Keily, the Bookworm Part-15
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Keily woke up, fully aware that she was in new surroundings different from her home back in her country. She got up and washed up. She changed her clothes to a dark blue striped T-shirt and blue jeans. And then she waited for Grace to come.
Sure at 8:40 am, there was a knock on the door. Keily went up to the door to meet Grace and invited her in. She brought a big carton box, which surprised Keily.
Then in the living room, Grace opened the box to bring out bread, jam, fried eggs, pancakes and bottles of orange juice.
Keily said in wonder, “What a dainty breakfast, Grace!”
After finishing breakfast and cleaning away wastes, Grace said, “Let me take you on a tour around the campus. I will only show you the main buildings that you will need shortly. The rest, I am sure, you can figure out yourself.”
Keily said, “I am completely okay with it, Grace. I am most grateful to you for all your help and kindness.”
Grace smiled, “No problem. It’s a pleasure.”
Keily locked her apartment door from the outside, and the girls walked and stood in front of the shuttle stop. Soon the shuttle was in sight, and both the girls got on it.
They stepped down from the shuttle in the main campus area. A tower stood tall among all the buildings. Keily pointed at it and asked, “What is it?”
Grace replied, “It has libraries and administrative offices. But the UT tower is well known for shining with burnt orange light for two nights in a row to celebrate commencement and to honor the current year’s graduates.”
Grace then said, “I will take you now to the Computer Science Complex.”
Soon they reached there, and Keily viewed it for a long time from all angles.
Next, Grace showed Keily the University Health Services. And she said, “After your orientation tomorrow, they will ask you to come here for your blood tests for TB screening and measles. So it is important that you recognize this building.”
Keily nodded in agreement. Grace showed her then where the orientation would take place. Keily took a mental note of it and was sure she would be able to locate it the next day.
Next, both the girls headed for the Universal Federal Credit Unit (UFCU), which served banking purposes. There were many ATMs for UFCU on campus as well. Grace asked Keily to go inside with her and went up to a lady and said, “This is my friend, Keily. She would like to open a savings account at your branch.”
The lady was blonde and smiled sweetly, “Sure, here fill up this form. Take a seat first.”
Keily filled up the information on the form, and they took a copy of her passport and visa. And Keily was able to deposit cash in her new account.
Next, they walked again until they came to the grocery complex. They went inside for shopping. Keily used an extra $100/- cash in her wallet for shopping. Her bank card would be ready in two days’ time. Grace also shopped. Keily’s shopping cart was full of groceries, dessert cups, healthy packet meals, soup packets, sliced chicken packets, cooking spices and what not!
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It cost her a total bill of $90, and Keily was happy that she saved $10.
Coming back from the shopping complex in the shuttle, they got down and put both their groceries inside Keily’s apartment. And then Keily and Grace came out again so that Grace could show her the nearby laundry site where she would need 25 cent coins for washing and drying.
Next, they strolled to the University Apartments Office. Grace said, “I took the keys of your apartment, giving my signature temporarily in the contract. Now you will have to put your signature permanently in the one-year contract of your apartment.”
“Okay, I understand”, said Keily.
After the task was done, they came back to the apartment, and Grace gave Keily a number where she could contact for dial-up internet. Grace reminded Keily that the internet was a part of the monthly bill for her apartment.
Keily said, “Yes, I remember now.”
Grace further said, “ Only your electric bill is separate. Apartments staff will read your electric meter each month. Billing for electrical service is approximately from the 10th of the month to the 9th of the next month.”
Keily said, “Okay, I get it.”
Grace cordially said, “ Keily, that is all I can remember you will need for the moment. You can buy cheap telephone cards to call home from land phones. But that can be settled a bit later. Let me know how your orientation goes tomorrow. I will give you a visit in the evening today to see everything is okay with you. I will be busy with classes during the day tomorrow.”
Keily said in complete gratitude, “Thank you for everything, Grace. I don’t know how I would have managed all by myself.”
Grace said politely, “Don’t mention it. I am happy to help you out.”
They both smiled happily, and then Grace left.
Keily started arranging her groceries in the refrigerator. Also, she arranged her cupboards with cereal packets, rice pots, disposable plates, spoons and cooking spices. Having done that, she wondered what to cook so that Grace and herself could eat together in the evening.
She thought of cooking rice with chicken pieces and spices and got busy.
She washed everything including the cooking utensils and was soon on her way to cook. She settled everything on the stove in a large utensil and switched the stove on. After about 30 minutes, a nice aroma filled her apartment. She was happy that her cooking was a success and waited for three more minutes to dry up the recipe a bit more.
Then she took the utensil off the stove and put it on a rest cloth in the sink area. She took off the lid with another piece of cloth and smelled. Yes, it felt good. She was delighted that Grace would enjoy it.
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Part-14 depicts that there is a flight delay at Dallas airport. This stirs up anxiety in Keily. Finally, she reaches Austin airport where her old friends receive her. They take her to their on-campus apartment. After a good dinner together, they take her to her apartment, and soon Keily struggles to get sleep, her friends having left.
© 2020 Rosina S Khan
