The Protector

Chapter 2

Woodbridge University was real, well the internet said it was at least. A beautiful college tucked in the small town of Woodbridge, Virginia. Their website was a pain in the ass to find, but it was there.

'A school designed to ensure international security' was typed bold and proud in the middle of the webpage.

Could the website be fake? Possibly, but even I could tell that the amount of detail that had gone into creating the school's webpage far surpassed that of a typical teenager. Especially if that teenager was just trying to humiliate one of their peers.

Confused and slightly frustrated, I shut my laptop and grabbed the envelope checking the name of who it was addressed to again. Rena Miles was still elegantly printed in the center.

To be honest the school itself sounded remarkable. They had specialized programs in an array of fields, but their Geography and Middle Eastern Studies programs are what admittedly caught my eye. I had been looking for a school with great programs in both areas as I intended on majoring in both, though the search had been somewhat disappointing. That is, until now.

I felt a spark of excitement run through me. This is exactly the type of college I had been searching for. It was small, relatively far away, and had both programs I was interested in. I wanted to jump for joy and squeal until my brother asked what was wrong with me, instead I forced myself to push back the excitement that was bursting to reveal itself.

This was all fine and dandy, but there were still far too many gray areas to be getting my hopes up. What did they mean when they stated that the university was one of 'America's best kept secrets'? Why did I get an acceptance letter when I didn't even apply? Why did they act like I had already agreed to attending? Besides, though I made decent grades, I was far from 'Gifted'.

I hadn't even gotten to tour the campus, let alone spoke to an advisor. This university could be all wrong for me.

"Ren, dinner!" my mom shouted. Glad to have an excuse to temporarily forget the weird and majorly confusing letter in my hands, I set it back on my desk and sauntered into the kitchen.

"Your brother said you got another college letter," my mom said as I joined her at the table. I merely grunted in response.

My eyes wandered over to the other two empty seats. Dad must be working late again. Thomas' absence was quite common on the other hand. He rarely ate dinner at the same time as us, preferring to spend the evening working on old cars in the detached garage.

"Rena!" my mom said, her hands flying up in exasperation. "Woodbridge is an amazing school, you should be excited!"

"How do you know where it was from?" I asked, eyeing her suspiciously. "And that I even got in?!"

My mom clamped her mouth closed and opened it again, poorly trying to contain her excitement. "Jane, from admissions, called me." I gave her a questioning glance. Why would they call my mother?

"They just wanted to be sure that you got the letter and knew that there might be some confusion since you didn't actually apply." My mom explained, answering my unspoken question.

Her blue eyes glittered, and her voice rose in pitch as she grabbed my hand across the table. "They don't even take applications Ren. They chose you." She paused, as if letting that soak in. "They want to give you a full-ride scholarship, you can't turn down an opportunity like this."

That explained the acceptance, despite the application process. I still wasn't too sure about going however. It was a lot to take on at once...but a full-ride? That was hard to pass up. I offered my mom a small smile, "Well I still have plenty of time to decide, yeh? In the meantime I -"

My mom cut me off, "Did you not read the mandatory schedule?"

Jane from admissions and her must have had a more extensive conversation that I thought. "No, but I still have like three months of high school left mom. Surely nothing on their schedule happens before then?"

My mother started shaking her head before I was even finished, her dark blonde hair swaying. "Honey, Jane said that the schedule begins this month. That's why she called me. You can't rely on teenagers these days to be prompt."

I ignored the obvious insult directed at my generation, and got up leaving my dinner untouched. I grabbed the envelope and pulled the letter out as I made my way back out into the kitchen. Stuffed behind it were several more papers. Housing, Meal Plans, and Finances - all papers that had accompanied my other acceptance letters. What had not accompanied my other university acceptances was a sheet labeled 'Mandatory Schedule'.

I pulled it out and laid it on the table. There were various dates and events, but one in particular stood out to me. Written in red ink and underlined was "March 16th - Move-in".

"This doesn't make any sense," I huffed. "I don't graduate until the end of May, how do they expect me to move nearly ten hours away before then and still get my diploma?"

"Oh honey," my mom waved her hand, as if that wasn't a problem. "Woodbridge will notify the school and you will be issued your diploma the week before you leave."

"How - wait let me guess," I shot her a pointed look. "Jane from admissions told you this." She nodded in response.

"This...this is just crazy." I said, my voice rising. "I can't just up and move in two weeks!"

My mom rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to fire off a response, but I cut her off, "I'll miss spring break, prom, and graduation!"

At that my mom's face dimmed a bit, "You're right sweetie, you will miss those things. But what if this university is more important in the long run?"

"I don't know," I slumped down in my chair, poking at my dinner with my fork.

"It's your decision Ren, and I have no doubt in my mind that you will make the right one."

Would I though?