Broken timeline - Part One

Chapter Four - Start of the trip

Oxford train station was located in the very centre of the city. As you stepped out of it, you could already witness the city's greatness. Being founded a long time ago, made it very special.

Walking out of the station, I was starting to look for James and Kate, who were the two guides assigned to me for this trip.

Everything was amazing, the weird sensation that filled me was a mixture of excitement and fear. I was impressed by the amount of people that were walking the streets. Everyone was so busy but then again I felt some warmth to it, as if I was supposed to be here. I had never imagined Oxford to be so grand and modern yet filled with old architectural buildings.

As I waited close to my suitcase, I saw two tall figures waving at me from the corner of my eye. I waved back, perfectly aware that it could only be my designated tour guides. They looked very enthusiastic and focused on me. To be frank, the obvious 'University of Oxford' badges they were both wearing, kind of gave them away.

"Hello there, I'm Kate , it's very nice to meet you !"
She looked like your typical perky college undergrad. I was attracted by her bubbliness and couldn't help but be impressed by her looks. She looked very mismatched with her floral print dress and UGG boots combo. But her jean jacket and the huge eyeglasses sitting on her nose, made up for it.

'Must be a straight A' student' , I thought.

"Hi I'm Emma, it's nice to meet you too ! I hope I haven't kept you waiting"

"No not at all", answered James, "We've only arrived two minutes ago, I'm James by the way. It's good to meet you", he added.

"Thanks !" I responded while shaking his hand. James was very charming, and had an inviting face. The kind of person that you feel like you've known your entire life, and feel very comfortable with. He was very tall, brown haired with a beautiful set of hazel eyes. His navy blue blazer, revealing a grey sweater tucked in blue jeans made him look like your typical preppy British student.

I was so happy that they were going to be with me throughout this trip, and they seemed extremely nice. First we went to the hotel to check in and get my luggage to my room and then we started exploring the city.

James was a very kind guide. He knew everything there was to know about Oxford, historically speaking. Being a History and Art major kind of helped him a lot.

Every building, every important event that took place there and every famous person that had walked these streets were no secret to him.

He made the visit so lively that I felt like I was taking a walk down history road. It was fascinating, and I loved every moment.

Kate was also very pleasing to listen too, but she was different. She was like a posh hipster 'Lonely Planet' guide. She took us to one of the best restaurants in town that was not a tourist trap, where we filled our stomachs with great tasty food and nearly died from eating too much cake. After exploring a bit more of the city, James asked me if there was anything special that I wanted to do while I was here.

"Honestly, it's going to sound corny and a bit cliché coming from a lit student, but I've always wanted to go to the Bodleian Library. I've heard so many good things about it from close friends and professors. Do you mind if we go ?" I said.

"Not at all ! Of course it's one of the greatest libraries in the world, you should see it for yourself ! Come on, let's go !" he said enthusiastically.

"Really James? She's got one day here and you want to take her to school ? How dull ! Can't we just go someplace nice and have a tiny bit more fun ?" she shouted, clearly annoyed.