Avery had not realized that someone else was already in the room. That was peculiar, honestly, because he was usually so self-conscious and so hyper-aware of the presence of others. Maybe his guard was down because it was late and he was a little more mellow than usual. He'd already taken the over-the-counter cold medicine that he always took so he could get to sleep, and he was a touch fuzzy around the edges. He was still staring upward when someone suddenly spoke, and he whipped around so fast that he had to wince and put a hand to his neck. Ouch.
Clearly, it didn't take much to startle Avery. The softness of Miles's voice had made no difference at all.
"Hi," he replied, still rubbing at his neck. Avery had no idea who the guy was, but he looked civilized enough. He could have been anyone: Avery hadn't met that many people here face to face yet. He tended to hide when he could, to skulk around the edges, to try to be unobtrusive. He didn't have any experience living with anyone but his family members, who'd always been more than understanding of his quirks and peculiarities, so he'd have to wait and see what might happen when people here caught on to his slight oddness and germ-phobia.