What Makes You Different Makes You Beautiful (SYTYCW Top 25) (professional edit)

Chapter Four

Chapter Four 

Rosalind slept for a good part of the afternoon, and then moved on to completing an essay that was due and studying for an upcoming quiz. For dinner, she saw a box from Jenny Craig sitting in the corner of her room. She sighed, too embarrassed to saunter down to the cafeteria after what happened that day in lecture. She walked over to the box, opened it up and took out a box of food that contained some sort of pasta dinner. She popped it into the microwave and then waited for it to cool off. She took out a fork and tried a bit, spitting the food into her garbage can. It tasted rubbery and disgusting. She gathered her purse and headed down to the cafeteria. It was pretty dead, considering it was Friday night. Julie was out of town for the weekend at a cheerleading competition, so she had the dorm to herself. She hadn't made any new friends yet, except for Leo, but she was mad at him for humiliating her in lecture that morning. 

"Hey," she turned to see Leo, wearing his dorky glasses, his hair a mess of curls, and he was wearing a pair of jogging pants and a t-shirt, with some weird quote on it. 

"Hi," she replied softly as she headed toward the front of the room to grab some dinner, but she realized the dining room was closed for the evening. She looked up and realized that it was almost ten o'clock. She sighed, not realizing how far gone the day was. 

"Do you want to go in town for some pizza?" Leo suggested. "I know you are pissed at me, but a bunch of my friends and I are going to have pizza and then to a bar. Interested?" 

"Sure, sounds fun," Rosalind admitted, smiling at him. "And I forgive you, but don't ever bring me into a conversation you are having with Lincoln again in lecture. I am beyond humiliated." 

"Lincoln?" Leo looked at her curiously. "How are you on a first-name basis with our professor?" 

"His sister went to my high school," Rosalind covered quickly. "Lexi Ainsworth." 

"Interesting," Leo didn't look convinced, but Rosalind shrugged. She followed him off campus and they ended up at a mom-and-pop pizza shop called Angelina's. It was adorable but very tiny. Cute white Christmas lights were strewn throughout the parlour, as cheesy Italian classical music played from the speakers. There were only about ten tables in there, plus a small patio with a few additional tables. Leo walked in and ordered them a couple of slices, plus a round of beers. She noticed nobody asked for ID. Maybe they didn't care there. She was confused. This was the second time she was served alcohol. Once at her almost dinner with Lincoln and now beer with Leo. 

Leo introduced her to his friends, three guys and one girl. She didn't remember any of their names, but they were too busy checking out comedic YouTube videos to notice her. She pretty much ignored them and took a sip of Corona, the first alcohol she had ever had in her life. Leo was on his second as she took a slice of pizza. She felt herself relaxing as Leo made her laugh through the meal. She teased him about becoming a comedian instead of majoring in business administration. After dinner, Leo's friends headed straight over to the adjacent bar that was packed with the Baylor college crowd. 

"Want to take a walk?" Leo suggested, and she nodded. The crisp autumn air set in as she realized it was after midnight. They walked in silence as the moonlight glittered in the sky. 

"Where are you from?" Rosalind wanted to know. 

"Austin," he responded, smiling. "You're from the East Coast, Buffalo, to be exact." 

"More near the Great Lakes," she responded smiling. "I actually live in Tonawanda. Small, little town. Nothing special." Leo stopped and turned toward her. He leaned against a tree and pulled her toward him. He gently caressed her hair as he pulled her in, roughly, for a kiss. Rosalind crinkled her nose, smelling the alcohol on his breath. It was gross and she backed away slightly, turning her face, so his lips landed on her cheek.