Chapter Text
September 2003
Adora
Adora's car was a wreck. The paint and the interior were fern green mixed with rust. The engine yelled in her ears and shook all the seats. The second-hand seller she had bought it from a week earlier was definitely not fair, but she was terribly in need of a car and didn’t have much money. She only hoped it would keep running the thousand miles between her town and her new college.
The first half of the trip passed quickly. She didn’t stop except for eating a grilled cheese sandwich and refueling. Her motel was still thirty minutes away, but she was already tired. She needed a good night’s sleep and moved her aching body. Tomorrow's wake-up time was early, since she wanted to arrive at her new room in the afternoon.
The next day, she was driving before the sun rose. She rapidly ate breakfast and drank a coffee. At 6.30 p.m. her old car was already running on the road. Adora had been anxious and tired the day before, but today the excitement of a new life kept her vigorous.
Adora’s eyes were blue and sparkling, though the night had left dark rings under her eyes. A ponytail pulled back her blond hair around her square and tanned face. Her body looked particularly athletic and healthy. Eight years of soccer club had grown her stamina and strong and the last year has given her many hours to work that.
Nevertheless she doesn't think of the past today. This was the biggest day of her life so far.
Her college was on the edge of Bright Moon City, mid-sized city in the northern Midwest. The town was in the middle of a plain with mountains on the horizon. The winter arrived already in October with a little snow and didn't leave until April. During the academic year, twenty thousand students filled several streets in the west of the town. There was some liveliness in this part of the city around college. Adora was in her college city and her old car was working. She took the exit from the highway and turned onto the main street.
Her housing was only a few miles away. Two days of being on the road had tired and bored her, though she finally arrived and was glad. Twenty minutes later, she parked in front of her new block. The four-story building was entirely built of red brick.
Adora went up directly to the second floor, where her room was located. The hallway was full of people running in all directions. They carried bags, suitcases and a number of large or small boxes. With her bag over her shoulder, she swerved among the crowd and easily found the way to her place.
The room door was already open. Her new roommate had tidied up when Adora came in. “Hey, I’m Adora, your roommate,” Adora said with a friendly smile. She didn’t have talent with people or much experience with small talk. But she knew a good first impression was essential.
“Hey, my name is Glimmer. I’m happy to meet you at last!” she replied with a broad smile. Adora thought this start was rather fine.
Her roommate was an Asian girl with colored hair between purple and pink. She looked just taller than five feet. Her motion showed her to be dynamic and energetic. Adora liked the warm welcome.
Immediately, Glimmer helped Adora with her bag and dropped it off on the bed. She also offered to help with the other stuff in her car. “A friend will come soon to help. We are going to bring your stuff,” offered Glimmer simply.
“Thanks, but I don’t want to be inconvenient,” said Adora, a little uncomfortable. She wasn’t used to others trying to help her.
“Hey, it's no inconvenience, don’t be so shy! We are going to live together," Glimmer replied, loudly but heartily.
Adora knows very little about college dorm rooms. But this room seemed pretty standard to her. It was bigger than she had expected. It had two identical beds and desks. The room furniture was symmetrically placed on each side.
With Glimmer help, Adora started to tidy up. She immediately felt comfortable with her new roommate. They simply talked about their first impressions of college and life in a dorm room.
“Where are you from?” asked Glimmer while she was putting a few books on a shelf.
“I lived in the south for the last six months and you?” answered Adora ambiguously. Adora didn’t want to speak too soon about her past. She wasn’t too comfortable on the subject at the moment. But she didn’t want to lie.
“I grew up at Etheria, a small town forty minutes from here,” said Glimmer without commenting about Adora hazy answer.
Her roommate's question reminded her of her home or at least her former home. Adora’s hometown wasn’t too far from Bright Moon City. She left it the previous year and she didn’t like to remember it. Most memories had been good, though the ending saddened her. She was focusing on the present now.
“How is your hometown?” Adora asked to stop her own thoughts.
Glimmer didn’t have time to answer. At that moment a person went into the dorm room and greeted them.
