Jude awoke with the sun pushing it's way through his eyelids. He squinted as he felt a dull pulsing behind his eyebrow signaling the arrival of an unwelcome hang over. He groaned and rolled over thinking about how today was Saturday and how much he hated Saturday's.
To Jude, Saturday's were the worst days to have nothing planned and like every other Saturday before, he had no plans. He knew he should be practicing his viola but at this point in the semester he was so frustrated with how his jurys were turning out he could barely stand to look at the stupid instrument. Man how he hated to look at the case right now leaning against the chair in the corner. That chair where he once again, pissed off Edith. He felt like he was never going to get that right. Becoming increasingly frustrated with his thoughts he pushed himself out of bed towards the kitchen stove to make himself a pot of coffee.
Besides it being a dreadful Saturday it was also morning, make that a dreadful Saturday morning. His day was off to a great start.
~~~~~
Edith awoke that morning to her phone buzzing on her stomach, which meant, she once again fell asleep reading. Her favorite obsession had become raunchy romance novels that were free online. Complete trash, but easily accessible and fun to pass the time with. The phone continued to buzz as an alarm clock telling her that it was 7 a.m. and this was her usual time to run. She sat up then immediately fell back against her pillow as the room swam around her. Looking up at her childhood ceiling, she studied the glow in the dark stars that had taken residence around the time she was ten years old. Her father had decided it would be a good idea to put them up and then told her that when he was drafted over seas, at night he would look at the stars and so would she. They'd have the same view and never be too far apart. That was ten years ago. He didn't come back after that trip but she kept the stars up in the belief that the last thing he saw was those stars and thought of her before leaving them forever.
She glanced over at her phone and turned off the alarm. There would be time for running later but right now she had a hang over and had skipped sleeping the past two nights in order to finish her midterm papers. As she closed her eyes the last thing she though about was the charged air between her and Jude the night before.
~~~
"So tell me again why you're changing your major?" Edith's mom set down a cup of coffee and front of her and took the seat across from her with her own cup.
"Because Mom, I can't make a difference with an english degree in the way I want to."
"But you can write just fine." Her mom said squinting at Edith
"Anyone can write just fine Mom, it's why you do it that makes a difference and I don't know why I write so that's why I think I'd be better suited to Psychology."
Edith looked down at her cup and took a sniff before wrinkling her nose and setting the cup down.
"What kind of difference do you think you're going to make with a psychology major? All you do is sit in a chair and ask people what's wrong with them. Like they know. Aren't the psychologists suppose to have those answers? People shell out so much money for them and all they get in return is questions."
Edith felt her head ache increase listening to her mom. Both of them had gone to see a psychiatrist when Edith's father had never returned and for Edith the sessions helped but for her mom there was only continuous complaining. The reason either of them had gone was because her mother had not been able to handle the grief and once too much had built up it all came out at once. Violently and usually upon Edith. Her middle school math teacher was the one who saw the bruises.
"Mom, the psychiatrist helped back then and I think he helped you too. And it's not like i'll end up begging on the streets with this degree. But that is possible with an english degree."
Her mom glanced out the window instead of looking at Edith, "Fine." she said "But remember that i'm paying for this and I don't want you waisting my hard earned money. It's been tight ever since your father left."
"I know." Edith said and boy did she know. It was the same spiel she got every time she came home. "I'm going to stop by and say hi to Lisa and then i'm going to head back to school. I've got homework." Homework. It was an excuse she had been using ever since high school and it almost always got her out of stuff because grades had always been very important in her family.
"Do you have to leave so soon? I really miss you, you know?" Her mom turned away from the window to look at her with a for lone face. She always did this right as Edith was trying to leave.
"I know but this homework is difficult and i'm probably going to have to go to a tutor." These excuses were pathetic in Edith's mind but they worked as long as she kept a high GPA.
"Okay. Take some snacks before you go. Do you need any clothes? There's always something in your closet."
"I left those clothes in the closet for a reason mom. I'm going to get a shower then I'll be off."
Edith turned around and made the climb up the stairs to get a well needed hot shower to wash away the hang over.
