Mosdenea

Chapter 1--Meeting A Mosdenea

"So you've found roommates?" My mother asked over the phone.

I was in the midst of setting a flier up on of the many boards on campus. "No mom. That's what I'm doing right now."

"Oh..." She sounded worried. I knew exactly what would follow after that tone in her voice. "Maybe you should come back Parker. It's not too late."

"Yes it is," I sighed stapling another flier. "School starts in about a week. I'm not coming home."

I don't have a personal vendetta against my family and friends. I know they all mean well and love me as much as I love them. But back in Michigan nothing ever changes. At least, not for me. My brothers and friends all decided to go to the same university. After I graduated high school, I tried studying there too. I did a whole semester at the same school as everyone else when I realized I couldn't.

My high school friends are there, my professors remind me too much of home, and every weekend I would either have to visit my parents or they would come visit me. Everyone there lives in a bubble. Everyone grows up there, goes to the same college, then moves back to their little suburb. My dad had already planned out how my brothers and I were going to take up the family business. Watching myself mirror my family suddenly made me realize how uncomplete and unsatisfied I would be. I knew I had to venture out.

When I first realized I needed to leave Michigan, I started looking into different schools. The easiest way to transfer my credits along with a place that can give me a great education. I would need a scholarship, but most important: it had to be out of state. I applied to about three different schools and decided on the farthest: Miami. Not because I wanted to be away from my family, but because it was a  new territory for me.

I knew it was a terrible idea to go out of state for my undergraduate years, but I didn't care. Racking up student debt was going to be inevitable and I knew that if I was only going to be able to attend college once in my life, might as well be somewhere I wouldn't be miserable.

Needless to say, the move was tough. I've hardly been in Miami for a week and already I'm struggling. I later realized once I was here that I chose a city that attracts so many tourists, that all the prices were elevated. Even milk became hard to buy. Where all the negative was, I tried focusing on the positive.

I was lucky enough to have my own place. Having a dad in the real estate business helped with getting into contact with people here. It didn't come cheap to find a home but in the end I found somewhere that isn't far from campus. My new apartment wasn't necessarily big but it was good enough considering it was the perfect distance from my studies, the beach, and the city. Even the view from the apartment was amazing. Now I just needed to find roommates that could share the expenses with me.

"Parker..." My mom sounded at the verge of tears. "We miss you. And we want you to be safe."

"Don't worry," I reassured her as I headed back to my car. "I'll keep you posted. Everything is just how I like it. It's awesome here. I touched my first palm tree the other day."

That got her to laugh softly, "Ok baby. You be careful, alright?"

"I will mom." I grinned, "I'll send you some Cuban coffee. Love you."

"I love you too." After we hung up I slipped into my car. Walking around campus was beautiful. Even when it started getting dark, I wish I could have stayed to see all the lit-up palm trees.

My whole life I had been sheltered in living in our small home in Michigan. My parents would take my family and I on trips to the Great Lakes but we've never left the US. Not even to go Canada. I grew up in a small town that meant I made close friends and could easy draw where everything is. My older brothers--there's three of them--taught me to stand up for myself but always kept close to me. I love them all to bits and they were honestly going to be the only major thing I would miss about Michigan.