Cigarette, daydream and poetry ( A DPS fanfiction ) Charlie x OC

First day at Hellton

Welton stood before Margaret's eyes like a monster straight out of her worst nightmares, perhaps because all her nightmares had taken place at Welton over the past few days. She held back her tears; it wasn't dignified of her. The building was quite vast, surrounded by a park, a lake, and a forest. It seemed as if it had been placed there to give the students the illusion of being free in this place. Margaret and her family entered the small chapel where the headmaster was giving a long and boring speech that quickly put the young girl to sleep. She could hear but wasn't listening until her name was mentioned.

"For the first time in the history of Welton, we are welcoming a young lady, Margaret Perry."

Whispers and murmurs spread throughout the room at this announcement. Margaret's father asked her to stand up, which was probably the greatest effort for her. Once she stood, she could feel all eyes on her. The boys of Welton thought they were dreaming at this news, and even more noise filled the room. The headmaster ordered everyone to be quiet and continued speaking:

"Miss Margaret will spend the school year at the institution. I reassure every parent here about the distraction she might cause for these young men in the prime of their youth; she will be closely supervised every day. She is forbidden to talk, walk around, or engage in activities without the supervision of a teacher. Is that clear, Miss?"

"Perfectly clear, Mr. Nolan," she replied, choking back a sob.

She sat back down and sighed. To comfort her, her brother took her hand, and she smiled at him. She was so happy to have Neil by her side; he was probably saving her life just by his presence.

The ceremony ended, and the parents and their children left the small chapel, passing by the headmaster, who greeted Margaret's parents and stopped her before she could move out of his sight. She looked at him and gave him a polite smile before he said:

"Young lady, I hope you realize how fortunate you are to be admitted to Welton; it is a privilege that few, if any, women can afford."

She merely nodded at this comment before leaving quickly. She said her goodbyes to her parents and realized she didn't know where to go after they left, so she just followed her brother to his room.

Walking through the hallways, she could see all the boys bustling about and casting curious glances at her. It made her uncomfortable, but she knew she had to get used to it. On the way, the twins met Neil's new roommate, Todd Anderson. Margaret found him shy and fragile but trustworthy.

Arriving at the dormitory, Nolan's secretary took Margaret aside to show her to her room, which was located near Nolan's office on the teachers' floor to keep her as far away as possible from boys her age. The room itself was not unpleasant; it was rather spacious and must have been used by teachers originally. Margaret inspected it for a few minutes and concluded that she would never feel at home in this school.

Margaret quickly went back to join her brother. She knocked on his door and opened it without waiting for Neil's permission as usual and discovered her brother, Todd, and three of his friends, including Charlie Dalton. He was quietly smoking in a corner of the room. He met Margaret's gaze and almost instinctively ignored her, which annoyed the teenager. She entered the room, and her brother, smiling, walked towards her and introduced her to the group:

"Guys, this is my twin sister. Mag, this is Meeks."

"Oh... um... nice to meet you," he murmured.

"This is Knox."

"Nice to meet you," he said, smiling and shaking her hand.

"You saw Todd earlier, and obviously, there's Charlie, but you already know each other."

"Alas," he added.

Margaret smiled and politely introduced herself, ignoring Charlie's rude comment. She turned to her brother and asked if he was okay. He told her that their father had come and made him quit the school's yearbook.

"Why? You love the yearbook!" she protested.

"But he's right, I do too many activities..."

"It's your only activity, I'm going to see Dad and convince him!"

She tried to leave the room, but Neil held her back, and then Charlie commented:

"You're not 7 years old anymore, Maggie; it's not about convincing your dad to give you candy."

"Is this how you defend Neil, Dalton?" she snapped.

"He's right, Miss Perry; we're not in a position to contradict him," said Knox.

"Please, call me Margaret or Mag, and don't tell me you do everything your parents say!"

No one responded, which annoyed her even more. She cast a glance at her brother, who carefully avoided her gaze and changed the subject by suggesting she join them for evening study. She accepted and left the room.

As she was walking towards her room, someone called out to her and started walking alongside her; it was Charlie.

"What do you want?" asked the young girl coldly.

"Well, you see, while you were talking, I obviously wasn't listening..."

"I'm not surprised," she interrupted.

"But I was thinking and wondering how you ended up here."

The young girl sighed and explained her parents' letters, the last days of summer, and the disappointment of finding herself in this institution.

"I slightly doubt that being surrounded by such handsome boys is hell for you, if you ask me," commented Charlie.

"But I don't ask for your opinion!"

"The real hell... is having to spend a year with me, which doesn't exclude being surrounded by handsome boys because, as you can see, summer has been good to me."

Annoyed but amused, she slapped him on the forehead and contradicted him:

"I don't think summer was really positive for you and especially for your pride."

"What pride?"

She gave him a dark look but couldn't help but smile.

Their conversation ended as they reached her room. Charlie gave her a mock bow and left, leaving Margaret alone with her thoughts. She unpacked her things slowly, feeling the weight of her new reality settle in. The days ahead seemed daunting, filled with the challenge of proving herself in an all-boys school where she was the outsider. She took a deep breath and resolved to make the best of her situation, hoping that her determination and the support of her brother would help her navigate this new chapter in her life.