Trigger Warning: Drug abuse, explicit language, and violence.
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Gia didn't want to go to community college, but financial difficulties proved to be more challenging than expected. Her unnaturally handsome professor catches her eye and though th...
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"Are you excited for the first day?" Jack's voice taunted through the phone.
Although I hadn't spoken to her much over the summer, my ears were still caught off guard by that raspy voice and sly tone. She of all people knew I didn't want to go to this school. I wanted to be at UCF, a college near the heart of Oklahoma that is known for being the only college in this damned state to offer a major solely in photography. I'd begged my parents to figure out a way for me to get there, but my overall high school GPA left me no room for scholarships to help cushion the blow of the ridiculous prices that come along with attending a good college. Financial stability has never been one of my families strong suits and I'm coming to a point in life where I finally have to accept it. It's been this way since I was a child, and yet Jack—my best friend of ten years who might be better known as the first and only person I complain to about ALL of my problems—still has the audacity to jokingly ask me if I'm 'excited' to attend the first day of classes at this basic ass school.
"Obviously not." I seethed, already irritated by her sardonic smile that I couldn't see, but knew was there.
"Hey now," she says calmly,"I know this school isn't what you wanted, but it's the best option you've got right now. I know it's early, but damn. Try and be optimistic for once."
The only proper response to someone telling you to be more optimistic about a dreary situation is to, of course, not be. What can I say? I'm spiteful. "It's going to suck, Jack. I deserve to be at a school that supports my dream. All this shit hole offers is the basics so students like me can pass the time and figure out how to get the funds to be at the school they actually want to be at within the next two years."
"Deserve?" She laughs. "Do you remember your shitty GPA freshman year due to the amount of times you skipped class to be with your little 'boyfriends' or was that a dream too?"
I bite my lip for a moment, lost in thought. Freshman year wasn't exactly filled with my proudest moments.
"I remember. That was a little more like a nightmare though."
"Agreed." She replied dryly. I look around my bedroom, scrambling to find my keys somewhere in the mess I created while staying up late the previous night trying on clothes for the first day. I may not want to go there, but I still want to look moderately attractive. Is that too much to ask?
"This still sucks." I sulk.
"At least I'll be there." She says a little too enthusiastically. Once again, I picture her face. Her almond shaped eyes and plump lips, scowling like always. I smile at the thought. She may be a sarcastic bitch, but she's my best friend and I love her. Bad humor and all.
"Yeah," I roll my eyes and the corners up my lips turn upward,"Lucky me."
•••
When I arrive at the campus, I can't help but feel underwhelmed. It's downtown, smack dab in the middle of a bunch of tall buildings I've seen a thousand times from attending parades and festivals that take place down here. When I walk inside, there are students everywhere, running around like ants in a farm. People with big smiles plastered on their faces and name tags offer students help to find their first class of the day and I make it a point to avoid all of them, hoping to find Jack first. We talked over the phone about a month ago when we did student orientation online and got to pick our classes, choosing to cover the basics together first and then planned on taking classes that support our own majors next semester. I find an area with a sign that reads "Student Life" and sit on one of the many available couches and pull out my phone. I shoot her a text.
