College Days
After weeks of the ho-hum atmosphere of the summer, Tulane’s campus came back to life all at once as students descended on it to move back into its dorms and start their college careers or prepare for another semester of hitting the books.
Caesar and Kaley dodged students and parents lugging bags and boxes across the campus as they headed back to her room.
Caesar gestured at the people around them, struggling to balance four or five duffel bags on their shoulders to make fewer trips back to their car and hopefully beat the aggressive New Orleans meter maids before they received a ticket. “Remember when you were complaining because instead of moving all kinds of shit, I just bought us both new shit?”
“We just got lucky that they didn’t move either of us to a new room because we would’ve been doing the same thing, new shit or not,” Kaley said, rolling her eyes.
“I’m still pissed off that I didn’t get a new room. I shouldn’t have to have a fucking roommate. If I went to Oklahoma State, they would’ve put me in an off-campus apartment. Here? I’m in a fucking dorm like the rest of y’all.”
“Do you not want to be in a dorm, or do you not want Devin to be your roommate?”
“Both. That motherfucker’s so dirty that I’m going to end up getting MRSA or meningitis or fucking hepatitis.”
Kaley hit Caesar’s shoulder. “You should try being nicer. Everyone doesn’t have undiagnosed OCD like your ass. And rich fuckers like you are the rest there has been a housing crisis in New Orleans for the last 60 years with all the short-term rentals.”
“Okay, Mandie Landry.”
She shook her head at Caesar’s comment but didn’t say anything.
The two of them walked into the res hall where it seemed like even more people were packed into the halls than there were outside of it. Fortunately, Caesar’s large frame – and lack of care at barging into people – meant that most people shifted out of their way instead of the other way around.
“Kaley!”
The two of them stopped at the bank of elevators as Gia waved to get their attention, excusing her way through those who were moving their stuff into the rooms. Gia was also one of the lucky few who weren’t re-assigned to another room for the fall semester.
Another girl trailed behind her, hair up in a messy bun and a few strands of hair stuck to her forehead with sweat.
“I’ve been texting you! You’re a hard woman to get a hold of when you’re with that man of yours,” Gia said, teasing, when she came to a stop in front of Kaley and Caesar.
Kaley pointed to the floor above them. “I left my phone in the room because it was charging too slow and someone was in a rush.”
“Yes. You were. Because you were hungry,” Caesar said.
“Oh, no worries. I’ll just have to get Caesar’s number later so that I can text him to find you whenever I’m looking for ya,” Gia said. She turned to the girl who was with her. “This is Kaley, my roommate that I was telling you about. And the tall, dark and handsome guy with her is her boyfriend, Caesar.”
Gia looked at Caesar and laughed.
“But I guess, saying that
he’s tall is an understatement, isn’t it?” she added.
Kaley glanced over at Caesar who only shrugged. It wasn’t hard for him to see that Kaley was a little annoyed about Gia’s description, but she was too proud to say anything about it.
“Hey, I’m Janelle,” the girl said, introducing herself.
“My best friend! We went to high school together at Cabrini,” Gia said. She looked at Kaley. “She’s going to rush with us.”
“Rush?” Caesar asked Kaley. “Since when were you into paying for your friends? Greek life seems a little beneath you.”
“Just getting the full college experience,” Kaley said, shrugging.
“Just make sure you don’t start getting gangbanged by frat bros.”
Janelle raised an eyebrow. “That seems like more of a football player thing to do, don’t you think? From what I understand about what y’all do anyway.”
“Oh, so you already know who I am, huh?”
“I’m a legacy. We’re season ticket holders.”
Gia reached out and touched Caesar’s arm. “As if this perfect guy would go around doing that type of shit. Especially when he’s already with someone?! I’ve seen how he looks at Kaley. In love!”
“So, what were you looking for me for?” Kaley asked, shifting the conversation – and subtly moving so Caesar also had to move and put some space between he and Gia.
“We needed an extra set of hands moving all of Janelle’s stuff into her room, but we got it taken care of. I just paid a couple of random kids hanging around her building and they were more than happy to help,” Gia said.
“
You paid them?” Caesar asked.
“That’s what I said,” Gia said, winking at him.
“We were just heading up for Gia to grab some stuff and then we were going to grab a bite. Y’all are welcome to come with us. But I guess y’all already ate?” Janelle asked.
“I had other things on my mind,” Caesar said.
“Oh, c’mon. You can’t keep Kaley all to yourself, mister,” Gia said. “You can even pay for us.”
Kaley shrugged. “Sounds fine to me. It should be fun.”
“Yep, so much more fun,” Caesar said, taking his phone out of his pocket and all but willing some impromptu meeting to be called since he wasn’t going to get what he was looking for when he made the walk across campus.
Kaley hit the elevator call button and the doors soon slid open. The four of them squeezed onto the elevator with a family all holding comforter sets and what looked like sleeping bags.
“So, Cabrini, huh?” Kaley asked Janelle. “All girls school, right? I couldn’t imagine that.”
“It’s not so bad,” Janelle said.
