Hold On: Stay With Me

Chapter 1

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CHAPTER 1: NEW BEGINNING

Finally the day I'd been waiting for so long arrived. I'm outside the Barcelona-El Prat airport saying goodbye to my father, it could be the last time I'd see him in person for a while. From his state of mind I can see that my departure give him a feeling of bitter helplessness, but if I hadn't made this decision I'd have been stuck in my life in the same place and what I want in these moments of my youth is to live and experience all possible experiences before settling down. We're only young once in our life so I'm not going to waste it because when I become an adult I don't want to think and regret not having done certain things in life. Besides, there is no reverse button. I wish we could live the best memories again and again...

— "Cindy, I'll miss you terribly. I don't need to tell you that you can come whenever you want, I'll be waiting for you with open arms" — he says insistently.

— "Of course, I'll see you soon" — Sadness can be detected in my voice. If I stay longer talking to my father, I wouldn't be able to contain myself and start crying. I can already feel how the tears are gathering in my eyes and it would be impossible to contain the crying if I continue this farewell. At that moment, I throw myself into his arms and hug him. He corresponds with a stronger hug and then I feel his tears falling on my shoulder. I don't know how long we are in that position, but I manage to calm my sobbing, I pull away from him and look at him with a frown.

— "I'll call you as soon as I land. Everything will be great, I love you dad" — I promise him not to worry anymore. 

— "Say hi to your mother" — my father tells me before leaving. I just nod my head. Before crossing the door, I turn to see him with a half smile and say goodbye.

I sigh as I wait for my turn to check-in, there are still two hours left before the departure of the first flight. I've never been one of those typical girls who decide to dress up fashionable to fly, I'd rather prefer comfortable, wide clothing and a breathable fabric like cotton. In this case, I'm wearing a perfect gray tracksuit for my long-haul flight that will last approximately twenty-four hours and with three stopovers. To get to Honolulu I have a flight of two and a half hours from Barcelona to Amsterdam, from there another flight to Los Angeles of eleven hours, and finally a last flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu with a duration of five hours and forty-five minutes. Luckily, I have brought my laptop to entertain me for a while, if you're wondering what can be done for so many hours until I reach my destination. Days before I had made a decision, I decided to create a YouTube account. So before getting on the first plane, I decide to start recording my first vlog and tell about my new chapter of my life. Even though I haven't been able to travel much in my life, I love to fly and it'll always be a feeling that brings me happiness. My parents support my decision to study in the United States, they seem satisfied with the choice I had chosen: the University of Hawaii at Mānoa.

You can't imagine how nice it is to have a seat by the window. I take a quick look admiring the glorious sunset on the horizon. You can see the contrast of the vegetation with the deep blue ocean. I take the opportunity to appreciate the bright pastel tones formed in the sky with its cotton candy clouds before the plane land.

After a long trip, I have finally arrived at the island paradise in the Pacific with its beautiful beaches and sky that is tinged with colors. Perhaps that's why Hawaii is known as the Rainbow State. Finally, I'm here. As soon as I leave the plane, the airport staff welcomes us and offer each passenger a necklace of fresh flowers or also called Lei since it's traditional to welcome in this archipelago. After thanking them, I walk with my backpack on my back to the conveyor belt to collect my luggage. I see my two suitcases after five minutes and as soon as I take them I get out of Terminal 2 towards the parking. On my way I see different families in the crowd saying goodbye to their loved ones or welcoming them, others with signs waiting impatiently and others embracing. My legs go up the escalator to the exit, but not before noticing the large "Aloha. Welcome To Hawaii" sign at the airport, welcoming all passengers. For a moment, I study all the people carrying signs until one catches my eye. I see my name with my last name written in bold on the screen of the tablet. I slowly approach the driver who is waiting for me outside the taxi and he gives me a smile. I get into the taxi and hear the thumps of the taxi driver placing my stuff in the trunk, then the slamming of the hood as it is closed.

From that moment, a ten-minute journey awaited me to take me to what would be my residence for a while. I feel like a tingling sensation is forming in my abdomen from various concerns that are going through my mind. All I hope is that this year will be one of the best of my life and that I can make some friends in college. I only ask that, it's not much to ask or that's what I think.

— "Here we are! University of Hawaii!" — The taxi driver announces all excited as he drives to the campus apartment.

I hand the taxi driver a 35 bucks and say goodbye to him. I turn around and there I am in front of the university. The campus looks more amazing in person than it does on Google images. I'm fascinated by observing the elegant stone building at the entrance of the main college, surrounded by trees and sweeping lawns. Perfect for students to relax while sunbathing. Being July, there are only a few university students walking around and it shows that the university atmosphere isn't the same on vacation. The size of the campus is somewhat intimidating, the university has ten campuses with theater and sports facilities.

With a smile, I head over to find my bedroom as I drag my bags across campus. In the summer, many colleges rent dorms to students either because they are attending summer activities, working on campus, or not doing anything college-related. So I decided to come before starting the course to be able to enjoy the holidays here and enjoy it as much as possible before focusing on studying.

After submitting all the paperwork in the central building, I head to Hale Aloha Lehua, one of the four oldest residence towers on campus where only freshman students stay. I just wish that I can make friends and that my roommate is nice.

Author's note: Hi, how are you? I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if so, vote and comment. You'll help me to reach the book to other people. Until the next chapter, kisses :)