by Paula Mabbel
“Same as you.” The one with hot pink curly hair pulled into pigtails answered. “I like your hair,” she said. Jessica smiled at her.
“Thanks, I like yours too.” The girl smiled back.
When they reached the third floor, Jessica let the other two girls exit first and then pushed her cart out into the hall. Jessica looked both ways, trying to figure out in which direction room 303 was in. To the left. The other two girls were also heading in that direction, so Jessica followed them, pushing her cart slowly behind them. Room 303 was in a corner. The girl with the pink hair walked right up to room 303 and took out her key. She unlocked the door and held it open long enough for Jessica to push her cart through.
“Which room are you in?” the girl asked as she let the door close behind Jessica.
“A,” Jessica answered, pausing to look at the letters labeling the three rooms.
“All the way at the end,” the girl indicated. Jessica pushed her cart to the room at the end; the door was already ajar, and it appeared that her roommate had already moved in. The girl followed her inside. “I’m your roommate. Names Alice.” She stuck out her hand, and Jessica shook it. The other girl who had been with Alice walked in. “This is Faith,” Alice said indicating the other girl. Jessica hadn’t paid much attention to her at the time and finally gave the girl a good look. She was very thick, and also very blonde. Faith smiled big and stuck out her hand.
“Hi, I’m Jessica,” Jessica said as she shook Faith’s hand.
“Nice to meet you,” Faith exclaimed. “I’m in B.” Jessica nodded. Alice and Faith sat down on Alice’s bed and watched Jessica unload her stuff.
“So, where are you from?” Alice asked Jessica.
“New Jersey, you?”
“B-More baby!” Alice exclaimed. Jessica looked at Faith.
“Same,” Faith said.
“What brings you all the way down here?” Alice asked.
“I always dreamed of going to a HBCU, my parents went” Jessica admitted. Alice and Faith both nodded. “I’m going to return this, I’ll be right back,” Jessica said before pushing the cart out of the room.
James sat on a bench in the men’s locker room after practice, sweating bullets. He was exhausted and starving. All he wanted to do was eat lunch and take a nap. He hopped in the shower and washed away the remnants of this morning's practice before toweling off and putting on fresh, clean sweats. Myles was waiting for him outside of the gym, sitting on a low wall, watching women come in and out of the gym. James hoisted himself up to sit beside him.
“So many women, so little time,” Myles noted as he watched a group of girls enters the gym. James smiled and shook his head. “Speaking of which, who had you running up out of breakfast like that?” Myles asked. James laughed.
“What you mean ‘who’?” he asked. Myles shot him a knowing look.
“You know exactly what I mean ‘who’.” James laughed again.
“Nah, I had forgotten something in my room and went to get it before practice,” James said. Myles shook his head then hopped down off of the wall.
“Whatever man, you ready for lunch?” Myles asked. James jumped down off of the wall too.
“Hell yea, I’m hungrier than a mug,” James answered, glad that Jarred had dropped the subject. The two of them walked slowly in the direction of the gym. It was getting hotter as it got closer to noon, the sun shining brightly and aggressively. When they got to the dining hall, it was busier than it had been all summer. Most of the freshmen were in the dining hall having lunch. They looked around for an empty table and saw Jarred waving them over to their usual spot by the windows. Chaz and Ricky were already there as well. They made their way over to the table that was already filled with plates. As they turned to go get food, out of the corner of his eye, James saw red. He turned his head to look and saw Jessica walking in with a girl with two pink buns and another girl with a long blonde weave. As if feeling his stare, Jessica looked, and they made eye contact. He couldn’t help smiling, and she smiled back. Myles started walking towards the buffet and James followed. James and Myles got in line, and Jessica got in line behind them. James turned to face her.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey.” Jessica looked around. “It’s packed in here. I don’t know where we’re going to sit.”
Before he could stop himself, James blurted out, “You could sit with us.” Then he bit his lip and smiled, displaying those irresistible dimples. Again, Jessica’s fathers warning played in her head, ‘stay away from the basketball players!’ At the time, she didn’t understand why her father felt it was necessary to say, but she hadn’t expected to be confronted so early on.
“We’ll see,” Jessica said vaguely. It was their turn to get food, and they loaded food onto their plates. Pizza, chicken tenders, French fries, cheeseburgers. With plates full, they headed over to the seating area.
“Damn, where are we going to sit?” Alice asked no one in particular. James and Myles headed over to their table while the girls scanned the room.
“Oh! Over there!” Faith exclaimed, pointing across the room to a table in the corner whose occupants were leaving. The three girls hurried over to the table, putting their plates down and sitting, thankful that they had found a table.
As soon as they had sat down, Myles was ready.
“Who was that?” he asked James. Their teammates all looked, listening.
“Who was who?” James asked back, taking a bite into his cheeseburger. Jarred cocked an eyebrow.
“Shorty with the Mohawk!” Myles demanded.
“Her names Jessica, I just met her today,” James finally admitted. Myles grinned.
