Page 2 of The Night We Met

“I’m just trying to comfort you, Kam. Don’t be such a sad sap.”

I give him a wary look. “Might I remind you how to comfort someone properly?”

One good thing that makes this high school to college transition so easy, is that I’m also here with my best friend. Liam and I have been friends since we were seven. When he moved into town, he was placed in my class in the middle of the school year. I made him sit next to me in class and we’ve been inseparable ever since.

Turned out that Liam’s dad’s work transferred him to the company my dad works for. And when they found out we were in the same class they were overjoyed. It also helped that Liam and his family moved in across the street. Our families did everything together. So finding out we were thinking of applying to the majority of the same colleges, and subsequently getting into some of the same colleges, made the separation from our parents easier.

Liam happens to be here on a baseball scholarship. He was one of the best pitchers our high school had ever had. When he wasn’t pitching he was an all-star center fielder with a wicked batting average to show for it.And since CSU has such a winning baseball program, we found it to be a win-win when we both got accepted.

“So Mr. Baseball star. Wanna come help me unpack the rest of my things?” I ask him with my hands on my hips.

Liam ponders my question a little too long and then answers with a shrug. “Yeah, why not. I need to help out my fans.”

My jaw drops and now I really punch him in the arm. “Your fans? Is that what I am? I could’ve sworn I was the girl who encouraged you to start baseball. So really…I should become your agent when you make it to the pros.”

Now it’s Liam’s turn for his jaw to go slack. “Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves, Ms. Always-loses-her-phone-and-mind.”

I scowl at him as I feign offense, but I know he’s right. I always lose my mind…and my phone.

“That should do it,” I declare as I put my last empty suitcase in the closet.

Liam and I finished setting up the rest of my room. At a young age, Liam became very tech-savvy, so he made sure my internet was set up properly. Anytime the internet went out at either of our homes, our parents never bothered calling for the internet company and instead had Liam fix the outages. He also did most of the heavy lifting which wasn’t too much, pushed mine and my roommates' dressers together to form a large TV stand, and helped raise my bed so I could fit more storage underneath.

“It looks good Kam,” Liam says as he throws his arm around my shoulder.

“Yeah, it does. Thanks for helping me, Liam.” And I wrap my arm around his waist to lean into him.

“Anytime shorty. Wanna get a layout of the campus and get some food?” He asks as his stomach rumbles. His 6’2” rivals my 5’5” but our appetites match in size.

I swear he is always hungry. He would eat at his house and then come over to mine and eat again. My Mom made sure to have a section in our pantry just for Liam’s appetite.

“Sure. I could use that. Plus I'm really hungry anyway.”

Food is the way to both of our hearts.

“So how long have you two known each other?”

I’m sitting at a table across from Liam along with some of his teammates. When they say boys in the South are grown differently, they weren’t joking. The guys down here are, for a lack of better words, corn-fed. I’m not saying Liam is unattractive. He could give anyone a run for his money off his looks. But his teammates…just wow!

Some of the guys’ girlfriends are here early too. I’m hoping that with our mutual love for the guys that we’re friends with a mutual friendship can form too. As I said, I’m not that great at making friends that are girls so I’m hoping baseball can be a bridge for us.

“Since we were seven. And it’s been all sunshine and rainbows since then. Hasn’t it Liam?” I give him my most sugary smile.

“Oh yeah. You’re a real peach to hang out with.” He says with so much sarcasm dripping from what he said that I could scoop it up in a bowl and save it for later.

His teammates snicker at our little exchange.

For the past year my family, along with Liam, have beenfront and center to my always changing moods. Call them hormonal changes or planets aligning, but those in my life never knew the Kamryn they were going to get on any given day. I owe my best friend more than just my friendship.

“So Kamryn,” Chance’s girlfriend Allie starts, “Are you planning to join any sororities?”

That can’t be the only reason she came to college. But then again some girls only go to college to get not just a Bachelor’s degree, but an MRS. degree. With her bleach blonde hair, flower headband, and conservative yet, at the same time, revealing wardrobe she fits the stereotypical label.

“Yeah. Um, I think I’m a shoo-in for Kappa Beta. But I wouldn’t mind another sorority. If that doesn’t go the way I hope for it, maybe a club.”

Allie looks at me with narrowed eyes but recovers quickly. “How’s that? You have to go through the bids and rush week and all the other fun stuff.”

I give her my best smile. “I’m a legacy, actually.”

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