These Years

“You’re from Winnipeg, really?” I asked the boy across the table from me.
Jonathan nodded in return, “I am.” He smiled. You could almost sense his pride for his hometown just by the tone of his voice. “I love it there.”
I took a bite of the eggs on the plate in front of me before replying, “Canada seems like such a nice place; I’ve always wanted to go but I’ve never had the chance.”
“You really should sometime,” Jonathan took a sip of the orange juice from his glass, “I’m sure you’d love it.”
Jordan, who was beside me, nodded, making a sound of approval, in between shoving forkfuls of food into his mouth. When he said he was hungry he wasn’t kidding.

By this time, we were almost done our breakfast. And I have to say, Jonathan surprised me. With our encounter yesterday I figured he was a decent guy, but now that I was learning more about him he seemed really nice and genuine.

“So, Suri, what’re you majoring in?” Jonathan asked.
A grin graced my features, “Health sciences,” I replied.
“That’s neat,” He replied, seeming legitimately interested, “Going through for a nurse?”
I let out a small laugh, “Doctor actually. I’m thinking of family physician but I haven’t decided yet.”
His eyes widened, “Shit, you’re really smart,” He laughed.

A tint of pink was sure to have appeared on my face.

Ever since getting accepted into UND I haven’t heard the end of my supposed brilliance; whether it was from my family, the kids from my high school or even teachers. The talk got kind of embarrassing to a point even. Even so, I appreciated the kind words I was given.

Another tiny chuckle escaped my lips, “I wouldn’t say that.” I shrugged my shoulders; it was all hard work, not given intelligence in my opinion.

We continued our small talk, with Jordan jumping in after he finished inhaling his meal. We sat for what must have been another twenty or so minutes when Jonathan pulled his phone out of his pocket.

“Damn, it’s 12,” He stated, “Sorry, but I’ve gotta run; my class starts in ten.”

Jordan and I assured him that it was no big deal.

He threw down a few bills on the table –surely enough to cover his meal,- got up from his seat and pushed his phone back into his pocket, “Well, I’ll see you at practice tonight Jord, and I’ll see you around, Suri.” He shot us a smile and a wave before leaving the small restaurant.

The two of us pulled out some bills as we decided to head out as well.

“So, what’re your plans until class later?” Jordan asked as we stepped out into the lingering summer air.
“Nothing exciting, I was just planning on going back to my dorm and do a bit of studying for that test we have Monday. Feel free to come along,” I shrugged.
“That would be great actually,” He rubbed his neck, “I haven’t started studying yet, so...” He faded off, leaving me to fill in the gap.
“Alright,” I let out a small laugh, “Let’s go do that then.”

The two of us walked the short way back to my dorm. We took the elevator up and walked into my room.

“Make yourself at home,” I smiled.

Jordan pulled out a chair and sat down at the dining room table as I rummaged through my things, trying to find my binder which held my notes for that class. Within no time, I found the book and made my way back over to the table. I pulled out the chair across from Jordan and sat down. I set the binder onto the table and flipped through the pages to find the start of the material we had to review.

I found the page and looked at Jordan, “Let’s get down to business.” I grinned.

We sided on shooting questions at each other to start. I asked him one and then he answered before asking me one, and so on. After we had done this for a couple hours, we decided on doing a bit of quiet studying.

I was skimming through the pages when my mind started drifting.

I was sitting at a table just like this one, during second semester’s quiet week of junior year. My notes were spread all over the table and I had a text book in front of me. I looked across the table to see Brandon holding a textbook; engaged in his studying with his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth, showing his concentration.

I let a slight giggle escape my lips at the scene.

He dropped his textbook onto the table and looked up at me with a playful smile gracing his lips, “What’s so funny?”
A similar smile toyed with my own features, “Nothing.” I replied, “You just seemed so into studying, is all.”
“Maybe I am.” He responded, trying to keep a straight face.
I burst out in a fit of sarcastic laughter, “You?!”
“Take that back.” Brandon’s effort at keeping a straight face was slowly deteriorating as a slight smirk began to find its way onto his face.
“Naaah,” I stuck my tongue out at him in a playful manner before giving him a big smile.

He shook his head laughing and we joked for a few moments before we started to study once again.

“Suri?” My mind kept drifting, letting everything else go straight over my head, “Suri?” This time I picked up the voice. I shook my head slightly, getting rid of the memories that clouded my mind as I noticed the source of the voice: Jordan.
“Yeah?” I replied, still feeling a bit dazed.
A worried expression came over his features, “Are you okay? I’ve been trying to get your attention for five minutes.”
“Oh,” I waved my hand in a ‘no big deal’ fashion, “It’s nothing.”
He didn’t look convinced but he seemed like he didn’t want to prod into what I didn’t want to share either, “Can you help me with this question?”

We sat studying at the table for a little bit more, until we both had to get going for our next classes. Jordan had chemistry while I had biology. Since they were in the same area, we sided on walking together.

We had a quick stop at his dorm to pick up his books and then we were on our way across campus.

The two of us walked in an almost uncomfortable silence before Jordan spoke. “Suri,” We both stopped walking as I look at him. His eyes looked scared, “Are you sure you’re alright, you just seem a little off.”
A small smile crossed my features, “I’m okay Jordan, really.” But I was only telling half of the truth.
Just like before, he didn’t look convinced. “Just know,” He spoke, “If you ever need anyone to talk to, I’m here.”
A real smile poked at my face, “Thanks Jord, honestly.”