The Final Chance by Cait Marie
Beth Ann
Finding an empty seat near the middle of the room, Beth Ann sat down and took out a notebook and pen. She refused to bring her laptop to classes that didn’t require it. A notebook allowed her to doodle and sketch easier when her mind began to drift. The chair next to her squeaked as someone sat down beside her, and she glanced over at the newcomer. She was sad Manny didn’t have the same course as her, but it was probably for the best. She was at Harleson to study and succeed, not have a social life.
The tall guy at her side looked familiar. She thought maybe he was another freshman who’d been a part of the advanced summer program, but she couldn’t be sure. He unzipped his coat to hang off the back of his chair and then removed his earbuds before sticking out a hand. “Hi, I’m Ray. You’re Bethany, right?”
“Beth Ann.” She shook his hand with a smile.
“I saw some of your sketches over the summer. They were brilliant!” he said, his English accent coming out in full force.
Her cheeks flushed from both the praise and the fact that he remembered her when she’d almost gone out of her way to avoid getting to know others in the program. “Thanks.”
He opened his mouth, but an older woman walked in, greeting them, “Good morning, and welcome to Design 205. You may call me Mal or Mallory; we’re going to get to know each other pretty well in this course, so let’s just skip the formalities.”
Beth Ann smiled and crossed one leg over the other. It was one thing to dream about these classes and something else entirely to actually be in them. Especially these classes filled with older students. Those in the accelerated summer program were permitted to skip the introductory courses, and sitting in this one now, listening to her professor talk about working in the industry for two decades… it made everything feel that much more real.
This was her life now. She’d made it here.
“Now, apart from the regular curriculum, we will be hosting the annual Harleson Fashion Show in March. This is a school-wide event. Any upperclassman may submit their design proposals, and ten will be selected to show their completed lines during the show,” Mal said, moving to a computer in the corner of the room.
With the push of a button, a projector turned on above their heads and a white screen lowered from the ceiling. Images of past shows flitted by in a short slideshow. Styles of all kinds walked down the runway, filling Beth Ann with anticipation for the future.
Mal clicked over to a digital flyer with details, and four words caught Beth Ann’s attention, stealing her breath.
“Freshmen who attended the accelerated summer program may also submit their proposals,” Mal continued. “You must also show at least two of your own finished pieces to prove you do, in fact, have the skills required to create them. Three freshmen will be selected to participate.”
Ray nudged Beth Ann, and she didn’t bother hiding her grin. He looked as excited as she felt. Around them, whispers grew.
“All right, all right. Quiet down. I’m not even to the most exciting part yet,” Mal said with a chuckle. She scrolled down and was rewarded with a collective gasp. “It’s also a competition. The second and third-place winners will receive a prize of one thousand dollars and VIP passes to this year’s New York Fashion Week. The grand-prize winner will receive all of that on top of a fifty-thousand-dollar scholarship, and they will get to show their line during Fashion Week.”
The small room erupted. Beth Ann’s mind already started wandering through patterns and designs she’d thought of throughout the past few years. At the front of the classroom, Mal smiled as if she’d expected the reaction.
“Is the grand prize open to anyone who makes it into the show or just the upperclassmen?” Ray asked over the chatter.
“Anyone,” Mal said, glancing from him to Beth Ann with a pointed look.
Ray grabbed Beth Ann’s arm and shook it gently as he whispered, “We have a chance.”
Beth Ann took a deep breath. If she even got into the school’s show, it would be a step in the right direction. She’d waited so long for this kind of opportunity. Indiana wasn’t exactly known for its fashion. At that thought, she looked down to the phone in her lap, wanting to text someone about it. Lila was the obvious choice, but in that brief moment, the one person she wanted to tell the most was the one person she wasn’t speaking to.
And just like that, her heart began to ache again.
She shook her head, flipped her phone face down, and pushed those thoughts away. They would not take away her happiness right now.
Instead, she turned her attention back to her professor who’d opened the syllabus and quieted the room once more. Mal went over what else they’d have to do that term in the class and expectations, but Beth Ann’s attention kept drifting to the sketchpad she’d left on her bed. She doodled in the margins of her notebook until the end of the class, unable to rid herself of the new patterns fluttering through her mind. When Mal dismissed them, Beth Ann didn’t waste any time rushing back to her room.
