"I made enough! I'm going to college," I squealed as I ran out of the room and into the living room.
"Really?!" Pia beamed as she grabbed my hand. We bounced around in excitement. "We're going to have to celebrate! We should go to a cool 70's theme diner tonight. Like a celebration dinner!"
"Okay, oh my God! I'm honestly so happy and relieved." I laid on the floor and stared at the ceiling. I was at such a peaceful state that looking at the ceiling made me happy. I did it, on my own. It took some grinding but I finally accomplished my goal.
Pia laid next to me. "I'm so glad I'll be going in with someone I'm close to, I was getting a bit nervous to be honest."
"Why? You're such a lovable person. You could make friends asap."
She shrugged. "Yeah, just friends but not close ones."
"Anyone would be lucky to be friends with you," I said, cheerfully.
She turned to her side and grinned. "I can say the same. What time is your class tomorrow?"
"10. You?"
"10:30. We can head to university together?"
"Sounds good."
"Oh, and you can tell me more about your job since you're always too tired when you come home to talk about it." She narrowed her eyes and smirked. "I need that type of cash."
I rolled my eyes. "No, you dont."
"You're right, I dont but it would be nice to get my own dough."
"We'll see," I replied with a mischievous smile.
"Ugh, such an enigma," she whined as she got up and headed to her room to get ready for our celebration dinner.
There were a lot of college students at the dinner, specifically those in frats and sororities. Pia spoke to a few of the girls and flirted with a couple of guys. She didnt want the commitment of sisterhood but wanted the connections.
I stayed back in the booth, drinking my milkshake. This was the first day in weeks that I had a day off and it felt great. I was still going to work at the lounge since I needed to save up for future semesters, but I was only going to work three to four nights a week. For the rest of the days of the week, I would be living my life as an ordinary college student: studying, making friends, participating in organizations, maybe even date.
Pia rushed over to the table with an excited look. "We've just been invited to a party!"
"Really? I thought we were keeping it chill tonight."
She tilted to her head to the side. "We can...or we can meet some hot guys and drink a little." She raised her eyebrows and nodded her head in an approving manner.
I didnt want to go to the party. I had spent so many of my nights with men and appeasing them. I wouldve appreciated a night off from all that work, but I didn't want Pia heading to a party by herself. Most of the guys looked at her as if she were a piece of meat. Most freshman girls were preyed on because of their naivitivty.
"Okay," I sighed. "Only for two hours."
"Yes! Let's go!"
The house smelled of booze, weed, and sweat. There were a bunch of different aged people at the frat house. A few men looked like they were too old to be college students, regardless, they partied as if they were students. Pia clung to one guy in particular named Abel. He was a sophomore and seemed like a decent guy. He made sure she was around him at all times and kept her entertained.
I sat on a barstool in the living room drinking some soda. I wasnt in a drinking and socializing mood. There were two guys who stopped by to see how I was doing but the conversations didnt last over a minute. I didn't mind it though, I was there for Pia.
"Hey," I heard a guy whisper into my ear. I slowly turned my head over to find a young curly haired guy with a friendly smile. "Thought you might want a refill?" He handed me a can of Sprite. "My peace offering," he teased.
I chuckled and grabbed the can. "Thanks."
He sat on the barstool next to me and plopped down on it. "So, who are we keeping an eye on?"
"What makes you think I'm watching someone?"
He looked at me with a straight face. "Pretty college girl sitting down instead of dancing, shes usually just here to watch over a friend."
I nodded my head towards Pia. "Her."
"Oh, shes cute. I saw her dancing with Abel earlier."
"What's he like?" I asked, opening the can of soda he offered me.
He shrugged. "Cool guy, from what I've heard. I dont hang out with him much but he's labeled the nice guy."
I sighed in relief. "That's good."
"Meh, sometimes it's hard for the nice guys to get the girl. They always want the older guy who can sing, act, and is successful in everything they do." He looked a bit annoyed.
"That was personal," I replied. "Who broke your heart?"
"Priyanka," he sighed.
"I never heard of her. I'm sorry."
"Pryianka Chopra," he added.
My cheeks swelled up and I bursted out in a silly laugh. "You're ridiculous."
He smiled ear to ear. "I like your laugh."
