She's Older Than Me

Chapter 20: Senior Dilemma

It was a pressure for the seniors at Frigate Academy. Though the fourth grading period was still a long way off, the students were pressured into deciding what course to get for college. There were those who already knew what they want to do in life; hence, they had an idea on what to take. Others had decided to take courses because their parents had conditioned them to take it up or were forced to take it. The rest were undecided and confused.

Nadine was one of the elite few who really had planned her road to life. She knew she was destined to be a lawyer. Her parents had taught her early on in life to be independent, to speak her mind, not to allow other people to bring her down, and how to be a leader. She knew there were a lot of courses to take as pre-law course, but she wanted to take up Political Science before heading to Law school. Her path was already smooth (or at least, that was what she thought so), and she went through the third grading period without pressure.

The twins felt the pressure of getting into the medical field. There dad, an orthopedic surgeon, and their mom, a dentist, wanted their twins to follow their footsteps. They wanted the introverted Linda to take up dentistry, and the math princess Lorraine to take up any medical course, so that she will be trained to be a doctor, then a surgeon someday. Linda, who didn’t always say her thoughts, was totally decided and would not let pressure take over her. She had decided after summer that she’d be taking up Physical Therapy. She had found the joy of watching the therapist helping their grandmother many years ago while vacationing in Pampanga. Of course, their parents were utterly disappointed and tried to talk Linda out of it, but Linda would rather take up the course that she wanted.

Lorraine couldn’t make up her mind. She was afraid to talk to Nadine because the latter was all set to enter into the world of Law. She also had not spoken much to her twin about it because she was still very much undecided. Though she had an idea of what she wanted to be, she had no idea how to really get there. Ashley did not even seem to talk about her choice in college, so Lorraine decided to ask Ashley about it.

“What are your plans for college, Ash?” Lorraine asked.

“I have a plan, but I need to seek advice from the guidance counselor. Do you want to tag along?” she asked, sensing some problems from Lorraine.

“Sure. I can use some help too,” Lorraine said to her.

After lunch break, Ashley and Lorraine told the other two that they will be going to the guidance counselor’s office. Linda realized her twin was having a problem, so she asked Lorraine if it was something about getting a course in college. The undecided twin finally shared that she really had no idea on what course to take up, and Linda somehow understood.

The undecided two proceeded to the guidance counselor’s office, and had a word with the counselor. The counselor handed out assessment booklets for the two, who took the test for almost an hour. After the assessment, the counselor assured them that come fourth grading period, the school will be inviting different representatives from different schools to talk about their respective fields. Depending on the results, the counselor will be giving them insights on what to take up.

“It will take a week,” the counselor told them. “So please come back here next Monday.”

“That’s too long,” Lorraine thought in agony.

As the two exited the guidance counselor’s office, they began to converse.

“As I answered the test, I realized that I wanted a career where I can talk with people,” Lorraine shared to Ashley. “I had been thinking of this all along, but I am too confused.”

“Really? So what do you have in mind?” Ashley asked.

“I want to be a journalist or to interview job applicants,” Lorraine told her. “That was what I had been wanting for myself, though I am not really sure how to get there.”