Authors: Micki Fredricks
I felt more at ease the closer we got to The Towers. People on this part of campus looked like they had no idea what they were doing. This is where I belonged, in an endless sea of the unknowing…floating along with the current, waiting for someone to give me direction.
After only a few blocks, we stood in front of a tall industrial looking building. I guessed this was one of the towers since there was an identical building farther down the street.
“Welcome to your new home, Miss Clausen.” He motioned to the building.
“Why thank you, Mr. Davis.” I gave him a quick curtsy and headed up the steps onto the sprawling cement patio.
The front of the building was glass from top to bottom. It showcased the stairway filled with people filing down from the upper floors, instead of waiting for the elevator. They moved in waves, stopping and starting together as they flowed down toward the ground floor. The simultaneous movements made the building look alive.
Someone had propped garbage cans in front of the doors, making moving day easier.
“Ready?” He asked, his smile warm and reassuring. I nodded my head. It wasn’t a lie, I was ready. However, I had also never been so terrified of something.
Maybe it was the look he gave me, but something told me he understood.
I followed him into the packed entryway. It should’ve been easy to blend in, especially since as soon as we entered the building, all eyes were on him.
“Jenna, don’t lose me,” he yelled over the people who had unintentionally gotten between us. Like I could lose him, he was a beacon. So much for blending in. I pushed up next to him and he shifted to give me more room.
“Is that where I get my mail?” I asked nodding toward the desk behind us. A few seconds of awkward silence passed between us. Enough time to fully process the stupidity of my question. Of course that’s where I get my mail … hence the mailboxes on the wall behind the desk. I rolled my eyes and turned away from him. I kept looking more intelligent as our conversations progressed. I should be quiet, better yet, mute. I bit my bottom lip, hoping it would be a reminder to keep my mouth shut. He let the opportunity to make me feel foolish pass and I was grateful.
“Sign in and they’ll give you a key to check your mailbox. I’d wait until later or even tomorrow.” He pointed to the lines, most being five or more people deep. No one would send me anything anyway.
We maneuvered into line for the elevator. My shoulder stung where the bag straps had started to cut in. I dropped them all to the ground. They landed with a thud, gaining me unwanted attention from the people around me.
“So, The Brotherhood, is that a fraternity?” I asked even though I didn’t remember seeing it listed in the brochure. He reached over and picked up the heaviest bag from the floor and added it to his load.
“No, it’s a privately owned house that a select group of guys stay in while they go to school.”
“A bunch of guys, huh? I bet things get a little wild around that house.” I pictured an entire house full of perfectly pressed khaki’s and navy polo's. I frowned at my vision, not exactly a picture of wild frat boys.
He laughed and shook his head. “No, not in the house. Don’t get me wrong, we like to have fun, but our house is governed by a strict set of rules that have been passed down from generation to generation. And unfortunately, the older generations like to check up on us often.”
“I’ve never heard of a privately owned house, that a bunch of guys live in, that wasn’t classified as a fraternity.”
He just smiled, shrugged his shoulders and looked back toward the elevator. Clearly this conversation was over. I’d been on campus for approximately ten minutes, who was I to question it?
The elevator doors jumped open and a group of people shuffled out. “
Going out for another load”
, I thought as I watched them. I wondered how many trips it would’ve taken me if my "
knight in a navy polo
” hadn’t shown up.
We followed the crowd and loaded into the overly full elevator. The nervous tension was thick and gave me an uneasy feeling. Maybe it was the moving, or all the people crammed into this small area, but I felt I could scream, laugh uncontrollably, or cry and any of it would be acceptable. Some might even join in. Following proper elevator etiquette, I kept my eyes locked on the floor numbers as they clicked away.
I flinched when the doors opened. He placed a hand on the small of my back and gently guided me out. We walked to the second door on the right side of the hall.
“Here it is, 407.”
I looked to him for direction, he quietly said, “You can go in.”
“Oh, right.” I reached for the handle but before I could grab it, the door swung open.
“Jenna!” She rushed at me, a blur of excitement, wrapping her arms around me.
