SORORITY OF THREE: Freshman 101 by Melissa Brown
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No secret here, I am a BIG Melissa Brown fan! If you have ever read a Melissa Brown book or if you have read my reviews, you would know that Melissa in the past has written mostly light romance stories – that I have called the perfect chick flicks. You know the kind of movies you cuddle up to watch with the happily ever after. Her last book “Wife Number Seven” showed her flexibility as an author and that she can certainly write “out of the box”. If you have not read that story, I highly recommend that you do, it is one of my all-time favorites!!! Melissa Brown has always given me exactly the type of book I needed when I needed it. She never lets me down and I never hesitate to pick up the next book she releases. In this story, Melissa perfectly captures the college experience of three very different girls that have become friends in their freshman year. You get a first-hand look into each of the three girl’s heads while the story switches between each of their point of views. You will feel all their emotions, while they are each are trying to find out who exactly they are in their journey to adulthood and you may just flash back to your college days while reading this story. As you may guess, this story ends at the end of their freshman year and I cannot wait to see where their Sophomore year is going to lead them.Once again, Melissa’s writing is flawless, heartfelt, emotional and just fantastic. Keep writing Melissa! Make sure to pick this one up and let me know what you think.
GRACEAs we entered the kitchen, I saw Trevor. When our eyes met he smiled, and his brown eyes widened. They were so beautiful. My heart started to thump in my chest, but I tried my best to ignore it. This was my chance and I wanted to take it.“Hey, Trevor,” I said with excitement.“Hi, Grace,” Trevor stammered as he slowly eased over toward me. “You look awesome!”His words were slurred. Crap, he was trashed. And it was only ten o’clock.“Do you wanna go outside with me?” he asked as he placed his hand on my shoulder, just trying to stay upright.I eased my arm around him so he wouldn’t fall into the kitchen counter. Desperately, I glanced at my friends for help. My face probably looked pained; I was sure my forehead was creased with worry. We hadn’t planned for this scenario.They looked somewhat concerned, but Sunny gave me a look urging me to go with him.Finally I said, “Sure, maybe for a little while.”He gave me the widest grin and it made me feel a little better. Claudia quickly slipped a beer into my free hand and smiled at us as we walked onto the balcony.“I’m so glad you came tonight,” Trevor said with a goofy smile.“Same here.”As I searched for something to talk with him about, he leaned in closer, his face suddenly serious. “You are?”“Yeah. Why do you seem so surprised?”“Because I dig you, Grace. I dig you big-time.”Wow.“Really?” I was stunned. All this working up to telling him how I felt, and he already felt the same way?“Hell, yeah,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I got here early, just so I wouldn’t miss you.” He put his hands on the railing to stabilize himself, while keeping his eyes on me.Well, that explained why Trevor was so drunk already. At least I didn’t have to Google A.A. when I got back to the dorms.Strangely enough, my neck wasn’t sweating. My pulse was starting to even out, and there was no sign of a panic attack on the horizon. Maybe this dating business wasn’t so difficult. Maybe it just took a few cocktails to help everyone loosen up. Maybe I could like a guy, maybe I could relax enough to actually date.As I opened my mouth to respond, Trevor doubled over, clutching his stomach.I screamed as he fell to the floor. He grasped my legs tightly as he heaved and vomited, right onto my brand new ballet flats.Oh. My. God.Claudia and Sunny rounded the corner, and when they saw what was happening their eyes grew wide. I looked at them in horror, silently pleading with them to help me.“I’ll get some paper towels,” Sunny said, and ran back into the apartment. Claudia turned away from me, her shoulders shaking. I could tell she was holding back laughter. Of course Claudia would find this funny; she didn’t have to worry about things like this. No one ever puked on her.Two of Trevor’s buddies picked him up and carried him out of the apartment. As they left, Sunny returned and washed my shoes. They were ruined…and so was my night. I had finally gotten a real chance with Trevor and it was gone. I’d finally been faced with a guy who was interested in me—genuinely interested—and I wasn’t panicking. So much for that.Even though my shoes were cleaned, I knew I could never wear them again. I would never be able to wear them knowing that my chance with Trevor had ended like this.“I loved those shoes.” I sobbed into Sunny’s shoulder as she walked me home to the dorms. Claudia had stayed with Angie and would be home later. Secretly, I was relieved. I felt much more comfortable with Sunny when I was embarrassed like this.“Oh, sweetie, I know,” she said in a soothing voice. She was such a good friend, always there for me when I needed her.“Is it me, Sunny? Am I that un-dateable?”“Of course not!” she said.“Then why is it that the only guy who has expressed any interest at all in me just puked all over my favorite shoes?”The sting of tears pierced my eyes. So desperately, I wanted to sink myself and hide from the world. I felt so exposed, so naked with my pain.“Oh, Gracie, no!” Sunny said as she rubbed my back lightly. “Trevor probably had too much to drink because he was nervous to see you.”“Maybe,” I said, wiping my eyes. “But why do I have such bad luck?”“I don’t know.” Sunny shrugged. “Don’t worry, things will perk up. We’re just starting our freshman year. The possibilities are endless.”“True,” I said, trying so hard not to be a pessimist.“And who knows,” she added. “Maybe you and Trevor will get another chance?”Her optimism was contagious, but not contagious enough.“I can’t even think about that. Do you know how much these shoes cost me? I just got them! Ugh!” I hung my head, wiping away the stray tears running down my swollen cheeks.Sunny took my hand and led me into our dorm. Our friend Kelly was studying in the floor lounge. She looked up as we came through and gave us a big smile.“How was the party? How was the guy, Grace?”I stuck out my foot, revealing the evidence of Trevor’s sickness. “He puked on my shoes, Kelly. The drunk ass puked on my shoes!”Tears started to form in my eyes all over again. This was such a nightmare. Without another word, I turned and walked toward my room.“Is she okay?” Kelly asked Sunny, clearly concerned, and probably feeling guilty for even asking about Trevor. And now I felt bad for making her feel bad. Ugh. I couldn’t win.Being the caretaker she was, Sunny quickly said something reassuring to Kelly and followed me to my room. She helped me out of my disgusting shoes and tucked me into my bed.“You listen to me, Grace,” she said as she stroked my hair from my eyes. “This was just one bad night.”“I don’t know, Sun. I feel like it’ll just be more of the same.”“No way,” she said in a reassuring tone. “In a few months, we’ll be laughing about it.”I rolled my eyes and grunted, showing my sarcastic side. But Sunny knew that I desperately wanted to believe her.“Tomorrow, we’re going out again,” she said brightly. “Let’s just go, have a great time, and not plan for anything to happen, okay?”“All right.” I was too exhausted to argue with her. Deep down, I knew she was right. “Thank you, Sunny. For taking care of me, and for being there. It means a lot,” I said, reaching out for her hand.“I know.” She smiled. “Get some rest, Gracie.”After she left, I lay there in my bed, staring at the ceiling and wondering if things would ever change for me. I hoped that one day I’d be able to approach life in a different way, that I’d feel confident in myself and be comfortable dating like Claudia and Sunny were. But would that ever happen?Could I allow it to happen?
Melissa Brown was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. She attended the University of Illinois and is the mother of two fantastic kids. She’s an avid reader who enjoys making handmade gifts for her family and friends, as well as baking and painting. Melissa has an unhealthy obsession with pop culture. She speaks fluent movie quotes from the 1980s (John Hughes = genius), reads celebrity gossip magazines and never misses an episode of Scandal. She enjoys writing contemporary romance, romantic suspense and young adult novels.All of Melissa’s books are currently available exclusively through Amazon.com and are part of the Kindle Unlimited Program.
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