Chapter 1: Opening Image
Freshman year, and already it felt like more than I could handle. The rooms were too small, the halls were confusing, and girls like Sam were impossible to approach.
"Called Samantha?" My roommate, Mark, asked as I sat on the edge of my bed, phone in hand.
"Yeah," I mumbled, avoiding eye contact. "She didn't pick up."
Mark raised his eyebrows. "Again?"
"Just once," I said, absently picking at the rough carpet.
"I just want to talk to her once."
"Might as well give up, man. Plenty of other girls in this school." Mark ran a hand through his shaggy, dark hair. "Trust me, I know."
I tried to ignore the pang of jealousy in my chest. Mark had always been more experienced with girls than I had. Handsome, confident, and social, he couldn't understand how it felt to be a late bloomer.
"I know there are other girls," I replied.