Lightning In A Bottle

Chapter One

The car stops, startling me awake. Stretching my legs in the back of the car and yawning, I peek out of the dusty window and revel in the sight of my new home. "We're here?" I say, stunned. My stomach bubbled and wrenched nervously. The car ride had been about 5 hours long and I had somehow managed to sleep through pretty much the whole thing.

"Yes! Come on get excited! College!" Mom, with an admirable amount of strength, yanks my reluctant body from the minivan into the chilly air outside. To say that the campus was buzzing would be an impressive understatement. We stand in a melee of freshmen arriving with boxes, confused newbies asking questions to anybody that could possibly look like they belong. My hands tremble and, flushing, I shove them in the back pockets of my skinny jeans. Looking down I notice, to my utmost embarrassment, that only one pant leg is rolled up to my ankles.

"AJ?" Cami, the gentle six year-old and resident angel of the family, tugs on my sweater. "How long are you gonna be gone?" She looks up at me, her questioning brown eyes unblinking. Mom, almost nonchalantly opens the back of the van, entirely prepared to walk me to my dorm room and leave me there to fend for myself in Scary Confusing Adulthood.

"Aw, Cam," I pat her head in, what I hope, is an encouraging way. "You'll see me back home for Christmas. I promise," I give her a smile and she launches a toothy grin my way right before popping her thumb back into her mouth.

I walk over to join my mom in what I hope comes off as confidently; there are only a few small boxes to help her carry in and a few suitcases. College was not a place I wanted to begin at with massive amounts of baggage, both figuratively and literally. College was a new start. Hopefully a fresh start, but, a start nonetheless.

We make only two trips into my dorm room before everything is on "my side." The halls are bustling and I can already hear the faint sounds of someone playing guitar from a room nearby. All in all, my dorm room is pretty nice, a desk and bed on both sides, wardrobes, a window. It's pretty plain and I nervously bite my thumbnail, my mind mulling over the endless possibilities of who my roommate could be.

Midway through walking my mom and Cami back to our car the mood changes; I'm still feeling like a butterfly, but one sentenced to doom, one that's losing it's wings.

I wrap my arms around myself to keep away the chills. "So," I say, waiting for my mom to burst into tears.

She doesn't.

"I love you so much, Andy, I'm so proud." She pulls me into a loving hug and I carefully return it. "Hugs!" Cami wraps her tiny arms around my legs. "Byebye, AJ!"

I give my mom a kiss on the cheek and Cami one on the crown of her head. Selfishly, I want them to not want me to go. No longer longing for a college experience, I long for the age of six, where I can play with race cars and not worry about the tangles in my hair and drink from a sippy cup and embrace the bruises dotting my legs from the latest of my wild adventures.

But I am not six years old, my mother does not want me anymore and I am going into an ocean filled with killer whales. I resemble a fish.

My mother gives me another hug; a quick one. She gently buckles up Cami in her yellow and pink car seat, where Cami contentedly lolls, toy car in hand, thumb in mouth. I watch my mom get into the minivan, give me a careless wave and then slowly leave me, without even tire tracks to account for her having been there.

And then its me. By myself. I'm standing alone in the parking spot and I kick the unrelenting concrete with my white keds. The air has brought a cold breeze to the pity party. Instead of moping in an empty parking spot, I head back to my dorm room, swinging open the door to find a girl, on 'my roommates side,' putting up band posters.

She hasn't noticed me yet and a small anguished moment passes as I attempt to come up with a nice welcome. "Oh, hey," is what ends up wringing its way from my mouth, my nervous self vying to break the ice. Social skills probably aren't my finest talent.

She whips around, surprised. She's very pretty, curvy; her belly pokes out from a black crop top. Her hair is a calming shade of dark brown and reaches her shoulders.

"Hi!" A small smile peeks out. Dimples. "I'm Brenn, it's nice to finally meet you!"

I offer my hand out in some form of greeting, and nervously give my name. "I'm Andy, and me too!" We shake hands, mine give a little shake, and I quickly I hide them back in my pockets.

Brenn pulls dark purple sheets out from one of her plethora of suitcases and starts making her bed.

I linger for a moment, wondering if I should continue to attempt to break the ice or just try to make the small twin-sized bed and unfamiliar, menacing furniture feel like home. Mimicking Brenn, I make my bed. As I unpack my flowery sheets I begin to wonder if they're too childish. Do people in college even care? My four blankets lay on my bed, beckoning my huddled body underneath them. Is four too much?

I move onto putting my clothes away. I hang up my jackets, then dresses and sort of uncomfortably shove everything else into random drawers. I peek over at Brenn. She's pinning up Polaroid pictures, full of smiling faces and wonderful memories. I'm sure by the end of the first week she'll have plenty more to pin up. She seems like one of those girls.

We both finish setting up around the same time. The contents of my old room don't make me feel any more at home than I did 45 minutes ago, in the bare and empty room. I sit cross legged on my bed and pull out my mac, bedazzled in stickers. Again, my thoughts begin to whirl. Is that childish?

I begin typing, commencing an email. I'm about halfway done with it when-"Andy!" Brenn exclaims my name excitedly and I jump, startled.

"Yes?" I politely say, blinking at her.

She cocks her head, purses her lips, raises a perfectly plucked eyebrow and puts a manicured nail up to her dimple.

"How would you feel about attending a party?"

Already? I cough uncomfortably. "Brenn," I shut my laptop to focus on her. "It's the first night. Plus we both have classes tomorrow. Who even throws a party on the first night?"

"I heard from a friend of a friend of a girlfriend that there is in fact a frat party tonight," She grins.

Pros: meet some people.

Cons: meeting people.

As if sensing my discomfort, she pouts. "Oh, please," her lower lip wobbles. "It will be our first outing as roomies, we can make it extra special."

I smile a bit. I genuinely like Brenn. She's very comfortable to be around, and reminds me of apple pie. Sweet and hot? She's good looking, I'm not going to lie, after all, I'm straight.. not blind.

But a frat house? Boys? Beer?

Yikes.

But also. Boys! Beer! Nice!

I send a coy smile her way. "Okay." my voice is already a little clearer. "On one condition," I stand up, my short self only a few inches shorter than my roommate. "We can't stay out too late; I have a class at 10:00, and showing up too hungover on the first day isn't the way to go."

"Yes, yes, yes," Brenn bounces and clasps her hands together, pausing only to wink at me. "Does this mean we can help pick out each other's outfits?"

Relieved and relaxed, I playfully roll my eyes and I nod. Brenn shoots me a huge grin, total dimple overload.

Maybe this alone, adult college life thing won't be too hard?