Dear Ready to Rock,
Classes are about to start, and I'm super worried. A lot of my friends are wanting to go out and do things, but my bank account is screaming at me to stay in more. My family thinks I should get a job, but I'm worried that I won't have time to give my studies the time they need with even a part time job. How do you recommend I respond? Should my social life suffer instead of my bank account?
Sincerely, Dollar Signs Aren't on Report Cards
"Hi, my name's Terra - is the hiring manager in?"
The young man nodded at her, "Yeah, let me go find her."
Terra hoped that she looked decently presentable. She was wearing the nicest clothes that she owned - a pair of black slacks and a chunky cable knit sweater. The young blonde had been perusing the streets of Jump City nonchalantly when she found herself in a small mom and pop's style cafe. It was right up her alley. The sign on the small cafe had a huge sign advertising open interviews, so she ran home to put something nice on and try her luck.
The woman that came out from behind a small swinging door was short and plump. She had a huge smile on her face and immediately reached out her hand to Terra when she saw her.
"Hello darlin'! Are you the one looking for a job?" Terra took the lady's hand and shook it firmly, mirroring the friendly smile.
"Yes, I'm Terra Mark. I just moved to town recently - I'm enrolled at JCU." She swung her backpack around to her chest to dig in it, "I have a resume, I just didn't know where to print it off…"
"Don't worry about it! I prefer to get to know people face to face instead of on paper." She gestured to an empty booth. The two seated themselves. "I'm Kristina Beecher, but everyone around here calls me Momma Bee. What kind of job are you looking for?"
"Well, I've really only done waitressing," Terra admitted, sliding her backpack off of her shoulders. "I'm really open to anything though. I like to learn."
Momma Bee laughed, a thick wholesome laugh that made Terra feel like she was right at home already. "Well, I sure could use a waitress - I could use anything. A lot of my kids are part timers now that the school year is starting up again. You said you're going to university here in town?"
Terra nodded. "Yes, I'll be a freshman. I'm taking a lot of credit hours, but my classes are in the mornings so I'll have most of my evenings free."
"The dinner rush is usually our busiest time." Momma Bee agreed. "You've waitressed before?"
"Yeah, I used to work at a cafe that my mom's-" Terra faltered for a moment. It wasn't her birth mother, but Mrs McKinney had been the closest thing to a mother she ever had. How did she explain her life story? That it was her friend's mother's cafe wouldn't be that weird of an occurrence, but it felt wrong not to refer to the McKinneys as her family. They were in everything but blood. Terra faked a cough into her elbow and smiled apologetically "Excuse me, had a throat tickle. My mother owned a local cafe. I waitressed there."
"Oh how good! Local businesses are always the best kind. My little restaurant has been in our family for more than fifty years now." The woman smiled to herself, looking off into the distance fondly. "My grandmomma worked her hiney off to get this place up and running."
"That's rad." Terra said, "I gotta agree with that. My mom's cafe was the best place in town." It was no lie - every weekend the cafe would be packed with people. It was almost a town tradition to eat there and support the town. Terra had eaten there more times than she could count. She could personally attest for every item on the menu, which really only made her a better waitress.
The two spoke for about another hour, sharing information and stories before being approached by a girl similarly aged to Terra. Her curly hair was tied up in a giant bun, tied up with a small yellow ribbon that matched her brightly colored apron. Momma Bee smiled widely at the girl, "Terra, meet my daughter Karen. Karen, meet your newest trainee - I think I found our new waitress!"
Karen smiled warmly, her teeth a stark white against the stunning red that colored her lips, and held out a hand, "Nice to meet you! It'll be nice to have an extra hand - As long as you catch on fast."
"Karen! Don't scare away our new employee again." The mother scolded. Karen laughed.
"I'm just teasing!" Her grip was firm when Terra took the hand and shook it. "I gotta get over there - table three is being kind of impatient."
"Of course dear." Momma Bee waved her daughter off. "Anyway, Terra, I'll have you fill out some info for me, then when you bring it back I can get your two forms of ID and get you scheduled! How does that sound?"
