When I woke up the next day, Calinida was gone. Her bed was made up neatly, and there wasn't any noise coming from the bathroom, so she couldn’t have been in there. I grabbed my phone from my desk to check it. Several missed notifications were displayed on the screen. A few were texts from Calinida, and a couple were from my mom. It was already close to one in the afternoon and I hurriedly dialed my mom’s cell number. She picked up after a couple rings.

“Nay! How are you?! I miss my baby!”

“Ma… It's only been a week. I'm doing okay,” I told her. “And I miss you too.

“Your dad is here too, he wants us to video chat,” my mom said.

I sighed, “Fine…”

I tapped a button on my phone and the audio call became a video call instantly. My mom was in the living room. She called for my dad to come in the room, and he appeared in the background moments later.

“Look at my college girl!” my dad greeted me.

“Hey, Dad,” I said and waved at him.

The three of us talked for close to an hour before we finally hung up. I told them all about my classes and what they were like. Of course they asked if I met any potential friends and I gave them an honest answer. My dad was more positive about it than my mom was, but that was more expected. I knew that she wanted the best for me, but she couldn't seem to understand my struggle. Getting bullied had made it hard for me to be outgoing because it ruined my self esteem.

Then they reminded me that they were coming for the festivities the next weekend. My parents were referring to an event on campus as “Welcome Back Weekend”. Sutlow University used the second weekend of every new school year to welcome students' family and friends to campus. Games, activities, prizes, food and drinks were provided, it was like a small fair, and all students got in for free. I remembered hearing about it during orientation. Unfortunately friends and family had to buy tickets, but the cost wasn't much.

They were excited to visit the campus again, but they were even more elated that they got to see me. It would be the last time I would see my parents until the holiday break since we lived so far from the school itself. However, I was looking forward to the freedom of being away. I loved my parents, but they could be very overbearing sometimes.

I checked my phone to see what messages Calinida had sent me. She let me know that she met up with the same group of people from last night, and she would be back before six. I guess I was by myself for the day. I decided that even if I couldn't muster the courage to talk to anyone, I had to make the effort, and at least leave my room today. Plus, I got hungry.

I changed out of my pajamas and into some fresh clothes, then I brushed my hair, though you would never know it, before pulling it back into a small ponytail. Once I put on my sneakers, I grabbed my room keys, my school badge, and my cell phone from my desk. After leaving my dorm room, I locked the door behind me and made my way down the hall.

I hadn't made it far when a girl came out into the hall, and locked the door behind her. As she started walking in my direction, I found myself leering at her. I had to admit, she was pretty hot! Definitely not as beautiful as Juliet though. The girl smiled at me when we passed each other, and I smiled back awkwardly. Our interaction was odd to me, I guess I wasn't used to that kind of behavior. My high school was like a sea full of hungry sharks, and I was the bait.

It hadn’t taken me too long to get to the Dining Hall, which was packed, per usual. As I walked, I started thinking about what I wanted to eat. Tacos? Pizza? Something else? My thoughts were interrupted by a group of guys that were walking toward me. All of them were laughing and patting each other on the back, most likely because of a stupid joke one of them told. I caught one of the guys glancing at me as I passed by and he grinned.

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“Damn, look at that ass!” he said loudly.

It took me a moment to realize it, but he was talking about me! The rest of the group stared at my body briefly before they all started making raunchy remarks. I kept walking, hoping that none of them would stop me, and thankfully, they hadn't. My whole body was feverish, all the way to my ears… Was I actually flustered?! I wasn't used to that kind of attention from males. Like I said before, I was practically invisible in high school.

I took a deep breath, and focused on what I wanted for lunch to calm my nerves. I finally decided on a cheeseburger and got in line for it. After I got my food, I went straight back to my room, and ate it. It was surprisingly pretty good, and it made me full; I had no complaints. I ended up playing some video games for a few hours. I had homework, but I figured I’d use all of tomorrow to get it done.

Calinida was true to her word. She showed up a little after six with a few shopping bags in her hands, more clothes I presumed.

“Hey Lovebug!” she greeted. “How was your day?!”

“Low key,” I answered. “You found the closest mall, I see…”

“Nope. But this city has a small shopping center nearby, so, close enough,” she countered and smiled.

╔═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══╗

╚═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══╝

Sunday came, and my homework was taking much longer than I expected. Calinida decided she was going to spend today doing homework too, though I started long before her.

“I’m starving!” she groaned and stood up. She began stretching, as she spoke again. “Let’s try one of the take out restaurants close by.”

I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until my stomach growled. I stopped doing my schoolwork, and looked over at her.

“Yeah, why not. Which one?” I questioned.

“I’m feeling wings! I heard there’s this great place just a few blocks from here.”

“Wings...?”

“Yeah! What about you? What are you in the mood for?” she asked.

Wings sounded kind of good actually.

I nodded, “Wings, it is.”

“Great, I know what kind I want already. Do you want BBQ or hot buffalo?”

“Hmm, get me some of each? Please…” I replied with a grin.

Calinida grabbed her phone from her desk gingerly, and tapped on her screen several times before putting the phone to her ear. I presumed she was searching for the number on Google. She placed our order, then hung up the phone, and flopped onto her bed with her face to the ceiling.

“They said we had to wait forty minutes!” she whined.

I chuckled.

“Do some more of your homework,” I suggested. “Monday is coming fast.”

She sat up quickly and flashed me a coy smile. She was up to something.

“What?” I quizzed.

“Monday… Isn’t that the day you have that Physics class with—what was her name again?”

“Juliet!” I blurted. Shit, Calinida was right! Tomorrow, I was going to see Juliet! And then what? Just stay quiet the whole class again?! The weekend had gone by so quickly, I never prepared for Monday!

“Right, Juliet,” she grinned. “Are you actually going to have a conversation with her this time?”

“Probably not,” I answered curtly.

“Naomi! You have to try!” Calinida insisted.

“What do I even say?”

“Ask her a question about herself… Ooh! Ooh! Compliment her on something! Girls love compliments!”

“Cali…” I sighed.

“Too much?”

I bit on my bottom lip. Why was this so important to me? Important enough that it gave me anxiety! Besides the fact that Juliet was a supernatural being, and I wanted to know more about that aspect of her life, what else was it that drew me to her? I still wasn’t sure… And I knew I would never find out if I couldn’t pull my shit together.

“I’ll give it a shot,” I decided.