Unexpectedly hit by the COVID wrecking ball

My 8 a.m. alarm yelled at me.

I sat up with a mix of determination and exhaustion fighting a battle in my head.

Around 8:30, I headed off to the gym.

My suitemate and I indulged in our usual morning conversation as we tried not to slip on the icy Castleton walkways.

“Maybe if I slip and hit my head or something, I could sue the school!” I said with a grin on my face.

The morning gym always felt amazing, ignoring my phone’s new ‘your music is playing too loud’ feature.

Not to sound cliche, but the gym was my therapy. I was constantly pushing myself past my comfort zone, and I loved it.

We headed out around 9:30 to shower and eat before our 11 a.m. classes.

The cold shower put me in physical discomfort, but that icy sensation soon became soothing.

My roommate stopped to talk to me as soon as I got out.

“Bro, my girlfriend got COVID.”

Shit. This cannot be good.

“I’m going to get tested instead of heading to class,” he said.

It was a moment like when your parents used to leave you all alone at the grocery store, and you keep asking yourself ‘what the hell am I going to do?’

I decided to go to class. Not to brag or anything, but I’m double vaccinated and boosted.

I ate quickly and went on my way to my absolute favorite class, Media Writing.

I threw my AirPods on and listened to my playlist on shuffle.

Funny thing about my class, my roommate’s girlfriend’s roommate sits right behind me.

I walked in and we started conversing about the situation.

She told me I should get tested after class, so I did.

After a class of taking good notes, and paying attention 100% of the time, I headed off to get tested.

I arrived at the Wellness Center to find my four other suitemates, all looking to get tested.

We all grabbed a rapid test, came back, and read the instructions.

It felt like a COVID ritual, sitting in a circle, everyone putting the little Q-tips up their noses.

My anxiety started to build up.

What if I am positive? I’m gonna go crazy all alone in a dark room.

As we started, I already noticed two faint lines beginning to appear. Well, this is it for me.

Shit. Other than my roommate, who left, two more of us were positive.

Shit. I’m supposed to go on a plane to Florida in a week.

COVID really just hit my life like a wrecking ball.

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