towards the girls dormitories. When they reached the entrance she held the door open and waited for him to walk in.

"That's great! Yesterday my grandparents and I spent the entire day moving furniture into my dormitory. Then this morning I left their house with all of my things. I've spent the past hour moving my stuff to my room," she beamed, "But, if this place is as great as you say, I'm sure it's worth it. I can't wait to get everything unpacked and start exploring around here," she looked down, "That is of course, after I make some friends and get to know the people better."

Chrissy looked up and gave him a half-hearted smile, "And as for the reason why I came here," she bit her lip, "My parents have um... passed away," she said sadly, "My brother and I had to move in with our grandparents. I decided that I wanted to start out for being more independent. So the idea of boarding school came to me," she paused, "But, I didn't want to go far away from my brother, I couldn't leave him, and this was the closest place."

"What about you," she asked trying not to sound upset.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," he said. He could see that it was a touchy subject, and now he knew not to bring it up again anytime soon. He walked through the door and waited for her to follow.

"Well, I can assure you that you'll make friends in no time. There's not too many bad kids in this school. Everyone seems nice and friendly, even the staff. If you want I can come by sometime and help you unpack. Who wants to spend their time surrounded by boxes?" he said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Fate. Well, let me explain. I was walking down the hall of my old school, and I saw a poster advertising this school. Why there was a poster for this school in a school I have no idea, but the point is that I immediately felt that I should come here, as if the poster was put there for a reason. I took it home to my mom, who also agreed with me. My father looked over the ad (I had torn it from the wall in my excitement), and agreed that it seemed like a much better school to send me to. So, here I am,"

Her spirit lifted a little, "You'd do that? You would help me unpack," she asked walking into the building and heading towards the door that lead into the hall of dorms, "I mean, yes, I'd like that very much," she smiled once again holding the door open for him, "My door is always open for a friend."

Christiana was beginning to like him a lot. Everything she was finding out about him she liked. She just hoped she would be seeing a lot more of him in the days to come.

After listening to his reason for coming here all she had to say was this: "Fate," she questioned, "I like that."

"Sure. I don't have any homework to do, and what I was doing before isn't really important enough to warrant going back. Besides, it would probably take you all of today and tomorrow to unpack, depending on the amount of stuff you brought. How boring is that? The more people there are, the faster the work gets done, and the sooner play time arrives," Richard said, following Christiana down the hall.

Richard was beginning to like her. He began to wonder if the universe had something to do with it. His mother was a firm believer in the theory that everything happened for a reason. For example, she would say something like this: Richard, the universe planned for you to lose your concentration on your story so you could go for a walk and run into Christiana, who was in need of some help. The universe might also be lending you a hint in the dating department, wink wink," Yeah. Definitely something his mother would say.

"Thank you," he said, walking into the hallway.

She started walking down the hallway towards her room, Richard close behind. Suddenly, she stopped, remembering the state that her room was in, "Um, please don't mind my room, I've just piled all the boxes up in my living room for now,"" she said apologetically, "Oh, and yes, I have a lot of stuff. A lot more than I thought. But, as long as you'll help me, I'm glad to have you," she smiled.

They reached her room and she stood in front of it, waiting for him, and then opened the door and entered.

"Welcome to my room," she smiled and motioned inwards, "You can sit the box anywhere, it doesn't matter."

Chrissy's living room had boxes stacked neatly in a pile against one of the walls. The rooms were all painted, and all the furniture placed where she wanted it to be. Other than that, the place was pretty bare.

"Oh," she said suddenly, "Do you have a problem with cats? Are you allergic to them? Anything?"

It was quite a bit of stuff, Richard realized as he stepped into the room. He quickly set the box down near a nearby pile. "You're fine. I figure we can get this done rather fast," he said, looking around the room. He liked the paint and the furniture. His mind was beginning to imagine what some of this furniture looked like in his. As he looked at the boxes, a small part of him was regretting offering help, but for the most part, he was looking forward to helping Christiana.

"Cat's? No, I don't think I do. I haven't spent that much time around them, so I don't really know for certain. Do you have one?" he asked, looking around the dorm. He didn't see a pet carrier anywhere. Maybe it was in a different room? Possibly, but he wasn't going to go snooping around anytime soon.

"Well, where would you like to start? Living room, kitchen?"

Christiana closed the door behind him, "Hmm. I'd like to start in my room," she said, "If that's okay with you? That's where most of the major necessities go, so best to get that all out as soon as possible."

She no longer dreaded unpacking all of her stuff now that Richard was with her. She walked into the middle of her living room and admired the place, slowly spinning around, taking in every detail. It felt good. She stopped when her gaze reached the piles of boxes against the wall, she studied them for a moment, "Exactly what I thought," she smiled, "I put the boxes into piles according to which room they will go in. Except the knickknack boxes and other things."