“Oh, yes it was,” Gia said, laughing. “I’m just glad we’re out of there.”
“Probably had motherfucking dildos in every locker,” Caesar said. “And daisy chains at every function.”
What looked to be the parents of the family on the elevator both gasped and hurried their children off it as soon as the doors slid open.
-*****-
“Make sure that you don’t drop that.”
Devin glanced up from the pile of throw pillows that he held, using his chin to keep them steady as he walked. “I said it when you bought all of these, but I’m going to say it again. I don’t know why you felt the need to not only buy fifteen pillows you aren’t going to sleep on but bring all fifteen of the damn pillows with you.”
“I have seven pillows. Not fifteen,” Carla said, adjusting the backpack she had on her shoulder as she fished through her purse for the key to get into her dorm room. “I already told you that you don’t have to have a dorm room look like a prison cell.”
“Never been in a prison cell for comparison.”
He was only giving a hard time because he didn’t expect to be as tired as he was when he agreed to help her move in a couple weeks ago. Despite having had time to settle in to the college football fall camp grind, his body still protested any exertion outside of what happened on the field.
And that was likely only due to the adrenaline.
She didn’t look up before she answered. “If you keep complaining about my pillows then I’ll find out if a cell is the same as this room.”
“Hey, hey. No need for threats. I’m here helping you, aren’t I?”
She sighed, turned around and took a couple of the throw pillows from Devin before standing on the tips of her toes to kiss him. “Yes, thank you. I’m just frustrated because this would’ve been a lot easier if my parents would’ve come to help us, too. I don’t know why they figured this would be a good time to go to Cabo on a fucking vacation.”
“I guess they figured since their kid was going off to college, there was no time like now to finally that in,” Devin said, shrugging.
“And leave my brother at home with my aunt?”
“I don’t know. I think an out-of-country getaway with my wife would be a million times better if I didn’t have to bring my grown ass kids with me.”
Carla finally found the key in her purse and turned back to the door. “I didn’t know that 16 was considered a ‘grown ass kid.’ My aunt’s probably not even there. She spends all of her time at the damn casino trying to pick up truckers.”
“Which aunt is this?”
“Neveah. I never introduced you because she’s a mess and it’s a little embarrassing.”
“Gotcha.”
Unlocking the door, Carla led the way as the two of the stepped into the room. It was a little brighter than the one Tulane had given to Devin, likely because UNO was situated on Lake Pontchartrain meaning it had a better view. He also thought it was a little bigger but with another person in it, that wouldn’t matter.
The other person was a girl standing behind an easel that was set up in front of the window. She looked back at Carla and Devin and smiled.
“Hey, Carla,” she said, wiping paint from her hands on the overalls she wore. She brushed blonde hair out of her face, haphazardly wiping paint on her forehead.
Devin had forgotten that the two of them had already met as he stepped around Carla and dumped the pillows on the empty bed on one side of the room.
“Misty, this is my boyfriend, Devin,” Carla said as she put down all of the stuff she carried on her side of the room.
Misty held up her hands and shrugged. “I’d shake your hand, but they’re covered in paint.”
Devin looked over her shoulder at what she was painting. Not much of an art connoisseur, he had no idea what he was looking at, but he imagined that most people would refer to it as “abstract.” It just looked like paint splattered all over the place to him.
“All good,” Devin said. “Nice to meet you.”
She smiled again then turned back to Carla. “Sorry about the mess. I like to paint when I’m stressed, and I don’t know about you but moving to a new city and all that really has my brain all frazzled. I promise I won’t get paint on any of your stuff.”
“Your good, girl,” Carla said. She jabbed a thumb in Devin’s direction. “We’re going to finish getting the rest of my stuff so he can get back across town.”
“Oh, that’s right! You go to Tulane, right?”
Devin nodded. “Yeah.”
“I could never go to a private university. It’s too stuffy. Everyone there is probably trying to work for some Fortune 500 company, stepping on the necks of everyone else,” Misty said. “Well, don’t let me keep y’all. I’ll just be in here finishing this.”
She turned back to the easel and swung the paintbrush at the canvas putting a streak of orange paint across the face of it.
Devin followed Carla as she walked back out of the room and headed down the hall.
“She’s nice,” Devin said as they reached the elevators.
“She’s from Oregon,” Carla said. “It’s crazy that people still come from all over the country just to live in New Orleans. But yes, she is. I definitely could’ve done a lot worse on the roommate lottery.”
“You know that I have the rest of the day free, right? I’m not in any rush to get back to the campus,” Devin said. “I figured that we could go out to an early dinner or something and go pretend that we’re tourists in a city 45 minutes away from where we grow up.”
Carla stepped onto the elevator as the doors slid open. “Oh, I remembered that you didn’t have anything to do for the rest of the day. But we do need to get back across town because you have some making up to do after not coming to see me for three fucking months, and I just texted Kaley and Caesar’s with her, so you have a room all to yourself.”
Devin raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.
“And yes, you also owe me a couple dozen dinners.”