Link Up ✔️

Chapter 56

After floating on air about my near-perfect grade in class, no one could tell me a thing.

I learned from just that one thing, that if I focus and worked hard, anything was possible. That motivated me to continue at it. I still wanted a life, I was not going to study all day and night, but I think I found a balance.

I think working at the front desk helped me with both my social life and studying. It was work, but also I was meeting so many new people. Besides Chandler on my floor who I hung out with often, I met another friend, Bria, who lived on the third floor. She was a riot.

She also worked at the front desk, and my shift was after her and she would stay for a bit and chat with me. She was a sophomore, twenty years old, from Omaha, Nebraska, and was a business management major so we had that in common.

It was amazing that I bonded with her so easily. Bria was an only child and spoiled a little, but down to earth. Always dressed nicely, with make-up on, she was very pretty. She let me know she had lip fillers added when she turned eighteen as well as breast implants. Her lips nor her breasts were overly huge and looked natural.

I looked over my scrawny body and wondered if I needed enhancements just a little bit. I was eighteen, perhaps my body was still changing. I liked it just fine, but compared to others, I was not as curvy.

"Never compare yourself to others," Bria said when I asked her if I needed any enhancements.

"But-" I was going to tell her she got enhancements to improve her appearance, why knock someone else, but she stopped me.

"I did not do mine for anyone else. I did it for me. And I didn't do a lot because I did not need it. You, you don't need it at all. You have the lips others pay to have. You have the breasts others pay to have. You're skinny, others diet and starve themselves to be that small. Don't change anything. You're so pretty."

I never was told I was pretty, not even by Diallo while we dated. He said he was attracted to everything about me and never focused on my looks. I wondered what other guys saw in me.

"And I was getting attention from guys before," Bria stated, "So that was not why either. I will never judge a woman who hasn't, or who has done enhancements. Let them live.'

I was going to drop it. I only thought of getting something done because she had. I needed to be my own person and embrace who I was.

We had a bad snowstorm come in and we had about six inches of snow. Nothing unusual for living in Missouri. Classes were canceled the first day of the storm, but after everything was cleaned, paved, and salted, we still had to make our way to classes the rest of the week. I had some cute snow boots plus a long, thick puffy coat that kept me plenty warm.

Sitting at the front desk at night, I had to have a small space heater under the desk because every time that door opened it blew in cold air. Bria did not mind the cold, and she stood there chatting with me with no complaints about the gushes of wind.

"This is great ski weather."

I had never in my life skied nor had an interest to.

"You should come with me, I'll probably go with my parents sometime soon."

"Uh-"

"Don't worry, they will give you lessons. Let me know."

The door opened, again blowing in the cold wind and I wrapped my arms around myself. In walked a tall guy bundled from head to toe, with a bright red skully cap, black and red scarf wrapped around his face and neck, long dark coat, gloves, and boots. It was cold out there, but he was a little overboard.