The soft murmur grew louder as Janet approached the double doors. The warm summer breeze did little to settle her nerves. She stood still, hesitating, never quite feeling this level of discomfort before. It was almost like she was in a foreign country, where everything was so different. That was part of the charm of college, she supposed. Forcing yourself to step outside your comfort, to learn new things and grow. She assured herself it was just the surroundings that were different, but with any luck she would change in time as well.
With forced determination, Janet pushed open the doors. She was met with a cacophony of voices and laughter from the diverse students that filled the atrium. She took a deep breath as the doors closed behind her, their noise almost drowned out in comparison to all else.
Janet wondered at the landscape before her. Students filled the hall in small gatherings, gossiping amongst themselves and having a good time. She stared at the pillars that extended up towards a ceiling that was so high as to make her feel almost insignificant, with the school colors displayed on banners stretching between them. She marveled at the prestigious accomplishments of the school that were on display along the walls. Various trophies and banners announcing the sports teams that brought their school to victory. The pictures depicting prominent faculty members and important philanthropic donors.
While she had toured the campus previously before applying, the school had not felt so alive at the time. Janet was filled with a mix of peace and anxiety. Nervousness over feeling so alone, yet hopeful of where this new chapter in her life would take her.
Her reverie was disturbed as more students burst through the doors, hastily pushing past Janet. She squeaked out a soft apology as she stepped to the side.
With her focus back on the room in front of her, Janet noticed the table with giant blue lettering that read "
WELCOME
" on the front. She approached one of the attendees seated behind it.
"Hi!", the friendly voice greeted Janet. He looked to Janet to be an upperclassman, probably in his fourth year at the school. The school's logo was displayed on the breast of his polo. "Are you here for the orientation?" he inquired.
"Um... yeah. I'm not... really sure what I need to do, though." Janet responded, her head held low, her hand covering the back of her neck.
"That's okay, you're in the right place," the older student assured her. He went on to explain what to expect for the rest of the day. She was handed a folder stuffed with papers, many of which Janet was sure she'd never read. Finally, after looking up her name, he gave her a table number and directed her towards a set of doors near the end of the hall.
Janet thanked the man and went off in the direction she was told. She wound her way through the maze of students before finally arriving at her destination.
The new room sported a stage with a podium before an expanse of portable tables and chairs. Each table was covered with a white cloth, a floral centerpiece, some water and cups, and a small sign etched with a number and letter. She scanned the room for her table, eventually finding it slightly off to the right, about halfway to the stage. 3F.
She took her seat at the currently-empty table and placed her folder down. She was grateful to no longer be carrying around her luggage, having dropped it off at her new dorm room. There was no one else there at the time, to her disappointment. That was when she parted ways with her parents. She assured them that she would be fine from there, but now part of her wished she had asked them to stay.
Waiting for the event to start, Janet began shuffling through the papers in the folder, giving only a cursory glance as to what they contained. The room was slowly filling as time passed. Janet glanced at her phone, still 35 minutes until the scheduled time.
Janet started when a hand was placed on her shoulder. She turned to her right to see a girl smiling down at her.
"Hey, you must be Janet, right?" the girl cheerfully inquired. Janet could only dumbly nod her affirmation. "I'm Rachel, your new roomy. Nice to meet you!" She held out her hand towards Janet.
"Uh... hi, nice to meet you," Janet responded, shaking the girl's hand. As her heart began to settle from her jump, she smiled back at her new acquaintance.
Rachel took the seat right next to Janet. "So, tell me about yourself, what are you studying here?" Rachel held strong eye contact with Janet, the friendly smile never leaving her face.
"I'm doing a double major in computer science and graphical design," Janet responded, only able to maintain the same eye contact half the time.
Rachel's eyes lit up. "Oh wow! So does that mean you're like super smart? Man, I lucked out with you! You're going to have to help me with my homework then!" she said, laughing. She saw the blush form on Janet's face as Janet tried to stammer out an objection. "Lighten up, I'm just kidding! I do my own homework," she said, playfully pushing on Janet's shoulder.
Janet visibly relaxed, a genuine smile growing on her face. "What about you, what are you going to major in?" she asked in turn.
"Undecided for now. Just going to be taking some gen eds, see if something catches my interest. Until then, I'll just live up the college dream!" Rachel explained with confidence and pride, her voice strained as she stretched an arm straight above her.
Janet couldn't understand how people could go through life like that without a plan, but decided against saying anything.
The two carried on as such, asking each other various questions about the other. What kind of food did they like, what their hobbies were, etc. Janet was glad to find herself able to relax around Rachel. Ever since she decided on staying at the college dorm, she had been concerned that she would be placed with someone, well, incompatible, as she put it.
And that's when Janet heard it, the most beautiful laugh she had ever heard in her life before. It came from the table just two rows away. A group of girls had just started sitting down, still gossiping to each other. Janet turned to see whom the laugh belonged to, her eyes finally spotting her. The girl was a veritable angel. She had never seen someone so gorgeous before. The entire auditorium seemed to go silent, all outside distractions seemingly miles away, as the vision of beauty sat before her eyes.
Who was this girl? Janet felt that term didn't properly fit her. Goddess, more like. Yes, surely that was more suitable. Her very smile seemed to send shivers throughout Janet's body. Janet could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She could only hear her laughter, but it was like the song of a siren. The tune beckoning to Janet to move closer. She only had to stand up and start walking. She only had to-