* * *
“I want this so bad,”Beth Ann said, sweeping her hair back with one hand as she paced the small space in her room.
“So, we’ll both work our butts off to make your designs flawless,” Manny said from her bed as she clicked through the details on her laptop. “It doesn’t say you can’t have help or work with other students.”
“No, Mal encouraged it, actually. As long as the designs are ours and we head the project, we can recruit others for the labor if chosen for the show. But I hardly know anyone here.”
A hand reached out to grab Beth Ann’s as she turned once more to pace back across the room. Vince pulled her closer with a grin. “You know us, and we’ve got your back.”
He sat on the edge of her raised bed, and she stepped between his legs. “You know how to sew? You didn’t even know which clothes to hang instead of fold.”
His hands tightened on her sides as he leaned in. “I’m a fast learner.”
Placing a hand on his chest, she raised up on her toes to brush a light kiss across his lips. Only a few weeks had passed since that night he let her stay in his room, but they’d grown close quickly. Other than yelling at him to turn down his music when they first met, they never argued or disagreed in the slightest. Vince was easy to get along with—easy to get lost in. The perfect distraction.
Most of the time.
Dylan’s hazel eyes flashed through her mind, but she shoved them aside and deepened her kiss with Vince.
“All right, love birds.” Manny tossed a throw pillow at them, and they broke apart laughing. “I’m still in the room, remember?”
Beth Ann twisted in Vince’s arms to face her roommate. She leaned back against him and smiled when his arms wound around her waist.
“Seriously though, I’m happy you’re moving on,” Manny said with a wink. “I’m even more excited you’re branching out. You need more friends than just me.”
Vince kissed the crook of Beth Ann’s neck before whispering against her ear, “Reallygood friends.”
Her cheeks heated, but she smiled. Manny was right. They’d moved to campus over eight months ago, and her only true friends in the entire state of New York were in that very room. She had worked so hard to get a place at Harleson, she didn’t want to mess up and get distracted by anything. Even friends.
She occasionally had dinner or movie nights with others on their floor—at the insistence of Manny. But before Vince, she hadn’t let anyone in but her roommate.
As if reading her mind, Manny pushed her laptop aside and said, “I know you’re determined to do well here and make a name for yourself, but that won’t do you any good if you don’t make any connections.”
“I know,” Beth Ann said, glancing down at Vince’s hands on her stomach. Growing up, she’d never struggled to make friends. Most of her time was spent with Lila, but she was more social than her best friend. In fact, since graduating, it felt as if they’d traded roles. Lila had been so focused on doing well in high school to get out of their small town that she hadn’t lived much. Beth Ann had made it out, and now she put all her efforts into proving she deserved to be there.
“There’s a party tonight,” Vince said. “At one of the basketball player’s apartments a few blocks away. We should go.”
“Oh, I heard about that.” Manny jumped out of bed, already moving to find clothes as if it was decided. “Apparently, it’s a whole building thing. Several players live there, so they’re expanding it to multiple floors.”
“I don’t know.” Beth Ann’s insides fluttered with nerves. “I really need to get to work on these designs, not to mention all the homework piling up.”
“Beth Ann,” Vince said, turning her to face him. “It’s Friday night. Let’s go have fun. You have almost two months before this fashion show, right?”
“Yeah, but—”
His lips pressed to hers, cutting her off. “You have plenty of time. It’s one night.”
Beth Ann sighed. “Fine.”
Vince’s hands wrapped around her back as he stood. She let out a high-pitched squeal as he lifted her, spinning her around. Kissing her again, he put her back on her feet.
“All right, then.” His grin lit up his features, and she remembered exactly why she liked hanging out with him. As he backed away, he said, “Get ready, and I will be back in twenty minutes.”
He was gone before she could say anything. She met Manny’s eyes, and both girls started laughing. There was no way they’d both be ready that fast. Beth Ann grabbed her shower caddy and headed to the large, co-ed bathroom down the hall.
Since arriving in New York, she’d barely explored the city beyond their campus. She’d dreamed of living there her entire life, yet she hadn’t gone out to see it. Classes took all of her focus and energy. And it was time to change that.
She could spend one night out with friends. What was the worst that could happen?