A college girl becomes a prostitute to pay the bills.
The fire alarms were blaring everywhere and everyone was scrambling to get out. I grabbed my purse and hurried out of the room. I joined the small parade of girls heading down the stairs and out of the building. I didn't see any smoke or fire, but I wasn't crazy enough to go looking for it.
Once I was outside, I found Kelsey, my perky blond cheerleader roommate, and asked, "What's going on?"
She shrugged, her eyes riveted on the fire trucks and police cars. There was one ambulance in their midst but the EMTs were just standing there talking to a couple of firefighters. The hoses were still attached to the trucks and the police officers were basically directing the flow of people and stopping anyone from going back into eh dorm.
After what seemed like forever, the dean of students showed up and started talking to the fire marshal and police chief. After a few minutes, she picked up a megaphone and called for everyone's attention.
"All right, everyone, I know all of you are confused and concerned, but I've just been assured that there has not been a fire."
Everyone started talking at once and she held up her hand in protest. "However, there has been a large break in the water and sewer lines.
"That means this dorm is now closed until further notice. The police will escort all of you in by groups to retrieve your belongings and you will all be temporarily absorbed into other dorms. Hopefully this will all be cleared up by the weekend. Thank you."
Kelsey was furious. "They can't do that! They can't make up stay with other dorms! We're all cramped enough as it is!"
I wanted to point out that if she didn't bring so much useless shit, her living space would be bigger, but I didn't say anything. The last thing I wanted to do was waste my time and energy on being angry with her. I was too focused on my graduate work. I didn't' care where I lived as long as I go to my classes.
We were only allowed to take what we would need through the weekend and would be quickly ushered off to our temporary dorms. We saw workers going up and down the stairs to the basement, all of them wearing protective clothing and masks. I started doubting it would be as simple as the dean led us to believe.
* * * * *
Two days later, I was sitting on my roll out bed reading one of my thick textbooks when the announcement blared through the intercom speakers. "All displaced students are to attend a meeting tonight in the assembly hall at six p.m. Again, that's all displaced students to the assembly hall tonight at six p.m. Thank you."
I hoped that meant we'd be back to our own dorms but I still wasn't sure. It seemed unlikely they'd call a meeting for it instead of just telling us to go back. Needless to say I was less than optimistic when I found a seat in the assembly hall that night.
Once everyone was settled in their seats, the dean took the podium, the fire marshal and another man sitting behind her. "All right, everyone," she began, "I know all of you are anxious to know what is going on with your dorm, but I'm sorry to say you will remain in your temporary housing for the time being."
I groaned along with the rest of the audience. I'd been put in a room with two of the most obnoxious undergrads I'd ever met who seemed to think the purpose of college was to get laid and drunk as much as possible.
She went on tell us how the basement of the dorm had been completely flooded, allowing many different types of bacteria to contaminate the building. HAZMAT teams had taken the rest of our personal belongings and put them all in a temporary storage building erected on the other end of campus. We'd be able to go through them over the weekend to pull out what we needed.
The fire marshal spoke up and told us how the dorms we'd been splint into were now officially overfilled and we would only be able to stay there through the end of the semester for legal and safety reasons. But he also assured us it wouldn't be an issue since he was confident everything would be taken care of within a week.
After the meeting, I trudged back to my temporary dorm and was more than a little pissed off to find all of my things thrown haphazardly into shopping bags and shoved into a pile. Only one of the roommates was there and she was busy primping.
"I packed all of your stuff," she said, barely glancing at me.
"Yeah, well, I'm not leaving," I snapped. "The dorm is still closed."
She sighed and rolled her eyes, clearly not happy about having to share the cramped space indefinitely. "Whatever," she muttered. "I've got a date."
She left me alone and fuming. I ripped the bags open and tried to rearrange my books. This was turning out to be the worst semester I'd ever had. Thank God I'd be back in my own dorm soon. I couldn't stand living with these two airheads much longer.
* * * * *
"Goddamn it!" I yelled, crumpling the letter into a ball and tossing it aside. Lori, my partner for the research paper, looked up from her book in alarm
"Marri! What's wrong?"
"I can't believe it! Those bastards are keeping the dorm closed 'until further notice'! I've got to find a new place to live!"
"That's awful! Can't they move you to a different dorm?"
"The other dorms are filled to capacity. We're breaking the fire codes as it is. And there isn't any money in the budget to put us in hotels or rent out a shelter. They'll keep us all until the end of the semester, then we're on our own," I huffed.
"So what will you do?"
"Look for an apartment, I guess. Of course I'll have to pick up a job. That means I'll have to drop at least one class next semester. Son of a bitch!"
"Don't worry," she said. "It'll work out somehow."
"I don't know how. Where do you live again? It's off campus, right?"