Status: Up and Running
High Maintenance
Goody-Goody
“This is our last stop of the tour. Welcome to Marcel Hall, your dormitory.” Jasmine took out her student card from the pocket of her messenger bag. “I live here too. You’ll need your card to get into the building, and anyone who doesn’t live here has to be buzzed in. Although, visitors aren’t allowed after eleven.”
“How…safe,” Nola replied, making a mental note to carry her student card on a cute Chanel keychain and not on the maroon Walston lanyard that Jasmine carried around. She had been saying things like this all morning: how safe; how practical; how economical. Words that didn’t truly express how much the campus was boring her. At the cafeteria, there wasn’t any Starbucks coffee; you weren’t allowed to walk around campus after ten; and you weren’t allowed to go off-campus without explicit parental permission.
The door hissed open, and Jasmine let Nola walk in first.
“What room number is it again?” Jasmine asked, skimming the bulletin board of notices. FREE MOVIE NIGHT: DEFINITE DISASTERS STARRING ERIC BLAKEWOOD, happened to be one that caught Nola’s eye.
“227.”
“Oh, my God.”
Nola turned to Jasmine. “What’s wrong?”
Jasmine shook her head. “Nothing. It’s just, that’s my room as well.”
“Roomies,” Nola quipped, with feigned enthusiasm. This girl was so obviously threatened by Nola’s impending popularity, and wanted nothing to do with her. Nola could relate.
“Roomies,” Jasmine repeated. They both stepped into the elevator and Jasmine pressed ‘2.’
“Here it is,” Jasmine said when they’d reached the end of the hallway. “I’ve already set up my side of the room, but other than that, I’d say you have free reign. This is really a three-person room, so there’s an extra closet. We can split that.”
“Shouldn’t be a problem,” Nola said, although inside she was wondering how her clothes were going to fit into only one-and-a-half closets.
When they stepped into the room, the first word Nola thought of was “neat.” Not a thing was out of place, nor did anything not coordinate in some way. Jasmine’s side was OCD clean and tidy. It made Nola miss her palatial room back in L.A., with its magazine stand overflowing with Vogues and Luckys, and her half of her wardrobe tumbling out of the closet.
Her suitcases were tucked against the wall closest to the empty bed. Nola went to them and rested a hand on her luggage. “Do you really like this place?” she asked, glimpsing at Jasmine. Jasmine was a little bit shorter than Nola, with pretty caramel-colored skin and dark brown ringlets atop her head. Were she not wearing the uber-nerd purple glasses or wearing stockings with her skirt, Nola might consider her exceptionally stylish.
“What, the room?”
“No. Walston.
“Oh, definitely,” Jasmine replied, perching on her raised bed. “The past three generations of my family have gone here, so it’s kind of my fate.” She beamed. “What about you?”
Nola thought about telling Jasmine about how this was her only choice, but it didn’t seem like Jasmine would be able to sympathize. “Um, my dad wanted me to,” she left it at that. It certainly wasn’t a lie. She spread her arms out and collapsed onto her bed, which creaked under her weight. “Do you think anyone would notice if I just, I don’t know, ran away?”
Jasmine hesitated. “Well, I certainly would, considering you’re my roommate. And since you’re one of the more notable students here, I’m sure someone else would too.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Nola sat up and ran her fingers through her dark locks. “Well, I’ll see you later.” She hopped off of the bed and started searching through her suitcases for something to wear. She had to get off-campus, and soon.
“What are you doing? You’re not really going to run away, are you?” Jasmine sounded rather apathetic, as if she didn’t care one way or the other. “Because I would really prefer to not be surprised if you do.”
Nola found the dress that she was looking for and laid it on the bed. “No, I’m going out. To a club. They have those in Massa-drool-settes, don’t they?”
“I guess. I haven’t really tried to get off-campus unless we’re on break or on a field trip.”
“Well, consider this your lucky day. We’re going off-campus to a club. You need to get out and I need someone who will know how to sneak back on campus.”
“Well, consider this your unlucky day, because I’m not going.”
Nola scoffed. “Typical.”
Jasmine stopped straightening her bedspread and whipped around to face Nola. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means,” Nola started, mimicking Jasmine’s hand-on-hip pose, “that I could tell you were a goody-goody from a mile away. All you Walston girls probably are, even that Iza-bitch. It’s not your fault.” She knew it was a stretch to insult the most influential girls at this school, but her conversation with the red-head queen bee was really starting to sink in.
“Izabelle is one of my good friends, so don’t talk about her that way. In any rate, I’m most certainly not a goody-goody. And I’ll prove it to you.” Jasmine began to take off her blazer and roll off her stockings.
