7

On Saturday, I decided to take a long walk around campus. It was a weird feeling. Freshman year I had felt lost and couldn't find my way around, but now I felt like I was home. My mom had wanted to give me a personal tour, but I was more interested in exploring on my own. Sierra had sent me a link for an NFSU scavenger hunt online for me to do, but I'd forgotten about it until summer.

Maybe I could convince Tyler to do it with me.

I stopped at The Roasted Bean before heading back to my room. I hadn't found my favorite drink yet, but it was still early in the semester.

My phone buzzed in my hand just as I pulled it out to look for the link.

"Hey, Dad," I answered. I took a sip of my pumpkin coffee and almost spit it out. The flavor was awful.

Why did I decide on this? I've never liked pumpkin.

I held the cup in front of me and gave it a dirty look.

At least it has caffeine.

"Hi, honey. How did your first week go?"

"It was pretty good. Mom is still being really pushy about the Alpha thing."

He sighed deeply. "I know. She talked to me about it, too. She yelled, actually. She doesn't understand why I don't want to push you into this. If I followed my family's legacy, we would be dairy farmers in Idaho."

I chuckled, stepping out of the way of a unicycle rider speeding down the sidewalk. I sat down on a bench to enjoy the sunshine for a minute. "I could never see you doing that. You don't like to pick up poop after Pebbles. There's no way you could scrape out a cow barn."

"Yeah, that's definitely not my idea of a good time," he chuckled. Then, he grew more serious, his voice softer. "I know your mom can be a lot. She really does just want what she thinks is best for you."

"But, I don't think it is."

"I know. That's what college is for. It's time for you to start figuring out who you want to be and what you want to do. This is where you get to start living your own life."

"Thanks, Dad," I smiled.

"You're welcome. What's on the agenda today?"

"I was going to start this scavenger hunt that Sierra found for me, but I don't want to do it by myself. I'll probably get a head start on some reading and homework."

"That scavenger hunt could be a lot of fun. See if Everly will do it with you." After a brief pause, he added, "I have to go now, Lexi. I love you."

"Okay. Love you, too, Dad."

He disconnected the call, and I stood up from my bench. I threw the remnants of my mediocre coffee into the trashcan and headed back to my dorm.

After procrastinating for half an hour, I turned my phone facedown and finally finished reading My Antonia.

A few minutes later, I got a text from Tyler. It was a picture of a stack of books about Cleopatra and Egypt.

Tyler: Maybe I shouldn't have started with physical books. I think I've created a problem

Me: 1) That looks absolutely terrifying. Put them all back

I sent him a picture of the stack of books I had for my Twentieth Century Fiction class. I was excited to read a few of them, but the stack was still intimidating.

Me: 2) No more physical books are allowed in my room. I think it's met its book capacity

Tyler: Rebecca is so good. It's a little dark for some of people though

Me: You have a lot to learn about me. I'm the kind of girl that watches true crime to relax before bed

There was a pause, but three dots told me he was typing.

Tyler: I don't know whether I should be impressed or worried.

I sent back a thinking emoji and started working on Chemistry homework.

***

I was just finishing my last Chemistry worksheet when my phone rang. It was my dad.

"Have they taken your other bed out yet?"

"No, but I think Dakarya said that they were going to today. Hold on."

I set my phone down and went across the hall and stood in Dakarya's open doorway. She looked up when I knocked on her door.

"Oh, Lexi! I meant to tell you! They're coming to pick up your spare bed and desk –" She glanced at the clock on her wall. "–this afternoon, actually."

"Thanks, I was just coming to ask. My dad is probably going to bring in a futon either tonight or tomorrow."

"Cool! Let me know if you need help."

"Can you ask them to fix my window, too? It's really hard to open."

"Sure thing."

I gave her a thumbs up and walked back across the hall. I picked the phone back up. "Dakarya says they should be here any minute to take it out."

"Nice. I'm on my way home. I can be there in an hour to pick you up and get a futon and TV stand. Unless you have other plans." He laughed at the last part, but I knew he wasn't joking.

"My only plans are homework, and I will gladly let you derail those. Isn't Sierra home this weekend?"

He chuckled. "I won't keep you all night. Yeah, she said something about going to a movie with Tyeshia. Or, maybe bowling? I can't keep track of those two."

I rolled my eyes. Sierra and her girlfriend were always busy. Sierra was busy studying engineering, and Tyeshia was pre-med. When they weren't studying, they were going on fun dates around November County.

"Well then, you can spend the evening with me!" I said, getting up to change from a tank top and into a clean t-shirt. "As long as we can get pizza."

"You want pizza? I was thinking we could stop at that new pasta place that opened up in the Springs."

Immediately, my mouth began watering. I had been wanting to go to that new Italian restaurant for weeks.

"Oooh, yes! Pasta is so much better."

He laughed. "Okay. I'll let you know when I'm on the way to pick you up. We'll need to use your truck."

***

My dad picked me up, and we headed to Lavender Springs.

It was always so easy to be around him. We joked the entire time and at the store after dinner, we bickered over which TV stand would be best. He said that black looked more grown up, but I wanted white.

"All of the furniture that you and your sister had growing up was white. Aren't you tired of it yet?"

"I like consistency, I guess. Besides, this one is cheaper."

My dad had never come out and said that things were tight, but Sierra and I could tell. The divorce had been ugly, and my mom fought him on everything. We saw all the extra shifts he picked up and the doubles he worked just to make sure that we were cared for.

"You don't need to worry about that," he said softly. His eyes landed on the black one again before he looked away. He started walking toward the white one when I stopped him.

"You're right, Dad, the black one will look better. As long as the futon can match."

After loading up the cart with the black futon and TV stand, we checked out, and went back to my dorm.

"Is Everly home?" Dad asked, helping me maneuver the futon box into my room.

"She's probably doing something with Sabrina," I muttered, looking down so he wouldn't catch me rolling my eyes.

Closing the door behind us, he said, "What's with the attitude?"

I sighed, sitting on the floor where the futon was supposed to go. He leaned against the box, waiting for me to answer his question.

"I have all night."

"I don't know, Dad. I just get a weird vibe around Sabrina. Like I'm worried she's going to come between me and Everly." I shifted the way I was sitting, but he didn't say anything.

"I know it's irrational and I'm probably just jealous that Ev is spending less time with me now. I just," I sighed. "I don't want things to change." I looked down at my bracelet and ran my finger over the beads.

"Change is just part of growing up. You need to talk to Everly about this. And I know you haven't," he held up a finger, not giving me a chance to interrupt him, "or you two would probably have plans tonight."

"Why do you always have to be right?" I grumbled, standing and grabbing scissors to open the box.

He shook his head, smiling. "Because I have known you for your entire life, and I've known Everly for almost all of hers. I know how you two think. Now, help me put this thing together or you're just going to have a box in this corner."