The Barn Owl

Aja sat crossed legged on the door room floor. Her roommate Christina was leaning out of the opened window smoking her nightly clandestine cigarette, but everyone called her Nina. Even though there was a place for the juniors and seniors to smoke on campus, Nina still liked smoking out of their door room window. It made her feel a bit rebellious. Besides, the lounge closed at ten o’clock and it was already eleven . Traipsing to the lounge wasn’t fun in the cold weather either. Nina was from Curaçao so these forty degree temperatures felt outright frigid. Aja was listening to her mix tape of Hall and Oates, singing along off key and very much out of pitch. She was working on her essay about Andy Warhol for her Art history class. She was going to take the advanced placement test next semester to get college credits. Art history was one of her favorite classes. It was due Friday, but since it was already Wednesday night, the pressure to finish was on.

Nina stubbed out her cigarette on the opened window’s sill. She lowered the window without latching it leaving it opened just an inch or so to the allow the air to circulate a bit longer through their room She walked over to their on-suite bathroom, a luxury that only dorm monitors were afforded, to flush her cigarette butt. Throwing away any evidence in the waste baskets was a huge faux pas. Everyone knew the dorm maids were the biggest snitches on campus. Aja and Nina’s room was on the corner. That gave them an extra window plus it was completely surrounded by pine trees to help with added privacy. Aja was the dorm monitor for the first floor. There was another monitor on the second floor as well. There was also a senior dorm monitor called the dorm mother that got a real suite of rooms on the other side of the building. That was the ultimate position to have in any of the dorms . Since the school voted for all of the positions it was a wonderful honor and a privilege. Kind of a popularity contest really.

Sometimes, when the weather was good, Aja and a few of her friends from their dormitory would crawl out of the window with sleeping bags and sleep under the stars. It was a secluded campus, well off the beaten path and utterly beautiful. Since the pine trees afforded them the extra privacy, being discovered by the night watchmen that patrolled the campus was unlikely. Getting caught by the security officers would be terrible. The risk was part of the thrill, but even so, no one wanted to get caught. Collecting cigarette butts outside of the smoking lounge in an orange vest was the worst. So embarrassing. Especially if you were a freshman. The humiliation of it all!

Since Spring break was just around the corner everyone was making their plans for the vacations either with their parents and friends. Some were going home and some were going on an actual vacation trip. No matter it was a well deserved and desired break. That February, Aja and her sophomore friend Chloe had been invited to a coming out cotillion hosted by the gentleman of Oxford’s lower school in England. The cost was a mere twenty five thousand dollars per person which did not include transportation costs or incidentals. Apparently the idea was for selected young ladies to meet eligible young men from the best families to foster future matches. There was a meet and greet, and a ball at the school. The week culminated with a weekend in Marbella with a huge party on a yacht. One would also need several wardrobe changes. I’m certain shenanigans would ensue. The girls laughed about the entire idea. What 70s woman wanted to be paraded about for the pleasure of a group of geeky, horny teenage boys any more? All with the delectation of dropping several thousands of dollars for said pleasure. No thank you! It was nice to be invited though. It was indeed rather flattering.

After classes but prior to the dinner bell, Chloe bursts into the girls rooms ranting nonsensically about some new girl. She was joining their sophomore class this late in the trimester. Wondering why allowed, with all sorts of suspicious theories, Chloe droned on. Neither Aja nor Nina were impressed or interested. They were juniors, soon to be seniors so the goings on of the sophomore class was of no interest to them. They were consumed with their plans for their trimester abroad. As they leafed through a travel brochure on the city of Madrid, Chloe kept going on an on about this new girl. They would be leaving Chloe behind to her own devices. This was her drama of her own in the making and none of their concern. Chloe was saying although she hadn’t gotten a name she resembled a barn owl, therefore she was going to call her Barney. She said that she had a peaked tiny face and large round thick glasses. Eventually they would find out that her name is Daisy Judith Grimble. I suppose Barney was an improvement on that. Though by their senior year Chloe would just resort to calling Daisy, Bird. Daisy would answer. It was Chloe after all and she usually got her way about most things.

On the very last Thursday of the winter trimester, and just before spring break commenced, Aja and Nina poached their final supplies and necessities from the BX and the dorm supply closet on campus for their trip. Some of the things that they imagined they would need in Spain. Among one of their confiscated items was rolls of toilet paper. Anyone traveling to Europe would definitely understand. Neither of them had traveled to Europe before, but they had heard stories. Their excitement was electric. Nina had only two and a half years of high school Spanish and Aja only just the two trimesters. She switched from French to Spanish just to be able to do the trip abroad with her roomie. Only ten girls were selected each year for the three countries that they to which they could travel. Either France, Spain or Germany. The girls were definitely nervous about their lack of experience with the language. They would be roommates together their as well and staying with a host family. It was a full emersion experience and a once in a life time opportunity. Especially for a sixteen year old. Not only did you have to be enrolled in the language class of the country to be selected, but your grades had to be above a B average. There was an essay that had to submitted, plus having at least basic verbal acumen of the language was necessary to be eligible. The rest was just luck. I’m sure the girls were also chosen for compatibility. You were all each other would have for the weeks abroad.

Their last night, Chloe decided to hangout in the girls’ room until she had to return to her dorm before lights out. Sophomores were supposed to be in bed by ten thirty. Juniors a bit later. Seniors had no lights out curfews at all. As ten thirty approached, the girls said there farewells and adios’. The bus to the airport was leaving at seven am sharp so no time for the goodbyes in the morning. Chloe still had to attend assembly in the next morning and then two of her classes before her own break began. She’d be spending her vacation in her parents’ penthouse apartment on Fifth avenue in NY with her siblings and parents this break. Returning to campus after vacation knowing her besties wouldn’t be back from Madrid made her feel a bit melancholy.

Chloe slid into her favorite spot in the dining hall near the long bank of french doors. She was having her breakfast alone this morning. She had her standard morning meal. A hard boiled egg, one strip of bacon, plain yogurt with berries granola and honey and a black coffee. A girl needed to watch her figure after all. Unless it was hotdogs. Hotdogs were given a dietetic pass. Sometimes she’d have a small glass of juice but not today. She always ate her egg first with just a sprinkle of black pepper, then she would make the perfect bite of yogurt. After assembling the bite on her spoon she licked her lips and opened wide to savor that first bite. She closed her eyes in anticipation. Just as she opened wide, she heard “excuse me, is this seat available?” Chloe opened one eye and there was Barney. She was standing directly in front of her blinking those huge eyes, holding a tray with dry cereal and a cup of something she could not discern. Bird food probably. There was the barn owl in all her glory, interrupting her peace. She nodded reluctantly to the seat across the table and then took her bite. Which was now ruined. They ate in silence but the energy was palpable. Chloe had no idea the she was having breakfast with the woman that would someday change her life for the better.