Rob was just another ordinary guy. Was. He lived a quiet student life the first two years upon stepping into college when the pressure finally got to him. Since then, he hung out with the wrong crowd, skipped classes, got into fights which resulted in him transferring schools thrice in the last year. What was once a person with potential, now is starting over. Again.

At least he had a say in which school he transfers to next. Only this time, the list has gotten pretty short. So short, that his privilege of choosing was taken away from him… by the list itself. Of all the universities he sent his applications to, only one was brave enough to accept him. And this didn’t sit well with Rob. Yet, he had no choice. He badly wanted to put his life back together and was short of doing everything, anything to find himself before all the madness started and to prove that he’s worth something to his friends, his family, and himself.

Moving into Yellowbrook College was easier than he thought. Most of the other students there didn’t know about his checkered past–or at least the more black parts than white–and are actually nice to him when he first came in. One of the first to welcome him was Geri. She is the student council president, teaching assistant and Guidance Couselor assistant all rolled into one. She even sat in the panel when school officials interviewed him after passing the entrance examination so this was not the first time Rob laid his eyes on her. And it was even her that told him he got accepted.

“How is life here in Yellowbrook?” Rob remembered asking Geri that question as soon as she broke the news of his acceptance. “What do you mean?” she asked back. “It’s just like any other college,” she continued. “We have students, teachers, a dean, and pretty much what every other school in the country also has.” There was a tone of formality in her answer, probably reflecting the kind of upbringing she had, he thought to himself. It also probably dawned on him at that particular time that maybe he shouldn’t have sent his application here to begin with. “Are we in any classes together?” he finally shot back after a lull in what she just said. “I mean, it would be rather nice to have a familiar face–” he continued when she suddenly interrupted him. “I dunno. Maybe. I haven’t checked my forms yet.” came her swift answer. “Oh… okay,” was all he could say as his shyness took over him in a way he hasn’t felt in a long, long time.

to be continued…