“I hope you’re Katie.” The words came out as a forced whisper because she held me so tightly. We had talked on the phone a couple times since finding out we were roommates, so I wasn’t completely shocked that this was her introduction. She was funny and loud, liked to talk and loved to shop. She was also sure that we would be lifelong best friends.
I dropped my bags when she released me and tried to fill my lungs with needed oxygen. Cale stood in the doorway but had placed my bags next to one of the wardrobes.
“Katie, this is Cale Davis.”
He extended his hand and politely shook hers. “Nice to meet you, Katie.”
“Nice, to meet you too,” she replied, looking back and forth between Cale and me.
“Jenna, if you’re comfortable with the idea, I could take your keys and get the last of your bags out of your car while you two get aquatinted.” I reached into my pocket and handed him the keys.
“I’ll be right back,” he said as he ducked into the hallway.
I turned back to face my new roommate, but she stood staring at the spot where Cale had been.
“Is that your boyfriend?” she asked, pointing to the empty doorway.
“Are you kidding me? I should be so lucky! I just met him. He’s from some house on campus that does volunteer work. They help people move in. I think he called it, The Brotherhood …” She gasped and lunged at me, gripping both of my shoulders.
“You mean there are more of them?” She started a wild dance in the middle of our room and sang a song, something about “I love college”. In that second I knew she was right, we were going to be best friends.
“Come over here!” She half skipped across the room and then pointed outside. There was only one window in the room but it was huge. It looked out onto a courtyard that separated the girls’ tower from the boys’. I looked down onto a flurry of activity as people ran around setting up stands and stringing lights. “What’s going on down there?”
“The Information Fair is tomorrow night,” Katie said, she did a jump and clapped. I grabbed her hands and held them tightly in front of her. Her big, silly grin made it impossible to be serious.
“You were a cheerleader, weren’t you?” She nodded her head enthusiastically.
“Great,” I mumbled. “Mornings should be fun around here.”
Katie winked at me.
“Okay, what is the Information Fair?” I asked, releasing her hands and looking back out the window.
“It’s when all the sororities, fraternities and clubs have their booths out to recruit for the new school year. There’s food and music and my friend said it’s a great place to meet guys. Hot guys! Want to go?”
“Sure, sounds fun.” I stood side by side with my new friend. We looked out our window, discussing what groups we wanted to talk to. It was easy and comfortable. I exhaled a relaxing breath. Something inside of me settled.
Katie pointed to the fire escape directly outside our window. “The RA stopped by earlier and said that we’re a designated fire room. That’s why our room is a little bigger, so if the dorm starts burning down, everyone will come to our room to get out. I think it’ll be great for sneaking out after dorm curfew.” She wiggled her eyebrows up and down at me.
I choked on a nervous laugh, looked down to the ground and then back at her. She was serious, well, as serious as I guessed she could be.
“Since I’m terrified of heights, I’ll leave the sneaking out to you.” We leaned against the window sill, surveying the room. Our beds were built on stilts and only a couple feet from the ceiling, Katie’s was to the left, mine to the right. A couch and a small fridge she brought with her sat under her bed and two dressers and a stand for the TV stood under mine. At the end of each bed was a small desk and wardrobe. Home sweet home.
We began the daunting task of unpacking and discussed how we wanted the room set up. The idea of having a close friend seemed so foreign to me. I didn’t really know how to act. I’d spent all my time taking care of my mom and working. It hadn’t left a lot of free time to hang out.
“Hey Jenna, here’s the rest of your things.” A familiar face walked into the room with arms full of my things. I took the bags hanging off his arms, dropping them by the end of my bed.
“Thank you so much. You’ve been a huge help.” Turning back toward Cale, I realized he wasn’t alone. Someone stood behind him. This guy was olive skinned with dark hair which made his vivid blue eyes stand out.
‘I’m sorry,” Cale said quickly, noticing me smiling in the other boy’s direction. “This is Marcus, a first year brother in the house. Marcus, this is Jenna and Katie.”
I glanced at Katie, hoping she wasn’t doing her '
I love college
' dance again. She was quiet … and still. Strange.
“Hello,” he said in Katie’s direction. I wasn’t sure he knew I was in the room, and suddenly, Katie was shy.
