Searching for Moore by Julie A. Richman

experience had become now that she was a part of it.

CHAPTER 20
    They were still riding their high when they got back to Mia’s dorm room. Entering the room was the first dampening of their moods. Schooner’s stuff was all over and he knew he was going to have to pack it all up and move back to his dorm. He didn’t want to go. He didn’t want to leave Mia’s room. He didn’t want to leave Mia’s bed. He didn’t want to leave Mia. He didn’t want to leave Rosalie down the hall and Henry downstairs. He didn’t want to leave the other people in the dorm who had been so accepting of him over the past few weeks. People who were so different than the people he typically knew. People who didn’t fit in with the campus norm — and didn’t try to fit in. They pursued what made them happy. They didn’t fit in, so they expanded out. He had come to love and respect that about them and the thought of going back to an all-male jock dorm made him feel lonely and alone. He was going to miss the quirky camaraderie of the “freak” dorm. He had never felt more at home.
    Schooner started to shove things into his duffle bag, while Mia sat cross-legged on her bed, watching him with a perplexed look on her face.
    “Are you staying tonight?” She asked, tentatively.
    “Do you want me to?”
    Mia looked at Schooner as if he had two heads. “Are you kidding? Of course, I want you to stay. It’s my last night without a roommate. I can’t believe you are thinking about leaving.” The air in the room was starting to become tense.
    Schooner stood in the middle of the room, belongings in hand, but didn’t speak. He could see the sadness in Mia’s eyes and he thought fear, also. Tomorrow they would all be back. Tomorrow, this idyllic little bubble they’d just spent the month in, would cease to exist. Cease to exit. The thought made his stomach start to ache and he felt a burning at the back of his throat.
    Mia smiled at him and jumped off the bed. “Hey, I have something for you.”
    “You do?” He was glad she had saved the moment.
    “Mmm-hmm,” She nodded her head and her devil smile was back. “Sit,” she ordered pointing to her bed. He sat down.
    She went over to her desk and pulled out a large manila envelope and came and sat down next to him on the bed. “This is for you,” she beamed, her little freckled nose wrinkling.
    “Should I open it?” He was intrigued. She nodded, smile still bright on her face as he opened the envelope. He slid out a couple of thin pieces of cardboard that were taped together. Setting the envelope aside on the bed, he began to open the tape. She watched him intently, both smiling and biting her lower lip. He smiled back at her, a real smile. What had she done for him?
    Inside the cardboard was a stack of B&W prints. He looked up at her and smiled, “When did you do this? We’re together all the time.”
    She beamed at him, “I’ve been logging in some darkroom time when you are on the courts.”
    He looked back at the stack. The first photo was of the falls. The landscape was perfect for a B&W rendition with white clouds in stark contrast with what appeared to be an almost black sky. “How did you do that?” He asked.
    “Circular polarizing filter,” she seemed proud.
    He went to the next photo in the stack. It was a picture of him and Henry pretending to throw Rosie off the edge of the mountain. They both laughed looking at it and he bent over to give Mia a soft kiss. She certainly knew how to make him feel better when he was starting to tank.
    The third photo in the stack was of their lewd snowman with the giant erection. In this shot, he and Henry each had a hand on the snowman’s penis and Rosie was kneeling before the snowman. They broke into hysterics seeing the picture. “Oh my God, that is too good.” Schooner hooted. “Holy crap.” They both wiped the tears from their eyes, laughing at the funny memory, so perfectly (and lewdly) captured for all