Social Anxiety (Volume 2)

Barb didn’t know how Hailey did it. She somehow roped Barb into yet another responsibility. They had been back from winter break for three days, and Barb found herself giving campus tours to new and transfer students. The only reason she agreed to do it was because it paid money. Barb needed the funds. Christmas had wiped out the little money she had. Thankfully, she was with a pleasant Indian family named the Dutts. Their daughter Veda transferred to Harrison University from Clarksdale, much to her mother’s chagrin. Harrison’s sights seemed to horrify Mrs. Dutt at every turn.

“Are you sure you don’t want to return to Clarksdale?” Mrs. Dutt asked Veda, eyeing a park bench covered in bird poop. Barb wondered if Mrs. Dutt thought Clarksdale didn’t allow birds on campus.

“Mother, Clarksdale is so boring. I want some excitement,” Veda said.

“But Clarksdale is closer.”

Veda knew this, but that was the point. She wanted to get farther away from home to become independent. Her parents insisted she live at their house while going to Clarksdale, but that robbed her of half the college experience. She was young and carefree and wanted to cut loose. Veda’s stunning brown eyes held a glint of mischief Barb instantly recognized.

“Now, Diya, let’s keep an open mind. I’m just glad our Veda is going to college at all. Maybe she can convince Ajay to do the same,” Ari Dutt said, referring to his son, who sat at home. “We should trust her judgment. This place doesn’t seem bad,” Mr. Dutt continued, winking at a smiling Veda.

“Ari, that boy over there is speaking to a squirrel!” Diya said.

“Oh, that’s Tommy. He’s harmless,” Barb replied. However, Tommy didn’t help her case. He appeared to be having a heated discussion with his little animal friend.

Barb led them somewhere else before Tommy started throwing hands with the squirrel. “Over here is our campus center. Let’s go inside,” Barb said, opening the door. “The campus store is in that direction. They sell clothes, accessories, novelties, and such. Plus, you can buy your textbooks in the basement,” Barb continued before leaning closer to whisper to Veda. “Give me your email, and I’ll send you a link where you can get digital copies of all the books for free.”

Unfortunately, Mrs. Dutt heard and asked, “Is that legal?”

“Um, sure,” Barb lied.

As they walked, they bumped into a girl who wasn’t watching where she was going. Her wild, curly brown hair shook and bounced when they collided, and she almost dropped the phone she held in front of her face. “Oh, sorry. I was filming my vlog. Say hello, my fellow peeps. You’re on MyTube!” the girl said, pointing her phone at them.

“We’re on what?” Mrs. Dutt asked.

“You’re on my vlog, Willow’s Whimsical World. Say hi to my viewers.”

“Oh, hello,” Veda replied, waving at the camera. Barb did the same, but the Dutts stared blankly.

“You’re new!” Willow said to Veda. “I know almost everyone around here but haven’t seen you.”

“I transferred here from Clarksdale. Veda is my name,” Veda replied, shaking Willow’s hand.

“Well, welcome to Crazytown, USA,” Willow said, making the Dutts frown. “The lunatics are running the asylum. We don’t even have a dean right now.”

“What?” Mrs. Dutt asked, looking horrified. “They didn’t tell us that when Veda applied.”

“We’re in transition,” Barb quickly explained. “The old dean...left. New ones are starting, but we haven’t met them yet.”

“Ones? Plural?”

“Apparently, there are two now,” Barb said. “They think it will help prevent more...I mean, they believe it will be more beneficial.”

“Yo, Barb. I heard you have the deets about what happened to ol’ Bledsoe. How about spilling the tea for my channel?” Willow asked.

“Not now, Willow,” Barb said through clenched teeth.

“But later, right?”

“Sure, I’ll call you,” Barb replied, walking away before Willow could pry further.

“She seemed nice,” Veda said.

“Yeah, Willow’s cool. Let’s check out the food court. You’ll spend a lot of time here. You’re a sophomore, but that doesn’t make you immune to the freshman fifteen at a new school.”

“What’s that?”

“They say every freshman gains at least fifteen pounds during their first year because of all the junk food. We even have an ice cream shop,” Barb explained, pointing at the food court.

“Barbasol!” Shawna yelled. “What are you up to?”

“Leading a tour.”

“Ha ha! Hailey convinced you to do it!”

“The money convinced me to do it.”

