Vanished In Plain Sight

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“Hi, welcome to FSU what can I help you with today?” Misty asked as the tall, freckled face and slender brunette approached her table.

Building B, of the Devoe L. Moore University Center was filled with both current, and future, enthused and extremely interested students who wanted to get more involved on campus.

Many like Elaine Stevenson, were desperately trying to become a part of the student body at the elite university for the upcoming fall semester.

“Hi, I was wondering if you had any information on the admissions process, and maybe some pamphlets on the courses that are offered here,” Elaine said as she looked through some of the paperwork sprawled across the table.

“Sure thing! What is your interest, as far as study? FSU offers a bit of everything. We have a great campus atmosphere, and as you see, we have an exceptionally large student body,” Misty said through a warming smile.

Although she did not participate much on campus, she was immensely proud of her school and everything it had to offer.

“Hmmm, well I definitely like to party! I guess that doesn’t count though huh?” Elaine laughed as she appeared to give serious thought as to what she would like to do long-term in her life.

“Well, I do like the arts… I’m sure mom and dad would not be too happy with that decision, but I have always been interested in animation, I love to draw.” Elaine seemed to stand firm on her decision as she stood and looked intensely at Misty for a response.

As Misty looked at her, she would have never pegged her for the artsy type, but who was she to judge.

“Awesome! FSU does have a great Motion Picture Arts program that includes animation and digital arts, as well as motion picture arts production. Here you go, this should cover everything that you are looking for about the program,” Misty said. Excitement filling her voice.

“Keep in mind, fall registration begins April 29th until August 4th. Fall classes begin on August 29th, so you have a while to get prepared, but you still want to hurry up and get your application in,” Misty continued as she handed Elaine the thick brochure.

“Misty! We’re having a party tonight over at the house you should come by and bring your friend!” The attractive guy added as he passed Misty’s table.

“Who was that!?” Elaine asked, obviously interested as she watched the very handsome jock walk away, disappearing through the thick crowd while speaking to just about everyone he passed.

“That is Brad Thompson, he is an extremely popular frat boy of one of the most prestigious fraternities in the nation, as well as here on campus, PI Kappa Alpha. Oh, and how could I forget, they are also known for having one of the biggest fraternity houses in the nation as well,” Misty said as she turned to look at Elaine.

“By the look on your face, you want to be the next Pike Dream Girl,” Misty laughed as she thought about the number of women that throw themselves to the popular men of PI Kappa Alpha.

“Wait… Pike what?” Elaine asked, genuinely confused.

“They are sorority girls that the guys vote on who they feel best represents their fraternity. They have what is called, Pikes Illustrated, along with, Pike Boy magazines, that the lucky girl may be featured on if chosen. Also, if chosen as the Pike Girl for the month, the promiscuous lady is also given two hundred personal bodyguards to follow her around everywhere she goes, which too me is just ludicrous and unnecessary,” Misty said with a bit of distain in her voice.

“We all know here on campus what the girls are really used for,” Misty said as she gave a wink to Elaine, who could not believe her ears.

“Pike Illustrated, Pike Boy, I have heard it all. Not sure if I would be interested as being the house girl if you know what I mean, but I would not mind the party! What do you say, how about instead of just pushing brochures, you give me a one-on-one tour of the campus? And the first stop, the PI Kappa Alpha party!”

Elaine was super excited at just the thought alone, and she surely would not mind running into Brad again.

“I’m not sure, that crowd tends to get a bit to rowdy for me, plus I still have a lot of studying to do. Honestly, Elaine, I am not much of a party goer, especially the frat parties. Maybe another time,” Misty explained, knowing there would not be another time if there had not been one by now.

Brad had been trying for years to get Misty to come to one of their parties and even though he could have any female on campus, everyone knew he had the biggest crush on Misty. He never gave up on trying to get with her since sophomore year even though every attempt went down in a flame of fire.

“I will tell you what, let’s go and grab some coffee, things are beginning to wrap up here and I could use the pep me up,” Misty said as she smiled at Elaine, who shook her head in agreement while still pleading to go to the party.

“So, why the interest in FSU over all the other colleges and universities?” Misty asked as the two settled into a booth at the nearby Starbucks.

“I always wanted to go to college straight after high school, but my grades were not the best, so I continued to work at my job, and well, time just got away from me,” Elaine began to explain while placing her purse across the back of her chair.

“I knew that I wanted to stay in Florida but wanted to also get away from my parents. What better university to attend than FSU right?” Elaine continued as she sipped her ice coffee.

“And where is home?” Misty asked.

“Clearwater, about four and a half hours away. Mom and dad feels like I should follow in their footsteps professionally, but I am just not interested in their fields. The money is great, but it is just not for me,” Elaine fumed, seemingly becoming agitated as she spoke about her parents.

“If you don’t mind my asking, what do they both do?” Misty asked as she took a small bite of her piping hot Bacon Gouda sandwich.

“My dad is a Cardiovascular Surgeon, he works at The Heart and Vascular Institute of Florida, which is a part of the Bay Care Health System. Mom is a dentist at Clearwater Dental Associates,” Elaine answered dryly.

“I love my parents, they provided me with a great life, and they still do, but growing up with parents like that, everything was so strict. I could barely be a kid because they had so many expectations of me. When the other kids were outside playing, I was inside reading books, doing extra homework, stuck with the top tutors, getting ahead as they explained it,” Elaine said with sadness in her voice.

“I thought I was going to go crazy! I was never allowed to go to parties, sleepovers, or anything that was normal kid or teenage stuff,” Elaine continued. Her tone changing into hate as she seemed to drift off in her thoughts.

“When I, to their surprise did not get the grades in high school to attend the top universities, they were devastated. It was like they were living their life vicariously through me again. They never asked me what I wanted to do, but instead they told me what they wanted, and expected me to be, and do with my life,” Elaine fumed.

