The Newbie

The barn next to our house had been renovated to serve as our "guest house" but no one ever used it besides Riley and me. Whenever we had friends over or wanted to be alone we would just go to the barn. It was 3 a.m. and I couldn't sleep so I decided to head over to the barn and just relax. I took my laptop and a blanket with me. When I opened the barn doors, a bunch of memories flooded into my head: the first time I ever had a sip of alcohol, the first time Jason had ever spent the night was here, etc... It looked exactly the same as when we left it, besides the fact that some little things were moved here and there. The red leather sofa was in the same place, facing the flat screen T.V. The extra wine cooler was still here, with a couple of bottles still left in. I grabbed a bottle of white wine, a glass, and sat down on the sofa.

I took a deep breath in and the strong but refreshing smell was wood still lingered. It was the perfect place to clear my head and just be by myself. I kept thinking back to what Harry said right as we were leaving Jason's: "There's something I've been meaning to tell you." There's a sentence that sticks with you and leaves you wondering what that something could be. It could be something small or big, nice or mean. That sentence was on replay. I shook my head and proceeded to open my computer and go on FaceBook. I had 20 messages from Ashley, most of which referred to how she couldn't grasp the concept of her parents divorce and the fact that she had no one to turn to and the others were asking about how I was doing and how North Carolina was. This girl just does not leave me alone. It's actually extremely annoying. I saw that she was online, which meant she knew that I was online, so I obviously had to answer her. We spoke for about 10 minutes going back and forth about how the two of ours were doing and what was new in the past 48 hours. Ashley and I made plans to go have lunch and shop once I got back.

15 minutes after I ended my conversation with and Ashely and started watching some re-runs of How I Met Your Mother, there was a knock on the barn door. Anyone could tell someone was in here because when certain lights are on, it can be seen from the house or the backyard, especially at night. I got up, hesitantly, and opened one of the barn doors. I was really expecting either my brother or my parents to be on the other side, but to my surprise it was Jason. He looked horrible. His face was all red and his eyes were all watery. Either he was too high to go back home or something happened at home.

"I'm sorry to bother you", his voice cracked and at that point I knew this would be a long night, "I just didn't really know where to go." I nodded my head and stepped aside, allowing him to come inside.

For about 3 hours, Jason filled me in on what was going on at home. His parents were fine, but his sister was the one causing so much drama. It started 3 years ago, but Jason never knew. His parents kept it a secret from him. Jason was told that his sister was sent to boarding school up in Boston, but she was actually in a mental ward for severe depression. As I thought back to all the times his sister had been home when I was over, she always kept to herself and never left the house. I always thought she was just shy and wanted to stay out of our way, but it makes sense. I felt so bad for him. I wouldn't know how to handle this situation either. If Riley was sent away for a mental illness and my parents kept it from me, I would probably lose it. I know Jason and his sister had been close before she was "sent to boarding school". It had to be so hard on him. He just sat on the couch, with his hair unbrushed, and tear stains on his shirt.
"If you need a place to stay, you're always welcome here"

When woke up the next morning I could hear all the guys and Maddie in the kitchen. The kitchen was a mess. Pots and pans were everywhere and nothing was washed. Dirty dishes is my pet peeve. The moment I stepped into the kitchen I said good morning and started to clean up. I didn't even pay attention to who was in the room.

"Wait. So Jas spent the night last night? Did you guess reconnect or something?" Maddie whispered in my ear as she grabbed a dish from the sink and started to clean.
"Yeah, I'll explain later. But he slept in the barn", I turned around to see Jason sitting next to Riley and Sam. Harry was sitting across from Riley, slightly glaring at Jason. As I finished up the dishes, I knew I had to relieve the tension. Everyone was behaving nicely but there was so much tension in the room that it felt awkward to be in there.

"So", I said, forcing everyone to look at me, "what are the plans for today?"
"Well, Jason just told us that there's a pick up game at the high school at 5, so we're planning on going to that but we haven't figured out what to do before that."
"Sam, aren't you applying to Duke? It's only 30 minutes from here. If you wan't we can all go and take a tour. Riley and I know the place like the back of our hand."
With a mouth full of food Sam nodded and that was that.
I made myself some toast and spread some peanut butter over it. There was a fresh pot of coffee already made so I poured myself some of that.
"I'm going to head out. I'll see you guys at 5" Jason stood up and said goodbye to everyone.
An hour after breakfast, everyone was ready to go and we headed off to Duke. Sam and Riley sat up front, I sat between Harry and Jack and Tom sat in the back row. The drive to Duke is always pretty, no matter what season it is. The trees are all covered in snow and it looks like a white paradise. It's gorgeous. Being in a car filled with 5 teenage boys, however was not gorgeous. It was cramped and loud. They all spoke over each other. The only quiet one was Harry. He hadn't spoken a word since breakfast, before I even walked into the kitchen. The whole ride to Duke, he looked out the window and just sat without fidgeting. The only time he spoke was when Riley asked if we had enough heat in the back. Even when he was sulking he still managed to look beautiful. It was like staring at a statute. A beautiful, marble, statute.

Notes

Never EVER take a summer course during college. It will consume all your time!!!