"Hey, how's it going, Jessica?" he warmly yet casually greeted me as he saw me enter his office. "Please, find a seat. You're saving me from having to work on my bullshit thesis anyway." I giggled and sat down, sitting at the desk with him. "Thanks for al...
It started innocently enough. When we all went back to college and saw our old, awkward professor for our main class, we figured we knew what seminars were going to be like. But it turned out we only had Dr. Skarja for lecture — in seminars, we had a TA....
I hadn’t talked to Karly in about half a year. We used to be super close, but that’s what happens when a girl lands in a relationship with one of the most handsome and mysterious seniors in the school; she drifts away from her loser-y friends. Before Trav...
“What did you expect?” Greg dryly asked. I couldn’t answer, thanks to the heavy breathing and the tears. Fuck, I was pathetic right now. I sat on the closed toilet crying as Greg paced the room. He took my silence as an answer and added, “Stop treating th...
I was a new Ariel after that. Beforehand, I didn’t really care about what I wore, slapping on a t-shirt and some pants, but now… I wanted to try being a little sluttier. I purposefully chose an older shirt, one a little small for me, before going to class...
Even when I was younger, I knew that I was a complete freak. Before I was eighteen, it was in completely innocent ways, like me being unable to talk to teachers without being sassy or something, but I think something in my hormones just decided to scream,...
“We were thinking of having a movie night on the eleventh. You down?” Even though Jake couldn’t see my face, I grinned. “A movie night, huh?” I repeated, holding the phone close to my ear. His tongue clicked from the other end of the line. “Well, I mean,...
I took in a slow, long breath. The smell of nature greeted me. Trees, flowers, dirt, water… Everything had such a beautiful smell. I was so glad I was making time for myself like this. I was a creature of habit. If I planned to do something, that was the...
“I fucking hate bowling!” Lexi roared in frustration as she got her second gutterball in a row. “Why did we even come here?? This place sucks!!” Four or five people were staring at us by the time Lexi grumpily took her seat. Milo got up to throw his ball,...
There are things you know but just can’t explain. You just feel what’s right. Even if it’s not what you “should” do, you know you have to do it, and it was in that moment, probably right before she would have gone to voicemail, that I hit ‘answer’ and bro...
The morning sunlight poured in through the window. The room was silent, apart from Cheesecake running around in his cage. Next to me, Morgan soundly slept, hogging all of the sheets as usual. I exhaled sharply, looking at the ceiling, and grabbed my phone...
Kevin ran his tongue over his teeth in thought, mulling over my offer. “Y’know,” he finally began, “This seems a bit invasive, and that’s me talking.” I shrugged. “I want to know what’s going on.” I had a revelation when I woke up that morning. Morgan was...
It was good to have a break from the drama. I didn’t know if it was because Milo finally eased up or if it just needed time, but I was just happy to see the group was doing alright, and doubly happy to see I could actually exist in the group without causi...
“Beach Day,” Kevin repeated with a lamenting tone. “Jesus Christ, Beach Day.” “It’s just a bunch of girls Morgan knows going to the beach. She wanted me there as her boyfriend,” I replied defensively, making sure everything was packed and ready. “Is that...
“So, first of all, I’m sorry,” Lexi began as we found our table. “Ah, so Morgan’s talked to you already,” I replied with humor, sitting down. I put the straw in my drink as Lexi pouted at me. “I’m allowed to feel sorry without Morgan telling me anything!”...