A wave of heat rushed to my cheeks and I looked down at the floor. While I was bashfully hiding my face, I heard someone call out for Carissa.
I turned my head back out of habit and cringed when I realized my own mistake.
"So, your names Carissa?" The guy asked in a cheerful tone.
"No," I said, a bit panicked. "I'm Morena."
"Oh, okay, thought it was Carissa because you looked back but I like the name Morena a lot more."
"What's yours?" I asked, trying to divert the attention away from myself.
"Xavier."
"Cool name!"
He nodded approvingly. "Cool name for a cool dude."
I playfully rolled my eyes and chuckled. "We'll see."
The rest of the night was pleasant. Pia spent the night dancing, laughing, and playing around with Abel. I had spent most of my time at the party talking to Xavier about everything and anything. It was easy talking to him and not like any guy that I had encountered. He made me feel comfortable and never once made me feel anxious. There was no pressure for anything more, we were just being friends.
Abel was our ride home but he ended up getting a little too drunk to drive so Xavier took us home so we didnt have to walk in the dark. I waved him goodbye after getting out of his car and told him I'll see him around.
The following morning wasnt the best for Pia. She drank more than intended and ended up having a hangover. She wanted to skip class today but I didnt let her. I made her a green smoothie and gave her some pain relievers so she could make it through her two classes.
We walked to class in silence, which I was grateful for since I didnt want to talk about my work. I intended on telling her what I actually did for work once I started feeling the burden of it. I wanted to confess but I wasnt exactly proud of what I did. As much as I had fun dancing, it wasn't me. I didn't have the 'it' factor like the rest of the girls. Honestly, I didnt want to think about work and I was hoping I could avoid the topic all day today.
My first class was boring. The professor spent most of the time going over the syllabus and had gone over two powerpoint slides before class ended. I had a fifteen minute break and headed to my last class of the day. I was early to class and found a seat in the third row.
The room started to fill up with students and finally, the professor came in. The professor started class by passing out the syllabus and going over it with extreme detail. This statistic class wasnt going to be easy and the professor didnt seem like he would be too lenient with grading.
I heard the classroom door open, someone with a red baseball cap rushed into class and made their way down my aisle. They plopped down next to me and kept their head down to avoid eye contact with the annoyed professor.
Once the professor started to speak again, the student peeked their head up and they grinned ear to ear. I knew that smile. "Hey, Mo," he whispered.
"Xavier... I didnt know you were taking stats."
"Yeah, I avoided it freshman year but I want to take it now so I don't have to worry about it later. I hate Math."
The rest of the class went as smooth as a math class could go. Most the students chit chatted after class ended and exchanged numbers. Many students realized that this was a course they couldn't succeed in on their own so study groups were sure to be formed.
Xavier stuffed his notebook into his backpack. "I'm screwed. I didnt understand a word he said." He shook his head disapprovingly.
"I got the gist of it. I took stats junior year of high school so it's not all foreign stuff."
He cupped my shoulders with his warm hands. "Please, tutor me. Typically, I'd say fuck it and wait till the night before the exam to study but I need to try this time around.'
"I can help you with whatever I know," I offered.
He flashed a friendly smile. "Awesome. Do you want to hang out tonight so we can go over what we did today and maybe get a bit ahead for Wednesday's class?"
"Uh, I have work tonight. Maybe tomorrow night?"
"Yeah, that works out. I'll read the book tonight so I can contribute to our study group. I dont want you doing all the leg work." He opened the door for me and I walked past him.
"So, where do you work?" He asked.
"At a club," I said, vaguely.
"Oh, nice. Where? I'd love to see it."
I waved my hand dismissively. "Eh, it's twenty minutes away from here. Its not a big deal."
He hummed and pursed his lips. "Whatever you say. Done with classes?"
"Yup!"
"Want to grab a bite? My treat."
"Oh! Sure."
"Then, we can stop at the book store and get matching GWU shirts. You know, so we can represent!" He motioned his hands into weird indecipherable movement. Xavier was definitely a goofball, but I loved it. He enjoyed life and made the most of it.
"Sounds good to me," I replied as I walked besides him. I had a feeling we were going to be really good friends and honestly, I couldn't wait for what this school year was going to bring to me.