"Sounds good!" Terra replied. Momma Bee brought her over a paper, then returned back to the area that Terra assumed was the kitchen. The blue eyed girl folded the paper and slipped it into her backpack before hiking the dark colored bag over her shoulder once more. She hadn't thought that the interview would go so well - perhap that's one of the perks of a little family owned business.
The bells on the door chimed with her exit, and Terra took a deep breath of the air outside. The day was sunny and beautiful; California was so much different than where she had grown up. It was bright, full of hope. She felt her phone buzz in one of the pockets of her backpack and pulled it out excitedly.
Her excitement quickly depleted when she realized the message wasn't who she thought it was from. She had been texting the boy she had met a few days before, Logan, sporadically, being incredibly busy with getting all of her things ready for classes starting next week. Her eyes scanned the text quickly.
'Hey Terra, this is Rich from the Tribune. We're having a meeting this evening 5:30 at the student center. Please be there.'
Well, it wasn't what she was expecting but at least it was something to look forward to. She hadn't met any of the other students that would be working on the paper with her yet, and those were probably going to be the people she would be spending the most time with. Surely she could make some friends there.
Terra made her way back to her dorm, not surprised to see that her roommate was gone. Kori had spent very little time in the room, always out doing things. A pang of jealousy ran through her chest, but she tried to ignore it. Kori wasn't even her friend, really. Of course she would be out hanging with other people. It was dumb to think that Kori would want to drop any previous friendships to hang with her instead.
Heaving a small sigh, she pulled out her laptop and opened up Netflix. She had a few hours to kill before that meeting, so maybe a little bit of mindless tv could distract her. Terra clicked a random show from the recommended feed, plopped on her bed, and let her mind wander, the sappy romcom playing in the background.
"Heya!" Terra offered her hand out, tilting her head with a bright smile. "My name's Terra - I was told we were having a meeting? Are you Richard?"
The man returned the smile, accepting the shake with a similarly strong grip. "Well, nice to meet you Terra! And yes, that'd be me. Call me Rich, though. Never been fond of Richard - it's too formal for my tastes."
Rich stepped aside, welcoming Terra into the small room. There were a couple computers at desks in one corner, along with a giant whiteboard with notes scribbled across. It was immediately recognizable as a mock newspaper spread, boxes colored in with a couple different signatures for who got which spot.
"Wow…" Terra breathed, taking in the entire set up in awe. Rich laughed. His dark hair was slicked up stylishly, gleaming in the harsh lights of the studio.
"This is our modest abode. Glad you like it." His good natured smile eased the tension between Terra's shoulders, "Make yourself at home! I'll introduce you."
Rich led the blonde to a small couch, where two other guys sat. The first one had his laptop sitting on his toned legs, with one folded over the other in a makeshift desk. His bright orange hair was a stark contrast to his pale skin. The second man was slim, with dark hair that was about shoulder length. He flashed a smile that brought heat to Terra's cheeks. "This is Wallace West and Garth Wheaten," Rich gestured to the first man and then to the second, "Wally writes most of our sports articles and Garth is my second in command. Guys, this is our new freshman writer, Terra Mark."
"It's wonderful to meet you. I look forward to working with you." Garth said, a slight nod of his head.
"Heard we were doing introductions." Another man, surprisingly enough also a redhead, sauntered over, holding out a hand. "My name's Roy. Terra, was it?"
"Yup! That's me." She replied, shaking his hand.
He chuckled, "Quite a grip you got there, eh?"
"Oh, sorry." Terra clamped her hands together with an apologetic smile.
"No problem! Just an observation. I write the student spotlight section," Roy folded his arms across his chest, which was broad. Terra wondered absentmindedly if she'd be able to remember all of the names being introduced, trying to match features with the people in her head. Roy turned to the last two people in the room, the only other girls. "Hey, Bette, want to come introduce yourself?"
The blonde flicked her frizzy blonde hair over her shoulder with a smirk, "Nice to see some new blood around here. I'm Mary Elizabeth - but everyone calls me Bette." Bette tapped the shoulder of the girl beside her, who had long, luscious black hair that fell to her mid waist, "And this is Mirage. We do recaps on current events."
"Have any of you guys seen Rachel?" Rich scratched the back of his head, looking around the room. There weren't any extra people to introduce.
