Chapter 1: Freshmen, Rice!
That afternoon, the whistles of the pine trees played a peaceful background music, as I was lost in my thoughts. It was my first day in college. Seated on a bench outside the admissions office, I watched my new school's gate as more and more students came in, mostly with their parents. Huge car engines roared into the compound.
"Damn" I whispered to myself.
On the side of the bench was my dad's old suitcase which I grew up admiring, it was very gorgeous, at least to my eyes. I recalled many years ago when he came home after weeks at work, my dad would walk in with a shopping bag on one hand and his beloved suitcase on the other, he always wore a very big smile on his face when we ran to hug him.
"Good old times" I thought to myself while looking at the case.
Since I came alone, I wasn't in any hurry to get admitted to school. I watched other kids being brought to school by their parents with lots of envy. Some seemed very rich, dressed expensively, carrying huge shopping bags while their parents in drove big and beautiful automobiles. I was jealous but also filled with admiration at the same time.
I don't remember if it was an excitement within me that I had finally joined college, the enthusiasm of beginning a new chapter in my life, or it was just the expensive colognes that filled the atmosphere around the school that helped me through that day. I was in a very good mood that afternoon, which was strange, I never liked school before.
After getting myself registered into the school's database, I was directed towards the school's hostels by a beautiful usher.
"Room 109," she said while handing me the keys. "You haven't gotten a roommate yet." She added.
The hostel was filled with noise from students unpacking their belongings, boxes and litter laid the corridors. I had no much to do as my luggage was small, and soon I was on my bed, staring at my phone.
"Freshmen, rise!" Someone shouted from outside the hostel. I looked at my phone and realized I had slept to quarter past seven o'clock.
"Freeeeeshmen, rice" shouted the voice again.
'Did he say rice, or rise?' I wondered while walking outside only to realize it was dinner time. In the dinning hall, only a handful of students came to eat. The rest had their dinner in the hostels, most probably carried a week's supply from home.