I climb out of the car and stare at the building in front of me. While it looks similar to my old hall, I can already tell it’s bigger. I admit to myself that I’m scared. I don’t do well around new people and here is a place where thousands of them lurk. How was I ever going to fit in?

I feel the bag in my arms being tugged on, and I clutch it tighter.

“Let go, sweetie. Let’s put it inside something else. This is a new place. No one needs to know where you’re coming from.”

I know my mom is right. And nothing screams, “I’m sick” like a bag from the hospital. I let go of the bag and she tucks it inside a larger one.

“Here you go. Carry this one, okay?”

I clutch the new bag to my chest and nod.

“Well, let’s go find out where your new room is, shall we?”

I know my mom is talking to me like I’m 5 years old, but I find it comforting. Today has been a horrible disaster and I’m not sure I could handle anything more. She senses this, just like any loving mother should. I take a deep breath and head towards the front doors. It was the old dorm all over again. Only, this time, my mom was right. No one here would know who I was. I take heart in that and lift my head.

Inside, the entry is different. There is no large common area. There is only a large window cut into a wall where people are sitting.

“Can I help you,” one of the girls asks.

“Um. My name is Georgia Warner. I’ve been moved to this hall?” I am scared that something will have gone wrong and they don’t know I’m supposed to be here. Maybe I no longer have a room or a place to go. I conveniently forget my mom was already given an apartment by the school so she could stay for awhile.

The girl looks down at a list in front of her. “Yes. Here you go. You’ll be in room three eleven. Here are your keys. I hope you like it here in Carvill Hall,” she finishes brightly.

I give her a tentative smile and pick up the keys. I turn to my mom and say, “Wow. Third floor. That’s not going to be fun to move in and out of.”

“Then it’s a good thing those nice boys offered to help, isn’t it,” my mom asks with a wink.

I smile my first real smile all day and follow my mom back outside to let the boys know where the room was.

Without a single word of complaint, they start loading their arms with all of my stuff and we troop back inside. The climb up the stairs was no picnic, but I know I’ll get used to it.

As we walk down the hall to where my room is, I am shocked to see all of the males on the floor. One of the guys, Brian, must have noticed the stress on my face so he explains, “Carvill is a mixed sex hall. Two rooms are girls, two rooms are guys, etc.” I nod.

We reach my room and I open the door. The boys troop in past me while I hold the door open.

“Where do you want your stuff?”

“Just put it wherever. I’ll sort it out later.”

They drop their loads and head back out the door.

This room was set up differently from my old room. I take a few moments to wander around and orientate myself. The carpet was the same cheap carpet that withstands wear and tear well. Same beds as my old room. No dressers though. Those were tucked under the closets in this room and built in. I open a door and smile. It was a bathroom. No more trooping down the hall to use a common bathroom. No more having to time my showers for the middle of the night so I wouldn’t have to shower with five other girls.

“This is nice,” my mom says over my shoulder. “Oh, and so you know, I arranged it so you won’t have a roommate here.”

“Thank you, Mom,” I say and give her a big hug. It’s like she knew I wouldn’t be able to handle that situation again. Now that I think about it, Ruth and I were as different as night and day. Literally. I liked nights, she preferred mornings. I liked to study with the door closed, she liked it open so people could stop by whenever they wanted. This was going to be much better. No more worrying what someone else might like. I can listen to whatever music I want without headphones. I can stay up all night studying or goofing off or whatever and not worry that I was keeping someone awake.

“We need to go shopping when everything is brought up here. You can’t stay here without your own TV or microwave.”

I hug my mom again. She is being so sweet and considerate after all I’d put her through. I’m not surprised to find tears on my cheeks again.

“So! Let’s get to putting things away, shall we,” my mom said, clapping her hands together. “And I think we should take your new friends out to dinner tonight as a thank you. What do you think?”

I sniff and scrub my cheeks with my hand. “That sounds great, Mom.”

The guys finished carrying all of my stuff up the stairs and said goodbye after agreeing to meet us at the front of my old hall for dinner. My mom and I organize everything, put away my clothes, made up my bed and I finally took my shower. That was the best luxury ever. I don’t remember the last time I enjoyed a shower like this one.

