“You’re late.”
“I know.” Maya didn’t even stop to look at her roommates. Fear and frustration were flowing through her veins and she knew they would notice the moment their eyes met. They always notice. It’s a side effect of knowing each other for so long. But there are still parts of her life Maya keeps closed off from them. And they know this. They learned long ago that Maya doesn’t like to talk about her past. They know she lost her parents and that she grew up in a group home. She always told them it was too boring to be story worthy. All this is true. What she hides has nothing to do with how or where she grew up but it is a good misdirect. She was afraid that if they knew the truth, if they found out how truly weird she really was, that just might scare them away. And whether she likes it or not, Alice and Abby have been good for her. Losing them would destroy Maya.
“Told ya, you owe me five bucks.”
“Um, no. I agreed with you. No way would I take that bet.” Neither Abbigail nor Alice were surprised by Maya’s tardiness. They expected it even.
“I’ll be ready in ten.” Maya closed the door to her bedroom behind her, leaning back on it and letting out a deep breath. It took all of her self-control to compose herself as she walked from the front door to her room. She didn’t want to let on that anything out of the ordinary had happened. She dumped her bag onto the floor and pushed off from the door, dropping the spent bullet she had clenched in her hand this entire time into the trash can by her desk as she made her way to her closet. She just stood there, the door to her closet wide open, taking in her choices but ultimately decided that changing wasn’t worth the hassle. Stopping once more in front of her door to catch her breath and compose herself. Okay, let’s get this over with.
“Ready.”
“You didn’t even change.”
Let’s keep it that way. “Please, I look great already. Need help carrying anything?”
“Cory’s got all the gear. All I need is my guitar.”
“Then let’s go!” Alice seemed even more excited than Abby. This is the first big thing the three have them have done in a long time. There’s always lunches and dinners, and hanging out around the apartment but the three of them going out at night is a rare treat ever since Alice started up with this new band. Coordinating around the three of their work schedules was hard enough but now with practices thrown in there Abby has been pretty scarce. But they all knew it would be worth it in the end.
Abbigail is the only one of the three with a car. Both Alice and Maya work within walking distance and all of the restaurants and shops they frequent are in the same neighborhood. It was one of the reasons they decided on the building they did.
Alice and Abby were always talking and Maya was always listening. Maya preferred it that way so without even thinking about it Maya walked to the back passenger seat of the car, moving Abby’s guitar over to the other side, and sat down. They had met freshmen year of college. Abbigail and Maya shared a dorm room and May and Alice shared some classes. Maya was there to learn, not make friends but Abby had something else in mind. They didn’t share many interests and weren’t in any of the same classes but there was something about the other that they both agreed on. Maya felt like she was the tagalong when she went out with Abigail and her other friends but Abby quickly shut that down.
“They’re the tagalongs, Maya. We’re the power duo. They’ve got nothing on us.”
But Abby was still there pestering Maya to invite some of her other friends out with them. Maya kept to herself in high school and even though they had very similar lives, she just didn’t connect with a lot of the kids she grew up with. College was her way to get away from it all and move on with her life.
Alice was the complete opposite. College was where she wanted to be but she was living in the past. She still kept in touch with all her old friends at other schools and even though she wanted to make new ones she was afraid that she came off as trying too hard. She was right. While everyone else in her dorm and classes immediately clicked, Alice did not. Not with her roommate, not with her study group, not with anyone. Not even Maya. But what Maya and Alice did have in common was time. They both had plenty of time so when study group was over they were the ones with nowhere else to be. So as everyone else blew off Alice’s pestering for further study that left Maya. And Maya just could not come up with an excuse fast enough to deter Alice. So that’s how the two of them started their extended study sessions. Those sessions turned into meals and it was at one of these meals that Abby just so happened to find them. She wasn’t there for any particular reason. She had just come back from a lunch with some of her friends and her classes were over for the day. Abby somehow did that a lot. While everyone else lacked free time Abby lacked classes. The upside was she had plenty of time to study. Not that she needed it. She spent most of her time out with people or staying in with Maya. She didn’t seem like the kind of person that needed alone time but Maya knew the truth. She was on all day but when she needed to recharge all she had to do was put on some headphones or head off to one of the practice rooms with whatever instrument she was teaching herself at the time and she would be good for the rest of the day. She was on her way to one of those jam sessions when she decided to cut through the cafeteria. She didn’t recognize Maya at first, only seeing the chatty girl sitting across from her. Even though she wanted Maya to find more friends she knew that she was spending most of her time alone. Abby accepted that that was just who Maya was. She didn’t reject company but she didn’t go out seeking it either. Normally she would run into her doing whatever it is she was doing by herself. This is why she didn’t recognize her that day in the cafeteria. Perfect! She was never good at hiding her excitement.
“Heeeeeey, Maya.”
“Abbigail.” Great, I’m not going to hear the end of this. It wasn’t that she was hiding anything from Abby, it was just that she wasn’t as comfortable as her roommate at bringing up events and details in her life. So, yes, she might have made a friend in Alice but she didn’t know how to explain that to anyone even Abbigail.
“Hi, I’m Alice.” Alice politely extended her hand. She assumed Maya had to have other friends but she had never mentioned anyone. They only ever really talked about schoolwork. Alice would sometimes ramble about one of the many things going on in her head but it was mostly a one way conversation but Maya never looked bored or tried to blow her off so she continued to tell her stories.
“Abby. So are you coming with Maya to the concert tonight?”
“Ummmm…”
“Just say yes, she’ll just pester me until you come out with us. Abby’s my roommate by the way.”
“I can’t believe you did that.” Maya told Abby later that day.
“Yea you can.”
“You’re right. I wasn’t that surprised.”
They’ve been together ever since, each adding their own unique flavor to their group dynamic. Abby with all the flash and flair, Alice and her nigh nonstop mouth, and then Maya who was just Maya. Always in the background. But if you look hard enough you can find some unexpected stories hiding in the background.
Justin D. Covey 