Chapter 3 The Dorm Room
A Broken Air Conditioner
By Friday afternoon, Ethan had learned that there were few things capable of making a university campus more chaotic than a broken air-conditioning system.
The problem started in the oldest residence building on campus, where a maintenance crew discovered that one of the main cooling units had failed.
At first, students were told the repairs would take a few hours.
Then the estimate became a day. By evening, the notice on the residence hall door had changed again.
Temporary accommodation would be arranged.
Ethan read the message twice.
He stood in the hallway outside his dorm room with his phone in one hand and a half-packed backpack at his feet. The corridor was already warmer than usual, and several students had opened their doors in an attempt to let air move through the building.
Someone farther down the hallway was complaining loudly to a friend.
Another student was sitting on the floor beside an open window, using a notebook as a fan.
Ethan looked at his room.
He had spent months making the small space feel comfortable. His desk was positioned beside the window. His books were arranged in a way that allowed him to find everything quickly. His training clothes were separated from his regular clothes, and his swim bag had its own place near the door.
Now he was being told to leave it all behind.
His phone vibrated.
The university residence office had sent another message.
Because several rooms had been affected, students would be temporarily reassigned to available spaces in another residence building until the repairs were completed.
Ethan sighed.
He had survived difficult exams, exhausting swim practices, scholarship evaluations, and enough embarrassing moments to fill an entire year.
He could survive sleeping somewhere else for a night.
Probably.
He packed his essentials.
Two shirts.
Then a third.
He paused.
The situation was already stressful enough without worrying about running out of clean clothes.
He added another.
By the time he zipped the bag, he had packed enough clothing for several days.
Ethan carried his things down the stairs and joined the crowd in the lobby.
The residence staff were trying to keep everyone organized. Names were being called, room numbers assigned, and questions answered.
Ethan waited patiently.
Then he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Please tell me they're not sending us to the gym."
Ethan turned.
Ryan stood several feet away with a duffel bag over one shoulder.
Ethan smiled before he could stop himself.
"Depends. How good are you at sleeping on basketball courts?"
Ryan laughed.
"I was hoping you'd say something reassuring."
"I don't have anything reassuring."
"That's disappointing."
Ethan shook his head.
Ryan stepped closer.
"You're being moved too?"
"Looks like it."
"Where?"
Ethan checked his phone.
"North Residence."
Ryan looked at his own message.
"No way."
Ethan looked at him.
"You too?"
Ryan nodded.
"Apparently."
For some reason, the news made Ethan feel less annoyed.
They collected their temporary room assignments and headed across campus together.
The North Residence building was newer than Ethan's dorm and significantly quieter. It was mostly used for upper-year students and visiting programs, which meant there were several rooms available.
At the reception desk, the residence coordinator checked their names.
"Ethan Cole?"
"Yes."
"Room 318."
She looked at the next name.
"Ryan Hayes. Room 318."
Both men stared at her.
Ethan blinked.
Ryan looked amused.
"Seriously?"
The coordinator checked the computer.
"Yes. Temporary double occupancy. There aren't enough single rooms available."
Ethan felt his stomach tighten.
He looked at Ryan.
Ryan looked back.
Neither said anything for a moment.
"Is that a problem?" the coordinator asked.
"No," Ryan answered quickly.
Ethan nodded.
"No problem."
The coordinator handed them a keycard.
"Repairs should be completed within forty-eight hours. If anything changes, we'll notify you."
Forty-eight hours.
Ethan picked up his bag.
Two days.
He could manage two days.
He and Ryan walked toward the elevator.
"Well," Ryan said, "this should be interesting."
Ethan gave him a sideways glance.
"Interesting?"
"Temporary roommates."
"We're not really roommates."
"Technically, we are."
"Technically."
Ryan smiled.
The elevator doors opened.
They stepped inside.
The space suddenly felt much smaller than Ethan remembered.
Ryan's shoulder was only a few inches away.
Ethan became conscious of the warmth coming from his body.
He looked at the floor.
The elevator moved upward.
Neither spoke.
When they reached the third floor, Ethan stepped out quickly.
Ryan followed.
Room 318 was at the end of the hallway.
Ryan opened the door.
The room was larger than Ethan's original dorm, but there was only one bedroom with two beds on opposite sides. A desk stood beneath the window, and a small sofa occupied the corner.
The air-conditioning unit was running.
Cold air moved through the room.
Ethan almost sighed with relief.
"This is better."
Ryan dropped his duffel bag onto one of the beds.
"Definitely."
Ethan placed his backpack on the other.