"She's meditating," Mirage answered, her voice smooth velvet. "So we figured we'd leave her be."
"That's probably for the best. Don't worry, you'll meet her later." Rich held out his arms, "Well, that's everybody! We aren't exactly a huge team, but we manage pretty well. I figured we'd have you start off with opinion pieces for the most part - I also saved the section for the fan interactions for you, so start brainstorming on what you want to do with that."
"Okay!" Terra balled her hands into animed fists, "I can do that."
"Now, let's sit down and get to talking. We've got a lot to do before we publish next week!"
"Hey, what do you think about this?" Terra flung her arms out to show off her shirt. It was a form fitting black cropped T-shirt. She didn't really know much about cute clothes, her wardrobe being fairly bland. If a black crop top was an exciting addition to her wardrobe, she knew that it wasn't a great sign.
"It is glorious! A wonderful display of the fashion expertise." Kori clapped her hands together gleefully. She was too happy - of course she'd say something nice about even a boring T. "What would be the occasion for the dressing up?"
"I, um…" Terra turned her eyes down to the ground, feeling suddenly shy, "I have a date."
She had finally received the text asking her out shortly after the meeting with her fellow journalists. Honestly, it wasn't as exciting as she had made it out to be. It was just breakfast before class - apparently there was a really good donut shop not too far from the university campus.
"A date?!" The redhead gasped in delight, "You are going to make an odyssey of devotion to a man of your dreams?"
Terra snorted, "That's a little strong, don't you think? We're just getting coffee."
"You may find that the endeavor of the attraction will suck you in." She warned. Her face grew more somber, "I am afraid that I am not precisely a connoisseur of the dating."
"Really? You're a pretty girl, I bet guys would be falling over themselves to date you."
She sighed, "I think that I scare the male population away."
"Why do you think that?" Terra sat beside her roommate on the bed.
Kori, who was sitting criss cross on the bed, frowned, "Perhaps it is my tall stature that frightens them."
Terra couldn't help but laugh. "Lots of guys like tall girls!"
"Do not be the wart of the worry." Koriander perked up, "I will simply enjoy vicariously through your date. What is his name?"
"Logan."
"Ooooooooh, joy! I love him already." She squealed, pulling Terra into a hug. Terra shook her head with a smile, despite the fact that she could barely breathe.
"You're such a dork."
"Is that something unpleasant?"
"No, it's a good thing."
Kori released Terra from the hug, grinning broadly. "I am glad we are participating in the friendship. However, I must slumber now, so I will converse with you another time."
Terra headed back over to her own bed, wiggling out of the shirt and pulling an oversized one more fitting for sleeping. The smile stayed on her lps, stuck like glue, as she drifted off to sleep. Her first college friend. Her first date. Her first club meeting.
For once in her life, everything was really looking up.
Dear Dollar Signs Aren't on Report Cards,
Adult life truly is a balancing act. Everything comes down to prioritizing the things that are most important to you. School should always be at the top of your list. Ease into everything. If you're taking a reasonable amount of credit hours, then a part time job shouldn't be a problem. Take a day out of the week to allocate your social outings - maybe friday nights can be the time spent with friends. Then you can make sure to mark your availability as such. Creating a schedule for your days also will help immensely. Every Sunday night, take the time to mark down what you need to do for the week and update it as your classes give you new assignments. Consistency and planning is key.
Also, you don't need to spend money to have a good time with your friends! Head to the library, play a board game, borrow mom's netflix password for a movie night. There are lots of ways to make sure your social life is fulfilling that doesn't require breaking the bank. Just be honest with your friends; tell them that you can't really do dinners every week or expensive outings. Real friends will be by your side whether you're making ramen and watching YouTube or going to a steak dinner.
Love, Ready to Rock
A/N: Not the most exciting chapter, I know, but I hope you guys liked! Slowly building the world, introducing the characters that we know and love. How many of them did you recognize? Hopefully the interpretations of them as modern day young adults will be interesting for y'all to enjoy. Don't forget to leave me a review if you liked this chapter or if you have any constructive criticism for me! Next chapter we'll start off with a little bit of fluff with our favorite animal morphing boy.