Chapter 44

My dorm felt oddly empty as I reached the familiar door, my hand pausing on the doorknob. Everything looked the same—the worn edges of the door, the slightly faded plaque listing the names of the residents. I squinted, feeling a sense of unease settle in my stomach.

There was only one name on it.

My heart skipped a beat as I took a closer look. My name was there, “Gideon Carter,” etched in the same blocky typeface I’d seen for the last four years. But underneath it, where “Silas Graves” should have been, there was nothing. Just an empty line.

“What the…” I murmured, my stomach twisting as the reality hit me. Silas wasn’t my roommate this year.

It didn’t make sense. Silas and I had roomed together since day one, an unspoken tradition that made the dorm feel like a second home. And now, without any warning, he was… gone? My mind raced, trying to make sense of it. I fumbled for my phone, half expecting to see a message from him explaining the change. But there was nothing. Just the familiar list of old messages, none of them recent.

A sharp pang of guilt twisted in my gut as I stared at my screen. It had been months since we’d last talked—longer than I wanted to admit. The realization hit me like a punch to the chest. Between getting together with Xavier, taking care of my parents, and the excitement of everything else, I’d let too much time slip by. The last message from Silas was a simple, “Let me know when you’re free,” one I’d promised myself I’d answer when things calmed down. But life had a way of spiraling, and “soon” had turned into weeks, then months, and now here I was, standing outside an empty room.

What the hell kind of friend am I?

Silas had been there for me through everything—the one constant in the chaos of school, family, and life. And now, he wasn’t even my roommate, and I’d been so wrapped up in my own world that I hadn’t noticed he’d been missing from it.

I thumbed over the keyboard, wanting to send him something, anything, to check in. But the words felt hollow, too little, too late. How do you reach out after months of silence? Hey, sorry I forgot you existed—just checking if we’re still friends? It was pathetic. I felt pathetic.

I swallowed hard, the weight of my neglect pressing down. Silas hadn’t even mentioned any changes to me, hadn’t brought it up in his last texts. A sliver of dread crept into my mind. Had he given up? Moved on, maybe found someone else to take my place? The thought sent a sharp pang of worry and guilt coursing through me. How had I let this happen?

Instead of reaching out to him directly, I typed a message to Xavier, hoping he could make sense of the situation.

Silas isn’t my roommate this year. No idea what happened. Haven’t heard from him in months.

The little dots appeared, signaling that he was typing, then disappeared. They came back, flickered, and vanished again. My chest tightened, a sinking feeling settling in as I stared at the screen, waiting. Seconds ticked by, and I began to wonder if he was as thrown off as I was.

Then, before I could even try to make sense of the silence, my door flew open, slamming against the wall with a force that made me jump. Xavier strode in, his gaze determined, his arms loaded with his things—bags, duffels, the usual pile of chaos that was moving in.

He dropped his bags with a decisive thud, and I raised an eyebrow, still processing the speed with which he’d made his entrance. “Xavier?”

He grinned, though there was an edge to it, something fiercely protective in his eyes. “Guess who’s your new roommate.”

I blinked, caught between relief and shock. “You… you’re moving in? Just like that?”

He shrugged, but the determination in his gaze didn’t waver. “Yeah, just like that.” He tilted his head, a glint of mischief in his eyes. “You think I’d let you room alone? Not a chance.”

A relieved laugh bubbled out of me, the tension easing just a little as I watched him start unpacking like he belonged here. Because, in a way, he did. His presence grounded me, reassured me in a way that I couldn’t quite put into words. But as the moment settled, so did the guilt, twisting deeper now that I was actually thinking about it.

“Xavier,” I said, watching him as he tossed a hoodie onto his bed, already marking his territory in his usual careless way. “I… I feel like a total asshole. I haven’t even spoken to Silas since… since everything with us happened.”

Xavier’s movements slowed, and he looked at me, his gaze understanding but resolute. “Then we go find him,” he said, his voice steady. “We figure out what happened and why he isn’t your roommate.”

I nodded, feeling a surge of gratitude for him in that moment. “Yeah. Let’s go find him.”