“The one you hauled ass out of the dining hall to see!” Jarred exclaimed, finally fitting the last piece into the puzzle. James stuffed French fries into his mouth. Myles’s grin grew. “She’s a bad one! Where’s she from?” he asked.
“Why you worried about it?” James finally asked. Myles acted taken aback, putting a hand on his chest.
“It’s too early to be cuffin’!” The other guys laughed. “Shorty just got here! You ain’t wasting no time! She one of the baddest I’ve seen thus far, though.” Myles admitted.
“Is she in here right now?” Chaz asked.
“Yea, she has long red dreadlocks cut into a Mohawk,” Myles described. The other guys started looking around. James shook his head, wishing internally that they would just drop it. Jarred actually stood up to get a better look then sat back down.
“I know her!” he exclaimed. “We went to school together. Yea, she is bad.” Chaz and Ricky stood up to look too.
“Her friend with the pink hair is bad too,” Chaz noted.
“That other one needs to take that blonde weave out, and she’ll be aight,” Ricky said. The table roared with laughter.
“So what’s your major?” Alice asked Jessica.
“Art,” Alice answered. “Yours?”
“Philosophy,” Alice said.
“Business Management,” Faith said as she stroked her weave. Jessica nodded before taking a bite of macaroni and cheese. Faith and Alice began telling Jessica all about Baltimore and what it was like growing up here, but Jessica was only half listening, her mind on James. She could tell that he liked her, but she didn’t yet know how she felt about him or if she could even trust his feelings for her. Jessica had always been a very private, guarded person, slow to trust and quick to become distant. She needed to see if James was genuine and it was too soon to tell.
“Damn girl, who are you thinking about?” Alice asked. Jessica realized that she had dazed out, lost in her own thoughts.
“Nobody,” Jessica answered a little too quickly.
“You thinking about that basketball player, huh?” Alice probed with a knowing smile on her face. Jessica shook her head. Was she that transparent?
“I went to high school with him,” Faith said, happy to contribute. “I didn’t know him, though. He was shy and quiet. He’s really good at basket
ball too.”
“My dad warned me to stay away from the basketball players,” Jessica told them.
Alice laughed. “How’s that working for you?” Jessica smiled.
*****
The following day was freshmen orientation. The students met their Resident Assistants, housing staff, and the dean. Different clubs and organizations put on skits and presentations, and there was a scavenger hunt in which they were divided by floors. The students received free giveaways like t-shirts, water bottles, folders, and laundry bags. Orientation took up the whole day. By the time that it was over, it was time for dinner. James had his class schedule with him and checked it in the dining hall. Tomorrow, and every Wednesday, James only had two classes: English 101 from 10:00 to 11:00 am and Art 101 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. James wasn’t sure if he could handle a three-hour class, but it was art, his first love, so he made an exception. Myles was a Criminal Justice major, Ricky was an Education major, Jarred was a Finance major, and Chaz was undeclared. James and Jarred had English together, so they planned on walking to class together after basketball practice. The team was having their first big game Thursday night and then afterward the schools off-campus frat houses would be throwing parties. They hoped for a win so that they could celebrate.
After dinner, James decided to sit outside with his team. They were not alone. It seemed that the whole campus was outside; enjoying their last evening before classes officially began. So many people were on campus, it almost felt like a party. People were playing music, dancing, singing, running around. The energy was electric, and it felt good outside. There were a lot of cute girls on campus, but James couldn’t stop thinking about Jessica which kind of bothered him. It was too soon to be getting tied down. He was a basketball player, and he could be with anyone. Why settle down before he had the chance to play the field a little, have some fun? But he still found himself searching the crowd with his eyes, hoping to see the lady in red.
The next day, Jessica made her way to the second floor of the art building. The art class was located in a large room with high ceilings. There were stools in front of easels arranged in a circle with the instructor perched atop a stool in the middle. Their professor was a tall, golden complexioned woman with long blonde dreads that she wore in a braid down to her behind. She wore a long billowing orange skirt, a white shirt, and white wedge sandals. Jessica had got there early and was one of the first students to arrive and sat down on one of the stools. Students began filing in and sitting down, but one, in particular, caught her eye.
James came strolling into the class, grinning big when he saw Jessica. Jessica couldn’t help but smile back as he sat down on the stool beside her.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey.”
Their reunion was cut short by their smiling professor, standing up and clapping her hands loudly together to signal that class had begun.
“Good evening everybody,” she said as she slowly walked along the inside of the circle, looking at each one of them. “Welcome to Art 101! I am Professor Leshay and I have so much in store for you all this semester. So let’s begin by going around the circle. Introduce yourself, tell us your major and what you love about art. Professor Leshay did a little spin with her pointer finger extended and her eyes covered with her other hand before stopping to point at Jessica. “Let’s start with my locked sister with the fly mohawk.” Jessica smiled as she stood up. James thought she looked really cute in her white dress covered in roses.
“My name is Jessica. I’m an art major, and I love how unapologetic art is,” she said. Professor Leshay clapped, and everyone else followed. Jessica sat down blushing.
