Summer Sanders is going through it. The pressures of school are mounting, and her home life is completely falling apart. Feeling bored and lonely on a Saturday night, she decides to get buzzed and surprise her hookup buddy with her best lingerie. Th...
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FINALS WEEK IS here.I did it. I've made it this far while maintaining a good average in all of my classes. If you compare my entire performance and wellbeing to last semester, the contrast is day and night.
Despite some drawbacks, I've kept my goals in sight and now that I'm almost at the finish line, I couldn't be more proud of myself. There's still a crap ton of anxiety though, I'm not in the clear until I get my final letter grades and GPA, but the difference is that I'm going into these exams not already doomed. I didn't have that opportunity last time around.
Not only do I have a chance of acing my exams, but I've also gotten a few opportunities to head start my career as well.
I had a phone interview with Mercy health, the hospital near Carter's house a few days ago and spoke with the HR manager at Penn Medicine, the hospital ten minutes from campus yesterday. All that's left for me to do is wait these next few days for responses.
Until then, I have to put that potential excitement aside and focus on the now, and right now, it's time to study.
My study guides and flashcards are filled to the brim with as much useful information as I could find from the last few sections of my classes. I've color coordinated keywords and concepts and meticulously organized my study hours and level of details to maximize retention skills.
Aleena and I have partnered up in our studying efforts, moving from the library, to baker's dozen, back to our room for a change of scenery.
While I lay on the floor, going through all my materials, Aleena has stepped outside after receiving a call from her parents that sounds to have quickly turned heated.
She speaks to them in Urdu, like always, so I can't understand what she says, but I can hear the emotion in her low voice and her tone is anxious with a mixture of exhaustion. It's almost always how she sounds speaking to her strict parents.
She comes back in moments later and topples over onto the ground with a deliberate lazy thump.
"Tough call?" I watch her with concern.
"Oh, you know, just the same old lectures," she says. "You better be behaving yourself, Aleena. Your hopes and dreams don't matter, Aleena. What was the point of immigrating all the way from Pakistan if you weren't going to become a doctor, lawyer, or engineer, Aleena. Acting is one step away from being a prostitute, Aleena."
"Yikes." I reach over and rub her back for comfort. "So I assume that they're not coming to see the play?"
"I don't know, they said they might not make it. I didn't even want to tell them I was doing it this year considering all the shit they've given me in the past for taking my time away from my studies, but it's my first lead role and I was naive enough to think they might somewhat be proud of my accomplishments."
"The play is gonna be awesome, anyway. You and Darren will kill it and I'll be front row with Carter cheering you on. Whether your parents are there or not, you'll still have people who love you watching you succeed. Just focus on impressing those scouts and agents," I say.
