Free On The Floor (Second Story) by Jennifer LaCross Page A

at least know who is in there?” I can’t believe this day.
    “Um. No idea. Sorry.” I can tell he is embarrassed by the way he handled this situation and he is very thankful that I happened to show up.
    I walk into the bathroom and the sobs have quieted to sniffles. I walk up to the stall door and start knocking lightly. I hear some movement and a big breath. “It’s occupied,” responds a quiet voice. She has a southern accent and I realize it’s Heather, one of the drama majors.
    “Heather? It’s Rachel. Is everything alright?”
    A sob followed by more sniffles. “Um, I don’t know!” she wails followed by more crying.
    “I’m going to be in my room. Whenever you are ready, come and talk to me.”
    “Okay. I’ll be there in a few minutes,” she says quietly.
    I walk out of the bathroom and see Jake at the door. I look at him and the concern is written all over his face. We start walking toward our rooms. “She’ll be out in a few minutes. Just hang out in your room until you see her come into my room, then you can go shower. I want her to have a few minutes alone to get herself together.”
    “Do you know what happened?”
    “No idea. But she’s coming to talk to me. Wish me luck. I’ve dealt with everything from somebody waxing half an eyebrow off, to a girl’s thirty year-old ex-boyfriend stalker. Life of an RA.”
    “What?!” He looks legitimately surprised with the stuff I've dealt with.
    I laugh. “Don’t look so worried. It’s not so bad most of the time. Mostly break-ups. See you later!” I smile at him as he walks into his room.
    Heather ends up coming to my room with a pregnancy test she was too scared to take. I open the box and shove it to the back of my top desk drawer. (I don’t want anyone seeing that in the garbage can.) I hand her the test and she slips it in her jacket sleeve. We walk back to the bathroom and I stand outside while she takes the test. We head back to my room and wait a few minutes for the results.
    It comes back negative and she is so relieved she jumps up and hugs me. We talk and I find out that she was having unprotected sex. “Remember this feeling, Heather. Get on the pill or something and use a condom every time. You don’t want to feel like this again, right?”
    “No. Fucking. Way.” She shakes her head. “My mom won’t let me get birth control because she thinks it will make me have sex and she doesn’t want me having sex. Her plan isn’t working and my boyfriend ran out of condoms.”
    “You’re eighteen, Heather. Go to Planned Parenthood and get on the pill yourself and carry your own condoms.” I smile at her. “And just in case you find yourself in a situation where you are out of condoms again, there are other things to do with your boyfriend other than have sex.”
    “Rachel! I don’t need sex tips!” she yells embarrassed.
    “Oh my god! No! I meant that you could go to the movies or the batting cages!” I am mortified.
    We both start laughing.
    “Thanks, Rachel!” she says as she walks out of my room.
    I sit back on my bed and hear a knock at the door.
    “Come in!”
    It’s Jake. “Hey, I just saw Heather leave. She looked happy. Everything okay?”
    “Yep. We worked it out.” I smile reassuringly.
    “What was that all about?” he asks, sitting on my desk.
    “RA/Resident confidentiality,” I say crossing my arms and smiling at him.
    “Whatever!” he jokes. “But seriously, does that happen often?”
    “Um, like a few times a month,” I say shrugging my shoulders. “Most of the girls just come right to me, but every once in a while I find them crying somewhere.”
    “How am I supposed to deal with that kind of thing? If you wouldn’t have shown up, I probably would have just stood there like an idiot.” He looks seriously worried that he will end up in this situation again.
    “You can always call me. Or ask them what is wrong. Even if they don’t want to talk to you showing concern will help build the