“Ok Rihanna,” James whispered. Jessica shot him a look but smiled. The girl to the left of her stood up and introduced herself, and so it went. Everyone stood up one by one introducing themselves and telling the class what they loved about art, followed by an applause led by Professor Leshay. Last, but not least, was James. James stood up. “My name is James, and I am an art major. What I love about art is how it sees the beauty in destruction.” Professor Leshay nodded and began clapping. Jessica watched James thoughtfully while she clapped. And here she thought he was just some jock. James might have some depth after all.
Professor Leshay informed the class that their first assignment would be to draw her. She sat back down atop her stool and did not talk or move for the next hour and a half while the class drew her. The classroom was quiet, the only sound being their pencils on paper and the occasional scuff of a stool on the floor. Even James was quiet. Jessica stole a few glances of him when he wasn’t looking, and he had this expression on his face; serious and focused. It made her smile. It made her want to focus. Halfway through the class, Professor Leshay stood up and announced that they would take a fifteen-minute break. Everyone stood up and stretched after having sat for so long. Some took out their phones; others left the classroom in search of fresh air or a vending machine. James peered over at Jessica’s sketch of the professor, nodding his approval and stroking his chin hair.
“Very nice Rihanna. You’ve got talent,” he said. Jessica sucked her teeth.
“We’re going to put a stop to this right now. Don’t call me Rihanna,” she said sternly. James stared at her, and she smiled. Then she walked around him to look at his easel and was taken aback by his attention to detail. It was interesting to see his perspective. “Wow, you’re really good. I’m actually impressed.” James feigned surprise.
“Of course I’m good girl, I don’t play,” James stated arrogantly. Jessica laughed.
“Don’t get cocky,” she scolded, crossing her arms over her chest. James stretched, his arm muscles bulging in his short-sleeved t-shirt.
“I’m not cocky, I’m confident,” he reassured her. Jessica smiled. “What kind of art do you do?”
“All types...I like to draw and paint, but I really want to illustrate. I make comics.” James' eyebrows shot up, displaying real surprise.
“Comics? I’d like to see them.”
“Maybe,” Jessica said. “What kind of art do you do?”
“I sculpt.” Now it was Jessica’s turn to be surprised.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Well, I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” Jessica said, then blushed after she realized how that sounded. James grinned, his eyes bright. Before he could respond, Professor Leshay gave the same loud clap that she had done in the beginning of class to signal that their break was over. Everyone returned to their stools.
“Now, remove your sketches of me from your easels,” Professor Leshay began. “And pass them to your neighbor.” James and Jessica traded sketches. “Now, finish. You have until the end of class.” Professor Leshay returned to her stool, careful to position herself exactly as she had before and the class got to work. It was interesting, combining two perspectives, two styles. James thought that their styles looked good together. When they were drawing, they lost track of time and again, Professor Leshay stood up to let them know that class was over. They packed up and headed outside. It was dark out by the time that they left the art building. The temperature had dropped, but it was still warm.
“Walk me home?” James asked Jessica with a smile.
“Sure, I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you,” she teased. They walked side by side in the direction of the freshmen dorms.
“Are you going to the game tomorrow?” James asked.
“Yup. Are you playing?” Jessica asked, looking up at him.
“Yup, I’m the starting point guard,” James told her proudly.
“You must be really good to be starting,” Jessica said. Again, she was impressed, and Jessica was pretty hard to impress.
“I told you that I don’t play when it comes to the things that I care about,” James said. They laughed. “You going to the parties afterward?” Jessica thought about it a moment.
“I might,” she said.
“You should come out and celebrate our win with
me,” James said smiling. Jessica smiled back.
“Confident are we?”
“Extremely,” James said as he held open the door to the dorms for Jessica. Jessica walked through and then he walked in after her, trying not to stare at her big butt as he followed her to the elevators.
*****
Just like with his art, James did not play. He wore the same serious, focused expression that he had when he sketched, and Jessica wondered if he also wore it while he sculpted. It goes without saying that the Morgan State Bears won their very first basketball game of the season, with James scoring twenty-two of the sixty-seven points. The crowd went wild. The season was off to a great start. After the game, Jessica and her suitemates returned to their suite to get ready to go party hopping. Alice wore a short, fitted black skirt with a black and white halter top that showed off her tiny waist and a pair of white sandaled heels. Jessica wore a sleeveless fitted black jersey dress that hugged her curves, and her favorite pair of knee-high black boots. The girls did their hair and makeup, Jessica wearing her hair up in a messy bun, before heading out. Everyone was out celebrating the basketball team's win. Music blasted from every frat house. Tonight, the basketball players got in for free. Girls got in free anyways, so the girls went to every frat house, drinking jungle juice and dancing, quickly getting drunk.
They ended up in one frat that was playing great music, and Alice started dancing on the bar with her suite mates cheering her on. Jessica was dancing and having a lot of fun. She didn’t even notice when a drunken James and a few of his teammates entered a party, but James noticed her immediately. He had been looking for her in every party he went to that night, making it his mission to dance with her. As soon as he saw her dancing in that little black dress, he started making his way through the crowd towards her. But someone else beat him to her.