Sobriety

S I X

chapter six: the campus life

California was everything I imagined it to be.

The weather was perfect, it wasn't as hot as Midfield was. Another plus was that there weren't any pesky bugs swarming around.

Leaving Midfield was bitter sweet. I left my hometown and everything that I had grown up to know.

My mom was a hot mess, crying and telling me how she was going to call me everyday. She was the only person awake in my household and was the only one I could say goodbye to.

I gave Khadijah and Micah a kiss on the cheek before I left though.

Renae kept her promise and arrived at my house at 4:59. And soon, we ended up here. In Los Angeles, California.

The campus looked even bigger than I remembered when I visited two months ago.

Currently Renae and I were on our way to orientation for the official welcoming of new athletes.

We were advised that if we were going to be student athletes, it would be a good idea to move in early so that we could get adapted to the campus life.

Looking around at the people seated around us, I realized there were a lot of athletes here.

"I think all athletes, new and returning, are here today. Maybe the oldies don't move out?" Renae questioned.

"Yeah I think so, let me ask," I began before turning to my left and tapping a girl on her shoulder.

She turned her head and gave me a smile. I asked, "Hey. I was just wondering, are you new here?"

She shook her head and said, "No, I'm actually a senior here. UCLA not only requires new athletes to move in early, but all student athletes to move in."

"Oh, okay thank you." I replied, giving her a small smile.

I thought that would be the end of the conversation, but I was wrong.

"So what sport do you play?" She continued, looking up at the stage where it looked like someone was going to be speaking in a few minutes.

"Me and my friend, Renae, both play volleyball here. We're here on a volleyball scholarship." I replied.

Her eyes widen with realization, "you must be Malayah Smith then. We heard a lot about you and also about Renae. I'm Kyla Lincoln, the head captain of the volleyball team here."

My eyes widen also, "Oh, wow. It's nice to meet you Kyla."

I was stopped from going any further when someone began speaking on the stage.

"Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Jonathon Wells and this is Sharon Wells," he said, gesturing to the woman standing next to him, "we are the athletic coordinators. We're happy to welcome all new and returning athletes to UCLA. Today we're going to be going over what we expect here, so let's get started."

About an hour later, the meeting was coming to an end, "I think we covered everything for today. If you haven't received your key to your dorm and moved in yet, now is the time to do that."

Renae and I still have to move in, so we hastily made our way to the consultant's office so we could get our key. We were both in a slow jog trying to be the first people there.

I realized that I really needed to get in the gym as soon as possible. We succeeded in being the first people there, but I was so out of breath that I couldn't even say my name so that I could get my dorm key.