Carnelian Read online

  Sim was unusually quiet as we walked to the union. The great big round building was unique on campus and you couldn’t miss it. Not many brick buildings were built as a complete circle. The main meeting room was the center of the wheel with hallways radiating from it. It made it easy to find our way around, because either you walked in a straight line to the conference room or you walked in a circle around it. At the end of the long, straight hallway, we followed the signs and climbed down the stairs to the lower level.

  Sim still seemed to be only half awake as we entered larger, doublewide doors. Other students trickled in around us, also following the same signs. I paused just inside the doorway to decide where to go next. Sim wasn’t going to be much help as her eyes actually closed while walking forward. She was almost sleepwalking. My new roommate was not a morning person.

  “Did you get your schedule yet?” I asked Sim, snapping her out of her standing slumber.

  “No, were we supposed to?” Sim asked, finally opening her eyes and looking around the room.

  “If you registered early enough, they sent your class schedule two weeks ago,” I explained how I got my registration already. I held it in my hand and waved it in front of her.

  Sim gave me a sheepish smile. I was beginning to doubt Sim did anything with early in the title.

  “Then you need to go that way.” I pointed to the left of where we entered. Big signs said to pick up schedules there. Sim nodded and waved before weaving between other students.

  I made my way to the right toward the tables that lined the walls. There was a line for the first half of the alphabet. Since my last name was Navina, sometimes I fell in the first or the second half, depending on how many people of each last name were around. I looked closely and thankfully this was the case. I got into the line with the end of the alphabet and zoned out while it moved slowly forward. I was a morning person, but anything moving this slowly would be boring for even the most awake person. After a longer-than-needed wait, I made it to the front of the line.

  “Marcella Navina,” I said my name to a stranger for the second time in two days. I pointed at my name tag in front of the girl. She slowly peeled it off and handed it to me before walking back to grab my orientation bag.

  “Sangre,” a familiar voice said beside me to the second girl at the table. A thick, dark arm reached in front of me to point to a name tag, which read Taraq Sangre. The guy that was the wall I ran into yesterday was standing beside me, and he had the same last name as the underwear model, Seth. He smiled at me and his white teeth sparkled against his chocolate-colored skin.

  The girl handed him his name tag while the second girl returned with two bags and handed one to each of us. Both girls paused to smile and flirt a little at the guy beside me, and he smiled back. I turned to quickly leave, but he spoke even quicker.

  “I’m Ty,” he said to me before I could turn to find Sim.

  “I’m Mari,” I replied, looking for a clear path to get through the mass of people. More students had arrived after us, and they were all now pressing into the room. Ty smiled and began walking forward. He didn’t even hesitate for people to move, because they simply all moved to get out of his way. He was massive in size, and I’d have moved, too, if I was them. His arms alone looked like they could pound a person into the ground.

  “You’re a freshman?” I asked, surprised as he seemed older.

  “I should be a sophomore with my brothers, but I had to take an extra year to catch up with them,” Ty replied, walking across the room.

  “You have brothers?” I asked, wondering if they were all as massive in size as he was.

  Ty flashed his bright smile and nodded. “You’ve already met my brother Dee, kind of. He was with me yesterday. Tall, skinny, looks like he’s sucking on a lemon?”

  His path led to the other side of the room where students were lounging around the empty floor, most of them sitting or sprawled out trying to get more sleep in. There were no seats, just a stage at one side of the room. Ty found an open area and sat. I hesitated to sit beside him, and quickly scanned to be sure Sim wasn’t already through her line. She was not. I had no excuse not to take a seat. I settled down beside Ty.

  “How could you and your brother be the same age? You don’t look anything alike,” I said without thinking first. I hadn’t meant to point out the obvious difference that they were both different races.

  “We were adopted at the same time,” Ty replied, not even batting an eye at the question. He must have had to answer that a lot.

  “Oh,” was the only reply I could muster. I had to change the conversation fast.

  “Do you play any sports?” I asked. A guy his size had to play something. If not, there would be a recruiter following him around soon trying to get him into something.

  “Yeah, I’m here on a football scholarship,” Ty replied as Sim made her way through the crowd. It was funny to watch. Sim was only just over five feet tall, and she got lost between students as she bobbed between everyone. Groups had started to form around us as students were greeting old and new friends.

  I waved to Sim so that she would see us.

  “That makes sense,” I replied to Ty. It really did. He was huge and if he had answered tennis, I might have laughed.

  Sim plopped down next to me.

  “I got stuck with Honors Lit.,” she complained, handing me her schedule.

  “And you didn’t sign up for that?” I replied, looking at the form. Her schedule was full of courses like Honors Literature and other subjects I was avoiding until necessary.

  “Honors Lit. isn’t the problem,” Sim complained, opening her bag and sifting through the contents. “The problem is that it’s Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at eight-thirty.” I laughed. Her standing in line seemed to have woken her up a bit, and now I realized why she was complaining. She was not a morning person.

  “Oh, Sim, this is Ty. Ty, this is my roommate Sim,” I introduced them, remembering Ty beside me. “Then why did you sign up for it?”