Chrissy looked up at him, "And yes, I have one cat, or kitten rather, his name is Crow," she knelt to look under the furniture, "He must be sleeping somewhere. Too much excitement probably. Oh yeah," she said standing, "Would you like something to drink, or maybe a snack, before we get started," she asked, "I'm afraid I don't have much, but I'd feel rude not offering you anything."

"That's fine by me. I'm your helper today, just tell me what to unpack and where and I'll get right to it," Richard said.

This is going to be exciting, he thought. I get to spend the day with a nice girl, getting to know her, all alone...in her dorm...No, don't you be thinking like that today Richard. You're better than that, to think only of your basic, natural instincts. Yes, that's what he decided he would do. Those kinds of thoughts could come after he got to know her, preferably after they started dating (maybe).

"Crow? That seems like an odd name for a cat. Although, there was a woman in my mom's gypsy troop that had a raccoon named Pelican. Hmm, haven't thought about that raccoon in a while. Wonder how it's doing..." he said, drifting off a little.

"Um, no, but thank you. I had a little something before I went off on my walk. I would like something after we tackle the bedroom,"

Chrissy couldn't help how hard she was smiling now. She was so happy Richard had stopped whatever it was he had been doing and went for a walk. She couldn't wait to get to know him more. Of course, she'd be lying if she said she wasn't nervous about spending the entire day alone in her dorm with a boy she literally just met. But, something inside her told her that she could trust him, so she let the thought pass her by.

"Alright," she just about cheered and walked towards one of the piles of boxes. She picked up one that was labeled clothes, "This pile is for my bedroom. And of course, the one you just carried in for me."

There were about seven boxes altogether. The range of the size of the boxes was quite significant though. Some of the boxes were labeled: DVD/VHS, Crow's box, Wall, Bedding/curtains, and Other bedroom. Then she had her TV box, and a brand new cat tree she had bought for Crow.

"You know, I've never really thought about it, but I guess Crow is a weird name for a cat," Chrissy laughed, "But at least I have a reason for it nonetheless," she started walking down the hallway to her bedroom, knowing that Richard would follow, "But, a raccoon named pelican? I wonder why they named it that," she turned around and looked at him, "Did you say your mother's gypsy troop?"

Richard groaned inwardly at the thought of carrying that box again. Although, it sounded as if it was the heaviest box to go into the bedroom. He concluded that he would take that box first. In comparison, moving the other boxes would be a snap. He quickly picked it up and followed Christiana to the bedroom. He nearly ran into her as she stopped and turned around, and he nearly dropped the box. Repositioning it, he began to answer her question.

"Yes. Before my mom met my dad, she was a gypsy. She was a member of 'Brahn's Traveling Carnival of Wonder.' Maybe you've heard of it? Not many people have though. They usually stick out to out west. She helped sell the food, jewelry, alcohol, put on a wide variety of entertainment for the folks. One day, my dad went and visited, and saw my mom. Instantly he was in love. Luckily, the carnival was in town for a few days, so he had plenty of chance to woe her. Eventually, the got married. He became part of the troop for a bit, and then they left and settled down. I've been back to visit a few times, and it's great fun. They always receive us rather warmly. Oh, and about the raccoon? The woman that owns him is a little out of her mind. If you ever met her in person, you'll understand what I mean," he explained. There were some little details that he left out, mainly because the box was heavy and he didn't want to spend to much time standing in the hallway with it. But the story sounded just as good. If she ever inquired further, he would answer.

"I'm afraid I haven't heard of it, I've never even been to any kind of carnival myself," she said sadly and entered her bedroom and sat the box she was carrying on the floor, "They sound fun, I just never got the chance I guess. Oh, go ahead and sit it down anywhere, I figured we'll bring them all in and just unpack from the boxes," she said quickly realizing he was carrying the box of books again.

Chrissy was really quite fascinated with the story of Richard's mother. She decided that she'd like to hear more about it one day, god willing she got the chance. For now, she just looked around her bedroom, she liked it. Bright orange, a girly color, but not preppy girly. She couldn't wait to get all the decorations up, the curtains on the windows, the bedding on her bed, and everything else. Once everything was placed, the room would be made. Right now, it probably just looked like a big orange box to most people.

"Love at first sight," she said quietly, "Always something I believed in. Such a beautiful story, thank you," she smiled, "As for the woman with the raccoon, I guess I'll just have to take your word for it," she giggled and walked back out into the hallway, ready to head to the living room to get another box.

Richard quickly set the box down at the foot of the bed, following Christiana back to the living room. He took a second to look around the bedroom. Personally, he didn't like orange very much, and tended to use very little of it no matter what he was doing. He wouldn't say anything, but wondered what the room would look like once they were all done.

"Well then, next time a carnival comes close to Whisper Hollow, I'll be sure to take you there. It depends upon the carnival though. If the people there really enjoy what they're doing, then the patrons will have a good time. If they aren't, then you're in for a rather lackluster experience. I've been to most carnivals that travel the country, mostly because it seems my mom knows someone in every troop,"

He grabbed the box labeled DVD/VHS. VHS? People still used those? They seemed so obsolete nowadays, what with the world shifting toward more a more digital medium for their entertainment. He wondered what the VHS's were, and if she even had something to play them with.

