Lost: A Counsel Novella by Shenda Paul

Author:Shenda Paul [Paul, Shenda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Two Hours or More (65-100 Pages), Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Vivid Publishing
Published: 2016-12-05T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

“I can’t wait to get out of here,” Tom announces, echoing my sentiment as we leave our contracts lecture, the last before Thanksgiving.

It’s been nearly three months to the day since orientation, and everything I’d been told about the exhaustive coursework, the endless hours of reading, the pressure, the ever-present awareness of the need to succeed has proven true. There were times when I’d been so tired, my brain so fried, that I fell asleep fully clothed only to wake, shower, and do it all over again. About a month in, wondering how I’d cope, I called Jenna, who repeated the advice she’d given me before. “As busy as you are, as impossible as it seems to spare the time, you have to take a break, Adam. Mingle with your classmates, also other students because you’ll need to escape the law vacuum to survive.

“How often have you seen your family?” she asked, and I sheepishly confessed that I’d skipped going home on occasion, choosing, instead, to stay on campus and work for fear of falling behind.

“Could you have read at home?” she asked.

“I could have, I suppose,” I admitted.

“There’s no supposition, Adam. You may not have gotten through as much, but you would probably have remembered more because of the mental relief interacting with your family provides. Those breaks, no matter how small or infrequent, are necessary. Doing things other than studying is vital to your capacity to cope. The trick is to recognize which activities have the potential to become distractions and which benefit you. You’re smart and disciplined; you’ll soon learn the differences.

“And, most importantly, remember it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Everything you do now is to prepare you for your final exam—that’s the one that counts,” she reminded me.

I followed Jenna’s advice and made a concerted effort to get to know members of my section other than Justin and Tom. I introduced myself to other residents in North Hall and occasionally wandered down to the communal living room for a break. I even ventured into the wider student community, where I met and befriended two students—Brooke, in the last year of her pre-med degree, and Max, who’s studying English Lit. We now meet for coffee for an hour each week. Sometimes, one or more of their friends joins us. I’ve even succumbed to Tom’s constant requests and attended a party with him and Justin.

I’ve been careful to keep my social activities to a minimum and despite the opportunities presented, I have, with the notable exception of that one party, refrained from acting on the opportunity to have sex. It’s a far cry from my undergrad years, but I keep telling myself I can abstain. “It’s not forever,” I remind myself each time Tom regales us with tales of his exploits. So, I’m back to being well acquainted with my hand. It saves me from temptation; well, it’s a piss-poor substitute for sex, but it takes the edge off and allows me to stick to my study regimen because every day counts toward being prepared for that crucial, final exam.

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