“Come over later. Fel is making pasta!”

“You’ve got it,” Barb replied with a thumbs up before refocusing on Veda. “That’s Shawna. She’s awesome.”

“What does KMA mean?” Veda asked, looking at Shawna’s t-shirt.

“That’s the social club we’re in. It stands for kiss...I mean Kappa Mu Alpha,” Barb said.

“Social club?” Mrs. Dutt asked.

“They’re like sororities but have no ties to national sorority groups. Harrison is a private college. They decided to let the students form clubs.”

“Ooh, that sounds fun,” Veda said.

“Focus on your studies, dear,” Mrs. Dutt warned her.

They continued walking and left the campus center. When they stepped into the afternoon air, Barb felt a chill that had nothing to do with the weather. She nodded to the passing blonde, but they didn’t make eye contact.

“Marla.”

“Barbara.”

Barb didn’t look directly at her, but she noticed Marla had grown out her hair. She looked more like Chloe and less like an angry Karen, but that didn’t endear her to Barb.

“Friend of yours?” Mr. Dutt asked, looking amused.

“Not really,” Barb said. “Veda, what is your major?” she asked as they chose their next destination.

“Marketing.”

“You’ll spend most of your time in the College of Business, then,” Barb replied, nodding toward a drab gray building. Barb thought it looked as boring as the subjects they taught within. If Keisha had heard Barb, she probably would have smacked her. “Don’t let the building fool you. I heard they love to party,” Barb joked, but she realized it was a mistake when she saw Mrs. Dutt’s reaction.

“Speaking of, what’s the dating scene like here?” Veda whispered.

“Not bad, I guess. I’m not really into that,” Barb quietly replied. “But we were ranked number three on one of those Sexiest Colleges lists.”

“I can hear you, you know?” Mrs. Dutt said, glaring at them.

“Mother, you’re the one who told me to go to college for my M-R-S degree.”

“That was a joke. I have a sense of humor. Believe it or not.”

“She wasn’t joking,” Veda told Barb, sharing a laugh with her.

“Would it be okay if we sat for a moment? My feet are killing me,” Mrs. Dutt asked.

“Sure, let’s go over here,” Barb replied, leading them to a bench near the fountain. They sat next to a girl with dark brown, curly hair. She was reading a book. The girl wore a flannel top over a long-sleeve t-shirt but didn’t wear makeup. Barb didn’t think she needed it. She had a pleasant smile and warm green eyes behind her glasses.

“Oh, hello,” the girl said.

“Mind if we sit?” Barb asked.

“Not at all. I’m Rosie,” the girl said, offering a hand.

Veda accepted the gesture as she joined the girl on the bench. “What are you reading?” Veda asked.

“Poetry.”

“Oh, how nice. Who wrote it?”

“It’s a collection of unknown authors. They sold this in the campus store, and I like poems,” Rosie replied.

She opened her mouth to say more, but a sound interrupted them. Someone played an acoustic guitar nearby, and a beautiful voice sang what sounded like a folk song. They turned to see someone who looked like a modern-day hippie. She had blonde hair that fell to her waist. The girl braided her hair near the scalp, but the rest flowed freely. Then, she complimented the look with a flowery, sleeveless dress, bracelets, necklaces, and large earrings.

“Who is that?” Veda asked.

“That’s Star Ellison. She likes to sing for people,” Rosie said, looking at Star with a bright smile.

“Star? What a unique name.”

“Oh, she’s unique, alright,” Barb replied.

Mrs. Dutt turned to listen, but her expression changed as she heard her lyrics.

“Well, ol’ Bledsoe’s gone away for good, and I say that’s just grand. Poor Davey went home to brood. It’s just him and his hand,” Star sang, drawing laughter from her audience, but she wasn’t done. “Soon, we’ll be getting new deans, but until then, we’re alone. So, remove your blue jeans because now it’s time to bone!” she continued, and Mrs. Dutt gawked at her. “Our new dean might be Bill, or maybe Georgie Porgie. If you come over to my dorm room, we’ll have ourselves an orgy!” Star finished, with a quick strum and a wide grin. The crowd laughed at her performance, but Mrs. Dutt looked terrified.

“That girl is filthy!” Mrs. Dutt cried.

“Welcome to Harrison University, Veda,” Barb said, getting up and leaving before things worsened.