"You're welcome. I seem to get a similar reaction from everybody I tell that story to," he said, heading back to the room.

Chrissy blushed feverishly, making sure to keep her back to him. Take me to a carnival? Wouldn't that be like a, a date? Wait. Stop. Breathe Christiana, don't get ahead of yourself, she breathed deeply as she picked up a random box from the pile, First, he never said he'd take only you. Surely he has many many other friends. Second, you just met him, you two are just friends. Those thoughts can occur later, if/when the time comes.

She shook herself out of her head and headed back towards the bedroom, "I'm sure a lot of places are like that, I mean, they aren't enjoyable if the workers obviously don't enjoy it themselves," she sighed as they entered her room again, "I think I'll very much enjoy going to one no matter what," she paused as she sat her box on the floor, "As long as I'm with y-, I mean the right people. It's not where you are. It's who you're with," she blushed again and spoke really quickly, just about pushing past him to exit her room.

"We should only have to make a couple more trips with the boxes," Chrissy called back to him.

"Exactly. Of course, being somewhere that both parties enjoy is a good thing to consider," he said, trying to move out of Christiana's way as fast as he could. She seemed almost flustered. Maybe it was something he said? He set the box down next to the others and went back to get more.

"I think we can tackle this in just one more trip," Richard said, gauging the weight of the boxes. He took two of the lightest ones, set one on top of the other. "See? We should've done this initially. I bet we'd be unpacking right now,"

He nearly ran to Christiana's room, realizing that they the two boxes, when stacked, weren't as light as he had thought. When he reached the doorway to her bedroom, his left foot ran into something solid. Unable to correct his stance in time, he fell face forward, the boxes flying out of his hands. Damn, was the only thing he managed to think of before his face made a rather sudden introduction to the floor. He lay there, making an assessment. It didn't feel like anything was broken or shattered. If it was, he'd probably be screaming rather loudly. Although, there is the possibility that something is broken, but is just numb. I hope that's not the case.

"Hmm. Maybe you can," she said, "I don't think I'll be able to carry two though. But I can do this," she picked up a box and started scooting the other across the floor with her feet, "The TV and cat tree can go in later, I'm not worried about them too much."

Chrissy was keeping a steady pace. Scoot the box, step forward, scoot the box, step forward. She was watching where she was going so that she didn't run into the wall, or Richard. She saw he was about to enter her room so she rechecked her position and looked down at the floor for a split second, then heard a crash.

"Richard," she yelled and dropped the box she was carrying, "Richard," she hopped over the box on the floor and dashed to her bedroom. She gasped when she saw him face-first on her floor, "Oh my god what happened? Are you okay," she asked frantically dropping next to him. She put her arms out to support him if he tried to get up, "Do you need help," she asked. Chrissy was panicking, she didn't know what to do.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," he said, accepting Christiana's help. He remained sitting on the floor, and did a thorough check to make absolutely sure that nothing was broken. Arms, legs, neck, back, digits. Everything was in order, no deformities or anything. He brought a hand up to his nose, and felt something slick underneath it. He looked at his fingers, and saw that they were red with blood. "Um, I'll need some paper towels though," he said, his voice nasally after plugging his nose to stop the bleeding.

Aw jeez, he thought, This is embarrassing. I bet I got some on her carpet, and she just barely moved in! He looked down at his shirt, and saw that some had gotten on his sweater. He swore under his breath. He really like this sweater.

"I was walking down the hallway, and when I was entering the room, my left foot hit something solid. It wasn't a box, that I know. I think it might have been your cat, but I don't see him anywhere. Sorry if I bled on your carpet,"

"Of course," she said and ran out of her room. She cleared the box on the floor and sprinted towards the kitchen. She opened one of the cabinets and pulled out a roll of paper towels and ran back to her bedroom.

She knelt back on the ground and ripped a few paper towels off and held them up for him. She looked down at her floor, "Don't worry about my carpet, I don't see any blood. That doesn't matter though. We've got to stop your nose from bleeding," she looked up and saw that some had gotten on his shirt, "Your shirt, it's got blood on it," she grabbed a hold of his shirt lightly and examined it, "It's not a lot, it should come out fine. But you need to get it in the wash as soon as possible."

Chrissy let go of his shirt and looked up at him with a worried look. She watched him for a moment before realizing everything else he had said, "Crow," she gasped, "Crow," she called as she looked around her bedroom, "He was probably coming out to see us after we came into the bedroom the first time," she layed down on her floor and looked under the furniture, "There you are sweetheart," she sighed.

The orange colored tabby cat was huddled in a corner underneath her bed, "Come here, it's alright," she reached out and the cat came to her. She cradled him and slowly got up, "He's alright, just startled," she sighed and walked back to Richard, "Now all I have to worry about is you."

She made her way back over to Richard and sat down next to him, "Does anything feel abnormal or anything?"