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weren’t for my fear of public
speaking. I don’t understand why a public speaking class is even a
requirement. You can’t graduate college if you can’t successfully
stand in front of a crowd and speak? I know plenty of successful
people who would cringe at the thought of public speaking. But
nonetheless, it’s a core requirement at WSC.
    When the professor
releases us, I look over at Craig to see him bolting out of the
classroom, off to his next class, without even turning in my
direction. Friends. Yeah,
right .
    I stop at The Grind before heading
back to my dorm. It’s not as crowded as yesterday, probably because
most people are in class right now. The girl Craig hooked up with
the other day is working behind the counter. Instantly, I can tell
she doesn’t like me. Between her and Craig working here, I should
seriously look up another coffee shop in the area. When I get back
to the dorm, I realize no one’s here and it’s kind of nice to have
the alone time. I sprawl out on the couch in the common room and
turn on the T.V., channel surfing until I get to an old episode of
Saved By The Bell, one of my favorite shows when I was in Junior
High. I didn’t mean to fall asleep, but I wake up to Hailey and the
twins all coming back at the same time.
    “You’re the only person I
know who can fall asleep while drinking coffee,” Hailey teases, noticing the
coffee cup still in my hand.
    “What time is it?” I ask,
sleepily.
    “Two-thirty. We’re all gonna go grab
some lunch. We just came back to see if you wanted to come too,
since you weren’t answering my texts.”
    “Yeah, just give me a minute to wake
up.” I stand and stretch, trying to get rid of the heaviness that
sleep brings.
    In the cafeteria, I meet Julie’s
boyfriend David, who just stopped by to visit. He goes to a college
about twenty minutes away. Evidently they were high school
sweethearts, so it amazes me that they didn’t decide to go to the
same school like Hailey and Drew did. I guess they thought twenty
minutes apart wasn’t that bad. After lunch, Hailey takes off to
meet Drew and I go back to the dorm to get ready for cheerleading
practice. I don’t see Hailey again until the next morning when
we’re both waking up at the same time because it’s a day that we
have the same classes.
    “What time did you get in last night?”
I ask her.
    “Late. I fell asleep at Drew’s and
didn’t realize it until Tyler woke us up.”
    “I was worried. I mean, I know you’re
a big girl and I’m not trying to be all motherly or anything. But,
wouldn’t you be worried if I didn’t come back to the dorm until
early morning? We don’t even know 10% of the people here. Anything
could happen.”
    “You’re right. I’m sorry. I’ll try to
check in next time?”
    “Okay. Did Drew at least walk you
back?”
    “Yeah, he did.”
    “Good.”
    English Lit and Algebra go just as
smoothly as yesterday’s classes, since there’s no actual work yet.
The professors just hand out the syllabi and read it off, going
over specific assignments we’ll be responsible for throughout the
semester. It’s nice having Hailey with me and I almost wish we
scheduled all of our classes together after all. After lunch,
though, she takes off to be with Drew and I get ready for
cheerleading practice again. After practice, she’s nowhere to be
found and not answering my texts again. I know I seem like a
paranoid mother, but I literally sigh in relief when I hear her
come in around eleven o’clock at night. This goes on for the next
few weeks and I contemplate confronting her. On one hand, who I am
to tell her what to do? She’s in college now and she has the
freedom to be with her boyfriend as much as she wants. If I say
something, she’ll probably just think I’m jealous of her spending
more time with Drew than with me. But on the other hand, maybe I do
worry that Drew is all she cares about lately; that he’ll distract
her from having a real college experience.