A/N: This was originally going to have three-part chapters, which is why this first chapter is so short. Read and Review.
"Desdemona? Do you care to explain this?"
Dess looked up through her soldering goggles at her parents, who stood just outside her door. Her mother had an open letter in her hand, and her father looked as if a blood vessel in his brain had burst. Sighing, she set down her soldering gun and Nitroglycerin, an old bicycle wheel rim that she was weaponizing.
"What?" she asked, even though she already knew.
Dess's mother held out the letter. Dess crossed her room slowly and took it. As she read it, a smile spread across her pale face.
"Well?" her mother asked.
"'Dear Miss Desdemona Hall,'" Dess read. "'We are pleased to inform you that your application for enrollment has been approved. Welcome to Brewster's Academy.'" Dess looked up at her parents. "Sounds pretty self-explanatory to me."
Dess's father exploded. "How do you expect us to send you to boarding school? You do the bills! You know what our money situation is! And you didn't even ask! What do you have to say for yourself, Desdemona?"
Dess went over to her desk and opened the top drawer. She pulled out a large parchment envelope and handed it to her mother.
"I got a scholarship. A full scholarship," she added.
"it's in Virginia, Desdemona," her mother said. By the sound of her voice, Dess knew she was wearing them down.
"I know, Mom," she said. "But since Jessica disappeared, and Melissa left, I haven't really had any friends. It's been almost a year. I need a new start. Please."
She had them. They would leave, pretend to talk about it, then come back in two hours and tell her yes. But, of course, Dess couldn't let them know that she knew that she had won. Working up tears, she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and clasped her hands together.
After a few moments, her dad broke. "All right, Desdemona. Your mother and I will talk about this." And with that, they left.
Dess smiled and turned to Ada, who was spinning in a perfect circle. "We're in."