“Hi.” I moved to my friend’s side giving her some moral support. Marcus, unable to avoid my presence in the room then, looked at me and smiled.
“It is nice to meet you both.” His stare immediately returned to Katie. Her eyes bounced between the floor and Marcus.
Cale put my bags with the rest of my belongings and took my small TV from Marcus.
His large biceps peeked out from under his sleeve when he sat it on the stand. I looked away, not wanting this guy to think I was a creeper when he’d been so nice to me.
Katie and Marcus weren’t talking, but had also not taken their eyes off of each other. I shoved my hands into my pockets, rocked back and forth a little, trying to look anywhere but the two of them. I felt uneasy, like I was watching something that was intimate, and I shouldn’t be involved in.
I caught myself biting my bottom lip, a stupid habit when I was nervous. My mom always told me it made my emotions too readable.
“I hope you don’t mind that Marcus helped with the rest of your things.”
“No, not at all.”
I was relieved Cale had broken the silence and snapped the tension in the room a bit. I smiled when I looked his way, praying he would forget all my awkwardness. His eyes locked onto mine and the side of his mouth rose into a smirk. I nearly died.
“Do you ladies need any more help?” he asked.
“No, but thanks again. It was really nice of you.”
He held my car keys out to me. I reached for them and was surprised when he grabbed my hand with both of his.
“You’re welcome Jenna. It was nice to meet you and I hope to see you around campus.” He turned to leave but before walking out the door, he glanced back at me over his shoulder, “Try not to attack anyone tonight, okay?”
I shifted my weight to one side and crossed my arms in front of my chest. “Very funny.”
He laughed, tapped Marcus on the shoulder and walked out the door. Marcus looked embarrassed as he turned to follow.
We stood in silence, staring at our closed door for several seconds until we both started giggling. We grabbed each other’s hands and danced the
'I love college'
dance together.
>CHAPTER THREE<
I yawned and fell onto the couch with a loud sigh, pulling my aching feet up underneath me. Exhaustion from the drive here and crazy amount of unpacking Katie and I accomplished in the last few hours hit hard. “I can’t do anymore,” I said dramatically and threw my arm over my face.
Katie flopped down next to me, laying her head onto the back of the couch. She took a deep breath in, exhaling slowly. The moment of silence granted me the window I had been waiting for. I needed to get the short version of my life out before she asked about it. Ripping off a band-aid quickly was always the better option as opposed to inch by painful inch.
“It’s just me and my mom,” I said. Hesitant to look at her, I adjusted so I could stare straight ahead. She’d spent the last hour talking about her big family. Her life sounded like a fairytale with Katie the star of every story. She was an only child, like me, but that is where the similarities ended. She was loved, cared for and protected. She had childhood memories … happy ones. Her favorites being the holiday celebrations thrown in her parent’s backyard. Cousins, grandparents and neighbors all came to spend time together.
Holidays meant better tips for me. No special memories, no pretty family pictures.
I kept my eyes forward, no turning back now. “My mom was an only child, her parents died before I was born. No cousins, no aunts or uncles. Only us.” I felt the heaviness of her stare, but didn’t turn her way. Seeing the same pity in her eyes that I’d been getting for years would be too difficult right now.
“I’m sorry …” she whispered.
I held up my hand, interrupting her. I didn’t need the old ‘feel sorry for the poor girl with no family’ routine. I sat a little straighter as I spoke this time. My tone a bit more terse than I wanted it to be, but I couldn’t help it.
“Don’t feel sorry for me.” I felt my face warming as emotions I tried so hard to keep buried fought to be revealed. “My father left my mom when he found out she was pregnant. Judging from the string of losers she’s brought around since, it was probably a blessing in disguise. It’s always been just me and her. It’s been fine.”
She put her hand softly on my leg. My eyes darted down to where she touched me, and back to her face.
Her dark eyes blinked against tears that threatened to spill over. “Oh Jenna, I didn’t mean that I feel sorry for you, I meant I’m sorry that I’m such a bitch. I blabbed on about my life without letting you get a word in.” I nodded slightly, acknowledging her apology. “She is all you know, it must have been so hard to leave her.”