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CHAPTER ONE:

THE PERKS OF BEING A COLLEGE STUDENT

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BOILING ROCK CAFE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A MAJOR HOTSPOT ON CAMPUS. Coffee is the lifeblood of college students, after all, and Boiling Rock was famous for its house blend and homemade pastries. Plus, people always need a good cup of coffee, a place to study or a hangout spot, and Boiling Rock keeps its doors open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Kida Sandhu happens to be one of the students who actually works at the cafe. Once you work at a coffee sop long enough, you learn a few things. How to brew good coffee, for one, and the right milk to coffee ratios for the perfect latte. There's also the ability to multitask: how to greet customers while making a triple shot cappuccino, how to discreetly study for a midterm while taking inventory. You meet lots of people, too, and connect with them in the few moments they have free from their busy days. Over time, you memorize their orders and their behaviours and snippets of their lives that they share in passing, and it's almost like you're becoming friends.

And, lastly, you learn how to always keep your cool. While the crowds can be overwhelming and the occasional customer becomes furious over the tiniest mistake, the job is steady, so always, always offer service with a smile. Kida only wishes that this could translate into her life outside of work.

As she works her shift, Kida might be calm and collected while taking orders, but on the inside, her mind is racing over the fact that, in a few hours, she has to interact with her crush. Her crush, Suki Liu, who is one of Kida's closest friends, who Kida avoided contact with during the summer, and who has a boyfriend she seems to be very happy with. But, it was a new school year, and both girls were RAs for Kyoshi House, an all-female first year residence, so interactions between them were inevitable.

After taking another order, Kida notices her best friend walk into the cafe, sporting his leather jacket and holding a stack of neon green flyers. He flashes a smile at her, and Kida can't help but roll her eyes.

Jet Nyathi has been in Kida's life for as long as she can remember. Well, technically, that isn't true, although it sometimes feels like it. The two met in elementary school, in detention, to be more specific. If you asked them now, neither would remember why they were there in the first place, but that doesn't matter, because what blossomed from that half hour detention proved to be more valuable than any other "lesson" they were meant to learn. It was like finding their other half, someone to share frustrations about teachers who picked on them or parents who acted like they didn't care, someone to keep company while doing endless long division equations or reading comprehension questions, someone to share stories and time and snacks with. This friendship lasted through middle school, then high school, then the first year of college, and it only got stronger along the way. They grew up, but to their core, Jet and Kida were the same people they were on the day they first met: Jet, the charismatic rebel and Kida, the hardworking daydreamer.

As Kida is heating milk for a customer's order, Jet puts one of his flyers up on the bulletin board next to the coffee counter.

"You need permission to do that," Kida informs her friend. She pours the hot milk, watching it swirl into the espresso shot that's already in the takeaway cup. Then, she adds a spoon of foam on top before placing the cup on the counter. "Order for Lee!" She shouts. A guy wearing a beanie and a flannel grabs the cup and offers a smile of gratitude.

Once he's gone, Jet leans against the counter. "They can take it down. I've got plenty more, anyways. I'll keep coming back."

Kida scoffs, but smiles at his determination. "What's if for, anyways?" Jet slides a flyer over to Kida. "Ah. You're getting the band back together."

"Talked to Haru the other day and he's down with it. We just need a guitar and a bass player."

"You might want to let him get settled in first, J," Kida points out. "Plus, you know Haru. Didn't the band break up because he wanted to focus on school?"

"No." Kida raises her eyebrow. "Okay, that was part of it, but things are gonna be different this time. He's made it into college, what's next?"

"Well, studying," Kida offers. "And, knowing Haru, lots of reading. Some more studying. Making new friends, whenever he's not busy reading or studying."

Jet waves his hand dismissively, then gestures towards the bulletin board. "Exactly why we're having auditions. New band members means new friends. Besides, this campus needs the Freedom Fighters."

"Right. I forgot you were the voice of the people."

"Hell yeah we are," Jet says with a proud nod. His gaze stays on the bulletin board as he takes in the other posters and flyers pinned up, all approved by the manager and school's administration. When his eyes land on a certain poster, Jet goes and rips it down, annoyed. "God, if only the university donors spent less money on Pro Bending, then maybe you wouldn't have to work two jobs." He crumples the poster and throws it into the trash.

"It sucks, but what's there to do," Kida shrugs.

