Someone Else

Chapter 14

Mom and dad help me unpack the boxes and then leave for the airport after making sure I have enough money.

My dorm room is gorgeous and huge! I have a bathroom and a living room all to myself! It's exactly like an apartment, how nice.

I brought the TV from home so now I just need a couch and toiletries and I'm set! Oh, I also need to pick up my textbooks for class in two days.

How am I supposed to mount the TV to the wall without a drill? Wait, I'm sure students before me have put theirs up.

Aha! There are already holes where the screws are supposed to go in.

I attach the mounting bracket to the wall and make sure it's secure. The mounting plate is already on the TV so I just put two and two together and voila!

Someone claps and I whirl around to see a guy standing at my open door. Okay, I seriously need to learn how to shut those things.

"Uh, hi." I said awkwardly.

"Can you help me hang mine up? I have no idea what I'm doing." He said, embarrassed. "I'm Ash."

I chuckle. "Okay." I follow him to his dorm that's two doors down.

His TV is exactly like mine and I show him how to do it. Rich kids are a whole other breed, I think it's pretty obvious how to mount a TV on a wall. His dorm is like mine but he already has an awesome black couch and even a coffee table.

I can tell this is the first time he's picked up a screw driver and try not to laugh as he keeps rotating it in the wrong direction.

We finish in twenty minutes and he invites me to go eat out at some fancy sounding restaurant.

"Sorry, I need to go buy some snacks and stuff for my dorm. Maybe next time." I said, leaving.

I go back to my room, make a list of everything I need to buy and lock the door behind me.

Should I take my car or the bus? I'll just take my car, I don't know the bus routes yet.

I go to a Trader Joe's and get a bunch of cup noodles, chips, rice crispy treats,...along with shampoo, conditioner, body wash, towels and a new toothbrush.

The total is over two hundred bucks and I cringe. Why the heck are these towels thirty bucks a piece? It's literally cotton. I can buy a towel similar to this at Walmart for 15 bucks max.

I struggle to carry everything to my car but I somehow manage. The city isn't familiar to me yet, I should go exploring! But I have to get these back first. I haul everything upstairs and go back down to take a drive.

Where should I go?

I drive a whole loop around Central Park to Times Square and then around the Empire State Building. Whoa, this city is so beautiful. I feel like a character on Gossip Girl. Well, I should probably wear something other than sweat pants and a hoodie. Plus, I hate drama so the Gossip Girl lifestyle probably isn't for me.

I park on the side of the road, making sure there aren't any no parking signs and go into a little diner.

For some reason, people are looking at me weirdly. Probably because I look homeless and I just got out of a really expensive car.

"Afternoon, can I get you any drinks?" The waitress asked, tossing a menu on the table.

Okay, rude.

"Can I get a chocolate shake and a burger with a side of curly fries please." I said. She's probably had a s**t day or something.

She squints at me but takes the menu back and leaves without another word. Why are people acting weird? Is there something on my face? Something in my hair?

I take my hair out of it's bun and check it for bird poop or something.

Some girls look and point at me from outside and whisper among each other. Okay, there must be something on my face.

I use a napkin and wipe off my entire face, checking it to see if there is anything. Absolutely nothing.

My order comes out and I ask to pay beforehand. She shoves a tablet into my hand and I use PayPal to pay and hand her a twenty dollar tip. Maybe she won't be so sour if she gets a good tip from me.

No dice, she doesn't even give me a smile. She just snatches the tablet back and walks away.

I sigh and look at my food. It smells good at least, the burger is surprisingly big, as big as my hand.

Those girls have decided to come into the diner and approach my table.

"Are you Amelia Shackler?"

"Yeah, why?" I asked with my mouth full.

One of them pulls out a notebook from their purse and I frown. They carry those around? Are they that likely to meet a celebrity around here? Does this mean they consider me someone famous?

"Can we get autographs?" They asked.

I nod and take out my trusty Mitsubishi pen. "To whom may I address these to?"

"Mandy, Rachel and Lauren."

"Would you like three different pages or all three on one page?"

"Separately."

No 'please'? How do they raise kids in the city, hot damn.

Have faith in yourself always, Mandy.

Be strong and keep fighting the good fight, Rachel.

Humility goes a long way for one's character development, Lauren.

Your's truly,

Amelia Shackler.

I can see the scars on Mandy's wrist that peak out of her long sleeves, Rachel looks exhausted and Lauren's face has so much makeup I'm surprised she can breathe.

They look surprised my the message I left but don't say anything about it.

"Thanks." Mandy said before they left. Huzzah, we got through to one of them!

