Page 1 of Courting Clemson

Chapter One

Clemson

Careful what you wish for.

Damn. Those words held more meaning now than ever. And as a serial daydreamer, always looking for the next great thing, that was saying a lot. I was never happy with what I had or who I was with. I was always chasing the newest idea or hottest trend, even when I should have been perfectly content with the status quo.

But now I was deeply concerned I’d bitten off more than I could chew. Or at least more than I wanted to chew.

My mom had always described me as a restless soul. She might have been on to something there, but honestly, it just sounded like she was making excuses for my flightiness.

One time, when they didn’t know I was steps away from entering the room, I heard my dad asking her if she had considered having me tested for ADHD. From what I knew about that diagnosis, that shoe fit perfectly.

So it was no small accomplishment that I stuck to this packing task long enough to shove the last box in the hatchback of my little car, dust my hands off on my cut-off jean shorts, and send up a quick prayer that the back would actually close.

As I suspected, it stopped just short of the latch when the window came up against the last box. I’d be back over the holidays for a three-week break, so if I needed anything in that last cardboard cube, I could replace it when I got settled or bring it back with me for the second semester.

Aggravated, I grabbed the box, tossed it onto the garage floor, and kicked it along the concrete until it was out of the way.

I didn’t have a lot of tolerance for emotional exchanges, so the teary faces staring back at me on the driveway irritated me more than touched me. Why were they crying? My parents didn’t actually like raising children—or at least that was the impression I got from their disinterest in nearly everything I did. I know my four sisters had versions of that sentiment deep in their hearts too.

I was bitter, but as far as the outside world knew, I was the happy-go-lucky youngest Farsay girl. Now I couldn’t wait to get the hell out.

I pulled out of my childhood home’s driveway for what I hoped would be the last time in a long time. Once I got settled in my new place in San Diego, I didn’t have plans to return until the end of the year when the first semester was over.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about the whole adventure ahead, though. I was attending a private university in one of the finest cities in the country and already had a lot on my plate. Since I was on a sports scholarship for swimming, I had to maintain my grades and perform in peak shape for the school’s swim team. Swimming had been my top priority for so long, it didn’t really seem like much would change.

Academics were my least favorite part of life. I was too restless to sit in class listening attentively. My mind wandered from the inane to the profound and no matter what self-help tricks I employed, it never changed. Now that I was eighteen, almost nineteen, I could look into some other avenues for help that my parents weren’t on board with.

If there was a known medication that could help me focus, why wouldn’t I take it? It was just like my performance in the pool. If there were things I could do to clock better times, of course I’d do them. This seemed like the same theory. Yet my parents steadfastly refused to medicate me throughout grade school and high school, and I was convinced it had more to do with the perceived indictment of their parenting than concern for me.

So damn selfish.

The drive to San Diego was just about two hours. I didn’t want a big emotional scene with my family dropping me off, so I chose to go it alone. Plus, it would be handy to have a car on campus. I had been messaging my two new roommates, Grace and Avery, over the summer, and we had so many plans already in the works. I couldn’t wait to get there and get on with it all.

Our parents collectively found a small house for us to rent right near campus. We were able to walk to class if we wanted, but two of the three of us were bringing cars. We’d done a deep dive into the nightlife scene in the city, and let’s just say it was abundant. With a handful of military bases and colleges in the city, the demographics were heavily in our favor. The retailers, restaurants, bars and clubs knew it too, so they geared their businesses to the young adult crowd.

Avery’s older brother graduated from our school the year before, and he hooked her up with a contact that could supposedly get us fake IDs. Obviously that was one of the first priorities on our household to-do list.

I didn’t party too often in high school but knew college life would be entirely different. My older twin sisters just graduated from a university near our house but never partied that much either. Having to return home to Mommy’s house after tying one on didn’t seem too fun, so I got it. Watching their abbreviated college experience helped me decide to go to a school far enough away that I could do my own thing but close enough to head home if I had to.

Though I had no intention of doing so.

I had been down to the house twice over the summer to get a feel for the layout and claim one of the bedrooms. We each had our own but had to share two bathrooms. After living in a house with six women and one common bathroom, this would be a piece of cake.

“Honey, I’m home!” I called out as I lumbered through the front door with a bag on each shoulder.

Avery and her parents were unpacking groceries in the kitchen, and she shrieked when she saw me.

“Finally! You’re here!” she shouted and launched her tiny little body toward me.

I had a large duffle bag on each side, so she nearly knocked me to the ground when all the weight of the load shifted.

“Can you greet me like that every day?” I teased as she detangled her body from mine.

“Absolutely!” she beamed, and we both laughed.

I was so lucky to have found these two girls to live with. The school had set up a website for potential roommates to find each other, and the three of us connected in just a few days.

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