I leave the bathroom and shut the door behind me. The girls in the other room might need to use it after all and I had no intention of ever meeting them if I could help it. My faith in girls is well and shattered at this point.

“Are you about ready? It’s almost time to go eat dinner.”

I nod and follow my mom out the door.

Before long, the guys and I sit down at a big table at a local restaurant. I notice they are all enjoying sodas while I have a large glass of milk. My stomach was still too upset to eat or drink much, but I’m glad my mom thought to take them out. They had earned it. No one even asked them to help. They just did it.

Doug leans over, “Are you okay,” he asks quietly.

“Yes, thank you,” I reply.

“Are you going to be in English tomorrow? It hasn’t been the same without you there.”

I feel my cheeks grow warm. “I’ll probably take another day off. Try and get used to being back and in a new place.”

He nods. “I understand.”

The rest of the meal was full of laughter and jokes. The guys acting like we had all been friends forever. Before long, even I’m laughing and enjoying myself. I look around the table and smile. These four guys are friends. When all hell broke loose, they were the only ones there. They were the only ones to show they cared and I didn’t even know they existed before today. But I made a quiet vow to myself to be their friend always.

*****

Doug and I sit on the floor of my room, each with a deck of cards. I’m comfortable in his presence even though we don’t say much. He’s an undemanding friend. I study him for a moment. He’s my height and has a thin build. Almost black hair to go with his dark brown eyes. A laid back personality that instantly draws people to him. He is rarely serious and I like that about him. He is always laughing or smiling, though I have caught a few serious looks on his face from time to time. They don’t stay long though.

I start laughing. Doug looks up.

“What?”

“Look at us! We’re sitting here playing solitaire together. How lame is that?”

He begins to laugh with me. “Hey. How are you doing on that paper, anyway?”

“You mean the one due in English tomorrow?”

“Yup.”

“Haven’t even started it. You?”

“Same here,” he says.

We return to playing solitaire, the comfortable silence settling over us again. A few rounds later, he stands and stretches.

“Hey, can I use your computer to type my paper?”

“Sure. Go right ahead. Then I can type mine when you’re done.”

He sits down at my computer and begins to type. I continue to play cards on the floor. Before I know it, he’s saying, “Okay, I’m done. I hope she likes it.”

“Oh, she always gives you an A. You’re the teacher’s pet.”

“Hey, now!”

“It’s true. We both put it off until the night before. We type them up real fast and call it good. I’ll make you a bet. You’ll get an A on your paper and I’ll get a B.”

He looks at me. “You’re on. I bet you get an A this time.”

I laugh. “Not likely. You’re teacher’s pet.”

He pretends to smack me. I laugh and dodge his hand.

“Actually, I think she likes your sense of humor. My writing is different and I’m not sure she likes it. Oh, well. Her loss.” But it stung. To know he was guaranteed an A while all of the A’s I used to get on all of my past writing assignments meant nothing. I blame it on the fact it’s not creative writing and sit down to type my dry paper on some ruins found when a river was dammed. How boring.

We got our papers back the following week and I pounce on him. “Show me! What did you get?”

He pulls his paper away from you. “I’m not showing you.”

“HA! That means you got another A.” I turn my paper towards him so he could see the big red B at the top of mine. “Told ya so. Teacher’s pet.”

We continue to laugh and joke all the way out the door and outside into the sun.

“Hey, what is everyone up to tonight,” I ask. By everyone, I meant our small core group which was slowly expanding to include more people. I was learning to trust Doug’s judgment when it came to people to know.

“Nothing, really.”

“Why don’t you and Terry come over and we’ll watch a movie?”

“Sounds good. I’ll bring it up with him. If nothing else, I’ll be there.”

“Deal,” I say with a grin. My mom had been generous. I had the TV and the DVD player and the microwave, just like she promised. With the second bed flipped on its side, my room was quite spacious and the extra mattress on my bed made for comfortable movie watching.

I walk back to my dorm watching all of the students stream by. It was different now. Everything seemed brighter than it had before. I see a couple meet in the quad and kiss. I shake my head. I am so not interested in that.

Next Chapter: Day 4