I wrapped my scarf tighter around my neck to shield from the breeze as I exited Hamilton Hall building and headed across campus after finishing my first seminar in Literary Texts and Critical Methods. My brain was in overload at the amount of information I had just digested and all I could think about was grabbing a coffee with my friends.
It was my first proper day of classes at Columbia and after the previous week of getting to grips with how things worked, getting to know campus, extracurriculars, societies and everything else, the high of it all finally came down and it was time to start focusing on my studies.
As I pushed the monotone sound of Professor Hartman from my mind, I slid through the door of the campus coffee shop and glanced around quickly for them. A smile spread on my face as I spotted them giving me a little wave from the corner.
Penny and Georgie had befriended me on my very first day on campus as I roamed around helplessly during orientation week. They weren't the usual kind of friends I used to hang out with in New York but they were really great people and I loved spending time with them already.
Penny was cute as a button; a redhead full of freckles and a smile as bright as day. She looked the shy type but once you got to know her, she was as fiery as her hair.
Georgie was what he liked to call himself, and I would agree, a "peroxide queen". His hair was as white blonde as he could get it and his attitude was as sassy as my own. He was openly gay and one of the most stylish people I had ever met. He had no shame or care for anyone's opinions and that's what I loved the most about him.
'Is that for me?' I asked with a grin as I sat at the third seat at the round table.
'Of course,' Penny giggled and smiled. 'Coconut Vanilla Latte.'
'You know me so well already,' I chuckled.
'I remember the important details,' Penny said with a serious point of the finger. 'Coffee being way up there in the top three.'
'Oh, for sure,' I agreed with a giggle.
'I don't know why you guys drink that shit,' Georgie said and scowled. 'I could list for you guys right now a shit ton of negative health impacts.'
'We don't want to know,' Penny interrupted. 'What American doesn't like coffee?'
'This one,' he said in his abrupt, camp tone with a raise of his brow and a dramatic point of the finger at himself.
'There are a million things you can do to coffee to suit it to your taste,' I informed him.
'Oh, it's not the taste,' he responded. 'Like hell am I risking fucking up these perfect pearly whites of mine.'
'Drink through a straw,' Penny giggled.
'I'll stick with my lime refresher, thanks,' he replied sarcastically, before moving his pouted lips back to his drink.
'So, how was your seminar?' Penny asked me.
'I'd rather not get into it,' I said with a roll of my eyes. 'It was information overload. I'll have to go back over my notes tonight.'
'I feel the same,' Penny said as she nodded. 'We'll get used to it!'
It had only been two weeks since the move to New York; a week to get the apartment together and a week to get to know the campus and get involved in the activities before classes officially started. I had only known my new friends a week but already we had become quite a cosy trio.
'I'd better go,' Penny sighed as she glanced at her watch. 'I'm meeting my roommate to go over a few "rules" she's decided she wants to enforce.'
'That sounds very annoying,' I laughed.
'She is,' Penny sighed. 'I wish you were my roomie.'
'I would love that,' I said with a grin.
'Only, you have your fancy apartment to go home to everyday,' Georgie remarked. 'No roomies invading your personal space and messing with your stuff.'
'Well, I beg to differ,' I giggled.
'At least you live with someone you don't mind seeing shirtless all the time,' Georgie said. 'I prayed all summer for a hot guy and turn up to find Norman the fucking super nerd.'
'Don't be mean!' Penny batted his arm.
'I'm not, I'm just saying,' he said, rolling his eyes. 'Is it so hard to get a little eye candy?'
'You get what you get; it's college,' I chuckled.
'It's Columbia,' Penny continued. 'It was more probable that you'd end up with a super nerd than anything else.'
'As long as he doesn't start tooting his horn when I'm in the room, we'll be cool,' Georgie said.
'Now that's disgusting,' I scoffed.
'Yeah, you're an animal,' Penny said as she scowled.
'Don't hate me 'cause you ain't me,' Georgie sang as he smirked and stood to his feet. 'Now, I have to get to class. Toodles.'
We waved him off and Penny and I stood to our feet and headed out of the coffee shop.
'Well, see you tomorrow,' I said to her as I smiled.
'Yeah, safe trip home.' Penny smiled back as we hugged.
I headed across campus until I reached the street of Amsterdam Avenue and headed for the subway.
Since I had grown up in New York, things such as using the subway still felt natural to me. I didn't fear travelling this way like most students who weren't from the city did. In fact, it was a nostalgic feeling to be travelling this way again.
Once it arrived, I took the short 20-minute journey to Inwood and stepped off the subway, strolling through the streets with a refreshed smile on my face as I took in the rush of it all. I had to admit, I had missed it a lot. Leiper Falls had become home to me but New York would always be where I felt most at home.
It only took around 5-minutes to get from the subway station to my apartment on Vermilyea Avenue. It was a large apartment building that could have done with a little TLC and wasn't the most prestigious of places to live but it had character and it was home.
I took the elevator up to the fourth floor and scurried down the hall to apartment 55, unlocking the door and heading inside.
It was a small but cosy studio apartment; open plan with a small lounge area that you stepped right into with light grey wood flooring and a small two-seated dark grey suede sofa in front of an integrated electric fire with the T.V mounted above it. The kitchen was on the opposite side of the room; a tiny beige space with a large window overlooking the neighbourhood.
