Chapter Two
A few days later, after I had gotten over my humiliation, I decided I was being stupid. I would just put Zack out of my mind completely and plunge back into my studies. I’d get a fresh start and forget that anything had ever happened between us. It was a big enough campus; as long as I didn’t go to any more frat parties, my chances of running into him were not that great. I put him out of my mind completely and told myself there were plenty of other things that I could fill my time with and enjoy more. The biggest thing on my mind was the first meeting of the campus newspaper; I read up on all of the threads in the group forum the newspaper used, and familiarized myself with the style guide, just like Professor Grant suggested in class. I expected my first assignment would be a softball — something hard to screw up, that would give them a chance to evaluate my ability to do the work. But that didn’t mean I could slack off on it; I should turn in the absolute best work that I could.
I grabbed a coffee before the meeting and hurried down to the student union so I wouldn’t be late. I’d been to the student U a few times in the weeks I’d been at the college so far but never really paid the building that much attention; there were banners for our football team, of course, and all kinds of things covered in the school colors. Just inside the entrance there were benches and couches scattered around for chatting and relaxing, and artwork by students was on display. I could smell coffee — clearly I wasn’t the only one who needed a lift — and the lingering smells of a party given by the Latin American Club a little earlier in the afternoon. It felt homey and comforting, and I started to relax.
I went into the room that the campus newspaper had taken for its own and sat down; there were the same beat-up couches as in the big room, a couple of desks, a projection screen, and a podium. Professor Grant was already there, as were a few of the members of the editorial board. “Ahh, Evelyn, thanks for getting here early.” Dr. Grant said, looking up from his laptop. “Michelle, Lisa, Alex, Nathan, this is Evelyn. She’s one of my most promising freshmen and I thought you’d like to give her a shot.”
The editor-in-chief of the newspaper, Lisa, came over and shook my hand. “Good idea to bring coffee,” she said with a grin. She was a bit shorter than me, with auburn hair and creamy skin, dressed in a kind of fashionable-librarian look that I had to kind of admire. “These meetings end up going on for hours sometimes, people arguing about pitches, trying to campaign to keep a piece in contention.”
“Not that different from a regular newspaper then, I guess,” I said, feeling a little nervous. I had no idea of any ideas to pitch.
“Of course, since you’re new, you won’t be pitching for a few weeks. We’ll give you a few assignments to sort of feel out your aptitude. Every newbie gets to do a rotation of the different areas — so even if you start out in say, politics, you probably won’t be there permanently unless you decide you want to be.”
I nodded. Other members of the newspaper started to file in and I took my seat at the back of the room, wanting to just observe. Since I had no articles to pitch, I didn’t really have a dog in the fight. I opened up my laptop and got ready to take notes, just in case there was anything I needed to remember later.
I quickly got to see what Lisa meant; as the meeting came to order, everyone started putting their ideas forward, arguing for their pitches, for a better position in the finished paper — anything and everything a group of journalists could possibly argue about. I drank down my coffee and listened, taking occasional notes about what people were saying about the paper’s layout and other details. I lost track of time, but it had to be a couple of hours — I was glad that the meeting was after all my classes, and that they’d ordered in pizza, because the dining hall would almost definitely be closed by the time it was over.
“Okay!” Lisa said, taking a deep breath as the arguments came to a close. “Now that we’ve gotten all that out of the way, it’s time for assignments. There’s a fencing tournament that needs at least a little coverage — Simon, you can take that one since you’re friends with someone on the fencing club. There’s also a big event by the Feminist Club; Elizabeth, that one’s all you.” Lisa went through a list and I waited my turn, knowing I would probably not get a very plum assignment. Finally, Lisa came to the last item. “The football season is coming to a close, so we need to cover the last game. Evelyn, it’s kind of a big one — but I think from what Professor Grant said about your writing that you can cover it. I’ll also need you to get an interview with the QB; everyone’s talking about him. Zack’s his name I think? Have you met him?”
I fought back the deep, hot blush I felt starting across my cheeks. “He and I went to the same high school,” I said, struggling to keep my voice neutral. I swallowed the lump I could feel forming in my throat, wondering if the people looking at me had been in the dining hall when I’d had my scuffle with Zack.
“Awesome — then it should be easy to get him to give us some good snippets. Deadline is Sunday night — we’re publishing Monday.”
I was glad I wasn’t on the editorial board; there’d be a lot of last-minute editing and proofing. The game would be Saturday — I had a few days to prepare myself for it. I smiled as graciously as I could as everyone started to clear out of the room, talking about their assignments and the deadline. I went back to my dorm full of pizza and coffee, telling myself I would get back to work right away — get some homework done, maybe do some studying. But as soon as I was in my room, I sank down onto the bed and groaned, covering my face with my hands. It wasn’t fair. I wanted to make a clean break and get a fresh start, and here it was: I had to interview Zack for the newspaper. It was as if the Universe was forcing me to deal with that jerk. I shook my head and buried my face in my pillows, wishing that there was some way I could turn down the assignment without making myself look like an idiot or making Professor Grant doubt me.
Suck it up, Evelyn, I told myself firmly, giving myself a shake and sitting up. This isn’t the last time you’re going to have to deal with awkwardness. Do the interview, write the article, and be done with it.