The Social Misfit

Chapter Eleven

After the encounter with the First Assistant Senior Prefect, Mina finally made her way to Abbot House.

She paused for a moment before stepping inside.

This was where she would be living.

For the next three years.

The building looked old, but it had a charm of its own. It didn’t feel worn out—it felt lived in, as though generations of students had left pieces of themselves behind.

One thing immediately caught Mina’s attention.

Part of the building was circular.

Not the dormitory itself, but the section with the bathrooms.

She had never seen anything like it before.

It was strange.

But fascinating.

She found herself quietly looking around, taking in every detail.

When she entered the dormitory, she was greeted by a long aisle stretching from one end of the room to the other.

Bunk beds stood neatly on both sides.

Many beds were made with crisp white sheets, each folded so perfectly that they almost looked untouched.

A few beds were still empty.

Others already had neatly arranged trunks and bags beneath them.

Mina slowly walked down the aisle, dragging her suitcase behind her.

She looked at each bed carefully before stopping at one near the very back.

The last bed.

Something about it felt right.

It was tucked away from the entrance, quiet and out of the way.

She smiled to herself.

This one.

After placing her belongings beside it, she unfolded her bedding.

She had no idea how to make the neat envelope edges everyone seemed to know.

Looking around nervously, she spotted another student.

“Please… could you help me?” she asked softly.

The girl smiled.

“Sure.”

Within a few minutes, the bed looked completely different.

The sheets were smooth.

The corners were perfectly folded.

Mina thanked her before putting away the rest of her things.

After settling in, she went to take a bath.

By the time she returned, more students had arrived.

The once-quiet dormitory was beginning to fill with voices, footsteps and the sound of trunks being opened.

As Mina arranged a few things on her bed, someone walked over.

“Did you come today?”

Mina looked up.

A girl about her age was smiling at her.

“Yeah,” Mina replied automatically.

The girl didn’t correct her this time.

Instead, she smiled even wider.

“I’m Charlotte.”

“Mina.”

“It was nice meeting you.”

“You too.”

That was all.

The conversation lasted less than a minute.

Yet as Charlotte walked away, Mina couldn’t help thinking about it.

Maybe…

Starting over didn’t always begin with a long conversation.

Sometimes, it started with simply learning someone’s name.