BRIAR RIDGE ACADEMY// ELITE

Chapter Five

Goodbye? Already?

I've only been on campus for about an hour, and in the country for less than half a day.

And now I'm expected to just leave my parents? Just like that?

My mom places the tray of cupcakes on a nightstand, and tearfully hugs me.

"Kennedy... You'll do great things here," she whispers into my hair. I feel a tear slip out of my eye as well.

After embracing her for a little longer, she lets go. And there is my father.

"Dad..." I croak out.

I run into his arms, and cry into his shoulder. I'm leaving him, my dad, the one who makes my lunch, drives me to school, and first got me into riding. The one who started this whole journey.

"My little star. Remember where you came from, and who you are," he says into my ear.

His words confuse me, but I push them aside. He hands me a little jewelry box once we spread apart. I hurriedly go to open the robin egg blue Tiffany's box, and when I see what is resting on the fabric, my jaw drops.

A silver and emerald band glimmers in the light of the room.

My parents have bought me a ring, but not an ordinary one. This ring is a pure silver band, with a middle part filled with emeralds. It must've cost a fortune.

"Thank you so much," I lean into my fathers shoulder, and my mother embraces me.

I can't believe it. I'm at my dream school, with an amazing dorm, and now my parents have bought me the ring I was saving up for.

"Oh Kennedy... We'll see you soon, okay?" My mother says through her tears.

"Okay," I croak.

"Goodbye, Kennedy. We love you," My father says, and wraps his arm around my mothers shoulders.

They walk out and the door to my dorm slams shut. I race to the window, trying to catch a glance at them. They board a golf cart, and go speeding down the path.

Sighing, I slouch down. I put on the ring and run my hand along the silver. My last piece of my parents.

Shaking me head, I blink a couple times. It's not like I'm never seeing them again, I'm seeing them in 4 weeks, for parent visitation day.

The door to my room swings open and I hear a squeal.

I whirl around to find myself face to face with a gorgeous girl.

She's about my height, with long strawberry blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. The girl is wearing dark wash jean shorts, a pink sleeves blouse with ruffles going from the top of the shirt, by her neck, down to the end of the shirt. On her feet are a pair of gold slip on sandals. Her entire outfit screams 'rich heiress of parents company'.

"You must be Kennedy! Oh my gosh! I'm so excited you're here! I'm Emmie, your new roommate! Yay!" She shouts, jumping around.

"Woah, uh, Emmie, calm down!" I laugh a little.

"Sorry! I just can't believe you're finally here! I was rooming alone, for like, two weeks! It sucked. But now you're here! Wanna decorate? Or just hang out?" Emmie fires questions at me.

"Uh... Why don't we just hang out?" I say.

"Great!" She yanks a two beanbags out from her lofted bed, and tosses them in the middle of the room, on the fluffy, thick carpet.

Only then do I take in how... Pink her side of the room is.

Like myself, she has a lofted bed. White sheets with pink polka-dots flow over the rim of the bed. Three pillows, two pink and a white sit at the head of the bead, along with a crocheted cow. (AthenaW_21 ) Under her bed, on her desk sits a pink Apple laptop, with a matching mouse. There's a white filing cabinet on the right, and a pink lamp on the left. Also on the left is a neat stack of books and magazines. Snaking up the wall, covered with pictures, seems to be a cord, most likely to charge her phone. On her chair is a fluffy white cushion, and on either side are beanbags in white and pink. Just for accents, Emmia has strung up little sheet curtains on the front posts of her bed, to make it look totally adorable. And as a finishing touch, the ladder at the end of the bed is covered in pictures and has pink lace covering the wood where the pictures don't.

"Oh, right," Emmie giggles. "I really like pink."

Nodding, I say, "I can tell." Then, I flop down in the beanbag Emmie gave me.

"So," Emmie says as she crosses her well-toned legs, "My name is Emmie Stark. I'm 14, like you, and I own a horse named Creme. She's a Palamino quaterhorse, and I love her to death. She's so perfect! My family bought her when I was 13. She's my fifth horse! Oh and guess what! I win first at like every competition!"

Oy ve.

This is going to be a long year.