“Not me.” Annie Laurie has finally found something to comment on. “There were a few you couldn’t give me a million dollars to join.”
Ellie and I look at each other slyly, out of the corners of our eyes. I don’teven want to know which ones she’s talking about. So I change the subject. “I guess I’ll have to be ready for Philanthropy when I go to class tomorrow. I don’t get out till three.”
“That sucks,” Ellie says.
“I know. I’m just happy it doesn’t conflict. You know we’ll be dropped from Rush if we miss a class?”
“That’s ridiculous,” Annie Laurie says, slapping the magazine down on her lap. “How would they even know?”
“I’m not sure, but I’m not taking any chances,” I say.
“You’re such a rule-follower, Cali. You need to chill.” It seems by the tone of her voice that she’s joking, but knowing her, she’s not. “Are any of your friends from Blue Mountain rushing this year?”
I hesitate before answering. She’s such a snoop. “I don’t think so.”
“That was random,” Ellie says looking at her with a what-planet-did-you-come-from look on her face.
Annie Laurie either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care. “Huh. How come?”
My patience is running dry. “I’m not really sure, Annie Laurie.”
“My mom said a lot of poor people live in Blue Mountain.” The girl doesn’t let up.
“Blue Mountain doesn’t have many wealthy families, if that’s what you mean.”
Ellie pats my leg. She knows me well enough to know I’m wearing thin. “That’s okay. Who cares?”
I’ve had about as much of Annie Laurie as I can stand for the day. “I’m about to drop,” I say, standing up from the couch. “Guess I’ll see y’all at the Grove tomorrow.” I wave and Annie Laurie waves back.
“Let’s try to find each other.” Ellie’s eyes are full of anguish. It’s hard to be in her position. Roommates need to get along, and confrontation makes living together unbearable.
“Sounds good. Y’all have a good night’s sleep.”
Before I walk out the door Annie Laurie shuts herCosmoand sits up straight. “I’m sure Blue Mountain is a sweet place.”
The heat of anger rises up the back of my neck. I whip around, stare at her briefly. “It really is, Annie Laurie.”
After stepping into the hall, I shut the door—harder than I should—behind me.
***
The next afternoon in the Grove, when Sarah hands me my schedule for Philanthropy parties, only five of the ten time slots are full. The others say: No Event Scheduled. I’ve been dropped by five of my top ten choices. I’m not going to lie. Seeing this in print stings. But I suppose it makes sense.
I followed the advice from the Gamma Chi in the ranking room, chose sororities I had recs for, but even still some of them dropped me.It’s okay, no big deal,I tell myself, because, more importantly, I still have Alpha Delt and Tri Delt. And they are Ellie’s top choices. But the scary thing about that is, they’re both older sororities. Their pledge classes will be smaller.Don’t get too attached,I tell myself.Concentrate on the other three, the less-established sororities who have invited you back.
The sound of someone trying to catch her breath startles me. When I look to my right, Rebecca, a sweet girl in my Gamma Chi group, is crying. She’s holding her schedule in one hand, and her stomach with the other. Now she’s shaking. I want to comfort her, but I’m not sure what to say. I turn a slow circle, my mouth opening wider with each step, and now I’m freaking out because lots of girls are blinking back tears. Yes, there are many more who are happy, but others are full-on crying.
I never expected to see tears today; it’s early in the week. But it’s going on all around me. All over the Grove, teary-eyed girls are walking around aimlessly looking for someone, anyone, to give them comfort. One girl with tears rolling down her cheeks passes right by me, and I overhear her tell the girl she’s with that she’s transferring to another school.
I feel terrible for Rebecca. I don’t want to ask her about her schedule because I can tell she’s devastated, but I feel like I need to say something. “Did you not get your first choice?” I finally ask. I can’t stand seeing her cry.
She shakes her head and with tears pooling in her eyes, asks, “Do you know Elise Davis?”
“No. I’m sorry I don’t,” I say.
“Will you please, please go with me to find her?”
“Sure I will.” I mean, it’s the least I can do, so we set off on a journey to look for Elise Davis.
