New Leaves

Chapter Four - Budgetary Concerns

Emily's POV

I met Chris in the lecture hall for the first student council meeting of the year. Arjun also joined us. "Hi, Arjun! You're in the student council?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm actually vice president! What about you?" Arjun asked.

"First lady, here to cheer on her man."

I kissed Chris on the cheek, but he didn't seem to notice. Arjun turned to him. "Excited for the textbook proposal?"

"More like nervous," Chris said.

"What are they gonna do? Refuse to listen to the president and the vice president?"

"With Sebastian involved? They very well might. Of all the people who could have gotten hurt in a skiing accident, why did it have to be the treasurer?"

"Don't worry, Chris. Sebastian hasn't ever been able to stop you before," I said.

"That's true, but I haven't been able to stop him either. If we keep trying to block each other, nothing's going to get done."

"You think that's still going to be the case? You are supposed to be the one in charge."

"I'm going to try my best, but it's not going to be easy, especially considering that Leila's the secretary."

"You're kidding. Ugh, she was one of Sebastian's most vocal supporters."

I heard a high-pitched voice coming from behind me. "What is Chris kidding about?" Leila asked.

"Nothing, apparently. Hello, Leila."

"Hey, Emily. Just so you know, we've got a student council meeting that's about to start, so you should probably clear out. We have important business to attend to."

"Thank you, Leila, but I'm actually here for the meeting."

"Okay, okay, I was just saying!"

"Oh boy, here comes Sebastian," Chris said.

Sebastian entered, followed by Professor Atiyah, the faculty advisor. "Good afternoon, all. Chris, to start the meeting, you need to tap your gavel to the lectern and say 'the meeting will now come to order,'" Sebastian said.

"Yes, Sebastian. I read the guide. You should take a seat now, Emily."

"Of course," I said.

I took Chris's hand and gave it a quick squeeze before taking a seat in the second row. Chris rapped the gavel on the lectern. "The meeting will now come to order. The first order of business is the reading of the minutes. The secretary will read the minutes of the previous meeting." Leila stood and read the minutes, followed by Sebastian's treasurer's report. Finally, it was time for "new business." "Is there any new business? Edgar."

"I move that Hartfeld University give the DnD club official status as a student organization!" Edgar exclaimed.

"I second the motion," Tripp said.

"Is there any discussion? Sebastian?" Chris asked.

"While this is an interesting proposition, I have some budgetary concerns," Sebastian said. "From my understanding, Dungeons and Dragons is a fantasy game which encourages violence and escapism. Should we really be using our already-limited funds to support such a venture?"

Several other students I didn't recognize spoke up in agreement with Sebastian. In the end, the motion was shot down. "All right, then. Is there any further business?" Chris looked around before continuing. "Okay, I move that the school use some of its funds to supplement the costs of textbooks, should that cost exceed $300."