I hear my phone ring as I come out of the shower, drying my hair with a towel.
I still feel the stench of coffee on me even after a long hot shower.
Is this why some coffees are so expensive?
Do they leave a stench behind for such a long time?
Thankfully I could get the stain out of my shirt so it also gave me hope for my uniform.
The hope is very slim and it is going to be really hefty in my pocket but still hope nonetheless.
Also, maybe after fate just putting me through a blender of bad luck finally gave in because, by the time I was in front of the restaurant, it was jammed packed for the lunch rush.
So there is a mother universe who decided to spare me for once.
My parents didn't get a chance to see me as I dashed past them to our apartment.
I check my phone to see my mom's name flash on the screen.
As much as I don't want to talk to her, afraid she'll somehow get to know about the whole incident with her mother's spidey senses, I answer.
As soon as I pick up, I am bombarded with questions about where I am, why haven't I texted her once, did I get my uniform, did I have lunch, and on and on and on.
I wait for her questions to die out before I answer.
I know there is no use in interrupting her.
There never has been.
And I also need to come up with a lie for the uniform.
I can't tell her the truth.
I know she'll want to see the uniform but I have to come up with a lie about why I can't show it to her. Otherwise, I am sure my parent will disown me after hearing the story about my spilling coffee.
"Yes, ma I came back home" I don't want to elaborate, scared that she might catch onto my lie.
There is a pause.
And that pause scares the shit out of me because my mother is usually not the one to give the other a chance to speak.
I try to fill the void.
"I got the uniform but they need to do some adjustments so I'll get it on Monday but they assured me that I'll get it before class starts" I don't like lying but I don't have a choice.
She grumbles on the other end about getting the uniform on time and then she follows it up with complaints that I should have come and helped them at the noodle shop if I was back because they were short on staff.
I close my eyes and take a deep breath.
This is the reality of my life.
Working 3 part-time jobs to save up for college and then work at my parent's restaurant because they are too stubborn to hire adequate staff.
For a moment when I was at the uniform fitting, I felt a little detached from my reality, as if this life here was different from what I had there.
That's probably true but that was a dream and this is real.
This is my real life.
I just sigh and tell her that I will come down in a few minutes.
I cut the call and change into a t-shirt and jeans.
I pack my Hive uniform in my bag because I don't think I will have a chance to come back to the house after my shift at the restaurant.
By the time I reach the restaurant, the lunch hours have died down so it is not so hectic.
After working for a while my mother makes me a bowl of noodles and I quietly eat it in the back room.
The warm noodle is welcome to my taste bud and my stomach.
Having been raised by parents running a restaurant, I was used to eating my lunch on the go or too quickly to be deemed healthy because mom always forced me to eat before the lunch rush started so that I was with a full belly while I worked.
She said that she didn't want me to stay hungry in case the rush lasted for too long but I secretly feel like she just wanted to make sure I was in full energy while I worked at the restaurant.
My parents refused to hire more than 2 staff because they felt like it would be a waste of money but every time one of them took leave, the restaurant was short on staff and the lunch rush was a nightmare.
Today, since the lunch rush was almost over, I took my time eating.
This was a rare feat for me, to sit, completely relaxed, and actually take my time to eat my food and chew it instead of gobbling down the noodles and hot soup, burning my tongue and throat.
Slowly as I kept thinking of the coming Monday, the more nervous I got.
Being left alone with my thoughts is usually something I prefer since it is not something that I often get in our small apartment or at any of my jobs but at this moment, I didn't want to be left alone.
My mind was playing tricks on me again and making me second guess whether this was all happening.
I needed to get out of my own train of thought.
I still couldn't believe that I was going to be a student at Royals High. This was all happening so fast and so randomly.
How did I get selected and Woojin didn't?
Also, wasn't getting coffee spilled on my new uniform before I even start a bad omen?
Was I really making the right decision?
I didn't want to burden my parents.
I know how much they wanted me to get into that school but at the same time, I need to think about the finances.
My family is not poor or in a lot of debt but at the same time money is not overflowing.
Some days the restaurant does really well and some days we only have a handful of customers. Also, we don't have any other source of income.
Most of the money I earn from my part-time jobs is saved up for my college fund so that I can go to college and study something that I like.
Going to this school will not only put pressure on my parents but also on me.
There are already enough expectations from me and now this scholarship only ended up adding to the pile of expectations for me.
Also, isn't the eldest child always under a lot of pressure in every situation?
Just trying to think about everything and taking everything into consideration makes my head spin.
I can't even blame it on my hunger because I am eating
I know why I feel overwhelmed.
I know how hard it is for my parents to send me there even with the scholarship.
I just hope as San and his father assured me, that there are a lot of grants available there from previous alumni.
I am counting on that.
I just hope my writing skills are worthy enough to land me at least one grant that can cover the rest of my fees apart form my institutional.
Also, I am deciding which job I will need to quit.
The balance is definitely heavy on the chicken place because that place just makes me work like labor and if I can hike up my tutoring change - something I assume I can do, now that I can say I'm a part of Royals High, I'll be able to manage my job at The Hive and earn a good amount.
The only problem will be that I'll have to ask for the closing shift on Hive every day.
Not that I ever had a problem with that but since the incident last time, I am not sure what I'll encounter next.
By the time I finished my lunch, the restaurant was almost empty with just a few customers.
I look at the time and I don't have much time before I need to report at Hive.
I was hoping I could rest a bit but I definitely procrastinate much more than I thought.
I get out of the restaurant, checking my belonging to make sure I took everything and didn't forget anything.
"Hey, I heard the good news" I turn around to see Woojin.
Shit.