Emma stood in front of her vanity, running a blow-dryer through her hair. It was 5:07pm, and her ‘date’ was at 6:00pm at a local restaurant on campus. Her friend set up the arrangement, but she had her doubts. When was the last time a blind date had ever gone well, anyway? The outfit that she had chosen consisted of a royal blue dress that reached just above her knees, a silver necklace with earrings to match, and black heels. She pulled a black cardigan over the dress as it was breezy outdoors and spritzed her favorite Tom Ford perfume. It was rare that she used it, and it was given as a gift. She switched the power button on her blow-dryer to off when her hair felt sufficiently dry and she was completely ready by the time that the clock had reached 5:30.
The dorm room itself was small. It was carpeted navy blue, and had two beds in one room. There was a small breakoff for a private bathroom, which she was thankful for- community bathrooms weren’t exactly appealing to her. She had one closet packed full of clothing and an old wooden dresser with a set of drawers. There was another sectioned off space for something she wasn’t sure qualified as a kitchen. It had a microwave, sink, and a coffee maker, gifted by her mother. She had yet to decorate the walls.
Emma unplugged her charging laptop and set it on the bed she had been occupying. The dorm was supposed to have a roommate, but the other person apparently dropped out at the last minute, leaving Emma to a room alone. She was perfectly fine with this- she liked having privacy. Unfortunately, music and chatter could be heard throughout the entire hallway and there were a small number of rooms that were loud most evenings. As many times as the floor advisor could monitor them, it persisted. Sometimes the loneliness made her wish she had company, especially on the weekends- but when she heard ‘horror’ stories of how awful people treated each other, it made her glad she lived alone. No compromise on a bedtime wa
