The campus buzzed with excitement.
Car doors slammed. Parents shouted directions. Rolling suitcases bumped against cracked sidewalks while upperclassmen in bright white and red shirts welcomed freshmen with booming voices and endless smiles.
CAU looked exactly like Kayla had imagined it would. Growing up in Clayton County, Spelman, Clark, and Morehouse was all she knew and she knew for a fact she was where she wanted to be.
Big.
Beautiful.
And absolutely terrifying.
Kayla's POV
"You got everything?"
For what had to be the fifteenth time that morning, Kayla's mom asked the same question. Kayla laughed as she pulled another duffel bag from the trunk.
"Yes, Mama. I promise."
"You got your chargers?"
"Yes."
"Toothbrush?"
"Yes."
"Birth certificate?"
"...Why would I need my birth certificate today?"
Her mom shrugged.
"You never know."
Kayla rolled her eyes, smiling anyway.
She was going to miss this.
The nagging.
The random questions.
The way her mom worried enough for three people.
Taking a deep breath, Kayla looked around campus. Students filled every walkway. Some hugged their parents through tears while others were already laughing with people they'd met less than five minutes ago.
This was it.
No more high school.
No more asking to use the bathroom.
No more teachers calling her parents if she skipped class.
She was officially a college student.
The thought sent butterflies racing through her stomach.
"You nervous?" her older brother asked, tossing one of her storage bins onto a cart.
"A little."
"A little?"
She sighed.
"Okay...a lot."
He laughed.
"You'll be alright. Just don't let these Atlanta boys distract you."
"Oh my gosh."
"I'm serious."
"I'm here to get a degree."
"Mhm."
"I am!"
He lifted both hands dramatically.
"I'm just saying. Everybody says that on move-in day."
Kayla playfully shoved him.
"You are so annoying."
They followed a student volunteer toward the freshman dorm.
The building was louder than she expected.
Music echoed through the hallways.
Parents carried mini-fridges.
YOU ARE READING
Love on the Yard
FanfictionWhat starts as one ordinary move-in day turns into a story neither of them saw coming. Kayla arrives at Clark Atlanta University determined to focus on one thing: earning her degree and making her family proud. Love? That's the last thing on her min...
