Our Worlds Apart

Chapter 9: The Athletics Trip

***back to the flashback

***DEEPA POV***

After the scrimmage, Coach Williams and Coach Xia took us to the coaches' office for some reason.

"Why are the coaches calling us to the office?" I asked Viji and Nat.

"Beats me," Nat replied as Viji chugged her water. We each took a seat on one of the chairs, as Coach Williams and Coach Xia were situated by the whiteboard.

"Girls, we have our annual athletics trip coming up," Coach Williams announced as we all began to ooh and aah. "We are going to Long Island along with the rest of the athletic programs at NYU. Transportation and hotel fees will be fully covered, but that's about it."

"Who you will room with will be decided by us, and you might have to room with someone from a different athletic program. The hotel we will be staying at is Hilton. We will be leaving Friday Morning and returning Sunday night," Coach Xia contributed.

"If you can't make it, make sure to let me or Coach Xia know as soon as possible. Report to the front of the Palladium Athletic Facility on Friday morning by 9:00 AM, since that's where transportation will be picking us up," Coach Williams finished. "Any questions?"

"What'll we be doing on the trip exactly?" Aqsa brought up.

"Excellent question, Aqsa," Coach Xia replied with a smile. "Unfortunately, we are not going to be answering that. What we will be doing on the trip will be a surprise. Any other questions?"

Viji raised her hand.

"Yes, Viji?" Coach Xia asked.

"At certain times, will we be able to go roam to restaurants and other places like that with our friends?" she asked.

"Yes, but only in groups and at a designated time," Coach Xia replied. "I get that you guys are responsible adults, but for the safety of our student athletes, we require that you roam the city with a group of at least two people. We also require you to have a piece of NYU merchandise on at all times so we can recognize you guys when we need to."

I raised my hand. "Is there any other dress code we need to follow or some specific clothes?"

"You might want to bring jackets and hoodies. The area will be cold since it's the end of October and we're going to be near a beach. If you want to get in the water, bring a bathing suit. I highly don't recommend it, however, unless you're accustomed to taking cold showers," Coach Williams answered. "Anything else?"

All of us shook our heads.

"Get ready, guys," Coach Xia smirked. "This is going to be the trip of a lifetime."

***

***BYRON POV***

Ken, Deepu, Viji and I decided to have a football 2v2 just for the heck of it, couple against couple. Deepa and I won by a landslide because well, I'm a football player. Nat, Soy and Ritz were already at Starbucks working on their homework, and we decided to join them. Ken went to get the drinks.

Viji and I got the same thing, whereas Ken got a nice Pumpkin Spice Frap. Deepu got a pink drink, and Soy and Nat got hot chocolate.

"Uh, Ritz, care to explain your drink?" Sawyer asked.

"Folks," Ritz announced, holding up his brainchild. "I proudly present to you the Squid Game Frappuccino with extra chocolate chips. And a tennis racket cookie on top for good measure."

We all blinked six times and had no comment on how the tennis racket cookie came to be.

All of a sudden, I noticed Rosalani and her group of friends coming into the Starbucks.