eye of the tiger ( part 3 )

I wasn't foolish to think we covered all of the college in one morning. Especially not with the detail Marcie went into. I was in for a surprise, however.

At the end of the long lunch that was long as an hour, all the girlfriends invited themselves to the tour. And so, I had four guides, who were talking about their memories of every place. There was far too much to remember for even someone with a memory that never forgot. Mine was simple and ordinary.

I had a taste of celebritydom. A part of me was musing over whether this was how Ms Woodley felt.

Eyes were on me when it was only Marcie with me. Now, all of the girlfriends were showing me around. I felt impaled on the innumerable daggers shooting at me. The girlfriends felt nothing amiss, however. I couldn't help but wonder if I really would be one of them by the end of the day. How would that impact my college life?

Late in the evening, we walked to my hostel. They followed me up to my dorm, little affected by it being a boys' hostel. It was the boys who were flushed and embarrassed. And green with envy, as they saw the four of them walk into my dorm and shut the door.

"And now we have privacy," Sarah exclaimed.

"Yeah," Marcie agreed. "This is a good dorm. It almost feels better than ours. Girls, what do you say we make it our dorm?"

"I'm in," Sarah said immediately, looking at the view from the window.

"Me too," Teddy said, rolling in the bed.

Lin only shrugged, looking at her girlfriends with a smile and at me with an apology. Clearly, she was in too.

Just like that, my dorm became theirs. I didn't feel against it even a little.

Sarah seated herself comfortably on the window ledge. Lin took the chair. Marcie joined Teddy on the bed. There was only the ground and the table to choose from. I chose the ground, leaning against the table's leg. That put me next to Lin.

"You break my heart," Marcie complained, crying fake tears. "Not even a day and you choose Lin over me. I know she's prettier. And hotter. And got more elasticity. But still, you can't be that fickle. You can't cheat on me."

"Shut up," Lin cried, when she couldn't take anymore.

I was the only one blushing. Finally realizing how the girlfriends were.

"Hey, how about we celebrate our new boy-friend," Teddy suggested. "At Rookie's."

Rookie's was certainly a well loved place, for the girlfriends were all super excited. I was excited too, though I would never admit that it was partly from being called one of them. The only boy in the hot girlfriends. I was in for some exciting times.

The four of them helped me settle in, promising to check every week if the dorm was maintained well. Then, we had coffee at the canteen of the hostel. And off we were.

Rookie's turned out to be a pub, whose name was actually, eye of the tiger. A small, dilapidated building in an old, dilapidated corner of the city. The cars parked outside had no business being there, ranging from small cars with engines focused on economy to big, powerful cars focused on performance and luxury. The building's state of ruin seemed deliberate.

There was a short queue at the entrance, blocked by a large man in a black suit with a notepad and pen in hand. He looked like someone I wouldn't want to cross. He greeted the four girls warmly, like he knew them well. He extended me the same greeting when Marcie introduced me as family. We walked in facing no resistance.

Inside, was completely different from the outside. The walls and the floor were spotless, dazzling under the neon lights. Tall tables stood in a corner. In the opposite corner was a small stage. The bar was in the other corner. The middle was entirely open, either to enjoy a dance or watch a performance on the stage.

We went up to the bar, behind which was Rookie. Marcie introduced me to Rookie as family, again. And Rookie was even warmer greeting me.

"Rookie here is Lin's uncle," Marcie explained. "Told you she was taken. She's smitten with Rookie here since forever."

Lin blushed and slapped Marcie lightly. Rookie laughed like it was a joke he was all too familiar with. Everyone, but me, was laughing. When they were done, Marcie spoke again to Rookie, in all seriousness.

"Rookie, Woody here would love to work with you. Think you could use the help?"

Rookie stared hard at me, studying me from head to toe.

"You interested," he asked me.

I looked at Marcie nodding vigorously, and nodded too.

"Good," Rookie said, satisfied. "You can start today. Lin manages the bar. So, you can tend to the tables. Teddy would love the help, considering how lazy she is. And when there's someone performing, you can help Marcie in preparing the stage. I guess that's her goal."

Marcie smiled in admission. And I understood too. The night hadn't begun yet, but I was excited already. About my first job. About the great place I was working at. Most of all, about being truly one of the hot girlfriends.