said, handing both of them baskets. “At most we’ll only have nine people in front of us.”
“Everyone, when you’re done getting your books, you’re free for the day. Dinner begins at 5:30 at the dining hall, so just remember to bring your ID with you. We begin again tomorrow at 9 a.m., Darrow Hall.” The young woman waved with her clipboard and left the store, as the students began milling around.
“Let’s see how much books are,” Kelsey said.
“Don’t let me forget my fleece,” Jessica replied.
“I’ll see you in a minute,” Dylan said. He was looking at a Darrow Law School case for his iPhone.
Kelsey and Jessica walked to the books. They passed students browsing through shirts, notebooks, and the small Legal Nutshell selection.
“Are you going to buy any nutshells?” Jessica asked, referring to the small books which gave a simple overview of many legal subjects.
“Probably,” Kelsey said. “Maybe we can split them.”
“Sounds good,” Jessica said. They walked to the almost-empty book section.
“Why isn’t anyone here?” Jessica asked.
“Buying them last. Books are heavy so no one wants to drag them around the store.”
“True. Okay, what’s the damage?” Jessica said, picking up one of the textbooks. “Heavy,” she noted. She glanced at the back. “Oh, no way!” she said.
“What?” Kelsey asked, glancing over her shoulder.
“Two hundred and fifty dollars! And this is only one of the two books we need for Civil Procedure.”
“You must be kidding,” Kelsey said in disbelief.
“I wish I was, Kels.” Jessica said, passing the book to her. Kelsey looked at the sticker in amazement. If every book was this much, she’d be looking at $1500 for the semester, $4500 for the school year.
“You two need one of these,” Matthew said, pushing past them and flashing his gold card. He picked up the books for Civil Procedure.
“Need any help, girls?” his friend asked them.
“Sticker shock, Brandon,” Matthew said.
“You’re not in junior college any more, ladies. You’re playing with the big boys.”
Ignoring the boys, Jessica flipped her hair and turned to Kelsey. “No way. That’s it,” Jessica said. “I’m renting mine from Amazon.”
“They might be marked up,” Kelsey said doubtfully.
“I don’t care. They don’t sell used books here, so I don’t have a choice. No way am I spending $1500.” Kelsey nodded in agreement. $1500 would clean her out for the semester as well.
“Let’s write down the names and editions and head back. I don’t want anyone else getting them before we do.” Jessica pulled two pens out of her purse and she and Kelsey flipped over their schedules. They wrote down the books they needed.
“Ready?”
“Your fleece.”
“Right,” Jessica said. “Super quick.” The girls headed over to the apparel section and Jessica located a navy blue fleece jacket.
“Fifty bucks,” Jessica said in relief as she looked at the price tag. “At least I can afford something around here.” The girls headed for the cashier line, where only one student was in front of them. Dylan walked over.
“Where are your books?” he asked.
“Tell you later,” Jessica said. She slid her jacket to the now-free cashier and pulled out her ID. The cashier slid the ID through the register and handed Jessica her receipt.
“Thanks,” Jessica said, picking up her jacket in surprise. “No bag?” she asked Kelsey on her way out. Kelsey shook her head.
“You’re in Seattle. We’re environmentally friendly around here.”
Jessica laughed as she ripped the tags off of the jacket. “I’m looking forward to this,” she said, giving the jacket a hug. Kelsey laughed. She had already logged into Amazon and was looking for the Civ Pro book.
“Don’t you rent the last one,” Jessica pouted as they walked across the quad.
“It looks