“Oh yeah? How?”
“Give me something to wear. We’re going to the club. “
“How…safe,” Nola replied, making a mental note to carry her student card on a cute Chanel keychain and not on the maroon Walston lanyard that Jasmine carried around. She had been saying things like this all morning: how safe; how practical; how economical. Words that didn’t truly express how much the campus was boring her. At the cafeteria, there wasn’t any Starbucks coffee; you weren’t allowed to walk around campus after ten; and you weren’t allowed to go off-campus without explicit parental permission.
The door hissed open, and Jasmine let Nola walk in first.
“What room number is it again?” Jasmine asked, skimming the bulletin board of notices. FREE MOVIE NIGHT: DEFINITE DISASTERS STARRING ERIC BLAKEWOOD, happened to be one that caught Nola’s eye.
“227.”
“Oh, my God.”
Nola turned to Jasmine. “What’s wrong?”
Jasmine shook her head. “Nothing. It’s just, that’s my room as well.”
“Roomies,” Nola quipped, with feigned enthusiasm. This girl was so obviously threatened by Nola’s impending popularity, and wanted nothing to do with her. Nola could relate.
“Roomies,” Jasmine repeated. They both stepped into the elevator and Jasmine pressed ‘2.’
“Here it is,” Jasmine said when they’d reached the end of the hallway. “I’ve already set up my side of the room, but other than that, I’d say you have free reign. This is really a three-person room, so there’s an extra closet. We can split that.”
“Shouldn’t be a problem,” Nola said, although inside she was wondering how her clothes were going to fit into only one-and-a-half closets.
When they stepped into the room, the first word Nola thought of was “neat.” Not a thing was out of place, nor did anything not coordinate in some way. Jasmine’s side was OCD clean and tidy. It made Nola miss her palatial room back in L.A., with its magazine stand overflowing with Vogues and Luckys, and her half of her wardrobe tumbling out of the closet.
Her suitcases were tucked against the wall closest to the empty bed. Nola went to them and rested a hand on her luggage. “Do you really like this place?” she asked, glimpsing at Jasmine. Jasmine was a little bit shorter than Nola, with pretty caramel-colored skin and dark brown ringlets atop her head. Were she not wearing the uber-nerd purple glasses or wearing stockings with her skirt, Nola might consider her exceptionally stylish.
“What, the room?”
“No. Walston.
“Oh, definitely,” Jasmine replied, perching on her raised bed. “The past three generations of my family have gone here, so it’s kind of my fate.” She beamed. “What about you?”
Nola thought about telling Jasmine about how this was her only choice, but it didn’t seem like Jasmine would be able to sympathize. “Um, my dad wanted me to,” she left it at that. It certainly wasn’t a lie. She spread her arms out and collapsed onto her bed, which creaked under her weight. “Do you think anyone would notice if I just, I don’t know, ran away?”
Jasmine hesitated. “Well, I certainly would, considering you’re my roommate. And since you’re one of the more notable students here, I’m sure someone else would too.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Nola sat up and ran her fingers through her dark locks. “Well, I’ll see you later.” She hopped off of the bed and started searching through her suitcases for something to wear. She had to get off-campus, and soon.
“What are you doing? You’re not really going to run away, are you?” Jasmine sounded rather apathetic, as if she didn’t care one way or the other. “Because I would really prefer to not be surprised if you do.”
Nola found the dress that she was looking for and laid it on the bed. “No, I’m going out. To a club. They have those in Massa-drool-settes, don’t they?”
“I guess. I haven’t really tried to get off-campus unless we’re on break or on a field trip.”
“Well, consider this your lucky day. We’re going off-campus to a club. You need to get out and I need someone who will know how to sneak back on campus.”
“Well, consider this your unlucky day, because I’m not going.”
Nola scoffed. “Typical.”
Jasmine stopped straightening her bedspread and whipped around to face Nola. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means,” Nola started, mimicking Jasmine’s hand-on-hip pose, “that I could tell you were a goody-goody from a mile away. All you Walston girls probably are, even that Iza-bitch. It’s not your fault.” She knew it was a stretch to insult the most influential girls at this school, but her conversation with the red-head queen bee was really starting to sink in.
“Izabelle is one of my good friends, so don’t talk about her that way. In any rate, I’m most certainly not a goody-goody. And I’ll prove it to you.” Jasmine began to take off her blazer and roll off her stockings.
“Oh yeah? How?”
“Give me something to wear. We’re going to the club. “
♠ ♠ ♠
Chapter 3 guys! I hope you haven't forgotten about my story, since it's been almost a month since I've updated. Please don't be a silent reader! Comment/review! Jasmine gets a mini-makeover in the next chapter!