For a few minutes, they unpacked without much conversation.
It was strange being in the same room.
They had spent the last few weeks becoming friends, but most of their interactions had happened in public places. Cafeterias. Libraries. Walkways. The athletic center.
Now there was no crowd around them.
No classmates.
No reason to pretend they were busy.
Just the two of them.
Ethan unpacked his toiletries and placed them neatly on the desk.
Ryan noticed.
"You organize everything."
Ethan glanced at him.
"I like knowing where things are."
"I noticed."
Ethan smiled.
Ryan sat on his bed.
"So what do you normally do after class on Fridays?"
"Practice."
"Of course."
"What?"
"Nothing."
Ethan laughed.
"You make it sound like I'm obsessed."
"You swim before sunrise."
"I have to."
"You study immediately afterward."
"I have to."
"You've probably got another training session tomorrow."
Ethan paused.
"Maybe."
Ryan smiled.
"You're definitely obsessed."
Ethan threw a folded shirt at him.
Ryan caught it.
"Hey."
"You deserved that."
Ryan laughed.
The room became easier after that.
They talked while unpacking.
Ryan told Ethan about an upcoming presentation for his sports-science course. Ethan complained about a difficult professor. They argued playfully about which campus cafeteria served the worst food.
It felt almost like they had been roommates for months.
That thought made Ethan uncomfortable.
Not because Ryan bothered him.
Because he didn't.
The opposite, actually.
Ethan had expected sharing a room with another person to make him anxious. Instead, he found himself relaxing.
He did not need to explain why he opened the window.
He did not need to apologize when he wiped his forehead after carrying his bag upstairs.
He did not need to worry about Ryan noticing.
Or perhaps he did worry.
But the worry did not feel as powerful anymore.
That evening, they ordered food and ate while watching a movie on Ryan's laptop.
Ethan sat on his bed.
Ryan sat on the sofa.
Halfway through the movie, Ryan looked over.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
"You've been quiet."
"I'm watching."
Ryan smiled.
"You're terrible at pretending."
Ethan looked at him.
"What am I pretending?"
"That you aren't thinking about something."
Ethan hesitated.
He could tell Ryan the truth.
The truth was that he was thinking about how strange it felt to have someone else in his room.
Someone he trusted.
Someone who knew about his sweating.
Someone who didn't make him feel like he had to constantly monitor himself.
Instead, Ethan said, "I'm just tired."
Ryan nodded.
"Long week."
"Very."
The movie continued.
Later, they prepared for bed.
Ethan changed into sleep clothes in the bathroom and returned to the room.
Ryan was already lying on his bed, scrolling through his phone.
"Good night," Ryan said.
"Good night."
The lights went off.
The room became dark.
Ethan stared at the ceiling.
He could hear Ryan breathing across the room.
The air conditioner hummed softly.
For several minutes, Ethan tried to sleep.
Then Ryan spoke.
"You awake?"
"Yeah."
"Me too."
Ethan smiled in the darkness.
"Why?"
"Thinking."
"About?"
Ryan paused.
"How weird this is."
Ethan laughed quietly.
"Definitely."
"But not bad."
Ethan turned onto his side.
"No."
There was another silence.
Then Ryan said, "I'm glad you're here."
Ethan's heart gave an unexpected beat.
"Me too."
Neither of them said anything after that.
But Ethan remained awake for a long time.
He listened to the air conditioner.
He listened to Ryan shifting beneath his blanket.
And he became increasingly aware of how close another person was.
The next morning, they had breakfast together.
Then lunch.
Then they returned to the room between classes.
By Saturday evening, Ethan realized something had changed.
He had planned to spend most of the weekend studying.
Instead, he had spent almost all of it with Ryan.
They had walked across campus together, watched another movie, studied side by side, and argued over which music to play.
The temporary room was supposed to be an inconvenience.
Somehow, it had become the place where Ethan felt most comfortable.
That realization made him pause.
He looked across the room at Ryan, who was sitting at the desk working on his laptop.
Ryan glanced up.
"What?"
"Nothing."
Ryan smiled.
Ethan looked away.
He was beginning to notice everything.
The way Ryan leaned back when he was thinking.
The way his expression changed when he was concentrating.
The sound of his laugh.
The warmth of his presence in the room.
And, increasingly, the simple fact that there was barely any distance between them.
The broken air conditioner had been meant to disrupt Ethan's routine.
Instead, it had quietly changed it.
He just wasn't sure yet what that meant.
Too Close
Ryan noticed the temperature before Ethan said anything.