Alex couldn’t help but wonder what exactly he’d gotten himself into as he looked at the large brick building he was standing in front of.
Stonewood University had been the 18-year-old male’s dream school ever since he first laid eyes on it in his freshman year of high school. Not only was it one of the best universities in the country, but one of the school’s main specialties was its courses in various types of magic, something that piqued Alex’s interest when he first learned about it. He joined the high school’s football team and rapidly became one of the star players, helping his team win the State Championships four years in a row. And although he was nowhere near the smartest person in his grade, Alex still worked his ass off to make sure that his grades never dropped below a C. Thankfully, all his hard work paid off in the second semester of his senior year when he received an offer from Stonewood University, stating that he would receive a four-year scholarship if he agreed to play for their football team. Alex accepted the university’s offer in a heartbeat, excited beyond belief to attend his dream school in the fall.
But then, two weeks before his move-in date, Alex received an email from the Head of Residential Life at Stonewood. According to the email, the Admissions team had accepted a few more Normals (people who didn’t come from a magical background) than usual this year, and because of this, the dorm for Normals had filled up. This left Alex with two options: stay in a small hotel room that the school would pay for, or get a room in one of the dorms made for the students with magical backgrounds. Not wanting to miss out on the college experience, Alex chose to take an empty spot in one of the other dorms. The first one that opened up was a rather nice four-person suite in the Were-Creatures Hall. The young man quickly took the opportunity, unsure of when any others would open up, and for a while, he had been fine with it. That is, until the realization that he, a human, would be sharing a room with three shapeshifters, which leaves us where he is now.
Alex had a small flatbed cart loaded with three boxes, each one containing his various personal belongings. He pushed the cart to the glass double doors of the residence hall, stopping a few feet short to allow the door to open. Before Alex can reach into his pocket and pull out his student ID and unlock the door, a voice from behind him says “Let me help you with that.” Alex turns around and sees a young man around his age wearing a red hoodie and a pair of black sweatpants. He had a full head of blonde hair, piercing green eyes, and a slim, athletic body. The blonde-haired boy then reaches into his pocket and pulls out his student ID, swiping it through the card reader before opening the door and holding it for Alex.
“Hey, thanks a lot!” Alex said, pushing the cart through the door as the boy held it for him.
“No problem man,” the boy said, walking through the door once Alex was inside. “I take it you’re a freshman as well?”
“Yeah, I am,” Alex responded. “Are you a freshman too?”
The boy nodded. “Yeah, I got here earlier and unpacked my stuff already, so I decided to walk around campus a bit. I’m Sam, by the way.” Sam proceeded to hold out his hand for a handshake. Alex accepted the handshake. “Nice to meet you, Sam. I’m Alex.”
“Likewise. So what room are you in?”
Alex proceeded to reach into his pocket and pull out a folded piece of paper. He quickly unfolded it and proceeded to read what was on it. “It says here that I’m in Room 110A.”
Sam proceeded to laugh. “Yo, what are the fucking chances of that?! That’s my room too!”
“Seriously?!” Alex asked, a bit shocked. “That’s awesome!”
“It is, isn’t it?” Sam asked, his laughter finally beginning to subside. “Well, I already get the feeling that we’re going to get along just fine. Follow me, I’ll show you to our room.” Sam proceeded to walk in front of Alex’s cart in order to lead him to their room. He led Alex down a hallway on the left side of the main lobby, walking down it a bit before stopping in front of a door on the left side.
“Well, here we are,” Sam said, using his student ID to unlock the door. There was a quiet ‘click’ as the door unlocked, allowing Sam to open it and hold it open for Alex once again.
As soon as he walked into the room, Alex was greeted to a rather nice looking suite, complete with two couches, a coffee table, a TV stand with a TV, a medium-sized kitchen off to the right, and a door leading to their own rather nice bathroom to the left. Directly across from them were two doors, each with a small blue plaque on them that read “110A” and “110B” respectively.
“Damn, we get all of this to ourselves?!” Alex asked, looking around the suite in awe. “This is fucking nuts!”
Sam chuckled. “I know right?” he asked. “It’s pretty sweet. I think I’m going to enjoy living here for the next four years. Add to that the fact that we get to socialize with other Weres, and I’m definitely okay with calling this room ‘home’ for the next four years.”
That’s right, this was the dormitory for Were-Creatures. Alex had completely forgotten about that ever so important detail.
“If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of Were are you?” Alex asked, looking at Sam curiously.
Sam chuckled at Alex’s question. “I don’t mind at all,” he responded. “To answer your question, I’m a Were-Kitsune, a nine-tailed fox creature from Japanese mythology.”
“Those are a thing?” Alex asked. “I know that most Weres are basically bipedal versions of real-life animals, but I didn’t know there was such thing as Weres based on mythical creatures.”
“You better believe it, my friend,” Sam said. “One of our suitemates, Shane, is a Were-Dragon, while his roommate Ross is a Were-Tiger. But anyway, what about you? What kind of Were are you?”
“Oh...um...I’m actually not a Were…” Alex admitted sheepishly. This earned a confused look from Sam.
“Wait, so you’re a Normal?” Sam asked, before taking a quick sniff of the air and saying, “Huh...surprised I never picked up on that based on your scent. Well if you’re not a Were, what are you doing in the dorm for Were-Creatures then?”
“The hall for Normals was completely full, so I was assigned here,” Alex explained. “If you’re not okay with me being a Normal, I can go and see if there are any other available rooms that I could switch to.”
Sam shook his head. “Nah man, I don’t care,” he replied. “Were or not, you seem like an alright guy, and if you ever decide that you do want to become a Were, I’m certain that most people here would be dying to change you, be it through biting, scratching, or sex.”
“Wait, sex?” Alex asked, caught a bit off-guard by Sam’s remark. “But isn’t this an all males dorm?”
“Yes, but most Weres are bisexual, if not outright straight or gay,” Sam explained. “I guarantee you that if you asked any one of the guys here to transform you, very few would turn you down because they’re not attracted to men. And it’s not like you have to have sex with someone who is a member of the Were species that you want to become a part of, since people who are transformed become the species of Were that best suits them.”
“Huh...that’s pretty interesting…” Alex said, rather fascinated by what Sam had told him. “And if what you told me is true, then I assume that you’re bisexual?”
Sam chuckled and shook his head. “Nope, I’m totally gay,” he said without shame. “Don’t worry though, I won’t make any moves on you if you’re not comfortable with that shit.”
“Alright...good to know,” Alex said, feeling a bit unsure how to respond. This was definitely going to be a weird year.