A wall of cabinets looms ahead, their drawers tucked beneath rows of labels. Finally, my eyes adjust to the lighting, and I inch toward the cabinets. I read the labels, stopping when I find the first drawer labeled C, and pull it open. The metal creaks like it’s protesting, and it’s loud as hell in the silence.
I wince, listening to be sure it didn’t alert the guard. But nothing. Alex never calls out to me, and when I glance behind me through the threshold, he’s still in place.
I refocus, my fingers working fast as I flip through names. But my file isn’t in this one.Damn. Just how many students do they have with a last name that starts with a C? I move to the next drawer, scanning through those until I finally see it. My name jumps out in sharp print.
COLLINS, SAMANTHA.
My stomach knots. For weeks questions have swirled around in my mind. So why am I so scared to find out the truth?
I inhale deeply and reach for the file, setting it on top of the others to thumb through it. Anticipation builds and I brace myself. Best case scenario, it’s fine and I’ve made a big deal out of nothing. And maybe good things really do happen to people.
The sound of the pages turning fill the dead air. There’s nothing out of the ordinary here. Just standard stuff—name, date of birth, home address.
I flip to another.The original rejection letter.
And the next.The acceptance letter.
I read them both carefully, something deep down not allowing me to move on. It’s a generic template; with the exception of my name and the SKU logo, it’s your run-of-the-mill text.Nothing special on these pages. But then I get to the signature line and the frown forms before I fully register it.
The name on the rejection letter is not the same as on the acceptance. I hadn’t realized that before. I received them a year apart and trashed the first one.
I scan to the bottom of the acceptance letter.
Richard Williamsburg, School Chancellor.
I rifle back to the rejection.
Alice Drumming, Dean of Admissions.
Confused and curious, I dig out another student’s record. I aggressively flip through the pages until I land on their offer.
Alice Drumming, Dean of Admissions.
I shake my head, trying to come up with a reasonable explanation. Quickly I grab another folder, and it’s the same.
Alice Drumming, Dean of Admissions.
My fingers shake. Once is weird. Twice is a pattern. Three times is a brick through a glass window.
Why would the chancellor sign off on my acceptance?
I turn back to my file, flipping fast. The syllabi, course schedule, personal records, everything starting to blur, just blobs of black ink on the page.
There’s no award letter.
No scholarship breakdown.
But then I find something else instead. A single-page document, tucked behind a transfer credit audit. The heading makes my stomach pitch.
COST OFATTENDANCESUMMARY| SPRINGSOPHOMOREYEAR– SENIORYEAR
Tuition (5 semesters): $137,000
Room & Board: $49,750
Student Fees: $9,000
Books & Supplies: $4,800
