hadn’t.
5
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That day, I had just finished my shift and returned to my rented apartment.
I happened to get a video call from my parents.
My mom and dad called to chat about once a week, just to catch up on how things were going.
This was nothing unusual, but previously I had always carefully positioned myself in front of a blank wall during our
calls.
I didn’t want my parents to be able to tell where I was living.
But by now, after a week in my new place, I had grown accustomed to it. I casually sat down on the couch to answer the
call..
I never expected that as soon as my mom connected, her expression would change dramatically upon seeing my
background.
Before we could even exchange pleasantries, she urgently asked where I was and why there was a couch in my dorm
room.
“River, did something happen? What’s going on?” my mom asked worriedly.
Hearing her concerned tone, I couldn’t hold back anymore. I poured out everything that had happened over the past few
weeks.
But I tried to end on a reassuring note, saying I had found a good place to live now and was actually happier without
roommates.
“No wonder you’ve looked thinner in our recent calls,” my mom fretted. “Isn’t working at the bubble tea shop exhausting? You don’t need to do that – I’ll send you money for rent.”
As she spoke, she transferred me $200.
2:00 AM
<
As she spoke, she transferred me $200.
But seeing how tired and worn out she looked on the video, I immediately sent the money back.
The bubble tea job was tiring, but dealing with all kinds of customers and hearing their polite “thank yous” when I handed over their drinks had actually been somewhat comforting.
After being repeatedly rejected as a roommate, it filled my days and kept me from dwelling on the cold treatment from my classmates. If anything, it had improved my mental state.
“But River, I’ve always heard that college is like a miniature society,” my mom continued.
“Even if you can’t get along with everyone, it’s not good to completely isolate yourself like this.””
“Keep the money and buy some snacks to share. You need to make at least a few friends, okay?”
As she spoke, she sent the money again, this time adding an extra $100.
AV
“That’s right, I’m sure such a wonderful kid like you will find friends who appreciate you,” my dad chimed in, leaning into
the frame.
Seeing my parents, at their age, still worrying about my social life after working so hard to send me to college, I felt incredibly guilty.
I decided to follow their advice and make one more effort.
At this point, I had given up on moving back into a dorm. I just wanted someone to tell me the real reason behind all of
this.
If I knew what the problem was, maybe I could fix it and my classmates wouldn’t be so averse to me anymore.
I chose a free afternoon and bought a huge bag of snacks. I qualities they disliked in a roommate.
even carefully designed a survey
to ask my classmates what
A
Worried that no one would respond,
school.
sent the survey link to our RA, hoping he could distribute it officially through the
I rushed to give him the bag of snacks as
→
thank
you gift for the students who filled it out.
But for some reason, the RA’s friendly smile vanished
as
soon as he
