Special Ted

"Yeah, um, I think it should be up ahead somewhere," said Meadow, consulting the piece of paper she'd printed off at home.

"Wow, this place looks nice," said her mother, coming up behind her. "In my day, dorm rooms were, shall we say, more primitive."

"Times have changed, Linda," said her father, grunting as he readjusted his grip on the stack of boxes he was carrying.

"Ah, here it is," said Meadow, stepping through the doorway. "Room 412."

"Ah, just like the photos you showed me!" said her mother, clapping her hands together as she surveyed the small but neatly appointed space, two single beds laid out at 90-degree angles from one another as well as two desks.

"That one's taken," said Meadow, pointing at the bed near the window, which was covered in an assortment of items, most of which were pink. "So I guess I'm this one."

"Whew," said her father with a groan as he gently placed the boxes onto the floor.

"I think with some curtains and a few accent lamps, this place will be looking nice and cozy," said her mother. "Since your roommate seems to be into pink, maybe something with an aquatic motif?"

"Mom, come on," said Meadow. "You're embarrassing me."

"Honey, it's just her interior design instincts kicking in," said her father, placing one hand around her shoulder. "Just let her get it out of her system."

"Fine," said Meadow, her shoulders slumping.

"Ah, you must be my roommate," said a young woman, a big grin on her face as she stepped into the room.

With long blonde hair and sporting a stylishly chic outfit, Meadow immediately felt outclassed, but she forced herself to hold out her hand anyway.

"Meadow," said Meadow.

"Nice to meet you," said the blonde, giving her hand a dainty shake. "I'm Cassidy. So nice to meet you!"

"Same here," said Meadow's mother, elbowing her daughter out of the way. "So, the information packet said you're from California?"

"That's right," said Cassidy with a breezy chuckle. "Born and raised in San Diego. But before you ask, no, I'm not a surfer chick."

"Ah," said Meadow's mother, looking slightly confused.

"I hear they grow a lot of pistachios out that way," said Meadow's father, making her cringe inside.

"Do they? I don't know, maybe," said Cassidy, her eyes flashing with merriment.

"Excuse my husband," said Meadow's mother. "He's a big fan of snacking nuts. Just pay him no mind. I always bring a little bag of them with me to parties so he won't put his foot in his mouth like he did just now."

"Oh god," moaned Meadow.

"Right, okay," said Cassidy, her grin widening. "Well, welcome to Crestwood. You're a freshman, right?"

"Yep," said Meadow, nodding.

"Cool, me too. My older sister went here, so stick with me," said Cassidy. "I'll show you all the ropes."

"Okay, thanks," said Meadow, feeling her cheeks grow warm.

"Wow, see?" said Meadow's mother. "It's not gonna be so bad, not with the lovely Cassidy here to guide you. All that fuss and bother for nothing."

"Mom..." said Meadow, mortified.

"Gerald, why don't you go out to the car and bring in the rest of Meadow's things?" said Meadow's mother, her sharp look sending her husband scurrying out of the room.

"I saw on the Discord that there's going to be a mixer tonight for us," said Cassidy, her eyes sparkling. "It's a great way to meet people."

"Um, sure," said Meadow.

"Discord?" said Meadow's mother, raising one eyebrow.

"Yeah, it's, like... well, an internet thing," said Cassidy with a little laugh. "Every dorm has their own channel so we can, like, plan stuff."

"Ah," said Meadow's mother with a nod. "Well, Meadow here would be delighted to attend, isn't that right?"

"Mom, come on," said Meadow.

"What?" said Meadow's mother, scowling. "All summer you've been moping around. If you ask me, going to a party is just what the doctor ordered for you, young lady."

"Mom!" hissed Meadow.

"Yeah, it'll be a lot of fun," said Cassidy. "There'll be a DJ and snacks. I mean, yeah, there'll probably be some dorks there, but so what? Those are the best people to make fun of."

"I don't know..." said Meadow, hanging her head.

"Don't listen to her," said Meadow's mother. "She's just been going through a rough patch. Once she's settled in, you'll find that she's a very lively and capable young woman."

"Rough patch?" retorted Meadow. "Is that what we're calling it?"

But before her mother could respond, Meadow's father returned, dragging two large suitcases behind him. Taking advantage of the interruption, Meadow kept herself busy for the next few minutes by unpacking a few of her things.