  “I didn’t,” Sim complained as she shoved everything back in the bag. It was an assortment of notebooks, a day planner, pencils and pens with the school logo on it all. There was even a plastic water bottle. “My parents chose my classes.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh. I could see her parents doing that. Even after only just meeting them, I could tell Mr. and Mrs. Singh had grand plans for Sim. Sim hung her head on her knees like she was catching up on her sleep.

  “Well, at least next semester you can sign up alone for the classes,” I replied, looking for at least one good point. Sim just moaned and shook her head no. Then again, maybe her parents would choose her classes again.

  “They shouldn’t even offer morning classes,” Sim complained. “At least not without massive amounts of caffeine.”

  “I’m with you on that,” Ty added. “I have morning classes all semester.”

  I looked between them. I was outnumbered. I didn’t mind my morning classes. Maybe I was the only crazy person in the room. Ty and Sim both looked at me for agreement. I looked between them and shrugged. What could I say? I kind of was a morning person.

  “Don’t you dare say you like morning classes.” Sim threatened me playfully with her water bottle. “We have morning classes because of people like you.” Sim gave up threatening me and went back to resting on her knees. Her little burst of energy was over.

  Someone on the stage began tapping the microphone and the students all sitting around began to quiet. A few late students were still at the tables, but the rest were waiting.

  “I suggest lots and lots of coffee to get through the year with your roommate. Coffee always wakes up Dee,” Ty whispered to me. Sim didn’t even lift her head. I’d have to make sure we had caffeine stocked up. I didn’t think anything caffeinated was on the Singh’s approved beverages, but if it got her alive in the morning, we’d have to try.

  “Before we get to all the official business of welcoming you to college, we’re go
ing to play a few games to help us all get to know our fellow students,” a young, twenty-something man spoke from the stage. “Form groups of six to eight people, and you can begin by introducing yourself to everyone in your group.”

  The room erupted into conversation. I looked at Ty first, and he shrugged. Sim still didn’t pick up her head. We were only a group of three. We’d need to find more people. Someone tapped my shoulder, and I twisted to turn around a bit.

  “Hi.” A cute blonde girl, who was perfectly made up for such an early hour in the morning, offered me her hand. She was platinum blonde with perfect waves in her hair that cascaded over one shoulder. “I’m Breanne. Figured since you have three and we have four, we could be a group.” Breanne pointed to the girls next to her, speaking with a slight southern accent. The accent was very odd being that we were in the far north, about as far away from the south as you could get.

  “This is Bryce, Barb, and Beth,” Breanne introduced her clones. They were all dressed in matching stylish leggings and sweatshirts. Each was just as made up with makeup as Breanne was. I couldn’t imagine how early they had to get up to look like that.

  “I’m Mari, and this is Ty and Sim,” I replied. Ty smiled and nodded, but Sim didn’t move. “She’s not a morning person,” I added as Ty and I turned around to face the four cloned girls staring back at us. I poked Sim to get her to move. She grunted and moved without picking up her head.

  “Well, I’ll go first,” Breanne kept talking and her blond curls laid perfectly as her head bobbed. “Hello y’all, I’m Breanne Miller from just outside Fargo. If you say my accent is all wrong…” Which it was. She had a southern drawl to her talk, not a North Dakota accent. “That’s because I grew up in Alabama until I was fourteen. Four years up north wasn’t enough to change fourteen years in the south. Umm, what else…” Breanne paused and twirled a curl around her finger. “Oh, I’m a Comm. major, and I live in Mardone Hall where I met my three new best friends.” Breanne smiled at her companions, and then at us, looking at me to go next.

  “I’m Ty Sangre,” Ty stepped, in saving me from introducing myself. I really wasn’t as interesting as the Barbie doll in front of me. “I’m from Minneapolis, and here to play football,” short, and to the point.

  “Sangre, as in the Sangre family?” asked one of the girls who was wearing a pink sweatshirt. I still didn’t know who was who. All four girls stared intently at Ty, waiting for his answer. They seemed to know who the Sangre family was.

  There was definitely something special about the name Sangre. I was sure I’d heard it before, but my grandfather dealt with several clients per week, and I’d heard a lot of names during my life. The way the girls were all waiting in anticipation made me think Sangre had to be one of my grandfather’s nice, rich clients.

  “Yes,” Ty replied, looking a bit more uncomfortable.

  “And your brother is possibly Seth Sangre?” Another one asked, getting more into the conversation. This one wore a green sweatshirt. All four girls had the same dreamy look in their eyes. Even Sim picked her head up a little bit to follow the conversation.

  “Yes.” All of the girls sighed.

  Ty’s eyes filled with humor as he watched them. This must not have been the first time he had to deal with dreamy-eyed girls ogling over his brother. From what I saw of Seth, I bet this was actually the norm for Ty.

  “And does he have a girlfriend right now?” asked Breanne, getting straight to the point. She was the most forward girl of the group, and two of the others covered their mouths and giggles as Breanne asked. I’m sure they had all been thinking the same thing.

