<span style="color: #BF4040"><span style="font-size: 85%; line-height: 116%;">Soo Lin woke with a start, heart pounding with fear at some undeterminable force. Perhaps she had had a terrible dream, which slipped away with every millisecond she was awake, or a noise had startled her mind and forced her to open her eyes. Whatever it was, Soo Lin certainly didn't know. She had always been a light sleeper, waking up whenever her dad would walk through the hallway early in the morning to go to work. She had gotten better over the years, but now and then she couldn't stop it.<br/>Rolling over in her star-covered duvet, Soo Lin grabbed the alarm clock and gazed at the pulsing red numbers. She took a sharp intake of breath. She was supposed to have been up ten minutes ago. She might have forgotten to set her alarm last night, which was most unlike her. The covers were thrown on to the floor as she rushed out of bed, over to her dresser. The clothes she had picked were neatly folded on the top of a long drawer dresser. She pulled each item on quickly and hustled over to the bathroom, careful not to disturb her room mate who was still asleep. Soo Lin had requested to have a dorm room alone, but she had been saddled with another first year who rarely attended class and otherwise just slept. She would likely be kicked out within the week. Soo Lin was astonished that the girl had even gotten into the prestigious school. Probably a relative of some important figure. Reaching the bathroom, she opened the door and looked in to the mirror.<br/><br/>She gazed at herself for a moment, her panic to get things done not hiding the frown on her face. She didn't want to do this. This wasn't her art. The 'good luck's and 'you'll do great's from her family still rang in her head. Letting out a sigh, she dragged a comb through her short, unruly black hair and managed to somewhat tame it into its normal, pixie cut shape. She looked over to her box of earrings, flipping open the lid. Soo Lin considered for a moment before picking the pair shaped like pine trees. They best fit her outfit, a dark green tee shirt and skinny jeans. She gazed in the mirror with concentration as she put them on, fumbling with the backings. <br/>When she was sure they were in, Soo Lin went to brushing her teeth and other simple morning duties. She considered makeup, one hand on the kit that contained her eyeliner and lipstick. The hand slowly drew away as she gazed at her face in the mirror, black eyes shining for a moment before she bent down to grab deoderant. Her motions were a little faster, sharper than before. Any other person would not likely feel so rushed. Soo Lin had packed the night before, as well as prepared everything for the morning, such as clothes and breakfast. That ten minutes was so that she could have been early. She believed that being on time, or even a little early, could affect the outcome of the visit. Little superstitions like this made up Soo Lin's life, though she wasn't quite as obsessed with them as some people can be.<br/><br/>She wasn't nervous for this trip, thinking of it as just an extended class at a new location. She had heard rumours that they often expelled students on this trip. She didn't want to fail, but if she did, she was sure her parents wouldn't mind. She could go back home, work on her art. Walking over to the kitchen area, Soo Lin began tossing pre-cooked chicken cubes in a pan, placing it on her portable stove top. The vegetables had already been chopped or diced in preparation for a stir-fry. It wasn't flashy, but the meal was healthy and quick to make. Adding in the vegetables, Soo Lin stirred it mindlessly with a wooden spoon, considering whether or not she should season it. She decided not to and instead took the pan right off the burner and set it on the counter as her plate. She ate it quickly, giving the pan a quick scrub before turning away from the kitchen to grab her suitcases. The slightly larger contained clothes and toiletries, the other filled with cooking items. She had no electronics, being brought up in a modest fashion where puzzles and board games were the main form of entertainment, though she did have a sketch pad which was already chocked full of doodles and art pieces. She drew in class, out of class, in the middle of the night. Whenever her muse called her, really. She most enjoyed drawing people, especially when she had them as a model in the flesh. The first five pages in the sktech book were busts of her family, accompanied by an actual picture. She pulled away from thoughts of home and slipped on her plain black flats before reaching out to her suitcases.<br/><br/>Grabbing a handle in each hand, she wheeled them to the door. This was it. Her technical side would shine through, her ability to make exact measurements and followed the instructions to a tee easily expressing itself. Then they would see she had no passion, no flair, as she wanted them to. She was a flavourless cook, and she knew. She let out a sigh, running a hand through her black hair and standing up one suitcase to open the door. She walked out into the hallway, turning to give one last sweep of the room before closing the door and starting down the maze of dorms. She cursed herself as she realized she had forgotten her jacket. Turning back, she opened the door once again, hand snaking around to grab the light blue parka. She placed it loosely on herself before rushing once again down the hall. She made it to the elevator, clicking the 'down' button with slight impatience. <br/><br/>They were all to meet by the administration building before being packed away in buses like sardines. It wasn't that she was antisocial, she just didn't hold conversations very well, her attempts at small talk often fading quickly to non-existance. The idea of sitting next to someone for a who-knows-how-long bus ride made her feel inadequate. Sometimes she would speak in Chinese so that she would't go through the embarrassment of the person realizing she held a conversation about as well as a marble bust held in water. They usually assumed he didn't speak English and turned away. But maybe this time she would try.<br/><br/>The elevator doors hissed open, startling her out of her thoughts. Normally she would take the stairs, but with the suitcases she figured it would be easier. She stepped into the metal box, satisfied that it was empty save herself. She pressed the 'Main Floor' button and watched as the doors slid over the hallway she wouldn't see for a week. <br/>The trip was short, as it only traversed two floors. Soo Lin stepped out, glancing around. There was no one there except two male students and a woman at the help desk, staring busily at her computer, fingers flying across the keyboard. Soo Lin wheeled her way over the tiled floor, giving the two students a smile and a nervous wave. They were both in her classes, weren't they? She pushed the door open, bracing herself as she opened the door to the cold.<br/><br/>She let out a little shiver at the biting temperature, feet crunching on the frosty grass as she cut through the lawn to go over to the meeting area. <span style="font-style: italic">Bus number two,</span> she thought, pushing her hood up to warm her cold ears. Normally she would double check that she was right, but the large mosh of people deterred her and she instead climbed on to the bus, sitting at the very front seat so that she could gaze out the full-length window of the door. Her mental check list went off in her head as she slid her suitcases neatly under the brown peeling seat of the bus. <span style="font-style: italic">Wok, recipe cards, toothbrush, bible, check.</span> She went through a various number of items before glancing out of the window, resting her chin on her hand. So people had made friends already. She could manage on her own, she was quite adept at that. </span> </span>