“Hey everybody!” he shouted in a friendly manner. He was a black guy wearing jeans and a gray shirt. He looked athletic and lively.
Glimmer grinned and said immediately to Adora “this is my friend Bow. He’s sometimes noisy, but you will like him, I’m sure.”
“I’m not noisy, but welcoming,” he corrected with a smile.
Adora immediately felt affection and long familiarity between them both.
“Hey, nice to meet you, I’m Adora,” she said with a warm look.
Afterwards they finished bringing in her luggage. In the evening they had dinner together. Glimmer and Bow told her some stories of their time in High School and their common past. Adora hadn’t laughed so much in a long time. She felt good being with them.
Sunday was a splendid sunny day. She visited the campus and the area around the college with her new friends. They found some nice cafes and quiet gardens. The campus was huge and lively for Adora. But she liked this atmosphere.
The athletic center particularly impressed her. It had many workout stations, cardio equipment and various courts. With the long winter in the region, the center even had an indoor track. Her passion for the sport was shared by Bow.
He had obtained a partial sports scholarship, before he finished his High School education. Adora recovered her scholarship after a sort of gap year. Adora played with the college soccer team and Bow was a member of the track and field team.
Their scholarship didn’t pay for all tuition and fees. But this help was useful for the both. Adora could begin her year without too much worry and has some weeks to get a part-time job.
On Monday she attended her first class. Adora woke up early and got dressed rapidly. She wanted to get to the classroom and drink coffee without rushing.
When she went into the classroom, there were several people. She sat down in the middle near a dark-skinned girl with short brown hair.
She wore blue jeans and a green blouse. Her short hair was messy and her eyes looked tired. There were books and papers on the desk. Adora hesitated before sitting there, while the girl looked up at her in curiosity.
“Hey, excuse me, is this seat free?” Adora asked with a friendly look.
“Yeah, yeah, no problem, you can sit there,” the girl answered, and moved her book.
“Thanks, my name is Adora. This is my first class here. And you?” she said, hoping to start a conversation.
“Mermista,” she answered in a taciturn way.
For a moment, Adora worried that she had chosen the wrong seat. Mermista seemed silent at first, however the conversation picked up again. It was Mermista's first class, too. They talked until the beginning of the lesson.
This first biology class looked exciting, but Adora was exhausted. It was her first lesson in more than a year. She wasn't used to focusing through a long class. She had to buy books and to read two chapters for the next week.
Her classmate Mermista advised her to find a used book on the College Website, or at the many book exchanges organized by the library early in the year. It looked like a good plan to get books not too expensive.
She thought she needed to manage her time between class, training and a necessary part-time job. Anyway, the first training was already this afternoon. She will soon get to know her team planning and meet her new teammates.
Before her training, Adora went to the dorm to get her sports gear. Her room was empty, her roommate Glimmer had to leave for class. She had time to eat a light meal at one of the College restaurants.
The team was meeting in front of the soccer field. There were few people when she arrived there. To begin, a teammate showed her around the locker room, equipment and main room. Then they met the rest of the team, and the players introduced themselves one after other. There was too much information, Adora didn’t remember all the names.
Adora got her schedule and gear for the year. She was especially scared with fifteen hours a week training. Soccer season started only in October, they didn’t play yet at the time. She imagined her semester would be busy.
In the evening, Adora came into her dorm room, her hands full of gear and her eyes weary. She threw everything down in the corner of the room and fell down on her bed.
“How was your first day?” Glimmer asked sitting on her bed. She gave Adora a funny look.
“I’m exhausted after just a day. How can the others handle such a long day?!” Adora answered, sinking her face in her pillow.
“Don’t worry about it! You will get used to it quickly,” Glimmer said laughing.
Adora knew it was true. She soon found her habit, because she was stubborn and tenacious.
When she fell asleep in the evening, she remembered Catra.
Adora hadn’t thought about her for weeks. But this first day was stressful and thinking of Catra helped to lower Adora's anxiety. Adora missed Catra a lot.
The last time she saw her, Catra was in a hospital bed with drips and medical devices around her. She only hoped that her ex-best friend was fine today.