“I knew that I had to get away, so I decided to take some courses at St. Petersburg College a couple years after high school, not exactly what my parents were thinking, but they were proud that I took a step to further my education,” she continued, her mood seeming to lighten.

“I did well and gained enough credits, and a high enough GPA to take a chance on hopefully being selected to enter FSU, so here I am,” Elaine said as she stretched out her arms as a huge smile crossed her glossy lips while showing nearly all her perfect white teeth.

“So, now that you know all about me, what is your story?” Elaine asked.

“Well, my story is definitely different than yours,” Misty laughed while adjusting in the small wooden chair.

As Misty listened to Elaine’s story, she wished that some of the details pertained to her life, especially the financial part. Misty had great parents that loved her and her two brothers very much, but life was not as easy for them as it had seemed to be for Elaine.

Sometimes, Misty would look at the prestigious students that came from very wealthy backgrounds and would think of how lucky some of them had it but took it for granted.

Brad was one of those students, his fraternity was full of rich and spoiled brats that did not appreciate what life had awarded them, which was one reason why Misty tried her best to avoid them- Brad especially. She just did not feel like they could possibly have anything in common.

All they seemed to do was party, show off, and have s*x with as many girls as they possibly could, as if it were a game to them. They also got into lots of trouble, only to have their parents bail them out with nothing more than a slap on the wrist, whereas if it were any other student, they would face expulsion based on some of the stories Misty heard over the years.

“Well, I am from Tampa, I was actually a nerd all through school, as if you have not already probably guessed. I graduated from Plant High, with a 4.3 GPA, and was also Valedictorian of my class. I had no problems with getting into any university that I wanted, but unfortunately my family could not afford to send me.”

As Misty spoke, a lump formed in her throat as she thought about how hard her parents took it when they broke the news that they could not afford to send her to college.

“My dad works as a factory supervisor, and my mom works retail. Even with both incomes they barely made ends meet with three kids. My parents somehow made a way to provide us with everything that we needed, but we never had the things that we always wanted growing up,” Misty continued proudly.

“They allowed us to make our own life choices and supported us no matter what. After graduation, my two older brothers worked to help support the family. Mom discouraged it, she wanted them to get the education that her and dad never got,” she continued before taking another bite of her sandwich.

“My brothers though, being as head strong as their father could not bear to see our parents work so hard and still struggle, so they sacrificed their education for the family,” Misty explained further as Elaine sat in awe on the other end of the table.

“I will be the first college graduate between my parents and my brothers, which is why this nursing degree is so important to me. I do not want their sacrifices to be in vain,” Misty continued.

“Luckily, I was awarded four academic scholarships that would cover my tuition for my entire college career, the only catch is that I maintain a 3.5 GPA which has not been an issue, so I don’t want to mess up now, especially this close to graduating,” Misty said as a smile crossed her thin lips.

“After school, I will only have a small portion of student loans that I will have to repay that the scholarships will not cover. If it were not for the scholarships, I just do not know where I would be.” As Misty spoke Elaine’s eyes seemed to widen as she was completely enthralled by the story.

“I always knew I wanted to be a nurse; I simply love taking care of people. FSU had one of the best programs, so for me it was a no brainer, and I also wanted to stay close to home for my parents, which is odd right? Most kids want to get as far away from their parents as possible after High School! So, that is my story in a nutshell, and with only one more year to go, I have to stay focused that’s why no parties for me!”

“Wow!” What a story, you are so inspiring! I could not even imagine not having things that I wanted growing up, it just seemed so… normal. Your parents sound awesome, and your brothers… how old are they?” Elaine asked, still amazed over Misty’s story.

“Billy is twenty-eight, and Jason is twenty-nine. Both have moved out, but still help mom and dad with the bills,” Misty explained.

“Billy is a long- distance truck driver now and he loves it. Jason works at the airport as a baggage handler. He enjoys the perks of the job but is ready to move on to something more challenging. He is thinking about attending community college to study computer technology,” she continued as she spoke highly of her brothers.

“He is the second biggest nerd to me, which is why my mother hated to see him not pursue his education any further after high school. And the same for Billy. Even though he loves his job my parents still wanted him to have a degree and a college education under his belt as well.”

“Wow is all I can manage to say. It sounds like you guys are a great group of kids. So, don’t you think you owe yourself some fun! You can make good grades and still have a little fun Misty! You deserve it, and I am not just saying that because I would love for you to go to the party, but I mean it. What do you say? Just a couple hours?” Elaine begged.

“I promise, I will leave when you say the word! I just want to experience some fun too and see what this frat house is all about before I head back to Clearwater. Please…,” Elaine pressed as she clasped her hands together in a praying position.

As much as Misty hated the notion, she knew Elaine was right. All she had ever done was study and had not experienced much of a social life on campus. This was the least she could do, just one night of fun could not hurt.

She knew Brad would be shocked to see her there, especially after all his years of trying. Although they came from two different worlds, she could not deny her attraction to him, and honestly, she would love to see him in his element.

“Ok ok, I will go, but you have to promise me that when I say I am ready, we have to leave,” Misty said sternly.

“I promise I promise!” Elaine yelled excitedly, like a happy child that had gotten what she wanted.

As the two wrapped up their lunch date, they exchanged information before Elaine headed back to her luxurious hotel in downtown Tallahassee.

The two made plans to meet back on campus later that evening for the party. Still skeptical a little while later, Misty wanted badly to call Elaine and bow out gracefully, but she was not the one to cancel on a promise.

Instead, she decided to make the best of the night and go with the flow. What she did not realize however was, this night would set in motion a course of events that would alter her life as she knew it along with her views of trust, which would be severely tarnished for the rest of her life.