When The Sun Goes Down

Chapter Three

The next morning was the first day of classes. In her freshman year, Nina always sat alone, but she decided this year would be different. She sat down next to a girl she had seen the previous year and introduced herself.

"Hi, I'm Nina. We were in class together last year." Nina smiled at the girl.

"I remember you." The girl said, "You're that ghetto girl from New York. What are you doing here? I thought you dropped out because your mommy and daddy couldn't afford it?"

Nina was shocked. "My dad sold our family business, which he worked his entire life to build, so that I could come back here and have a brighter future than he did."

The girl snorted. "You don't belong here."

"I deserve to be here as much as anyone else." And with that, Nina got up and sat on the other side of the room. Alone. Now she remembered why she had always sat by herself. She sat through the lecture and doodled in the margins of her notebook. Though she knew it was juvenile, she couldn't help but doodle N+B over and over again. Nina was usually a star student, always paying attention and furiously jotting notes. But today she just couldn't focus. The rude classmate had rattled her, and she was still wondering why Benny hadn't contacted her. At the end of the period, Nina bought a sandwich at the food court and found a quiet spot to sit beneath a couple of palm trees. She checked her phone for the hundredth time that day. Nothing. Nina had texted Benny five times since she had gotten to California, but he had never even read the texts. She decided to tell Vanessa about it, so she called her.

"Nina!" Vanessa screamed into the phone. "What's up?"

Nina decided to cut to the chase. "I've called Benny once and texted him five times since I got here, and he hasn't responded. He hasn't read my texts, V. Have you seen him around?"

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen him since you left. I'll ask Usnavi, okay?"

"Okay."

"How has everything else been?"
"Good." Nina didn't want to tell Vanessa about her classmate. Or, for some reason, Oliver.

"Okay, well I'd better get back to work. Adíos."

"Adíos." Nina hung up. The salon had closed in July, but Vanessa had managed to get a job as a waiter at a coffee shop near her apartment.

"Nina?" Nina turned around to see Oliver standing behind her.

"Yeah. Hi, Oliver."

"Why are you eating all alone?"

Nina sighed. "The only person I've talked to wasn't exactly the nicest to me, and I didn't bother with anyone else. I have proficient academic skills, but my social skills could use some work. I don't have any friends here."

"Well, you have one." Oliver gestured to himself. "Can I sit?" Nina nodded.

"Who were you on the phone with?" Oliver asked.

"My friend Vanessa."

"So you do have friends?"

"Yes, back home. Not here." Nina told Oliver about Vanessa, Usnavi, Daniela, Carla, and Usnavi's younger cousin Sonny, who had confessed his love for Nina earlier that year. She talked about her parents, Rosario's Taxi Service, and the salon.

"Sounds like Washington Heights is pretty great," Oliver said.

"Yes. I miss it. Where are you from?"

"I'm from Quebec, Canada." Oliver gestured to a Canadian flag pin on his bag.

"I've never been there. What's it like?" Oliver told Nina his story, and by the time he was finished, it was time for class again. As the two stood up and prepared to go their separate ways again, Nina stopped.
"Oliver?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

"For what?" Oliver looked confused.

"You made this place feel a lot less lonely, even if it was just for a lunch period."

Oliver smiled. "No problem. Thank you, Nina, for making me feel less lonely, too." He paused. "Maybe we could make this a regular thing."

"Okay."
"We'll meet in this spot every day at lunch?"

"Sounds good." Nina headed in the direction of her class, and looked back at Oliver, who was walking in the opposite direction. She smiled to herself. She was glad that she wasn't completely alone anymore. Talking with Oliver had made her momentarily forget about how upset she was that Benny was ignoring her. Nina was in a better mood for the rest of the day and had managed to actually pay attention in class.