The following morning, Randy Nevbanks woke to the sound of someone opening and closing kitchen cabinets.
He glanced at the clock.
7:12 a.m.
He groaned.
“Steph?”
No answer.
Another cabinet opened.
Then another.
Randy sat up.
“Steph, are you tearing down the kitchen?”
From somewhere down the hallway came her voice.
“NO! I’M LOOKING FOR THE COFFEE!”
Randy smiled.
Welcome to their first morning in Gainesville.
He climbed out of bed and walked into the kitchen.
Steph stood in front of an open cabinet, wearing a University of Florida T-shirt, her hair pulled back.
She turned toward him.
“Good morning.”
Randy looked at the counter.
Three empty boxes.
Two coffee mugs.
And absolutely no coffee.
He raised an eyebrow.
“Find it?”
Steph sighed.
“We forgot to buy it.”
Randy leaned against the doorway.
“Didn’t we talk about buying groceries last night?”
“Yes.”
“And didn’t somebody say she had everything under control?”
Steph pointed at him.
“Careful, Nevbanks.”
He laughed.
“Just asking.”
She folded her arms.
“Well, since you’re awake, you can help me make a grocery list.”
Randy looked at the empty refrigerator.
“Coffee. Eggs. Bread. Milk.”
Steph grabbed a notebook.
“Toothpaste.”
He glanced at her.
“Did you find your toothbrush?”
She smiled.
“Yes.”
“Which box?”
“The one marked ‘important.'”
Randy burst out laughing.
“I knew it!”
Steph tossed a dish towel at him.
“Just make the list.”
A Call From Home
A little later, Randy’s phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
MOM
He answered.
“Morning, Mom.”
Debbie Nevbanks’s familiar voice filled the kitchen.
“Good morning, baby. How was your first night?”
Randy smiled.
“Good. We survived.”
“Survived?”
“Yeah. We had pizza on the floor because we don’t have a dining table yet.”
Debbie laughed.
“Well, everybody has to start somewhere.”
Steph leaned toward the phone.
“Good morning, Debbie!”
“Steph, sweetheart! How are you?”
“I’m good. Just trying to get us organized.”
Debbie chuckled.
“That sounds about right.”
Randy shook his head.
“Mom, don’t encourage her.”
“Randy, somebody has to keep you in line.”
Steph laughed.
“THANK YOU!”
Randy looked toward the ceiling.
“Two against one already.”
Debbie’s voice softened.
“Seriously, though. I’m proud of both of you.”
Randy grew quiet.
“Thanks, Mom.”
“You’ve worked hard to get there. Don’t forget to enjoy it.”
“We won’t.”
“And Randy?”
“Yeah?”
“Remember what I told you.”
He smiled.
“School comes first.”
“That’s right.”
Steph nodded approvingly.
“See? Your mother understands.”
Randy laughed.
“Everybody understands except me, apparently.”
Before Debbie could answer, another voice came through the phone.
“RANDY!”
Randy grinned.
“Mia?”
“YOU LEFT YOUR ROOM A MESS!”
He laughed.
“I don’t even live there anymore!”
“THAT’S NOT AN EXCUSE!”
Steph nearly doubled over laughing.
Randy shook his head.
“Tell Mia I love her.”
“I HEARD THAT!”
Debbie laughed.
“All right, you two. Have a good morning. Call us when you can.”
“We will,” Randy promised.
After the call ended, Steph looked at him.
“You miss them already?”
Randy glanced at the phone.
“Yeah. A little.”
Steph slipped her hand into his.
“Me too.”
The Other Two Founders
By late morning, Randy and Steph had finally made it to the grocery store.
They were standing in the cereal aisle when Randy’s phone buzzed.
A message from Tony.
TONY: Y’all in Gainesville yet?
Randy typed back.
RANDY: Been here since yesterday.
The reply came almost immediately.
TONY: And nobody told me where the apartment is?
Randy laughed.
Steph looked over.
“What’s funny?”
“Tony.”
She smiled.
“What’s he want?”
“Apparently, we’re supposed to give him a personal tour.”
Steph grabbed a box of cereal.
“Tell him he can come over after we finish unpacking.”
Randy typed the message.
Another notification appeared.
This time, it was Tammie.
TAMMIE: Has anybody heard from Tony?
He’s supposed to help me move my stuff into the dorm.
Randy showed Steph the screen.
She laughed.
“Oh, this should be good.”
Randy called Tony.
“Bro.”
“What’s up?”
“Where are you?”
“On my way to campus.”
Randy glanced at Steph.
“Tony, weren’t you supposed to help Tammie move?”
There was a pause.
Then—
“Oh, man.”
Randy closed his eyes.
“Tony.”
“I forgot!”
Steph shook her head, laughing.
Randy put the call on speaker.
“Man, you better call her.”
“I’m calling her right now.”
The call ended.
Steph looked at Randy.
“How much you want to bet Tammie’s already mad?”