  “No girlfriend yet,” Ty replied and all four sighed again, picturing themselves as Seth’s girlfriend undoubtedly. “But he has one girl he’s particularly interested in, and I doubt anyone else will catch his eye at this point.” Ty raised an eyebrow at me. Oh crap, he was confirming what I already suspected. I was sure Sim caught his look, too. My cheeks began to burn. Sim didn’t say anything, but I was in for a grilling when we got back to our room.

  “Ahh, what a lucky girl. I bet it’s his girlfriend from last year. I heard he broke up with her three times and each time he went back to her,” one girl complained. They knew more about Seth Sangre than I really thought was possible. He must have been a bit of a celebrity in these parts.

  “I heard she was a beauty that could have any guy here, and a perfect fit for him. I wish I was beautiful,” the pink sweatshirt girl replied. Yep, our very own Morton College celebrity.

  “I wish I was a year older,” green sweatshirt girl responded. “Why can’t upperclassmen look at us freshmen?”

  “No, he isn’t interested in Melissa anymore,” Ty replied. There was relief in his voice. Maybe this Melissa wasn’t as perfect as the Barbies thought. “And it’s a freshman that caught his eye.” Great. I wanted him to stop confirming my worst fear. The well-known Morton-Carole hottie/playboy had made me his next target. Really? I was hoping everything from yesterday was just a dream.

  All four of the girls perked up at the mention that Seth was interested in a freshman. The wheels were turning in each of their brains. Seth Sangre liked a freshman, and that girl could be anyone. Now they stood a chance of getting the hottest guy around.

  “And does the girl know that he’s interested?” Blondie in the blue sweatshirt asked.

  “I’m pretty sure she does know.” Ty stole another glance at my flaming red face.

  I ducked down to rest my head on my knees like Sim. Hopefully they would think I was as tired as she was, and I could hide my red face. Sometimes I really hated the pale skin that complemented my red hair. I gave away too many secrets with my blushing.

  The girls continued to pepper Ty with questions about Seth. I tried to tune them out, but it was hard. I was happy when the microphone was tapped again and we were given a two-minute warning. Seth Sangre talk would end, hopefully. Part of me was completely embarrassed that Seth was now chasing after me to add my name to his long list, but the other part couldn’t help but giggle alongside the girls. Seth was stunning. No denying that. A hot boyfriend sounded ideal until you found out he had had twenty-three girlfriends in the past few years. I had had a bad relationship in high school and had promised myself college would be better. It wasn’t turning out that way.

  Orientation went fine after the Seth Sangre question session. None of the Barbies noticed that Ty kept hinting toward me. Only Sim got the gist of everything, and was grinning ear to ear by the time we left the ‘getting to know you’ session and returned to the auditorium for the next session.

  “You caught the eye of a Sangre boy,” Sim teased as we walked into the auditorium. The Barbies had joined friends from their dorm and Ty was called away by other freshman football players. Sim and I took seats by ourselves toward the back of the room.

  “What is up with the name Sangre?” I asked, avoiding answering her statement.

  “You don’t know the Sangres?” Sim asked back. I shook my head. “Oh, I forget that you’re not from around here. Everyone knows the Sangre family. There are buildings, foundations, and scholarships all named for the family. Here at Morton alone you’ll find half a dozen places their name shows up. It is all just one family, one really rich family. They donate to every cause out there as they have no better way to spend the millions they make each year.”

  “They make?” I asked. I really had never heard of the Sangre family before.

  “Mr. Sangre is a businessman. He owns four different department stores, two restaurant chains, and an international company that does something. Ever heard of Chancy’s? Maybe Bittersweet?” Sim named two stores that were extremely popular in the mall. “He owns both of those. The family is basically rich beyond rich.”

  “Oh,” was my only response. I probably had heard the name before then as my grandfather normally dealt with people like that, but I couldn’t recall ever really meeting a Mr. Sangre.

  “Now, my question, how the heck did you get to know
the hottest guy around here in less than a few hours? You only arrived yesterday just like me,” Sim complained.

  “Oh no, are you just like the Barbies?” I asked in horror.

  “Barbies?” Sim replied, and I pointed to the front of the auditorium and toward the girls with the four matching sweatshirts. It was easy to find them even in the full auditorium. She giggled. I guess she agreed with me on that one.

  “You want to date him, too?” I asked.

  “Why not?” Sim replied. “He’s hot man candy.”

  “That’s been around the block many times,” I answered back. That was my biggest hold up. Who wanted to be on some guys dated list? “I overheard him yesterday with his brothers. He has had twenty-three girlfriends. Twenty-three,” I emphasized. Sim shrugged.

  “I’m not saying you have to marry him. You could just go out with him and have a little fun,” Sim replied as someone official-looking walked onto the stage. “My parents would never approve of a non-Indian guy, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t dated any. Do you even know how to just have a little fun?”

  “Been there, done that,” I replied quickly, though Sim wanted to press for more answers. Lucky for me, Ms. Official Person started to talk. I didn’t know how much longer I could avoid telling Sim more details about something that I still didn’t understand yet. Something was very different about Seth Sangre. With his reputation as it was, I should keep as far away from him as I could. But still, I was intrigued by him, and it wasn’t just his pretty face. He and his brothers were different, but I was unsure if I wanted to know how different.

  Chapter 3