Read Determinant -Guardians of Vesturon [3] for Free Online

mouth, I felt it melt and I couldn’t seem to get enough after that!
    My job at the bookstore, on the other hand, wasn’t so great. It was exhausting work hoisting and unpacking the heavy boxes and stocking the shelves. The manager, Karl, was okay I guess, but he wasn’t Lou. I suffered through it though because I was jonesing for that textbook discount along with the extra cash.
    “January, you’re going to have to hustle a bit more. Tomorrow things are going to pick up and everyday will get busier and busier,” Karl said.
    “I’m working as hard as I can Karl. I can’t lift the heavy boxes as easy as the guys can,” I retorted. He expected me to have super strength. I was half the size as some of the others. “Maybe I could do a different job.”
    “No, I need you here, doing this. Textbooks are heavy. You knew this when you accepted the job.”
    “Yes, sir. I’ll do my best,” I mumbled.
    “See that you do.”
    Between the two jobs, I barely had time for anything but sleep. For two weeks, every night I crawled between the sheets and crashed. My sleep was anything but refreshing. I awakened each morning feeling every bit as weary as I did when I went to sleep. I attributed it to my mounting uncertainty on whether I could pull off going to school full time and working two jobs.
    The day arrived when I could move into my dorm. I packed up my meager belongings and drove to my next residence. I felt like a vagabond due to four moves in the space of three months. It was a good thing I didn’t own much. That was my way of keeping the glass half full.
    I was the first of my suite mates to tackle this event. I’d be rooming with Carlson Kittredge from the Raleigh, North Carolina area. My other two suite mates were Madeline (or Maddie as she preferred to be called) Pearce, whom I knew from high school, and Catherine (Cat) Newman from Asheville. I rapidly moved my few belongings in, made up my bed with the set of sheets and comforter the Campbell’s had given me as a going away gift, and headed to the bookstore for my shift. Things were heating up there as more and more students arrived for the semester.
    I was starving and exhausted by the end of my shift, but I made my way to the Purple Onion to work. My mouth watered as I thought about what I would soon be eating. My shift didn’t end until midnight and by the time I returned to my dorm, everyone was asleep.
    The next day, Sunday, was pretty weird. Everyone was gearing up to start class on Monday but I was so busy with work, I didn’t even think about checking out where my classes were. I was carrying a tough load: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Calculus and English. Everyone else was excited about parties and meeting boys, but I was worried about whether I could manage it all. My anxiety was obvious by my ragged nails and chewed up lower lip.
    “Did you check out where your classes are January?” Cat asked me that evening. “Maddie and I did but I am still so nervous about getting lost and being late. I know I won’t sleep a wink tonight.”
    “Same here,” Maddie agreed. “I wish I had at least my first class with one of you.”
    Carlson piped in, “What are y’all so worried about? Just ask a cute boy where you should go if you get lost. That always works for me!” Sweet as she seemed to be, evidently Carlson didn’t have a clue. Maddie must have been thinking along the same lines because I glanced her way and caught her eyes rolling. I chuckled.
    I shook my head saying, “I didn’t have a chance today. By the time I got off work, it was dark.”
    “You work too much girl,” Carlson said.
    “I have to. It’s my only means of support,” I confessed as I dropped my eyes to the floor. I started wringing my hands as this was headed to an area in which I had no desire to venture.
    Even though I tried my best to ignore my ability to hear thoughts most of the time, I knew it would be asked and I just knew the question would come from Carlson.