They'll Think It's Just Cause We're Young

Breanne looked at the clock for the fourth time since class had began. It was only three months into school and she was already bored with most of her classes. All she wanted to do was go back to her dorm and curl up in her uncomfortable dorm bed that she had grown to love.

She pursed her lips as her eyes stared off into space, drowning out whatever the professor was saying. Breanne thought of her brother and became slightly annoyed. She was well aware he was a busy guy, what with school and hockey practice almost daily, but she felt left out of his life. After all, he was the biggest factor in her decision to attend school in North Dakota.

The siblings had always been close considering they were born less than two years apart. Back home in Georgia, Brad has always made time to hang out with his younger sister. Unfortunately for Breanne, things seemed to run a lot different here in Grand Forks. And she couldn't help but to assume that had something to do with her roommate.

This thought made Breanne feel slightly guilty. She did like Lynette, but she felt jealous of sorts. She wasn't stupid. It was obvious that when Lynette made up illogical reasons to leave the dorms, she was actually meeting up with Brad. That hurt Breanne's feelings the most. She didn't feel included in her brother's life. He had time for a girl he barely knew, but couldn't even return his sister's phone calls.

Breanne looked at the clock again. She let out a thankful breath of air as she realized her English class was due to let out any minute. A pair of eyes from across the room caught her attention. She sent him a small smile. He blushed slightly, lowering his eyes. She learned the sophomore's name was Justin a few weeks into classes. He always wanted to plan study dates but truth be told, Breanne simply was just not interested.

A sigh of relief left her glossed lips as the plump professor announced their dismissal. Breanne quickly collected her books, pretending she didn't catch Justin's conversational demeanor as he pivoted through the other students who were just as eager to leave. She didn't bother to look back at his dejected face as she scurried out of the lecture hall. Once again, she was washed over with guilt, but she longed to crawl under her blanket and sleep away the rest of the evening.

Breanne closed her eyes tightly at the site inside her dorm room. Lynette straddled Brad who was only in his boxers as his hands wandered into the front of her shirt.

"My bed," Breanne stuttered out, her eyelids still blocking her vision. "That's my bed," she repeated with a shudder.

"Bre," Brad started as a mortified Lynette crawled off of him. "I didn't realize you'd be back so soon." He reached for his sweatpants as he watched his sister carefully.

Breanne blindly held her hand up, motioning for him to stop speaking. She shook her head.

"When I get back, my sheets better be washed." With that, she tossed her books into the room and turned on her heel.

She exited the same front door that she had just entered through only moments ago. The image of her brother caught in the act was now engraved in her memory.

Breanne fixed a disgusted look upon her face as she walked swiftly through campus, passing a group of guys who were tossing around a football. Her eyes connected with the boy with wispy hair that she had seen the day she arrived on campus. She mentally cursed herself as her face softened from his previously distorted state. Breanne managed to completely forget ever laying eyes on him. The guys around him laughed, but he ignored them and sent her a wink. Her cheeks flared up a bright color of red as she broke the connection their eyes had made, sauntering off, her mind once again being reminded of her brother.

She sauntered off, barely listening to the conversations of thirsty Thursday that were swarming her. Her feet led her not too far off campus, to the first safe haven Breanne had found in Grand Forks.

She wandered through the small patch of woods, taking very careful steps as she maneuvered past branches and small plants. Her eyes spotted the familiar boulder, the moss slowly spreading to cover more of it's surface. She climbed to the top, perching herself at it's highest point. Her eyes watched the stream that was beginning to freeze over along the edges.

It was already beyond freezing temperatures in North Dakota. November never got this cold in Atlanta, if ever. She was beginning to long the sunshine's hot rays beating down on her exposed skin. She sighed, hugging her North Face fleece closer to her shivering body and tried to ignore the cold as a gust of wind brushed against her cheeks.

The boy from across campus appeared in her mind. She'd only seen him twice in the past few months and never seemed to get a very good look at his appearance. She had, however, noticed he was graced with an irresistible baby face and gorgeous hair.

A sigh escaped her lips as her brain once again forced her to see the image she was blocking out. She wasn't mad that her brother and roommate were seeing each other. No, if that's what made the two happy, then she was just fine with it. She felt disrespected that they had tried to keep it from her. Oh, and who could forget the little detail of the couple practicing their extracurricular activities on her bed. That wasn't fair to Breanne and she knew it. For a brief moment, she wondered what Brad would have done had he been in his sister's shoes. She winced, afraid to even imagine his reaction.

