The day college decisions came out, I was on an Amtrak train back from our senior trip with my boyfriend, Ethan, and my foster sister, Olivia.

The moment Olivia boarded, she took a window seat. Ethan sat down beside her without hesitation.

By the time I put my luggage away, the only seat left was across the aisle. I froze for a second.

Ethan said casually, “Jenny, Olivia and I were talking about what we might study at Harvard.”

“Didn’t you say you weren’t too confident about your applications? Just sit over there and watch something.”

They laughed and talked the whole way, while I couldn’t get a word in.

At five that afternoon, the decisions finally came out.