Rumor Has It

six.

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[august 22nd]

          Classes have officially been in session for two days now, and honestly I'm feeling a thousand times better about things than I expected to. Of course it is just syllabus week so far, but I'm more than confident that if I stay level headed, I'll do just fine. If I do become sidetracked for some reason along the way, I might as well consider myself screwed for the semester.

          When I wasn't busy looking like a professional speed walker on my way to classes on my first day, I was trying to find somewhere to eat in the hour and a half break I had in my schedule. It didn't take very long for me to stumbling upon a hidden coffee shop between the design and liberal arts buildings, known as The Hub. It didn't have many food options, but there was no way in hell I was going to pass up this cute spot to relax in.

          The dim overhead lights, the string lights strung around the large windows, the soft music that played overhead, and the delicious aroma of coffee beans made for the perfect atmosphere to study or just to hide away in. The fact that The Hub also made some of the best drinks and snacks on campus was obviously a plus as well. I'd like to think it was a secret, unique place that only I knew about, but it was clear that many design students had already discovered this hidden gem. From one-thirty to three o'clock, that's where anyone can find me - but I'd prefer if they wouldn't.

•           •           •

          My foot tapped to the rhythm of the music that played softly in my headphones while my hand moved quickly across the page as I jotted notes down in my notebook. The large textbook that rested on the table in front of me was daunting as ever, but my entire major is going to consist of reading text that I'd rather not so it's not like I have much of a choice. As my mom would always say, "Suck it up buttercup."

          The note page I was steadily adding writing on quickly went from organized to a chaotic mess with words trailing off the page and writing filling up the margins. Dropping my pen down into the crease of the textbook binding, I huffed a heavy sigh as I decided it was time to take a break. I looked around the coffeeshop and realized the rush from earlier quickly died down. Two people, as well as myself, sat in the coffee shop ignoring one another as they appeared to be deep in their own worlds filled with their coursework.

          Knowing very well I finished my smoothie five minutes after getting it, my eyes flickered over to the empty cup that say on the table with hopes that it would've magically refilled since then. Of course, it didn't.

          The music in my headphones quieted down as a text lit up the screen. It was my dad, for the, seemingly, eighth time today. Without picking the phone up from the able, I read the message:

          Dadd-io: How're classes going so far? You haven't failed any yet, have you?

          He's been waiting to send that for months now, I thought to myself. I grabbed the phone and began to write back a quick, witty response. A smile eased its way across my lips as I typed:

          Dad, it's the second day.... they don't tell you if you fail until the third day, duh.

          I stared down at my phone, waiting eagerly for his reply. My foot that rested on the chair across from me bounced, a natural, and sometimes nervous, habit of mine when I get lost in thought. My attention snapped back with a jolt when I noticed a tall figure standing across from me. I could feel my eyes widen in shock, along with a little embarrassment, as I sat staring up at Theo. It was in no way as intense as the last time ran into one another in a dining hall, but nonetheless pretty embarrassing.