Ariel sighed dreamily at the TV. "Isn't he such an inspiration?" She asked her friends in the dorm room.
Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White, Charlotte, Giselle and Jasmine were lounging all around her, having gathered for a sleepover in the dorm that Snow and Cinderella shared. They were all doing each other's hair or painting one another's fingernails or snacking on the various junk food they'd all just run out to get from the store nearby. They'd been planning to watch a movie, but they saw Ping's broadcast on the TV guide and decided to watch that instead.
Cinderella nodded with a smile. "It's great to have someone like him representing the Trans community."
"And he was so brave to leave China the way he did, and bring his family to the States. I mean, can you imagine how nerve-wracking that must have been?" Snow trilled with wide eyes.
"But it was the right thing to do." Jasmine replied in her usual rational tone. She was kind of the group's rock. "The moment when you're discriminated against because of who you are or who you love is the perfect time to get the hell outta dodge."
Aurora giggled. "Very true. And besides, they're all much happier here."
"Isn't it so wonderful when everything just works out for the best?" Giselle asked cheerfully as Aurora finished braiding her hair.
"You said it, hon! Now pass me those mini donuts!" Charlotte replied.
Ariel had just pulled out her phone to check the time and now squealed, practically leaping up out of her seat. "Oops! Gotta go!" She wasn't staying for the sleepover tonight. She had a date. Again.
Jasmine rolled her eyes in amusement. "Who are you meeting tonight, Ariel?"
Ariel grinned as she pulled on her shoes. "Eric."
"Again?" Aurora's eyebrows popped up in surprise.
Cindy smirked. "You seem to have really taken a liking to him."
"Yeah... He's fun and sweet. But, most of all, he's cute." Ariel stuck out her tongue Miley-style.
"I still like Kida better." Giselle commented. "She's a bit more adventurous."
Ariel had been raised by a rich (and very strict) father and six older sisters who were always watching her. As you might imagine, Ariel had very little chance for adventure- or even fun- growing up. Not to mention always having to dodge paperazzi who constantly sought out any dirt on her family. So, having to grow up conforming to societal norms, trying to seem like a good role model for young girls she didn't even know, and living up to her family's ridiculous expectations left Ariel with no options for being who she really was, which she had fully realized early on in high school; Ariel was a bisexual. She'd somehow managed to keep the world from finding out, but her naturally curious and thrill-seeking spirit had earned her a few very public slip-ups and led to her being named the family screw-up. So, she was eager to get away from the spotlight and basically run away from family obligations by enrolling in a university in a far-away state. And, she'd been living happily ever since, feeling free for the first time in her life, and eager to try all the things she hadn't been allowed to growing up. Chief among these things was dating. And boy, was the dating pool sure big in college! Especially when you swung both ways.
Ariel laughed. "Yeah, Kida's awesome. I'm meeting her again tomorrow afternoon."
"For what this time?" Snow asked excitedly. "Rock climbing? Sky-diving? Bungee-jumping?!"
Ariel giggled. "Scuba diving, actually. We're spending the whole day at the beach, but she has a friend who works at the diving spot at the cove and we're scheduled for an hour under the sea before our lunch on the pier."
Jasmine scoffed. "Ariel, if you don't marry that girl, I will."
This made a few people laugh.
"I thought you decided you don't like girls, Jazz?" Charlotte asked her with a teasing poke in the leg.
It was true. Jasmine had grown up in much the same situation as Ariel, but Jasmine was an only child, so her dad was extra protective...aside from constantly trying to pawn Jasmine off on any rich boy that happened to walk by. So, Jasmine practically ran here too, after hearing that it was where Ariel had gone. (The two of them knew each other growing up, but rarely had time to hang out, so they didn't really get the chance to become friends until coming to this school. Now they actually knew each other aside from what all the magazines said.) And, in her first year at school, Jasmine decided to do some experimenting. She struggled with a "devoted" relationship with another girl two years ahead, but it eventually fell through when Jasmine had to admit she didn't really feel anything. So it was well-known that Jasmine was definitely straight as a board.
"I don't." Jasmine said. "But I do like fun. And I'm not getting any of that as a single."
Cinderella patted her leg. "In due time, sweetie."
"Yeah, I bet your Prince Charming is just around the corner." Snow smiled.
Jasmine resisted her urge to glare at both of them. Cinderella, Snow, Aurora and Giselle were all rich (but not famous-rich) girls who hadn't had to live with the same responsibilities as her and Ariel, and who had also had all been with the same guys since their days in private high schools. They were the kind of girls who only seemed to care about being "in love" and getting married. They'd probably had their weddings planned since the age of five... They were probably folding pages in dress catalogs already! But Jasmine just wasn't like that. She didn't need a man, she just kinda wanted one. And she didn't even necessarily want commitment; She just wanted adventure. She was tired of feeling trapped.
That was why she was so understanding of Ariel's dating habits and always supportive of them while most of the other girls worried about her.
"Have fun, Ariel." Jasmine told her with a sincere smile. "I mean, be safe and all. But have fun."
Ariel grinned. "I always am. And I always do! See you guys!" She grabbed her purse and headed out the door, waving over her shoulder.
They all called their good byes and wished her well as the door shut.
"Ooh, that girl is so lucky!" Charlotte groaned, stuffing another donut in her mouth.
Charlotte was another rich girl, but she was a bit different in that she was spoiled absolutely rotten and allowed to do whatever she wanted her whole life by her father. So, a lot of the teen tabloids had covered stories about her habits of shopping and partying until she dropped. To the average person, her life would have seemed perfect and adventurous in every sense. But it wasn't enough for Charlotte. She really just wanted love. She was much like the other four, a hopeless romantic who probably had honeymoon spots on hold. But she was also a bit more for people to handle than the other girls, so that made it hard for her to keep a boyfriend.
"I bet if I was as pretty and talented and cool as Ariel, I'd have boys at my door begging me to date them..." Charlotte continued to grumble as she shoveled potato chips into her face.
Cinderella frowned. "Now, Lottie, don't start that again. Someday soon a boy will find you and appreciate you for exactly who you are. You just have to be patient."
"Well, come on, isn't my money enough?" Charlotte demanded childishly.
Jasmine smirked and shook her head. "Ever the Drama Queen..."