Natalia

“Hey, did you hear about it?” Alicia, my BFF asked, both Caroline and I.

“What?” I asked, wondering what was going on.

“That rumor that’s going around…” Alicia started to say, but she paused to make sure that no one else was listening.

Class was supposed to start twenty minutes ago, but the professor hadn’t shown up, and we were seated near the back of the room, which was virtually empty. There was a quiet buzz in the room as everyone else focused on their own conversations, a buzz that would drown out our whispers if anyone did happen to be close enough to hear us. Alicia still looked around before she leaned close and whispered to us, her long blond hair another screen.

“There’s this new chat line going around IU. I didn’t believe it when I first heard about it, but it’s true! Can you believe it?” She broke into giggles, her blue eyes alight with delight.

I’d only been at Iowa University a few weeks; I was happy when by chance, I became Caroline and Alicia’s friend overnight. They