By the time I woke it was dark.  I had slept through an entire day’s worth of practice.  I had a note from the nurse excusing me, but I hadn’t planned to use it until now.  I guess all the traveling, unpacking, and that bump on the head caught up with me.  I looked over at my faulty alarm clock, and saw that I was up just in time for dinner.  As if on cue my stomach started to growl, and I rushed downstairs to the cafeteria. 

It seemed like all the other girls were already there eating, with only a few stragglers, like me, still getting their food.  I grabbed a tray and started piling up on pizza, chips and soda.  Suddenly, I was struck by a dilemma that should have been all too apparent before.  I had spent the first night here unpacking, and virtually all the first day sleeping.  So, I hadn’t really gotten a chance to meet very many of the girls.  In fact, it felt like the only person I really knew was Ashley, and even if I could find her in the crowded cafeteria there was no way I was sitting with her. 

The seconds ticked by as I nervously scanned the room for a place to sit. Then, by some stroke of luck, I saw my scrimmage team all sitting together.  And as an added bonus, Ashley was nowhere near.  I nervously walked over, keeping my eyes cast down, hoping they would recognize me before I got to the table. When I got close enough, I looked up, and saw Cindy, who had been our center, smiling at me.

"Wow, where are you taking that tray?  To feed the homeless?" she joked.  The entire table bustled with laughter, and I couldn’t help but join in.  I did have four slices of pizza, three bags of chips, and quite a few sodas – most of which I planned to take back with me to the room. 

"Don’t look so scared, take a seat," she invited, pulling out the chair beside her. 

As I sat down, everyone started talking about our earlier scrimmage, particularly the incident I least wanted to talk about.

“Yeah, you hit your head pretty hard.  I hope you’re feeling better," Amanda offered, with a genuine look of concern.