Chapter 7

Emilia

I wake up before the sun on the first day of classes, since I have a short morning shift at The Blue Bean from six-thirty to nine-thirty before my first class at ten. Wednesdays are going to be my craziest days of this semester. Starting each morning with a shift, then a two-hour lecture, another class in the afternoon and then serving from three to eight. I'm lucky enough that both my jobs keep a semi consistent schedule for me, with some changes here and there. Though I know it's going to be a crazy semester, the income from both jobs has definitely been worth it so far. I'm on track to buy a car at the end of the semester, even if I have some crazy days, it'll all be worth it.

My first shift flies by with professors and students flooding the coffee shop in desperate need of caffeine to survive their first day back after a long summer break. It was an insane shift but I have no complaints there because I hate when things drag on with the slower shifts. When we're on shift we get to treat ourselves to one drink and food item so right before I leave for the day I make myself a tea and grab a chocolate croissant. For someone who works at a coffee shop I am surprisingly not a big fan of coffee, as in I actually hate the taste of it.

Tea and chocolate croissant in hand I head towards my first class. My first class of the day is a two-part class, in the fall we learn more about developmental psychology, specifically for those ages fourteen to eighteen, and then in the spring we will have an internship at a school where we will work with the school psychologist. There's an option for all different grade levels but I feel called to work in a high school setting. I know that's when I could've used someone most. If one day I even help just one student, everything I"ve worked for would be worth it.

Our first meeting goes by smoothly, mostly going over the syllabus for the fall semester and what to expect. Class wraps up a few minutes early and I head to one of the on-campus cafeterias where I meet Rosie and Garrett for lunch.

"Hey, Emi." Garrett smiles at me from his seat, where he's eating a tray full of food. That man can eat, granted he works out more than anyone I know, throwing in more time than required for the hockey team. He has all different teams scouting him for the NHL and says he has to stay bulked at all times. Though I do have a feeling he works out sometimes to chase the demons away. He's opened up only slightly about his past, we unfortunately both have not the best parental situation.

"Hey Gar, hi Ro." I sit down with my sandwich and chips. Garrett and I saw each other a few times throughout the summer since he also stayedin his apartment. We had a few pizza and movie nights, Facetiming Rosie in for many of them since she felt left out.

"So going to any parties this weekend, Emi?" Garrett deadpans and we all break out laughing.

"If she comes to any, I'm chaining your wrist to mine. Like those parents who need to keep their kids close by."

"Very funny Rosie." I roll my eyes dramatically but with a smile on my lips, "and we'll see I mean it wasn't the worst thing ever if you forget all about that guy." While the party might not have been the best, I still look back on that night and can't help but remember Liam. The boy with the kind smile and the gorgeous green eyes that I can't help but feel are hiding something.

"Ohhh, someone wants to see Liam again." Rosie teases, as if she can read my mind.

"No way, for real?" Garrett looks up from his tray, intrigued.

"Shush you guys." I look around. I'm not sure how popular Liam is but considering he's a baseball player and the girls at this school go crazy for athletes I can guess he"s probably fairly popular. With my luck some girl will overhear us and come over marking her territory. Though I do know he is single thanks to Garrett being good friends with his brother. "Yes he was nice and I only need to see him to return his sweatpants and sweatshirt."

"That you've been sleeping in all summer."

"Anyways, I've got to go to my next class. I'll see you tonight Ro, bye Gar." I stand up slinging my backpack over my shoulder and head to my next class. This class drags a bit but thankfully it"s a shorter one and then I"m off to my next job.

My shift at Nico's is going by pretty quickly because it's relatively busy, though nothing like the summer Saturday crowd. I've come to learn that Wednesdays are a hit or miss, sometimes the restaurant is packed and others it"s dead. We had a massive rush from five to seven and I made a good amount of tips during the time. Our kitchen closes at eight on Wednesdays meaning most customers are gone by nine.

It's seven forty-five and I just collected the bill from my last customer, I cash out my day on the point of sale, and then quickly clean the table off. I still have about ten minutes left of my shift and when I come out from the kitchen I see a familiar blonde head of hair sitting in a booth, James, a coworker and fellow college classmate rolling up silverware. I take a seat across from him and he looks up, his dark blue eyes locking with mine.

"Want some help?"

"Sure. Thanks Em." He smiles at me. James has worked here for a little over a year and trained me when I started this summer. He has been so kind and a great friend to me here, and if I wasn't pining for a man I haven't seen in months I would definitely have a crush on him. We finish rolling up our silverware and head out for the evening.

"Do you want a ride home?" James is always asking if I need a ride home, it's sweet but I hate making him drive out of the way. He lives in the next town over with his family but it's the opposite direction of my place.

"No, thank you. It's a nice night for a walk."

"Alright. Well, text me when you get home so I know you're safe." I smile at him and we say our goodbyes. While it's not cold out, the sky is quickly fading from twilight to darkness, and it has cooled off immensely from the early September sun. I take a sweatshirt, Liam's sweatshirt, out from my backpack before putting it on and starting my walk back to my apartment. The quickest way is to walk the five minutes back to campus, and then walk another ten minutes across campus to the west side. Our apartment is flush with the campus line, making it a great place to live as a student but also nice to not have the same rules of a dorm.

I've just made it back onto campus where it feels more safe to play music through my headphones. I look down at my phone to change the music and set the tone for the walk across campus, pressing play on the Folklore album by Taylor Swift. Before I have a chance to tuck my phone back into my pocket I walk into something rock hard, a hand catches my elbow steadying me before I have the chance to fall onto my ass.