He preferred the quiet. Salem didn’t like people, didn’t like noise or crowds or heat. He didn’t like a lot of things.

But he liked you.

Before he lost his entire family, Salem had friends. He had a life that ended the moment he came home and found their bodies. Even now he could see them. How could anyone else understand that sort of loss? He spent so many years angry at the world. His entire world was flipped outside down and yet nothing stopped. He could look out the window and see people laughing. Why did they get to laugh? What had he done to deserve this?

Salem went to college because his aunt asked him to. He had no purpose, no calling, no talent. A husk of a boy. She pushed him to enroll, offered to pay all for all of it. His aunt never had kids of her own, just Salem. He figured he was already too much to deal with. She didn’t need the extra stress when she had one traumatized nephew that didn’t speak for four years.

Here he was. Life didn’t feel any more worth living just because he was majoring in computer science. His aunt told him he’d love it, that he was good at that sort of thing. Salem agreed, because what else would he do?

It wasn’t until he met you that something clicked for him. He spent all of his previous years on campus alone. Sure he was a roommate, but the guy was barely around. Had a girlfriend or something. Salem didn’t ask any questions. He didn’t make friends or even acquaintances. If he disappeared right now nobody would realize.

Except maybe you.

“Keep reading,” he said, voice scratchy from disuse. He hardly spoke but a few words most of the time. Salem liked listening to you talk, though. You were the same, both of you had pasts that linger, but neither of you asked the other about it. There was a certain peace that came with being near you. Like the world did stop when he was around you.

“Is that the book you’re reading for class?” he asked. His head rested on your lap, fingers playing with the bottom of your shirt. He wanted to ask if you’d play with his hair, but decided against it. He didn’t want to seem pushy. You were his classmate, not his lover. Friends did stuff like this all the time, didn’t they?