The Poets of Tomorrow

Part 3- Allison

Maddy and I unpack our clothes in silence. I take the left side of the bedroom and she takes the right, a lot like how Todd and Neil broke up their room. I finally finish and flop down on my uncomfortable, spring filled bed- which feels more like a cot.

"So you already know the boys?" I ask Maddy, feeling I already know the answer. She finishes packing quickly before flopping down on her own bed.

"Yup. I know them through Neil. They come over on the Fourth of July every year since Neil's known them," Maddy replies with a laugh.

"You seem pretty keen on Meeks," I say jokingly while rolling onto my side to face my roommate.

"Yeah I guess," Maddy says, moving to face me, a huge grin spread across her face.

"You guess?" I respond, smiling right back.

"Okay, it's more than an 'I guess'. I really like him. We've kept in touch since last Fourth of July through letters and short phone calls. It's so weird that I only see him once a year, and now I'm practically living with him," Maddy says to me, a dreamy far-off look in her eyes.

"You're in love," I say back to her. She vehemently denies her romance with Meeks, but I can tell there's something there. We come to a pause in our conversation before deciding to change into our pajamas. Quickly we turn away from each other and change before heading to the study session in Meeks' room.

Meeks, Charlie, and Maddy all huddle in one corner of the room on Knox's bed. Meeks and Maddy seem to be sitting awfully close to each other. I chuckle to myself before returning to my book. Neil, Todd, Knox, and Cameron all try to speak over one another (except for Todd, of course) while crowded around Meeks' desk to figure out the correct conjugations. I'm sitting on Meeks' bed, criss cross applesauce with my back against the corner. About an hour and a half in to the study session, Pitts is nowhere in sight- until the tall boy hits his head on the doorway to Meeks and Knox's room as he makes his entrance. Everyone bursts into laughter at the misfortune that had befell upon the tall boy. I smile at him and wave before returning back to my book.

I feel the bed dip down on the other end and apprehensively look up from my book to see Gerard sitting down. I smile at him again and return to my book before we all are interrupted by Mr. Hager telling us (quite strictly) to go back to our own dorms. We say our goodbyes and head our separate ways once again.

Once Maddy and I reach our room, we shove all our books and study materials away. Maddy and I make some small talk about what we think of Welton before we both fall asleep.

~~~

My alarm screeches like a bat and I crawl across my bed to my desk to shut it off. 4:45 a.m. is way too early for me to be waking up. I rub my eyes before I pull my toothbrush and toothpaste out of my desk. Maddy and I get our own bathroom, so I walk over and brush my teeth. Walking back to my bedroom (practically sleepwalking) I run into someone coming out of their dorm.

"Oh," I say with a yawn, "shit, sorry."

"It's fine, doll" a very recognizable voice says. Charlie. That wakes me up. I just ran into Charlie Dalton. I wave before speed walking the rest of the way back to the dorm. Once I reach my dorm, I rummage through my closet for my uniform and lay it on my bed. I wake up Maddy, who has decided to sleep in until 5 a.m.

"I'm up," she says repeatedly, while slowly sitting up. I brush my hair and french braid it down the center, leaving strands of hair out to frame my face. Maddy leaves the room to brush her teeth and change, so I take her exit as an opportunity to change into my uniform. When Maddy returns, we throw on our shoes and grab our books, anxious for the day ahead.