we smile at the moon

FIVE | THE HOUSE OF SORREN

IT DIDN'T TAKE a genius to realise that despite everyone seemingly getting along, there was no small amount of animosity between the two girls' boarding houses. It wasn't a hatred of each other by any means—it was in the small details. The slight jabs that everyone laughed off. The rumours spread, the never-ending competition.

Sorren House was the more beautiful house, with the nicer girls and the far fewer problems. Lok House was the problematic one, the one with the girls equal part famous and problematic. It was a never-ending race.

There were four full boarding girls in my year in Lok House. Apart from me and Yunji, there was also Oliana Hale, from Hawaii, and Analisse Kwok, also from Hong Kong. We weren't that close to Oliana, who was basically a weekly boarder at this point with how few weekends she spent at the school and how many she spent at one of our schoolmates' homes. Analisse, meanwhile, more or less had her own group of friends among the day students, and rarely hung out with us unless after school or on the weekends.

In Sorren, meanwhile, there were six: there was Collette Vanir and Nicole Yeung, popular and pretty, making up the trinity with Nadia Sorren. Louisa Chen, Gwen Cheng and Audrey Wong were nice and sweet, and I'd become rather good friends with all of them over the past few weeks—Louisa and Gwen were new as well this year, and there was also Vanessa Park, who was from Korea and a bit of a mystery. She sort of drifted between the two groups, never quite fully belonging.

And it wouldn't be until my third week when I first interacted with the trinity that topped Sorren House.

It all happened quite randomly, and very unexpectedly. Dinner was usually me sitting with Yunji and sometimes Adelina alongside Analisse, Louisa, Gwen and Audrey. We didn't talk much, simply enjoyed each other's presence in silence, occasionally exchanging a word or two. But tonight, the three of them trailed behind the other Sorren girls as they sat down at our table.

I glanced at Yunji. She shrugged.

"Hope you don't mind us sitting here." Collette smiled. "Nadia and Nicole wanted to meet you guys. You've been here for like, three weeks, and you've still never talked."

"Of course not," I replied with a matching beam of my own. I'd talked to her once or twice, since she was in quite a few of my classes. She was nice, but quiet. She didn't say much. Yunji liked to describe her as a sidekick.

The only thing I'd really heard more about her was her infamous unrequited crush on Damian Wong in Aesir House, another full boarder. It was frequently joked about by Seb, who I'd become relatively close with.

Nadia's eyes landed on Adelina. "I've been hearing things about you and James Withington, Adelina. Any truth to it?"

Adelina snorted. "As if. We're just family friends, that's all, not that I want to be associated with that piece of shit."

"Adelina," Yunji scolded. "I don't see why you hate him so much."

She rolled her eyes. "You would if you knew him better. Don't be fooled by his cover."

Nadia lifted her shoulders in a gentle shrug. The movement was smooth, elegant, subtle. Like one of a swan's. She gave that vibe, honestly. It rolled off her in waves. I knew she was rich, crazily so—she was of the famous, famous Sorren family, after all. Sorren House was named after her family.

"He's a good choice," she drawled. "I'm just saying."

Adelina slanted her a dead glance, though it was clearly meant to be humorous. "Him? No. No way in hell. I'd rather die."

Nicole grinned. "That's what they all say."

"I'm serious," Adelina deadpanned. "If I could kill him without facing any consequences, I absolutely would."