Ivy's Diary

My First Day

The next morning, Westbridge officially came alive.

It was our first actual day of school, and somehow, I expected myself to wake up feeling excited.

I didn't.

I wasn't angry either.

I was just... there.

But of course one thing was certain I wasn't about to let my low self-esteem ruin my first day.

I opened my box and brought out one of my best outfits.

If I was going to be nervous, at least I was going to be nervous while looking good.

My roommate was getting ready too. We both showered, dressed up, and prepared ourselves for the day.

Then I noticed her sitting in front of the mirror, surrounded by makeup products.

I stared at her.

"What are you doing?"

She looked at me through the mirror.

"Makeup."

"I know it's makeup. I mean... what are you doing with all those things?"

She laughed.

"You don't know how to do makeup?"

I shook my head.

"No."

"At all?"

"Absolutely not."

She looked at me like I'd confessed to a serious crime.

Growing up, I'd mostly been surrounded by boys……yes I'm the only daughter out of a family of six. My mum wasn't exactly the type who spent every morning doing makeup, so learning how to blend concealer or draw eyeliner had never really been part of my life.

She sighed dramatically.

"Come here."

I sat beside her, and a few minutes later, she was working on my face.

It wasn't anything dramatic. Just a little something here, a little something there.

When she finished, I looked in the mirror.

I smiled.

"Okay..."

She grinned.

"See?"

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

For the first time that morning, I felt a little more confident.

Maybe this school wouldn't be so bad after all.

We eventually made our way to the lecture hall.

And when we entered, I almost stopped walking.

There were so many students.

So. Many.

I looked around, taking everything in.

Westbridge wasn't just a school. It was like an entire world of beautiful people had gathered in one place.

And apparently, I had somehow been granted access.

We had arrived late, though, so finding seats wasn't easy.

Fortunately, we found seat at the back row. I didn't have much of a problem with sitting anywhere. Front, middle, back—it didn't matter. I could see perfectly well.

My roommate couldn't.

She had myopia, which made distant objects difficult for her to see clearly.

She leaned toward me.

"Please, help me move my seat to the front."

I looked at her.

"You want me to carry your seat?"

"Yes."

I sighed.

"Fine."

I helped her move forward until she was satisfied, then went toward the back.

And that was when I discovered another advantage of sitting at the back.

I could observe.

And I observed.

There were beautiful girls everywhere.

And then there were the guys.

I blinked.

Then blinked again.

Jesus.

Some of them looked like they had been personally selected for the school brochure.

I leaned back in my seat, quietly admiring the scenery.

I had come to Westbridge to study.

But if the guys were going to look like that, studying was suddenly going to require a lot of concentration.

After a few lectures, my roommate and I headed to the cafeteria.

We bought something to eat and sat together, talking about the day.

We didn't have that many lectures, so after eating, we decided to head back to the hostel.

On our way, we noticed the seniors.

Especially the guys.

And the older girls too.

They were beautiful.

Like... unnecessarily beautiful.

I looked around and shook my head.

Westbridge really was a land of beauty.

By the time I got back to the room, I was exhausted.

I took another shower, changed into something comfortable, and stretched out on the bed.

I had barely closed my eyes when my phone rang.

I reached for it lazily.

Then I saw the name.

Ethan.

My ex-boyfriend.

I stared at the screen for a few seconds.

It hadn't been that long since everything between us had ended, so seeing his name still had a strange effect on me.

I wasn't expecting the call.

I almost let it ring.

Eventually, I picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"Hi."

"How are you?"

"I'm fine."

"How's everything?"

"Good."

"How was your day?"

"It was fine."

There was a brief silence.

"You sound tired."

"I am."

"First day?"

"Yeah."

"How was it?"

"Fine."

He laughed softly.

"You always do this."

"Do what?"

"Give me one-word answers."

"Maybe I don't have much to say."

"Or maybe you just don't want to talk to me."

I didn't answer.

His voice softened.

"I just wanted to hear your voice."

