ᴀᴅ ᴍᴇʟɪᴏʀᴀ ~ ᴅᴘꜱ (ꜱᴛᴇᴠᴇɴ ᴍᴇᴇᴋꜱ)

30 - memory lane

I'd returned from class to an empty dorm room two weeks prior.

I'd known for a while that Sarah wasn't going to last; sure, we all had problems adjusting to Constantine, but something about her nightly tears gave me the impression I wouldn't see her much longer. I just didn't think it would be so sudden.

Exactly 14 days later, someone knocked on my door. I rose from my desk to open it, finding myself looking between my floor advisor, Ms. Duvall, and another girl. She was only slightly taller than me, with curly brown hair and square glasses. Everything about her presence felt awkward; her stance, her posture, the angles her limbs protruded from her body. It looked as though she'd been plucked for another world only moments before being placed in front of me.

"Miss Albrecht," Ms. Duvall said. "Unfortunately, as you know, Sarah Ferguson terminated her enrollment with us." She placed her hands on the girl's shoulders. "This is Miss Haddix. You two will be placed together for the remaining semester. I apologize on behalf of administration for the short notice."

The girl looked at me nervously. I'd grown accustomed to my single dorm and I definitely wasn't ready to give it up. Something about Duvall's tone told me I didn't have much of a choice, though. I gave her a smile.

"That's fine. I'll help her get settled in."

Ms. Duvall, in all of her inherently-annoying glory, nodded, placed two of the girl's bags slightly through the doorway, and left.

My new roommate stayed in place. Once I was certain Duvall was out of earshot, I muttered, "What a bitch..." The girl  giggled and began to drag her bags to the empty side of the room.

I spent the next hour or so helping 'Miss Haddix' move in. From what little she spoke, I gathered that she and her other roommate had a sort-of falling out a few days prior, resulting in our pair-up. She enjoyed photography, or whatever equivalent she could find on campus, and it was her first year. She, too, had a vendetta against Duvall.

It wasn't until I took the liberty of formally introducing myself that I got a full sentence out of her.

"I'm Ivy, by the way. Ivy Albrecht." I stuck out my hand.

She hesitated slightly, carefully unloading and armful of books onto her bed before shaking my hand.

"I'm Beatrice. You can call me Bee, though."

-

"If you want a specific date, I don't think I could give you one," Bee says. "The day we met might be a good place to start.

"At the time, I was having trouble finding friends. Everything that happened with my first roommate really shook me up, truly, and I was losing hope. Had it drawn out another week or two, I might have ended up like that Sarah girl. Her name was Sarah, right?"

I nod.

"It's just— I felt like nobody would even give me a chance. I'd walk into a room, and heads would turn, but they'd never stay. Worse, sometimes, they'd judge me. Right off the bat. I mean, I can't blame them. It was seventh grade; everyone's an ass in seventh grade. I didn't know that yet, though, so I thought it was personal.