The girls' dorm common room is small. There's three couches squeezed around a tv and a pool table too close to the back of one of those couches. All the couches are different colors and the pool table looks like many or all of the former residence of this hall had done some sexual activities on the green felt. The green is more of a brown color now. Rae keeps looking around to avoid the few eyes she knows are looking at her bare thighs. She can't tell if they're looking because of her size or because of her scars but either way she can't really blame them. If she were them she'd be curious too.
Once all twenty girls are seated somewhere in the room a skinny blonde girl in a white polo and denim skirt walks in. Rae thinks she hears Izzy say something under her breath but couldn't quite make out what that was. But then Izzy, who is squeezed between Rae and the arm rest of the couch, is tugging on a strand of Rae's hair just like her little sister, Jasmine, likes to. Rae looks at Izzy then down at the other three girls squeezed on the couch with them and huffs.
"Iz, why don't ya just sit on my lap. Couch was barely made for three not five."
Izzy nods her head excitedly and stands so Rae can move against the arm rest before plopping down on her lap. The other girls are looking over at them but they don't mind. At least this way less of them can look at and judge Rae's scars.
"Now, what were you trying to tell me?" she whispers into Izzy's ear, chin resting on her shoulder.
"That," Izzy subtly points to the blonde in the polo "is Stacey Stringfellow. She's a right bitch. Remember my boyfriend Chop I was telling ya about?" Rae nods into Izzy's shoulder. In the few days they've been on campus this is the first time Rae ever heard Izzy curse and she wasn't sure how to take it.
"Well Stacey used to date his mate Finn. The stories I've heard. Just horrible."
Izzy had talked briefly about Chop and his mates Finn and Archie. According to her, Finn was a grumpy sod with a heart of gold and Archie was a nerdy musician who had recently come out as gay. Rae looked the blonde up and down and tried to see how someone wouldn't have known that she's a bitch.
Sure, don't judge a book by its cover and all that jazz but it wasn't about her appearance, it was the mannerisms. Since the girl had walked in she'd eyed everyone in the room, gave everyone the same smirk, and went back to look at some girls disapprovingly. The way she fidgeted with her pony tail and denim skirt told Rae that she was probably insecure but her eyes are taking those insecurities and tossing them onto those around her. Maybe Rae was reading too much into it.
"Hello ladies. I am your RA, Stacey. Tonight we're going to sign roommate agreements and then go about our business okay? Each room will get one sheet to write down what rules will be kept in each room such as studying times, whether or not you will share clothes," Stacey made eye contact with Rae then "but some of you won't have that problem."
Rae brought her eyes down and let the rest of what Stacey was saying just rush past her ears. She could feel Izzy stroking one of her hands but blocked everything else out. Yes, she is bigger than most of the girls in the room, yes it is a fact that Izzy's clothes would not fit her, but having it pointed out is different than just knowing it. Rae let her mind focus on Izzy's hand on hers and the comfort.
Stacey's opinion of Rae doesn't matter. She just had to take a second and remind herself of that. Remind herself that her worth as a person does not derive from other people's opinions of her. It sucks sometimes that people judge her for her size but those aren't the people she needs, wants, or deserves to have in her life.
Before Rae could even realize that the hall meeting was over, Izzy was off of her lap and standing right in front Stacey and dragging her into the hall, making sure the glass door was closed behind her before turning back to the stunned RA. Rae wasn't sure what was being said but she knew for a fact that she 1) did not want to be Stacey in that moment and 2) the conversation had something to do with her because Izzy kept pointing towards her. The little red-head was shaking with anger, finger extended towards Rae's still sitting body. Stacey had a look on her face that looked like she wanted Izzy to think she didn't care about the words being thrown at her but behind the forced nonchalance, Rae could see the way Stacey's eyes kept shifting around. She may not care about what was being said to her but she was absolutely concerned about if anyone could see the confrontation and what they may be thinking.