"I hate to drop you off and run, honey," said Meadow's father. "But I'm double-parked outside, and this nice young fellow came by and said we needed to move the car."

"Sure, no problem," said Meadow. "You guys have a safe trip home."

"Oh, my sweet baby," said Meadow's mother, being theatrical as always as she wrapped her in a passionate embrace. "All grown up and going off to college. I can barely believe it!"

"She'll be fine, Linda," said Meadow's father, tapping his wife on her back. "She's one tough cookie, ain't you, kiddo?"

"Yeah," said Meadow, fighting to hold back tears of her own.

"All right, well be good now," said Meadow's mother, straightening her purse strap. "And stick close to Cassidy. She seems like a bright young lady."

"That's me," said Cassidy, a look of amusement on her face.

"And Meadow, honey, if things get too overwhelming, don't forget you've got Ted, okay?" said Meadow's mother.

"Mom! Jesus!" said Meadow, her face crimson.

"Come along now," said Meadow's father, shepherding his wife out of the room. "We'll see you at Thanksgiving, okay, honey?"

"Okay, Dad," said Meadow, barely managing to keep her composure as her parents disappeared out of sight. As embarrassing as they could be at times, she already missed the comfort of their presence, especially now that she was all alone in a strange place.

"Wow, parents, am I right?" said Cassidy with a laugh.

"Yeah," said Meadow, dabbing at her eye with the back of her hand.

"My mom was a wreck for a week after my sister went off to college," said Cassidy. "You would've thought she was going off to war or something."

"Right," said Meadow, surprised to find herself grinning.

"Well hey, I'm gonna let you finish unpacking," said Cassidy. "I'm going to get a snack from the vending machine down the hall. You want something?"

"Um, no thanks," said Meadow.

"Cool," said Cassidy. "Well, see ya in a bit then."

"Bye," said Meadow, chiding herself for saying such a stupid thing.

Once Cassidy was gone, Meadow took a few deep breaths to steady herself. All summer, she'd been vacillating between giddy enthusiasm and forlorn sadness, torn between the excitement of starting the next phase of her life and the profound ache of having to say goodbye to everything she had ever known.

Peering around to make sure no one was in sight, Meadow unzipped the special compartment in her suitcase and took out Ted. Nearly half as tall as she was, with slightly frayed fur and two beady black eyes, the bear was her closest remaining link to Lincoln.

Meadow wrapped her arms around Ted, savoring his familiar scent as her mind flashed back to that balmy night when he'd come into her life. She and Lincoln had just started dating, the carnival being their first real opportunity to explore what it meant to be a couple.

The carnival was one of those traveling operations that set up shop for a week or two and then move on, a heady mix of deep fried foods and rickety rides that looked dangerously unsafe but were a blast to go on.

Lincoln had dared her to keep her arms up as they plummeted down the track on the rollercoaster, and she'd done so, her screams morphing into laughter by the time they rolled around the final curve.

The whole night had been a magical blur, holding hands for the first time and sneaking a kiss behind the ticket kiosk for the haunted mansion.

They'd been strolling down the main thoroughfare when she'd spotted Ted hanging from the roof of a carny's booth, standing out from all the other prizes with his impish grin.

Lincoln had protested at first, saying everyone knew the games at carnivals were rigged, but she'd insisted. Looking back, she couldn't be sure if it was Ted's big dark eyes that were calling to her or a need for Lincoln to prove his love to her, or both, but she'd pestered Lincoln until he reluctantly forked over the cash for some balls to toss at metal jugs.

It'd taken him almost two dozen tries, interspersed with more than a few spicy epithets, before he'd finally won enough points to exchange for Ted.

Meadow could clearly remember the rotting grin on the carny's face as he used a hook to bring Ted down, and then he had been in her arms for the first time, smelling like old popcorn and teenage crushes.

"Oh wow, you brought a stuffed animal," said Cassidy, popping up out of nowhere and jolting Meadow out of her reverie.

"Um, no. I mean, yeah," said Meadow, hurriedly setting Ted down on the bed next to her pillow. "Just something from home, you know?"

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me," said Cassidy with a laugh as she plopped down on Meadow's bed, fishing out a pretzel from her bag and tossing it nonchalantly into her mouth.