I finish my food and stand up to leave.

"Excuse me, you need to pay for your meal." A middle aged lady said, grabbing my arm before I could pass her table. "Just because you're famous doesn't mean you can just leave without paying."

Some people pull out their phones to start recording and irritation creeps up in my chest. This is literally my first day in the city and drama is already going down.

"Take your hand off of me before I press charges." I said, gritting my teeth.

"She already paid." The waitress said, sounding uninterested in the whole situation.

"Prove it." The middle ages lady said.

What the f**k? How am I supposed to prove it? Should I show her my payment history on my banking app? "I don't owe you anything." I said, pursing my lips.

"Who do you think you are?" She demanded, gripping me tighter.

I reach into my pocket and pull out a wad of fivers. I throw it in her face and jerk my wrist away. "I think I shouldn't have to deal with annoying people like you, Karen." I spat at her, walking out.

I slam my car door shut and drives away. That was so f*****g upsetting. I hope that video doesn't go viral or anything, I don't want the media on me any more than they already are.

My wrist is f*****g red. f*****g hell!

Before going back, I stop by a furniture store and check out some couches. I didn't need a big one, it just has to be comfortable enough to sleep on and easy to clean spilled pasta sauce off of.

I settle on a dark gray couch that's big enough to fit four people and it's made from olefin so I can use this for a long time. Not to mention it comes with a cute tiny coffee table that's made of dark wood.

"Is this one still in stock?" I asked.

"Yes, miss."

"I'll take it. If I pay now can you have it delivered to my dorm by the end of the day tomorrow?"

He nods.

"Okay, then. I'll be paying with card." I told him, handing him the metal card. I had it custom made to have Kotaro from that babysitting anime lasered onto the front.

He looks at the card and furrows his eyebrows. "Can I see an ID?"

ID? Since when did you need an ID to buy a glorified chair? I hand him my driver's license and he nods before giving it back.

He rings everything up and swipes my card on a machine. After, he gives me a transportation paper thing and I fill out my name, address and contact information and sign at the bottom.

+ + +

At around 6 pm, I walk to the dining hall to get some food. Trusty meal plan to the rescue!

Everyone here is kind of dressed up, not really formal or anything but they don't look like they just rolled out of bed like me, except for some med students who look like they might die at any given moment.

I get three slices of meat lover's pizza and a Dr Pepper. I find an empty table way in the back and work on a chapter for the sequel of my first book.

I'm almost done with it but I need to make some edits and work some more on character descriptions. There are a lot of students in here on their laptops and phones so I don't feel out of place at all, just a bit worse for wear.

I wonder if Ash even has a meal plan or if he just plans to eat out at expensive restaurants all the time. He's a trust fund kid. In fact, I'm a trust fund kid too even though I don't act like it.

The food here is surprisingly good but that's just what you get in Ivy League. I heard Yale has the best Ivy League food, I wonder if Chase is enjoying himself at Princeton.

Speak of the devil, he's calling me.

"Hey," He said when I pick up. "How are you liking New York?"

I smile. "Good enough, I guess. Something happened today."

"Oh no, what is it?"

"I was eating at a diner and paid before I started eating. And then some people asked for my autograph and I gave it to them and finish eating and then I go home, right? But this lady doesn't let me go and she said I didn't pay for my meal!"

He makes a displeased sound and I hear the sound of a door closing. He just went outside. "What did you say to her? I hope you cussed that b***h out."

I laugh. "No, I just threw some cash at her and walked out." I said. "But some people were filming and I'm nervous that it'll go viral or something."

"I'm sure you'll be fine. Things like this happen all the time." He assured me.

If only I believed him, my luck has been the worst lately. "Have you eaten yet? You have to tell me about the food there!"

He chuckles. "I'm going to the dining hall now. Where are you anyways, it's loud."

"I'm in the dining hall, the pizza here is pretty good." I said, taking another bite.

"Really? It's still school food after all."

"Just because it's school food doesn't mean it's automatically bad." I said, laughing. "You know, Princeton is just an hour away. Maybe I could come by and you can show me around the campus this Saturday."

"Sounds like a date, I'll text you where my dorm is. Lia, I gotta go right now but I'll tell you about the food later tonight, okay?"

But I'm lonely... "Okay. Talk to you tonight." I said. He makes a kissing sound and hangs up.

Are we a couple? No, not really. When the summer ended, we didn't really talk about what happened so I automatically assumed we're either friends or friends with benefits.

Do I like Chase? Yeah. Do I love him? No. Could I love him? Probably.

But right now I'll focus on my education and having a little bit of fun.