"Lottie."

"Lottie."

"Charlotte." I quickly dropped my pen and looked up from my journal entry, staring into the blue eyes of my best friend, David. David and I have been best friends since 6th grade. It all started in music class when he taught me how to, poorly, play the piano. We've been inseparable ever since.

"What? And don't call me that, you sound like my mother." I say, quickly closing my old black leather journal. The journal where I sketch and doodle to escape reality, or write my hopes and dreams, or just anything I need to get off my chest. This time I happened to be writing about Love, and how I'll never have it.

"Well. If you would've answered the first time, I wouldn't have to sound like Diane, now would I? How is she anyways? I still dream about her in those bikinis you know. Man. I love summers at your grandparents pool."  He said, staring off around the campus, probably still thinking of my mother's black bikini.

"Ew. Just stop. I know you're picturing her right now. And you just had your summer pool invitation, revoked. The creepy crush on my mother is disgusting. I thought you got over that when you were fifteen and realized that both of us O'Dell women, were out of your league." I say smirking at him. I started shoving my notebook into my burgundy backpack along with my various other belongings I had strewn across the circular stone lunch table.

"If I remember correctly, you were the one that asked me out in 6th grade. Are you secretly still pining after me, with your eleven year old thoughts?" He said cheekily, nudging my shoulder. "And can you please loosen up, it's the first day of our last year and you've done nothing. You're in college. Get over this slump you've been in, and live. Drink, try some weed, go get laid. You're twenty two years old."

"How do you know I haven't been doing those things, I very well could be." He gave me a disbelieving look... "You know, if I wanted to."

"Not to mention you've picked the safest and most boring majors of all time. Even the professor died from boredom over the summer."

"Business and Management isn't that bad, and I'll have English to fall back on and you can do anything with those. I'm just playing it safe. Okay? What's wrong with that? And have a little respect for Professor Irwin, he was my favorite professor and you know that." I said twiddling my thumbs nervously. David was a zoology major. He had a thing for animals. Always has. He's got a snake, goats, ducks, dogs, and chickens back home. His small farm is only growing.
"You've got to put yourself out there. Make some memories!" He does this every year, I know he means well. But, I'm just not him. We're practically the same person but complete opposites at the same time. He was the partier, I was the home body. He was the class clown, I was the quiet kid no one saw. I've had anxiety since I was a kid, that just never went away. I'm surprised I even went through with attending school at a University, so far from home. I honestly almost backed out, if he hadn't had literally dragged me to the car and strapped me in himself. Sharing an apartment with him has definitely made things easier. I honestly don't think I could handle all of this alone.

"I'm sorry, okay. I just think you're missing out on so much. Just promise me you'll try this year. I know it's not easy for you. Okay? I get that. But I want you to look back and have something worth remembering. Not just you locked in our apartment doing homework or sitting in the library. Okay, kid?" He said putting his arm around me and squeezing my shoulder.

"I'll try Davey, but no promises." I said putting my hand on top of his, I stood up from my seat, preparing to make my way to class. "Now are you coming to English class or not? We've got to meet the new teacher, first impressions are important you know." I said putting my backpack on.

"Not today, I'm going to grab lunch with Lauren. Take notes for me, yeah?" He said, typing away on his phone. Lauren was his girlfriend. She was in her third year of college, she was a lovely girl that we both grew up with. He's been seeing her for a few years now. She definitely didn't like me at first, seeing as I was a girl and was spending so much time with her boyfriend. Which I understood, but now I see her as my best friend, besides David of course. She's majoring in veterinary medicine. Her and David are perfect for each other.

"Of course, and you better be treating my best friend well David!" I told him, making my way around the table to give him a hug

"I thought I was your best friend?" He told me jokingly. I rolled me eyes at his comment and started making my way to class.

"Oh, and stop calling me kid! I'm older than you!" I yelled behind my shoulder.

"But I'm taller than you, aren't I Lot?" He yelled back. I laughed and simply continued to class, not before sending him the bird and an innocent smile.

I'll make this year better... it will be better.