If you made the effort to scratch the tiniest amount beneath the surface, you would see what a miserable place this really was. Listening to the quiet mumblings of a nameless passersby, conversations carried out in hushed confidence, it wasn't difficult to figure out the kind of lives most of these kids had. The desperation in their voices as they whispered to their friends how they had reached their breaking point. With this school. With their parents they had escaped by coming here. I could understand why some of the bullies acted the way they did, why so many put up such a tough front to hide how they felt.
But no matter how bad your life was at home, that was no excuse for the sight before me as I walked into my dorm room. In reality, there was probably plenty of excuses, and I refused to acknowledge any of them. Especially the ones where I may have been the reason for this.
'Cause, how could I ever piss someone off that badly?
I had managed to remain stealthy, bypassing Mrs. Peabody on the way through the common room—which was rather easy, given the fact she was fast asleep on one of the couches. Though, now, all hope of keeping quiet was lost. I yelled, incoherent sounds and grunts, intermixed with the most profane words I could think of.
My entire side of the bedroom had been torn apart. Bedsheets were tossed onto the floor, just barely hanging onto the mattress that had been pulled off of its frame. All of my clothes had been scattered around the floor, and the trunk beside my bed was opened, my belongings on display for everyone to see. If I was back home, I would have wondered if I had been robbed, but I knew better; this was the work of a very determined, very pissed off someone. Only two other people shared this room with me. Pinky had been staying in Harrington House the last few nights.
That left Eunice.
I waltzed over to her pristine corner of the room with destruction on the mind, and opened her wardrobe, sifting through her clothes. A stockpile—the likes of which amassed for an event such as the armageddon—was hidden behind a stack of t-shirts. The heart shaped boxes piled close to halfway up the side of the closet, and the smell was strong; with the heat on, the candy was probably melted. It was an almost unexpected find, but one that would definitely come in handy later. An amount of candy that large was something I hadn't seen since last Halloween. I snagged a box and tossed it into the trunk.
I wanted nothing more than to rip apart each and every one of her belongings, but for a crime like this, a special kind of revenge would be saved for her. For now, I'd need to clean all this up. And move myself into a different room.
"Mrs. Peabody?" I approached the woman quietly, careful not to startle her. Having her in a bad mood when she woke wouldn't benefit me at all. I said her name again. Then once more. "Jesus, are you dead? Mrs. Peabody!"
The old woman woke. Her body jerked as if an electric shock coursed throughout her wilting frame. Mrs. Peabody adjusted her glasses that had slid down her nose while she settled herself in the arm chair, and addressed me with a clearly agitated tone.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in class right now?"
"Probably, yes, but Dr. Crabblesnitch gave me a few minutes to come back and change my clothes. I need to ask a favor of you, Mrs. Peabody," I said.
She nodded her head. "Well?"
"Well...I came back to go change, and when I walked inside my room, my half of the dorm was destroyed. And...and I think my room mate did it," I put on my best sad face, threw in a shaky voice and a trembling lip, and got ready for the pity party thrown just for me. "She's been nothing but mean to me since I got here, and I don't know what I've done to make her angry. I really try to be nice to her but nothing works. She hates me, I know she does," And then the waterworks came.
Nobody likes a crying girl, especially not one who looks like a complete mess when they do it.
Mrs. Peabody interrupted me, all flustered and eager to put an end to this situation before it became any worse. I silently thanked her for that, for I wasn't sure how long I would be able to keep that act up.
"I'm sure she doesn't hate you, but if it makes you feel any better, I can speak to your room mate after classes have finished and we'll resolve this," She said.
I wiped my nose. Sniffled a bit. "Thank you, really. I was wondering though..."
"Yes?"
"Could I be moved into a different room? I don't know if I could be around her, I'm afraid things might only get worse if I stay," I cast my eyes to the ground, awaiting her answer. It took a moment, a long one, full of huffing and puffing. But she conceded.
"I suppose. There's an empty room at the end of the hall upstairs. It hasn't been used in quite some time, so you might need to clean up before you settle in," Mrs. Peabody said, the stern tone creeping back into her voice.
I smiled. "Oh, thank you, Mrs. Peabody! I can't say it enough. Would it be okay if I brought my things over now?"
We both glanced toward the wall clock hanging near the entryway. The second block of classes was just about over and in a few short minutes lunch would begin. That would buy me some time, allowing me to bring my things into the new room and make any preparations for what I would soon do to Eunice.
"Yes, but be quick. Dr. Crabblesnitch won't be happy if he finds out you've missed any of your classes, young lady, whether you have a reason or not. Go on now," She dismissed me.
It took everything I had not to skip happily down the hall. Things were going according to plan. Hopefully the rest of the day would go just as smoothly.
I slid onto the cold stool, dropping my books onto the surface of the lab table in the corner of the room, farthest from the teacher. A few kids were at their seats, chatting away in the few minutes before class started and everyone returned from lunch. I had enough time to grab a piece of fruit before I headed to Biology and wolfed it down in my short trip down the hall. I was still picking pieces of apple from my teeth somewhat discreetly when someone planted themselves on the chair beside me.
"Mind if I sit here?"
A stocky boy who looked to be about my age hovered next to me, scratching his hand over his shaved head. He stared at me expectantly with his squinted eyes and I wondered idly if he always looked like that or had piss poor vision. I shrugged.
"Be my guest."
"So, I haven't seen you around here before. You new?"
"Yeah. Moved here a few weeks ago," I turned toward him. Half a semester in this class and I hadn't even noticed this kid. I guessed I should pay attention more to my surroundings. At least in class. "Perfect timing, right?"
He laughed. "I'd say so. I'm Jimmy, by the way. Jimmy Hopkins."
"Erin. Erin Kastner," I splayed out my books on the table, opening them up to the page where I had my worksheets stuffed, folded unevenly and wrinkled. Clearly I was the epitome of organization, though no one had realized it yet. Definitely not our teacher, as each time he checked our work, he always wore the same exasperated look as he saw my crumpled papers.
He was lucky I even bothered to do the work.
"Have any friends yet?" Jimmy twirled a pencil across the table top, his actions screaming boredom. I knew I wasn't helping, and I felt the same way he did. So when he asked this, I thought I should give him more than a one word answer. Who knew—maybe I could actually have a decent conversation for once. That didn't wind up with either party flustered or angry. Or both.
Usually both.
"A small number of them, yeah. I can't complain, though; it's more than I had back home," I joked. Although, could I really consider any of them friends? Pinky and her friends only hung around because my father is a surgeon, and Gary...I couldn't tell where I stood with him. Or why he popped up so much. I was just glad I had someone.
"Well hey, if you're ever bored, come find me. It's dull around here when you don't have anybody to hang out with, 'specially now," Jimmy said. He couldn't have been anymore right.
"I might have to take you up on that offer sometime, Hopkins. Where's your usual hang out?"
He pursed his lips, looking as if he had forgotten where he spent most of his time. "Library, gym...and you're not allowed in the guy's dorm anyway, so that's out."
"How unfortunate. I've always wanted to spend an evening in a building full of dirty teenage boys," I frowned, then grinned at him. "We'll make due. There's always ways around the rules, you know."
A few hours later...
The halls were empty. I couldn't hear Mrs. Peabody shuffling down the carpeted corridor, peeking into the girls' bedrooms, doing her part to make sure there was no foolishness under this roof. Gathering my things, I slid into the darkened hallway, a small bag full of supplies hanging on my shoulder, and the box of chocolates I stole from Eunice in the other.
I grinned wickedly while I stood outside of her bedroom. This was going to be good.