by Iris Blobel
“Twenty what?” Sherry Williams asked as she burst into the dorm room.
“Huh?”
“You said twenty something… what about twenty?”
“Twenty-four… no wait! Twenty-seven… no…” The heel of Jenny’s hand tapped her forehead. “Crap. I have no idea where I was. Now I need to start again. One…”
“What in the world are you talking about?” Sherry asked as she craned her neck to look up at the ceiling following Jenny’s gaze. The small bed creaked under the added weight from Sherry, and Jenny scooted over to make room while swatting Sherry’s long blond hair out of her own face in the process. “Please don’t tell me you’re counting ceiling tiles.”
“Well, I was until you messed me up,” Jenny snapped.
“Oh, honey… tell me what’s wrong,” she asked, patting Jenny’s leg.
“What makes you think something is wrong?”
“Really? You’re going to go there?” Sherry sighed. “Besides the fact you’re counting tiles, you look like you’re going to vomit.”
Observant, because her stomach innards were rolling around like a ten-foot swell. “This campus has been my safe place for four years, and now they are kicking me out,” she said, folding her forearm over her eyes.
“They aren’t kicking you out, drama queen. You graduated.”
“Way to be a Debbie Downer.”
Sherry once again deposited herself beside Jenny. “You are about to start the first day of the rest of your life. This is exciting.”
Jenny propped up onto one elbow with a grimace on her face. “You sound just like my mom, and it annoyed me when she said it.”
“But it was poignant when it came from me… right?” Sherry grinned, still looking at the ceiling.
“No. I wanted to slug you too,” Jenny said straight-faced, and Sherry laughed while pushing herself up to sit on the side of the bed. Jenny joined her and leaned, gently bumping Sherry’s arm. “Why am I so scared?”
“Because you are starting a new chapter in your life, and milestones are always scary. You are now responsible for yourself. Health insurance, rent, renters’ insurance, car payment, utilities, food…”
Jenny held up her hand. “Not helping.” She felt the panic attack she had been fighting begin to surface again. She fanned herself with her hands before dropping her face into them.
Sherry nudged her. “I can still see you.”
“Shut up.”
“Hey, you’re not doing this alone. I’ll be there with you. I mean, we are renting the apartment together. It will be great, and I for one am excited.”
Since the day they met, Sherry’s outgoing personality had captivated Jenny and had sealed their lifetime friendship. After Jenny’s mom had left her alone in her dorm room she’d huddled on her bed, shell-shocked, near tears, and afraid to leave the room. She’d already been homesick when Sherry had burst through the door, making the windows rattle, and had greeted her with a “Hey, sexy” while doing the Macarena. Once she’d reached “Hey, Macarena!” she’d thrown her arms around Jenny, squeezing tight. She’d talked to her like they had been friends all their lives, and she hadn’t stopped talking since. Okay, an exaggeration, but not by much. Her personality had saved Jenny from a solitary college experience. She’d included her in any plans she’d made, and since Sherry had never met a stranger, those had been plentiful. They’d become fast friends in a polar-opposite kind of way.
Jenny positioned a pillow over her head in hopes she might suffocate.
“Tough-love time,” Sherry announced. “Put your big girl panties on, and let’s get this stuff loaded in the truck. Our new beginning awaits.”
Jenny scrunched up her face.
“Get up!” Sherry ordered.
“I never liked you much,” she mumbled.
“You love me — now move.” Sherry smacked her butt as she stood. Jenny glared over her shoulder and stuck her tongue out, letting a noisy raspberry loose.