Sweet Beginnings: The First Day

Chapter 1 — The First Day 2nd August 2024 — Friday Dear Diary, Today was the first day of my degree life—Orientation Day. It still feels unreal. The morning began with Appa dropping me at college. Just before I got down, he handed me chocolates and said, "Start your first day with something sweet." It was such a small gesture, but somehow, it made my heart feel warm. The orientation was held at the Jubilee Auditorium on the sixth floor. I had absolutely no idea where it was. While trying to figure out where to go, I noticed a girl rushing toward a faculty member and asking for directions. I walked up to her and asked, "Are you going to Jubilee Audi?" She said yes. So, we walked together. On the way, we introduced ourselves. It was comforting to have someone beside me, even though we had just met. After the orientation ended, everyone hurried away. I stayed back because my name hadn't been added to the WhatsApp group yet. Once everything was sorted, I finally walked toward the bus stop. Two girls were standing there—a tall girl and a short girl. For some reason, I thought the short girl looked like a school kid, so I didn't ask her anything. Instead, I turned to the tall girl. "Are you from KJC? Waiting for the bus?" She said yes. Her name was Aditi. And then I found out she was Marathi too. I was so happy. At least I had found someone who spoke my language. A little later, the short girl joined our conversation. "Are you from KJC?" she asked. That's when I realized she was from the same college too. Her name was Shravani. She was a sweet Kannadiga girl who lived in Byatarayanapura—just like me. Later, I discovered that she actually lived very close to my area, only on a different road. I didn't know it then, but these two girls were going to become part of my college story. And somewhere in that same college... Someone else was waiting to enter it.