That evening, I’d gotten off my shift at the restaurant an hour early and was lying on my stomach reading the faded copy ofInterpreter of Maladiesthat had belonged to my mother when there was a knock at the door.
I answered, and Daisy strutted past me in a fringed flapper dress and heels, hair in two buns high on her head. With a grand display, she revealed a second flapper costume. “This is for you! Get dressed!”
I studied her flushed cheeks and smiling, yet slightly glazed expression. “Did you start without me?”
She grinned and revealed a bottle of Pinnacle whipped-cream-flavored vodka. “I may have gotten a head start.” She handed me a feather headband. “Come on, it’s Gatsby Night, the best night of the year!”
I ran my fingers over the sequins. I hadn’t gone out much since the embarrassing night at Cottage last year. A couple of times here and there, when my friend Ayana would invite me to dorm parties and Charter Fridays, but I was skilled in coming up with excuses not to go, and eventually she stopped asking.
Tonight, Daisy’s hopeful grin—and the fact that she’d thought to buy an extra costume just for me—filled me with a warm, fuzzy, hopeful feeling.What am I doing hiding in my room?I thought.This is a new year. This could be different.
At my desk, Daisy pushed over a stack of econ textbooks, set down two shot glasses, and filled them with vodka.
“One for you.” Daisy handed me a shot and raised the second in the air. “To a new year!”
I drank it and grimaced—more nail polish than cotton candy—but enjoyed the warm feeling of the alcohol as it slid into my stomach. “Okay, I’ll come out.”
“Yay!” She grinned. “I promise you won’t regret it.” After studying me for a moment, she set a bag of makeup and a straightening iron on my desk. “Now, let me do something about your hair.”
—
Thirty minutes later,we were stalking across campus, a broken umbrella shielding us from the rain. Daisy wove her arm through mine and leaned in close.
“Okay, so don’t freak out,” Daisy said, “but Gatsby Night is at Sterling Club, members and guests only.”
Despite my buzz, a new anxiety flickered across my chest. Sterling Club had a reputation for being exclusive: it was the eating club where only the most elite students partied, flirted, and shared secrets. The collective net worth of the members probably rivaled the GDP of most nations. And theirlistwas so ironclad, most Princeton students never saw beyond the iron gate. My heart fluttered. “Daisy…thanks, but—”
Daisy looked at me. “Come on, Maya. Don’t you think it’s time you got over the Cottage thing? I get why you didn’t bicker last year, but it’ll be different now. You have me.”
“Bicker” was the process of selecting new members, mostly from the sophomore class. Daisy had tried to get me to bicker with her last year. Though I’d declined, I’d watched longingly from my window as Daisy and her friends filed out from the dorms to The Street and into the clubs where they’d remain bonded for life.
She’d told me about her whole bicker experience after she was accepted into Sterling.It’s mostly about impressing the members,Daisy explained,but sometimes they would rapid-fire questions at you, and get you to spill secrets they could use against you later.Her tone gave me a strange chill.
“It’s not too late for you to join,” Daisy said as we ascended aflight of stairs and passed under a large stone arch. “There are a few other juniors bickering…”
I sighed. “I don’t know…”
“—and if it’s about the money, then don’t worry about it, the club’s financial aid covers it.”
“Daisy—”
“Oh, come on, Maya.” She took my hand in hers. “You have to bicker Sterling. I’m a member. I’ll introduce you to everyone. It could completely change your life.” She gave my hand a squeeze.
When I didn’t answer, Daisy sighed. “You’re always talking about how you need to figure out a way to help your sister, get her into a better situation…this could be the way to do it.”
It was raining harder now, and we were getting wet despite the umbrella. I shook my head. “I don’t see how getting drunk every weekend would help my sister.”
“Look, we have one of the most powerful alumni networks in the world. They arrange interviews, housing in the city. Not only can they get you a six-figure job, they can also get you a place to stay for way under market value. This is the way the world works. You join Sterling, you make these connections, and you could give Naomi a different life.”
Daisy’s words spun in my head. I wanted more than anything to provide for my sister. She was living with our aunt Ella, who was kind but had been through a lot and could barely take care of her own family. After our mother died, we’d been left with nothing. And then somehow I’d gotten into one of the best schools in the world. It was my responsibility to make something of myself. For Naomi.
It was also my chance to have a real college experience, the one I’d missed out on so far.
I drew in a breath and turned to Daisy. “Let’s Gatsby.”
She grinned. “That’s what I wanted to hear.”
—