"Ethan..."

"I know. I miss you."

I stayed quiet.

He continued.

"I know we ended things. But that doesn't mean I stopped loving you."

I looked at the ceiling then I said "Ethan..."

"Let me finish."

I sighed.

"Okay."

"I'm not asking you to promise me anything. I just want you to know I'm still here."

I remained silent.

"I'm not ready to be with someone else."

That caught me off guard.

"I've tried telling myself I should move on, but I'm not ready."

He paused.

"I still want you."

My heart tightened slightly—not because I wanted him back, but because I could hear how genuine he sounded.

I laughed softly.

"You really think you're going to get me back?"

"I don't think it."

He paused.

"I know it."

I rolled my eyes.

"You're so confident."

"Because I know you."

"You don't know everything about me."

"Maybe not everything. But I know enough."

There was a small silence.

Then he said, "I hope your first day was good."

"It was."

"I'm glad."

"Goodnight, Ethan."

He laughed softly.

"You're running away from the conversation."

"I'm tired."

"I know. Sleep well."

"You too."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

I ended the call and stared at my phone for a moment.

Ethan really wasn't going to give up.

Not because I wanted him back.

But because I knew him.

And maybe that was the problem.

Sometimes the hardest people to forget weren't the ones who treated you badly.

Sometimes, they were the ones who had genuinely loved you.

I dropped my phone beside me.

Then I called Noah.

He picked up almost immediately.

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to talk."

There was a pause.

"Who called you?"

I laughed.

"How did you know?"

"Because you sound different."

"Ethan called me."

Silence.

Then—

"That guy?"

I burst out laughing.

"Noah!"

"Why is he calling you?"

"I don't know. We talked."

"Don't mind him. This one is trying to come back."

I laughed.

"You sound threatened."

"Threatened? Me?"

"Yes, you."

"Please."

He clearly wanted to act unbothered, but I knew him.

He started complaining about Ethan until he suddenly changed the subject.

"Anyway, how was school?"

And that was when I started telling him everything.

Unlike my conversation with Ethan, I gave Noah the full story.

I told him about the lecture hall, my roommate, how she couldn't see properly from the back, how I helped move her seat, the beautiful girls, the guys, the seniors, the cafeteria—everything.

"Wait," he interrupted.

"What?"

"You were checking out guys?"

I laughed.

"I was observing my environment!"

"Sure."

"Don't be jealous."

"I'm not jealous."

"You sound jealous."

"I'm not."

I laughed again.

We continued talking until my roommate returned to the room.

"Oh, Noah, I have a new roommate."

"Really?"

"Yes."

My roommate was shy, so when I asked her to greet him, she hesitated.

"Just say hi."

Eventually, she gave in.

"Hi."

"Hi," Noah replied, laughing.

They introduced themselves briefly before she quickly returned to her side of the room.

"She's shy," I said.

"I can tell."

We talked a little longer until Noah told me to get some rest.

"You've had a long day."

"I know."

"Go and sleep."

"Okay."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

I ended the call.

The room became quiet again.

I lay back on my bed, staring at the ceiling.

I should have been thinking about Westbridge.

My first day.

My classes.

My roommate.

The beautiful people I'd seen.

But instead, Ethan's words came back to me.

I'm not ready to be with someone else.

I still want you.

I know I'll get you back.

I sighed.

It was strange.

Someone could once mean everything to you, and then one day, they became a part of your past.

Not necessarily a bad part.

Just... a part that no longer belonged in your present.

But memories didn't care about the present.

They came anyway.

The laughter.

The arguments.

The silly moments.

The late-night conversations.

I closed my eyes.

I wasn't waiting for Ethan.

My heart wasn't where it used to be.

But some memories didn't disappear simply because a relationship ended.

Westbridge was supposed to be my new beginning.

A new school.

A new room.

A new life.

Yet somehow, on my very first day, my past had already found its way back to me.

And judging by the way Ethan had spoken...

I had a feeling he wasn't planning to disappear anytime soon.