Chatoyant College, Book 1: New Student Orientation

Chapter 30: Fog Party

There was a knock on the door. "Come in!" Edie called. The door opened, and as she'd expected, it was Dawn, with Naomi close behind her.

"Have you seen outside?" was the first thing Dawn said.

Edie nodded, grinning. "It's crazy! I've never seen fog this thick!"

"I have, but not with the sun up. Where's Corrie?"

"In the shower."

"No, I'm not," said Corrie from behind them. "'Scuse me." She squeezed in past Dawn and Naomi, toweling her hair off. "Excited about the fog?"

"Excited, but nervous, too," said Naomi. "We're not sure we want to go outside."

Corrie shook her head emphatically. "You don't, unless you're fond of being damp and nearsighted. That was not the least pleasant run I've ever had, but it's up there." She shook her hair back and tied it with a rubber band.

"Ugh." Edie glanced out the window again. The fog didn't seem to have lightened since the last time she looked. "I'm getting hungry, but it doesn't sound like it would be a good idea to walk to breakfast."

"That's actually why we came over here," Dawn said. "We have some food--I don't know if you have any. We could go to the vending machine, too, and have a little party."

"That's a great idea!" Corrie grinned. "A fog party."

"Well, I don't have any food--I was pretty much figuring on the dining hall supplying me all my nutritional needs." Edie looked out at the fog again, frowning. "I should probably buy some food if the fog is this common."

"We could go out to town later," Naomi suggested. "Avoid the craziness of the upperclassmen moving in. When the fog clears, of course."

Dawn frowned. "I hope it does clear," she said, worry evident in her voice.

"You just don't want to miss your date with Rico," Edie said with a laugh.

Dawn grinned. "Well, of course. Who would?"

Corrie had emerged from her closet with a box of crackers and a jar of peanut butter in her hand. "All right! I'm ready to party!"

"Awesome!" Naomi turned and she and Dawn led the (very short) way back to their dorm. Edie had never been in their room before, but was unsurprised to find it a mirror image of the one she shared with Corrie. Dawn's bed was against the wall that was shared with their room, and Naomi had the wall with the closets and the bathroom on the other side. There was already food set out on their desks, which were pushed together in the middle of the room. They had a loaf of wheat bread, a box of popcorn, a bag of fruit candies, and a package of chocolates.

"None of us has anything to drink, do we?" Corrie asked, frowning.

"No," said Dawn. "I guess we better go to the vending machines for that."

"Something else we should buy when we go shopping," said Edie. "Bottled water." She felt guilty for making the very suggestion, but couldn't think of any better solution.

Naomi wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, I hate bottled water. Carrying water around in plastic when there's tap water for free."

"I agree," Corrie said, "but it's not as though we can carry around cups of water. And where would we fill them, anyway? We would have to go down to the kitchen every time we wanted water, or use those tiny sinks in the bathroom.."

"You're right," said Naomi with a sigh. "Doesn't mean I have to be happy about it, though."

"I'm not happy about it either," Edie assured her.

"Okay," said Corrie, grabbing one of the bags of popcorn out of the box. "How about I pop this popcorn and you guys get some drinks?" She fished a dollar out of her pocket and handed it to Edie. "Get me a bottle of water or juice or something if they have it. I'm not sure I can stomach soda at this time of the morning."

"No problem," said Edie. They all headed out the door and down the stairs. She, Dawn, and Naomi stopped at the second floor. Corrie waved at them as they parted ways; she was going to the first floor, where the microwave was. Edie bought Corrie a bottle of water and selected a soda for herself. She waited for the other two to get their own drinks--Naomi also bought a packet of pretzels--then they all trooped back up to Dawn and Naomi's room without running into anyone else they knew.