First time going off campus … and being ditched

For many juniors, going off campus during lunch is a good way to relax from classes, but one unfortunate junior had to go through much more trouble than he asked for.

While some students need to drive fast to come back to class on time, junior Eugene Chiou had to endure a long walk back to school.

One day in November, Chiou went off campus with one of his friends and drove to Safeway to get some food.

Unfortunately for Chiou, his friend drove back to school without him, leaving Chiou with no transportation back. Chiou felt that he was ditched primarily because of a conflict they had.

“It felt like betrayal because I honestly didn’t expect it to happen and I was pretty mad and upset,” said Chiou.

At first, Chiou panicked, but after he calmed down he tried to see if his friend would turn back. Once he realized he was ditched, he tried to hitchhike back to school, but he ultimately couldn’t find a ride and instead opted to walk all the way back to school.

“The walk wasn’t that far, but I was pretty annoyed. Plus, most of lunch had passed, so I knew I was going to be late,” said Chiou.

Chiou was 30 minutes late to his English class, but didn’t want his friend to be in trouble and he explained what happened without giving away names.

“Ms. Ritchie was a little irritated, but I didn’t want my friend to get in trouble, because I knew he didn’t mean any real harm,” said Chiou.

“He felt bad about the ditching and we made up, so I still go to lunch with him,” said Chiou. “We still go to Safeway and other places like Chipotle and Five Guys.”