CH 01 • Jamie's POV
Taking up a Master's degree while the rest of your friends are working hard to make a name for themselves in their chosen career at age 25 can be considered a road less traveled by right?
I was on that way too but decided to quit my first job and enroll for my Master's full time.
My parents supported me as always and my father could not be prouder that I chose to follow his footsteps. I know this will not be easy, especially when we start with our research papers.
I am now in my second year and my days of attending classes at lecture halls are almost over which is a relief.
What takes up most of our time these days is our laboratory sessions spent in dissecting different research and preparing our own presentations.
I seriously have not gone out to do the things I used to love to do alone nor meet my friends more often than I should.
The library has been my go-to place the entire semester. I come here almost every day for my research, to meet my groupmates, my professors, and sometimes my research respondents.
I am supposed to get some editing done but I have been staring at this one chapter of my manuscript for more than two hours in the library.
If this had been the olden times, I would have scattered crumpled papers all over the place and have replaced the typewriter ribbon a hundred times.
But my laptop must bear all the pounding now. I know I am just on my second draft, but I really want to get as much work done before this semester ends and my adviser has clearly stated that he is expecting so much from this research.
With all this pressure I am getting, I want to have a little fun during the break, even if it is just reading my newly purchased books that I have piled on my study desk to get some of my habits back and that sense of normalcy.
As I was about to type some of my edits, my phone started vibrating. It was Pete, one of my laboratory groupmates.
"Why is he calling?" I whispered and slid the button to answer his call.
"Hello?"
"Hello Jamie! Where are you? I am already in the study hall." He said on the other line in a slow whisper.
Lowering my voice I responded with a hint of confusion, "I am on the second floor, in my study room editing a chapter. Why?"
"I sent you text messages that I was on my way to the library, but you were not replying so I thought I should ring you. Why do you sound confused? We are supposed to meet this afternoon to discuss our lab presentation due in two days, remember? You were the one who scheduled this today."
"Oh shoot! Yeah! I am so sorry; I have not read your messages; I was seriously spacing out. Give me five minutes, let me just pack my things. I'll head down there. I'm so sorry!" I said while rambling and rushing at the same time.
I hastily stuffed my notes and laptop in my bag. I am glad I did not get more books this afternoon or else I will be scrambling.
I hate being late to a meeting, especially when I was the one who set it. I do not know what I was on this afternoon that I had not noticed the messages on my phone and the alarm going off at 4:45PM.
I got to the study hall in a nick of time. I did not want to bother the other students who are busy reading their books, so I tried to walk slowly.
I love going to this library because of the private study rooms where we can do our work silently and this study hall where we can meet with our groupmates and work on our papers together without being too loud.
