Author's Note: Sorry this is such a short part, but there's a nice long Epilogue to follow…
Part Eighteen
Thursday August 22nd 2002
I can't believe I've been away from home (and Max) for 3 whole days now!
I finally arrived here in Cambridge on Monday evening and since then it's been a whirlwind of unpacking, meeting new people and campus orientations. I've barely had any time to wallow in my misery over not being with Max (which I suppose must be a good thing – it would be awful if I spent this time moping around and feeling sorry for myself instead of getting out there and making friends).
When I got to my residence hall, I found that my roommate had already arrived; her name is Becca and she hails from Florida. She's really nice and has been introducing me to all these great new people. I've made a few friends already; in fact, we've already formed a small group – there's Becca and me, our next-door neighbour Katie, and Jack and Tim from down the hall. I've been so busy the past couple of days, getting to know the campus and all the local hotspots with everyone that I've only had the chance to talk to Max once since we said goodbye at the airport.
Luckily, though, he's settling in well too. His roommate, Steve, turned up at Coronado Hall while he was seeing me off at the airport and Max tells me that they're getting along great, although Steve keeps encouraging him to go out with him to meet hot college girls and he has to keep reminding him that he's not available.
Crap, I have to go now, Becca's dragging me along to a 'meet and greet' gathering in the student union and she's already halfway out the door and looking at me expectantly…
Monday September 2nd 2002
Classes started last week and I have to say that college is hard work! High school was easy compared to this and it's strange because some of my classes are so big – there are about 200 students in Freshman Biology alone! I'm having a lot of fun though; Becca seems to be quite the party animal and has managed to persuade me to go out with her almost every night since we got here. I've been having loads of fun with the others as well; we've had a couple of' video and popcorn' nights in with the girls from the corridor and if we have a free hour or two, we'll get together with John and Tim for a game of pool in the student union (unfortunately, they usually win – damn those guys!).
I have to admit that college life is great and I'm so busy that with socialising and lectures, I haven't had much time to sit in my room and think about Max and what he's doing right now.
Oh great, now I am wondering what he's doing and it's suddenly making me miss him like crazy.
God, now I'm fantasising about receiving one of his breathtaking, hot kisses and having his warm, strong arms wrapped around me…great, I'm gonna start crying any minute now.
You know, it's a good thing that Becca's out for the day, cos I think I might need some time to myself to wallow right now…
Friday October 4th 2002
Well, I've been here a month and a half now and overall, I think it's going okay. It's getting a bit crazy though, because midterms are coming up in the next couple of weeks and everyone's starting to go kinda crazy in preparation for them. I've been studying a fair bit for all my classes anyway, so hopefully I'll be on top of it by the time the exams start.
From what I've heard, Max is doing pretty well too. He's told me that he's met some great people and that he'd love for me to meet them. I do feel a bit sorry for him though – it sounds like UNM is pretty strict when it comes to co-ed dorms and alcohol on campus. The university is dry, so no drinking is allowed at all – if alcohol is found in your possession, they send you off to substance abuse counselling! Also, Coronado Hall has strictly same-sex corridors, so guys and girls don't really get to mix that much in the dorms. I'm glad that we have both males and females on our floor, though – it kinda evens out the balance!
Max and I have been talking about when we'll get to see each other again. We really don't want to have to wait until Christmas vacation to be together again, but it's not going to be easy. Max is hoping that we can meet up over Thanksgiving, but he doesn't have the money to fly out there, so I'm going to try to make it back to New Mexico that weekend to see him. At least that way, I can see my parents and our friends (if they're around) without anyone having to spend any money coming out to visit me on the other side of the country!
I've been trying to tell myself that the time will fly by and Thanksgiving will be here before I know it, but every so often this little voice in the back of my head cries out that I have to last until November and suddenly another month and a half months seems like a very long time!
Crap, I've been trying so hard to stay upbeat and happy about being here without Max, but some days I can't help thinking about him and wishing that there had been some way to avoid this separation. I'm lucky though, because I have Becca, who's turning out to be a really great friend. Every time she sees me looking upset over Max or just sitting at my desk, staring into space, she'll try to cheer me up and then she'll drag me out with the gang to have some fun. Like tonight, we're all going over to this keg party at one of the Frat houses. I'm not convinced that I'll be in the best mood to go, but Becca's not going to take no for an answer and has told me very specifically, that if I don't get off my butt and go to the party, she will personally pick me up and carry me there; and considering that she's even smaller than I am and can barely lift a heavy suitcase, I'd rather go to the party than be responsible for crushing her to death!
Oh no, she's just walked in the door and is looking at me disapprovingly for sitting here alone and writing in here, so really have to go now…
Sunday November 17th 2002
Well, midterms have come and gone and overall, I did pretty well – mostly A's and B+'s (although there was one bad grade in there; Astronomy – I really don't know what happened that day) - which I think is pretty good considering I'm studying at one of the best and most demanding schools in the country. Max's exams went well too and he seems pleased with his grades although, like me, he's found that it's a jump going from high school to college workloads.
Unfortunately, after all this waiting, I do have some bad news. I'm not going to make it back home to New Mexico for Thanksgiving. Something's come up over that weekend and I have to stay here to get some work done. See, I'm taking an Astronomy lab as part of my course load, and it turns out that the professor has been waiting ages to show us this spectacular event or something in the night sky and it's only supposed to be visible on the Friday and Saturday nights of next week (which surprise, surprise, is Thanksgiving weekend). He wants as many people as possible to attend and he'll give us extra credit if we attend a special additional class on one of those nights.
Now, normally, I wouldn't even consider cancelling a trip back home to see Max and my family, but it turns out that Astronomy is not my best class right now (the bad midterm grade) and I really need the extra credit if I want to pass the semester.
I just have to work out how to break the news to Max – I don't think it's going to go down well at all. I think he said he was going to be really busy this week, so I don't even know if I'll be able to get a hold of him – when I finally pluck up the courage to pick up the phone and dial his number that is…
TBC…