The Other Us

Part 2: The Iron Lady

I didn't expect to be roomed with a freshman. Typically, seniors are with seniors, juniors are with juniors, so on and so forth. To be paired with Max, is actually quite refreshing. However, I should've known that my friends weren't going to be as nice as I hoped they would have been.  Watching Max walk down the sidewalk, I feel terrible. Reynolds and Valerie and Lauren are ruthless when it comes to new people being brought into the group. Pressuring him to drink, making inappropriate comments, and hanging all over him Dash didn't help a single thing. I could see him feeling uncomfortable the whole time. I should go after him. But I feel like he and I won't be on the same page. I'll just give him some space, and hopefully, he'll forgive my arsehole friends by tomorrow.

Walking back into the tavern, David looks at me curiously and I shake my head. When I re-emerge into the back with my friends, they all look at me and have the same apologetic face.

"What the hell is wrong with you? All of you? You can't just leave the poor guy alone? It was his first night here – and all of you had to go and ruin it for him. He obviously isn't as open and calm around this many people he doesn't even know. And you're throwing yourselves on them and pressuring him into drinking and making him out to feel uncomfortable and look like a fool. I'm ashamed of all of you. Next time you're going to do better. You're not going to ruin his college experience." I growl at them and they all look at their feet. It's one thing, if you can sense that the person is an extrovert- you can joke around. But it's another thing when they so obviously are introverted- you make them feel uncomfortable.

"Helen, we're sorry. You were just joking with him. Is he that upset?" Lauren asks.

"Yeah we were just trying to give him the good old college experience. Underage drinking, sexy ladies, fun and joking. Didn't know if you get all butt hurt over it." Reynolds groans. I look at him and glower.

"You know what, you could've waited at least a week before throwing yourselves at him. I don't know much about Max, I literally just met him a few moments before you did. But there's a difference between joking and just being plain old crass." Sitting down on a stool, across my one leg over the other and cross my arms. I'm not happy with them. Not one bit. I feel responsible for Max and for his feelings. I'm not always the most welcoming or the nicest person – but at least I don't go and make someone feel totally uncomfortable in the first few moments of meeting them.

"Do you think he'll ever want to hang out with us again?" Iggy asks and I look at him.

"Honestly, I don't think so. You guys can't behave. He's not gonna trust you not to make him feel like shit. Maxy Pad really? Do you think that was appropriate? Sitting on his lap and hanging all over him and being sexual: do you think that was appropriate ladies? I'll give you both the answers- no it wasn't. Totally inappropriate!"

"All right, stop scolding us! We get it we messed up. Will make it up to the kid, will figure out how to make them feel welcome and to get him a few friends of his own age. That's all we really can do- right?" Lauren takes another sip of her beer and I roll my eyes. "Besides, Miss Queen Bee, how do you think you were behaving? Were you being appropriate? We saw you holding his hand. Don't you think that made an impression on him?"

I flex my jaw forward and look at the floor. She's not wrong. Maybe I was a little too... Close for a first meeting. But I think it was all innocent.

"Holding his hand is one thing. Sitting on his lap and falling all over him is it different thing entirely. Especially when he's only 18 and you're all 21." I state. "I better go, it's a busy day tomorrow. We all have classes. So let's just get at it."

I take one more shot, get up, and leave The Tavern. On my walk home, it's a little colder than I wanted it to be. I look up at new Amsterdam medical, and some thing about it just feels familiar. I don't know yet if I'm going to stay in England after I complete my last four years at Cambridge. But, I kind of want to stay here. My friends are here. I enjoy the states. I'm sure there's more benefits to being in the United States then there is in the UK. But what about my family? My mom and dad. My brothers. I think living away from them for the rest of my life, would be kind of difficult for both of us. But I can't stay tied down to my immediate family either. I want to experience everything. Live my own life. Gain power and rule my own civilization... Hospital I guess would be the closest to my own civilization as I could get. Being that every place in the world is already colonized. I have big goals to accomplish. But at the same time, I kind of just wanna be carefree. My whole life I have been strict in my studies, and poised with my head held high. Will I ever get to be... Free? I'm a polite young lady. Independent and strong willed, stubborn and fierce – I know what I want. But there are days, but I just wanna throw it all away and see the other side of life. The side of life where I don't have to follow rules or hold myself to high standards. What would that life be like?