Chapter 16

Chapter 16

 oh yes that's true Lana backed him up ,it would be sad seeing you lose your job over something so little, why don't you do all of us here a favor and get these bags ?, Lana smiled also as she said this ,she and Ryan have always been full of mischief 

   The janitor quickly apologized and obliged ,right away sir, he bent down and pick up the bags please forgive my ignorance, I had no idea it was that way 

It's not a problem ,but you did hurt my feelings at first Ryan jeered on , acting like he didn't know what he was doing

**"Apologies once again, sir. Where did you say you were headed?"**  

Ryan let out a dramatic sigh. **"The dorms. I need to get to my room this instant."**  

Henry, the janitor, gave a small nod of understanding. "I know where it is. It’s just around the block. This way."** He turned and started walking ahead of them at a steady pace.  

Ryan smirked and glanced at Lana, who was eyeing him with thinly veiled disapproval.  

“You really are a crook," she muttered, shaking her head. **"Look at what you're putting this poor man through." She bumped him lightly with her shoulder as they walked.  

Ryan raised his hands in mock innocence. **"Me? A crook? That’s unfair. Besides, you’re just as guilty as I am."

Lana scoffed. "Oh, please! And how exactly am I guilty?"

Ryan grinned. "Look at that act you put up. You were pretending to be all disapproving, but deep down, you were enjoying every second of it."

Lana rolled her eyes. *"I was just trying to corroborate the nonsense you were pulling. Don't even try to make me an accomplice."

Ryan chuckled. " Too late. You’re already in too deep."

Lana shook her head but smiled slightly, conceding the playful banter.  

They followed Henry as he led them down a paved path lined with trees and benches. A few students passed by, chatting and laughing, some carrying bags or checking their phones. The university grounds buzzed with life, a mix of fresh arrivals and returning students settling in.  

After a few minutes, Henry stopped and motioned toward the buildings in front of them.  

*"We’re here,"he said, pointing ahead. "The buildings over there, across the fence, are the ladies’ dormitories. And this one here is the male dormitory."

Ryan glanced at the buildings, nodding in approval. They looked well-maintained, with large windows and clean brick exteriors. The pathways were busy with students hauling suitcases, greeting friends, and finding their rooms.  

"All right," Ryan said, stretching his arms. *"Allow me a moment to say a few words to my dear friend here." He turned to Lana, flashing his signature smirk. “Henry, you can go ahead and take the bags upstairs."

Henry gave a small nod. "Which room, sir?"

Ryan pulled out his phone, scrolling through his emails. *"Room 7." 

Henry took up the bags without another word and started toward the entrance.  

Ryan turned back to Lana, who was watching him with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.  

"So, this is it, huh?"he said, crossing her arms. " Finally settling into university life."

Ryan sighed dramatically. "Yeah. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Feels like just yesterday we were talking about coming here, and now it’s happening."  

Lana nodded. "It’s a new chapter. You better not cause too much trouble, Ryan."

Ryan placed a hand on his chest, feigning offense. "Me? Trouble? Lana, I am a respectable young man with nothing but good intentions."

Lana raised an eyebrow. *"Right. And I’m the Queen of England."

Ryan laughed. "Hey, I’m just saying—maybe I’ll surprise you. Maybe I’ll be a model student."

Lana smirked. "I’ll believe it when I see it.  

They stood there for a moment, both taking in their new reality. The playful banter was familiar, but beneath it, there was a sense of change—an unspoken understanding that things were going to be different now.  

Ryan ran a hand through his hair. **"Well, guess I should head up and see what kind of roommate I got."

Lana nodded. **"And I should go find my room too. But don’t think this is the last time you’ll be seeing me. I’ll be keeping an eye on you, Walsh."**  

Ryan smirked. **"I wouldn’t have it any other way, dear Lana."**  

She shook her head with a chuckle. **"Goodbye, Ryan. Try not to make Henry carry your bags every time you need something."**  

Ryan grinned. **"No promises."

With that, they parted ways—Lana heading toward the women's dorms while Ryan turned toward his own. As he made his way inside, he couldn’t help but feel a rush of excitement. A new environment, new people, new opportunities—it was going to be an interesting ride.  

And knowing himself, he would make sure of that.  

Sophia decided to go to the lecture halls. There was going to be an induction for new students—it was something she couldn't miss. A chance to interact with the members of her department and also get to understand what the professors were all about.  

She told her roommates where she was going and bade them goodbye. Then, she went out of her room and began heading towards the Faculty of Public Health. In her hands, she held the magazine she had gotten earlier. It had been of great help to her. Now, trouble seeing the *click* very well, she felt more at ease at this point than she usually did.  

Sophia opened the magazine, looking for directions to the Department of Public Health. She was so occupied with the magazine that she didn't see Lana coming along. Lana, who was also fiddling with her phone screen, didn't see Sophia either.  

They both bumped into each other, and Lana's phone fell out of her hand from the impact. The phone fell to the ground, but luckily, it didn't crack. As Lana bent down to pick up the phone, Sophia called out, "Oh my God! I'm so sorry!"  

"What's wrong with you? Don't you watch your step or at least watch where you are going?" Lana groaned in frustration. "You're lucky it didn't get cracked or something else. It would have been trouble for you. Please watch where you go next time—you’re lucky my phone didn't break."  

"I said I'm sorry! Calm down, please!" Sophia yelled. "You made your point already!" She felt Lana was just dragging it at this point.  

"You're making it sound like it's only me. We both bumped into each other! You weren’t watching either—you were distracted! So let's just leave this and stop dragging it," Sophia added, stopping to catch her breath.  

Lana didn't respond. She only nodded her head and walked past her.  

Sophia was reeling from the incident as she walked on. Had she just confronted someone? She was usually too shy to speak but didn’t know where the energy came from. But she was glad she did—Justine would be proud to hear this.  

Sophia arrived at the Faculty of Public Health and saw that the lecture room was empty. She was the only one there, and she wondered if it had been canceled.  

She opened her phone and logged into the school's portal to confirm. It was still clearly stated there: *Induction by 1 PM.* She checked the time—it was 12:39.  

---

   It wasn't cancelled she had just been there early as assumed everyone would be too like her 

  Out of boredom she began walking around the lecture room , it was bigger than the pictures she has seen online of it  

  As a matter of fact pictures didn't really do just to this hall ,the details they way it was each of the skeletons in the hall was well crafted , she marvelled at it 

     She kept on touching each she could lay her hands on getting carried away in the process 

Then, her eyes landed on something particularly unsettling—a human brain. It was perfectly preserved, suspended in formaldehyde that gave it an almost surreal appearance. She hesitated, her curiosity peaked Slowly, she stretched out her hand, wanting to get a closer look.  

**"I would advise you not to touch that!"**  

The sudden voice from behind startl

ed her so much that she nearly dropped her phone. she spun around, wide-eyed, to face whoever had spoken.