"Uh, dismantle the system," Jet states plainly.

A customer walks into the cafe, indicating that Kida's impromptu break has come to an end. "I'll leave that to you," Kida says before leaving to take the customer's order. A large chai latte. She starts steeping the tea. "Speaking of which, wish me luck. I'm leading orientation at Kyoshi after my shift."

"Right. How are you doing with the whole Suki thing?" At the mention of her name, Kida accidentally spills some tea, burning her hand in the process. "That well, huh? Well, good luck. Text me when you're done and maybe we'll grab a bite?" Kida nods. "I'm gonna go pin up more flyers around campus," Jet explains, standing up to leave. "See ya later, K."

Kida just sighs to herself in response, and goes back to work.

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THE FLOOR LOUNGE IS FILLED WITH A DOZEN FRESHMAN. Kida recognizes three of the girls: her cousin Azula, and two of her friends, Mai and Ty Lee. Despite their normal air of confidence, they all seem as unsure as the rest of the girls in the room. Kida remembers being in their position, feeling the excitement, the nervous anticipation of starting a new chapter of her life.

Kyoshi House felt like a second home during her first year, so when applications for Resident Assistants opened, Kida jumped at the chance. It was a way to make a little extra money, while having a little fun. The guarantee of on campus housing was a plus, too — Kida loves Jet, but she wasn't inclined to live with him in an apartment all the way at the edge of campus.

When Suki is done introducing herself, it's Kida's turn to do so.

"Hey everyone!" Kida starts enthusiastically. Some of the girls offer small waves or a smile, others looked bored and uninterested. "My name's Kida. I'm a second year film student. I know some of you might be scared or nervous for your first year, but I promise that we're all here to make it go as smoothly as possible. I'm on the fourth floor, room 403 at the end of the hall. Feel free to knock on my door if you ever need a movie recommendation, a cup of coffee, or someone to talk to."

"Trust me guys, Kida's got a talent of making the worst days 100 times better," Suki adds. She tilts her head towards Kida and smiles. "I know from experience."

Kida swears that her heart skips a beat. She looks to the floor and clears her throat before continuing. "Right. So, the four of us will be here to help you in any and every way. Before we get into some fun icebreakers, though, we're gonna go through some standard rules. Trust me, college living has its perks, but there are some things you need to be aware of."

Suki, Kida, and the other two RAs go through the list, ranging from visitors and quiet hours to safe sex and alcohol consumption.

"In terms of bending, Kyoshi House is pretty chill about it," Kida explains. "Just don't freeze anyone or break anything and be careful about setting off the smoke alarm. I did it last year and let's just say having to go outside at 1am in the freezing cold isn't the best."

"The marshmallows were worth it," Suki jokes. A few of the girls laugh, their faces lighting up. "Though, there are still some scorch marks on my favourite sweatshirt."

Kida herself can't help but blush at the memory. She remembers the night clearly. Some of the perks of being a college student: living literally seconds away from your friends and being able to hang out with them whenever. At that point, Kida realized she liked Suki more than a friend, and had been trying to distance herself from her. It didn't work though; it seemed that the colder Kida acted towards her, Suki just made more of an effort to spend time with Kida. Still, when Suki knocked on Kida's door past midnight, knowing she'd be awake writing or watching some movie, Kida couldn't help but let her in. They sat on Kida's bed, finishing the second half of "Moonrise Kingdom." When Suki noticed the bag of marshmallows on Kida's desk, she had an idea. And, normally, Kida was a skilled firebender and in control of her powers, but around Suki...her nerves were heightened, her emotions more mixed up. Kida's fire got out of hand and left some burnt marshmallows in its wake.

"Learn from your elders kids." Kida chuckles awkwardly. "Have fun, but do it responsibly and safely. " She offers Suki a small smile before turning away once more. "Now, continuing on..."

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author's note! 

ahh im so excited to FINALLY post the first chapter of this fic. let me know what you guys think so far! 

also, i was thinking about some new fic ideas; i know that i have a bunch of unfinished stories, but there's still other stuff i want to write and i was wondering if people would be interested in actually reading them! here are some i've been thinking of starting:

~ a johanna mason fic

~ a dead poets society wlw au

~ a thalia grace mini fic

also! the art at the beginning is not mine, i designed it on picrew. if you search "lichtenstyler picrew" you'll find it.

anyways, thanks for reading :)