The sun began to set somewhere beyond the trees and the temperature started to drop even more. Breanne hardly noticed as she lost herself in her head. She realized that she hardly had time to just think since she had come to school. She needed this.

As the forest floor began to darken, Breanne heard the snapping noise of several twigs somewhere near her. Her heart raced as possible scenarios of her impending death flashed through her head.

She was surprised however, when a slightly familiar face became clear, earning a gasp from the girl huddled up on a rock. He walked towards her before sitting down next to her.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he told her, shifting to get comfortable on the hard surface. She observed as he do so, slightly confused as to where he came from. When he finally looked down at Breanne, she already had her eyes fixed on the slowly moving water that was close to their feet.

“I always come here when I need to think or relax. It’s amazing here, isn’t it? The perfect get away from the harsh college life.” Breanne nodded after he spoke again, still not looking at him, but taking in the truth of his words. He couldn’t have been more right. That was one thing Breanne didn't anticipate about college. She never expected it to be so stressful.

She finally decided to take in his appearance and took her opportunity as he was looking deep into the dark woods. It was now nearly impossible to see anything past the first few feet of her vision, but she could still make out the deeper contours of his face that were shadowed over due to the dim lighting. She found herself admiring his wide cheeks that were a stinging pink due to the cold biting at his skin.

"Did you follow me here?" Breanne asked him curiously, her eyes meeting his. She was disappointed that she couldn't make out the color of them in the dark. She could however see him shrug nonchalantly.

“You didn't look too happy. No one should be forced to deal with their problems alone.” He replied easily, throwing her a side glance. He adjusted the hat on his head as he sighed after a few moments, realizing I wasn't going to reply. "You don't talk much, do you?"

“I’m just in a bad mood, I’m sorry,” she apologized through a deep breath. He shook his head a little.

"Well, what's wrong?” She raised a thin eyebrow at the mystery man.

“What makes you think that I would be willing to tell some boy I don’t know about my problems?” A smirk stretched at his lips but he looked away from her with a short nod.

“You’re right,” he admitted before jumping off the rock and walking into the blanketed darkness. Puzzled, Breanne's eyes searched for his form in the black abyss. He didn't come back right away, leaving Breanne to fear that he had simply left her sitting alone in the dark forest. But he did return with a cheeky smile fixed upon his pink lips.

“Hi, I’m Tj Oshie, junior at UND,” he introduced himself sweetly, extending his large hand towards the girl in front of him.

An uneasy feeling forced it's way into the pit of Breanne's stomach as she recalled her older brother warning her about this very person in front of her. She pushed that feeling away quickly though. What her brother didn't know wouldn't hurt him, right?

“Well, Mr. Oshie, why don’t you take a seat? The wilderness is scary for a little girl like me,” he shot her an award winning grin, and took his seat next to her once again. This time though, he sat much closer to Breanne. His thigh pressed against hers. She felt heat radiating from his body, as well as her hot blood prickling at her cheeks. She was instantly grateful that he couldn't see her blush in the night.

“Aren’t you going to tell me your name?” His voice was soft as his breath tickled her ear. She hadn't even realized he was quite that close.

“Breanne," she told him, not bothering to tell him her last name. He didn't seem to mind. TJ nodded, his eyes flicking up to the sky. Between openings of the canopy of trees above their heads, he could make out the beautiful stars. That was a sight you could never spot on campus.

“So, Breanne, we know each other now, are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”

“I walked in on my brother and roommate about to have sex. On my bed," she felt herself shudder again. TJ mistook this as a shiver, and pushed his body even closer to hers.

“Ouch," he mumbled, "that's gross."

Breanne nodded with a slight chuckle, and he finally took his eyes off of the stars. He now struggled to make out her features in the dark.

“So your brother goes to school here?” TJ asked. Breanne hoped this conversation wouldn't go to far.

“Yeah, he’s a junior," she bit down on her lip harshly, knowing it was probably a mistake to admit who her brother was. The two men obviously knew each other and Brad was known to be very overprotective of his sister.

“Who’s your brother?” She took a deep breath before speaking very softly. If it wasn't so calm and quiet in the woods, TJ probably wouldn't have heard her at all.

“Brad Miller.”

In an instant, the mood swayed and TJ fidgeted beside her.

“I’m sorry, I should probably go," he mumbled before jumping off the rock. "I'll catch you later, Breanne," he said before he once again disappeared into the darkness.