As I hung my coat up by the door and threw my bag to the floor, I strolled through, spotting the crouched figure seated at the little desk placed in an alcove in the wall, eyes focused on the paper in front of him.
'Hey, baby.' His casual and concentrated voice spoke without turning around.
'Working hard?' I smiled to myself as I spoke.
'Of course,' he replied.
I headed to the kitchen and grabbed a can of cherry cola from the refrigerator before heading to the sofa to sit. I spun around with my back against the arm so I could see Cal and he straightened his body up and turned to look at me. I never failed to smile when he was wearing his dark, square glasses; it was all too cute but he looked sexy at the same time.
'Just finishing off this design,' he said as he pulled off his glasses and swiped his palm down his face. 'Fucking leg piece; its huge.'
'At least business is steady,' I chuckled.
'With many thanks to you for helping me get the social media up and running,' he said as he smirked back.
'Of course,' I grinned. 'Where would the world be without Instagram?'
'There's been a lot of bookings since the page went up,' he told me. 'Charlie and I are working overtime; I'm having to take some bookings right up until 9pm.'
'Cal, that's crazy,' I told him. 'You're only open until six.'
'It's business,' he said and shrugged casually.
'As long as you don't overwork yourself,' I said as I lifted the remote to turn on the T.V.
'Never,' he replied as he stood to his feet and came around to the sofa.
He bent forward and tilted my chin up before pecking me softly on the mouth and I smiled through it.
'Living with you is the best thing ever,' I said as I smirked.
'It sure is,' he replied, nodding slowly as he caressed my cheek. 'Now, we still have a few boxes in the bedroom that need unpacked. You coming?'
He paced away from me to the bedroom door situated by the kitchen and disappeared through it.
'Yeah,' I called in reply, about to move until my phone rang. I smiled as I clicked the green button to accept the FaceTime and Tiffany's grinning face appeared.
'Well hello there,' I spoke as I smirked.
'Hi!' she called. 'So, how was class?'
'It was...strange,' I told her, honestly. 'Like everything at college it'll take getting used to I suppose.'
'Yeah, I feel the same,' she replied and nodded. 'Oh, Carter says hi by the way.'
'Tell him hi back,' I replied. 'Have you seen much of April?'
'Oh, yeah,' she said. 'We've met every other day for coffee or lunch when we get the chance and there's been a frat party that I've managed to drag her to.'
'Wow, a frat party so soon? How did that go down?' I giggled.
'Badly at first,' Tiffany laughed. 'But once we finally got her drunk, she was a real laugh.'
'I wish I had seen that,' I said as I smiled, feeling a little sad that I had missed it.
'Have you made any friends?' she asked me.
'Yeah, they're cool,' I replied with a nod.
'Not as cool as us though, right?' she laughed and grinned at me.
'Never in the whole of the universe could I find any friends cooler than you guys,' I said, with a giggle.
'Speaking of which,' Tiffany continued. 'Kady and Millie have done nothing but post pictures of themselves at parties. I don't even think they've actually attended a class yet.'
'I'm not surprised,' I replied. 'I'll have to call them sometime this week to catch up.'
'Yeah, me too,' she said. 'Is Cal okay? Business going well?'
'Very good actually,' I replied. 'He's almost fully booked right now and it's only been a couple of weeks.'
'He's obviously very talented,' she said.
'Oh, he is,' I said as I eyed up the artwork laid across the desk. 'He works with this guy Charlie and says he's super good too so, things are great.'
'I'm happy for you guys,' she said. 'I'd better go, anyway. Call me again sometime this week?'
'Of course I will,' I replied. 'Bye, Tiff.'
'Love you!' she called, before the video call cut off.
I placed my phone onto the sofa and sighed. It was a little sad that our group was now all spread apart far away from each other, but it felt a little worse for me being all the way in New York. Tiffany, April and Carter were all together and Penn State and Kady and Millie were together at Jefferson; of which both universities weren't too far out from Leiper Falls in comparison to Columbia.
'Are you going to make me unpack this by myself?' Cal's voice broke my thoughts and I turned to see him smirking as he leaned around the bedroom door.
'No,' I chuckled. 'I was on the phone.'
'Hmm sure,' he said, rolling his eyes.
'I was,' I gasped with a giggle. 'I wasn't going to leave you to do it alone.'
'Really, because it wouldn't be the first time if you did,' he said as he raised an eyebrow.
'Lies!' I grinned as I paced the floor towards him.
'You sat on your little ass while I unpacked everything on Saturday,' he said with a smirk as I got closer to him.
'More lies.' I smiled as I stopped in front of him. 'What kind of relationship is this if we are making up lies about each other, Cal?'
'Okay...okay,' he said, as he nodded with his mouth overturned in a cocky manner. 'That's how we're playing, huh?'
'I don't know, you tell me,' I said, holding back my giggles.
'Okay, fine,' he growled slowly, nodding steadily as he tried to keep up his nonchalant act. 'Here's an idea...let's leave the boxes and how about I drag you in here and pull you over my lap and spank that ass of yours for messing with me?'
'I think that sounds like an excellent plan indeed,' I mused with a raise of my brow.
'Well then, lets go,' Cal purred, before bending down quickly and scooping me up over his shoulder as I squealed out in surprise.
I giggled as he spun around and headed into the bedroom, slamming the door behind us as we laughed; alone together in our perfect little bubble.