First Day, Wrong Hostel
Adaeze stepped off the bus, her heavy bag digging into her shoulder, and blinked against the morning sun. Federal College was bigger than she imagined—students hustling in every direction, seniors barking directions, and vendors shouting over the noise. Her heart raced with excitement and nerves. This was it: her first taste of real independence.
She clutched her folder of clearance papers tightly. “Don’t mess this up, Adaeze,” she muttered to herself. “One wrong move, and your first impression is ruined.”
Taking a deep breath, she approached a group of students lounging near the entrance.
“Excuse me,” she asked politely, “can you tell me where Okoro Hostel is?”
One of the guys pointed vaguely to a tall building across the campus. “That way,” he said, smirking. “Can’t miss it.”
Adaeze thanked them and started walking. The building looked… tall enough. The signboard didn’t scream ‘girls only,’ so she figured she was in the right place.
As soon as she stepped inside, she realized something was off. The air was thick with laughter, loud shouting, and the unmistakable sound of someone slipping and crashing onto the floor.
Her eyes widened. Two boys were wrestling over a bucket of water, and in a split second, one of them tripped—sending the bucket flying straight toward her.
“Ahhh!” Adaeze shrieked, but it was too late. Cold water soaked her from head to toe. Her hair plastered to her face, her white blouse clinging awkwardly, she froze in horror.
The boys froze too, then burst into laughter.
“New girl?” one of them said, pointing at her drenched form. “Looks like you’re joining the club!”
Humiliated, Adaeze stumbled backward, trying to wipe her face with her sleeve, only to slip on the wet floor. Another loud splash echoed through the hall. The whispers had already begun.
From the corner, Kalu—clearly the instigator—grinned and whispered to his friend, “This is going to be fun. New girl already giving us stories to talk about.”
Adaeze wanted to disappear into thin air. She bolted toward the exit, cheeks burning red, and tried to ignore the snickering around her.
As she pushed the door open, she collided with a girl who seemed to appear out of nowhere.
“Well, well, well,” the girl said with a knowing smirk. “Looks like we have a new story for the hostel.”
Adaeze blinked at her. The girl’s sharp eyes and mischievous grin made her feel like the entire campus had already judged her.
Funke. That was her name. Adaeze didn’t know it yet, but Funke was about to make sure that her first day—her first embarrassing, soaked, humiliated day—would be the talk of the college for weeks to come.
And somewhere in the back of her mind, Adaeze realized that surviving Federal College would be far more chaotic—and far more hilarious—than she ever imagined.
