Rowan Writes Random Blurbs

Always and Forever - Jessie Fleming x OC

Jessie and August met at UCLA their freshman year. Jess was on the soccer team, Auggie was valedictorian of their graduating class. They seemed like the most unlikely of friends, the shy Canadian soccer player and the brave American pre-law student.

-x-

Jess was so excited to begin her first year of college that she forgot to look where she was going, instead focusing on the wall placards that had room numbers on them. "Room 347. 340, 341, 34..." she murmured before had run into someone and was suddenly sitting on the floor in the middle of the hallway. "I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention where I was going," Jess said as she stood back up.

"No it's ok, I wasn't paying attention either," the other student said, "I'm Iris, what's your name?"

"Hi Iris, I'm Jessie," she said with a smile. "What's your room number? I'm in 347."

Iris' eyes widened, "No way! I'm in 347!"

Jess couldn't believe her luck, she had, quite literally, run into her roommate.

A couple weeks after they met, Jess and Iris had become very good friends, they were roommates after all. Jess couldn't help but notice how Iris seemed uncomfortable living in the girls' dorm, but she just chalked it up to homesickness.

Iris did miss home, but she didn't think that was why she felt so uncomfortable in the girls' dorm. She felt so obscenely out of place, not just in the dorm but in her own skin. She had felt that way for a long time and kind of figured that everyone else did too.

One day Iris and Jess were sitting in their room doing homework and chit chatting when Iris brought up how she'd been feeling. "Hey Jess?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Have you ever felt out of place? Like you're supposed to belong but you don't?"

"I mean, kinda, yeah I guess," Jess replied. "Why?"

"I guess I just feel out of place," Iris said back.

"Out of place where?" Jessie asked.

"I don't know," Iris sighed. "I think I've always felt out of place."

"Why do you say that?"

"I guess I've just never felt like at home or at peace in my own skin."

"Okay..." Jess slowly said. "What do you mean by that?"

"Like my brain just got placed in a random body that isn't mine. Have you never felt like that?"

"No Iris, I haven't," Jess carefully explained.

"Oh," Iris whispered.

"I think you should maybe see a therapist," Jessie softly told her roommate. "They might be able to help you figure out what's going on inside your head."

Iris hummed noncommittally.

Iris did end up going to a therapist after much prodding from Jessie. Her therapist, Dr. Miller, had asked her to explain how she felt and again she said, "I just feel out of place."

"Ok," said Dr. Miller, "can you elaborate a little more?"

Iris heaved a large sigh, "I kinda feel like someone took my brain and plunked it into someone else's body and I'm just supposed to be fine and live with it. But I hate it."