Randy grinned.
“I’m not taking that bet.”
They continued down the aisle, laughing.
It felt good knowing Tony and Tammie would be starting college at UF too.
Their lives were changing.
But at least some things would stay familiar.
The News Breaks
That afternoon, Randy and Steph returned to their apartment carrying grocery bags.
Steph set the milk on the counter.
“Okay. We officially have food.”
Randy lifted a bag.
“And coffee.”
Steph smiled.
“Now we’re really adults.”
His phone buzzed.
Then buzzed again.
And again.
Randy frowned.
“What in the world?”
Steph looked over.
“What’s wrong?”
He opened his messages.
Kevin had sent a link.
Then Kristeen.
Then Debbie.
Randy tapped the first message.
A news headline filled his screen.
RAIDER NATION’S FOUNDERS TAKE GAINESVILLE
Underneath was a photograph of Randy, Steph, Tony, and Tammie from an earlier Raider Nation event.
Steph walked over.
“Randy?”
He turned the screen toward her.
Her eyes widened.
“Oh, wow.”
The article highlighted how all four founding members of Raider Nation had earned scholarships to the University of Florida.
Randy’s leadership and accomplishments.
Steph’s academic achievements and cheerleading.
Tony’s football scholarship.
Tammie’s academic success.
And the organization they’d helped build together.
Steph read the headline again.
“They really wrote about all four of us.”
Randy nodded.
“Looks like it.”
His phone rang.
Kevin.
Randy answered.
“Hey, Kevin.”
“Randy! You seen the article?”
“Just now.”
Kevin laughed.
“Well, get ready. The reporter wants to speak with all four of you.”
Randy glanced at Steph.
“When?”
“They’re trying to arrange something on campus.”
Randy hesitated.
“Kevin, classes are getting ready to start.”
“I know. And school comes first. We’ll work around everybody’s schedules.”
Steph leaned closer.
“Tell Kevin we’re excited, but we need to know what they’re asking before we agree.”
Randy nodded.
“Steph says we need the details first.”
Kevin chuckled.
“Smart girl. That’s why she’s one of the founders.”
Steph smiled.
“Thank you, Kevin!”
Randy laughed.
“I don’t get any credit around here.”
“You’re getting plenty of credit in that article,” Kevin replied.
After they hung up, Randy sat on the couch.
Steph joined him.
For a moment, they stared at the headline.
“Remember when Raider Nation was just an idea?” Steph asked.
Randy smiled.
“Yeah.”
“Now look.”
He nodded.
“It’s something.”
Steph turned toward him.
“It’s something we all built.”
Randy looked at the photograph.
Four friends.
Four scholarships.
Four different dreams.
And a history that had brought them to the same university.
More Than a Headline
That evening, Randy stood in the doorway of the second bedroom.
His laptop sat on the desk.
The Raider Nation logo glowed on the screen.
He was about to sit down when Steph appeared behind him.
“Randy?”
He turned.
“Yeah?”
“Before you start working, can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
She held up two sheets of paper.
“Our class schedules.”
Randy smiled.
“Already?”
“Yep.”
Steph handed him his.
“I thought we could look them over together. Figure out when we’ll be studying, when I have cheer practice, and when you’ve got meetings.”
Randy studied the page.
“That’s probably a good idea.”
Steph smiled.
“Probably?”
“Definitely.”
They walked back into the living room.
Steph spread both schedules across the coffee table they’d assembled earlier that afternoon.
Randy sat beside her.
“Okay,” she said.
“First rule.”
He looked at her.
“We’re making time for school.”
“Agreed.”
“Second rule. We’re making time for ourselves.”
Randy nodded.
“Definitely.”
“And third rule…”
She paused.
Randy raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
Steph grinned.
“Tony is not allowed to forget another moving day.”
Randy burst out laughing.
“Good luck enforcing that one.”
Steph laughed with him.
Then she looked down at the schedules.
There were already more things to do than either of them had expected.
Classes.
Assignments.
Cheer practice.
Football games.
Raider Nation responsibilities.
And somewhere in the middle of it all, the everyday business of building a home.
Randy glanced toward the second bedroom.
Then he looked at Steph.
“Hey.”
She turned.
“What?”
“Thanks.”
“For what?”
“For reminding me that we’re students first.”
Steph smiled.
“You’re welcome.”
“And for reminding me that we have a life outside Raider Nation.”
Her expression softened.
“That’s the part I don’t want us to forget.”
Randy nodded.
“We won’t.”
Steph leaned against his shoulder.
Outside, Gainesville carried on around them.
The four founders of Raider Nation were beginning their college journeys.
Back home, Debbie, Kevin, and Kristeen would continue keeping the RNPL office running.
The organization they’d helped build wasn’t disappearing.
It was growing.
But for Randy and Steph, the biggest change wasn’t the newspaper headline.
It was learning how to build a future of their own.
And as they studied their schedules, one thing became clear.