Jane Pepperscale's School for Girls

Chapter 1

        The next morning I was up at the crack of dawn, dressed in one of the uniforms that had appeared outside my door the previous night. I was dressed, packed, fed, and ready to go before my parents had to say anything. We drove silently to a bus station, where I was shuffled onto a greyhound going the right direction, and handed money for a cab after that. I spent the whole ride plugged into my iPod, stolen from my parent's closet right before I left, and counting stops. Hobos and old ladies got on, runaway teenagers and felons got off and vice versa. I kept my suitcase in between my legs and kept to myself.

        When I got close to my destination, I got off the bus and found a sign with a number for a cab company while choking on exhaust fumes. I waited nearly an hour before a beat up old thing with a cracked headlight and scratched paint pulled up in front of me. I told the driver I was headed for Jane Pepperscale's School for Girls, just outside Collierstown, and he advised me to hurry up. I had a long ride in store.

        Several hours of frigid small-talk and bad country music later, we pulled up outside a mansion. A mansion behind a twenty-foot barbed wire fence. My chauffeur assured me that it was just to keep out wildlife, and I didn't question it. It was far from home. it would have to do.

        I was met by two women just outside the front door. Both wore respectable suits and pumps, one had an air of dignity, pearls, and grey hair; the other possessed a clipboard and emanated maternal-figure vibes. Behind them, the mansion- the school- glowed in the light of the setting sun. Smooth stones of brown, white, and grey held white window frames, bordered a sleek and dark mahogany door behind the two women. As my gaze traveled upwards, I-

"Miss.....Cah-hill?" The mother figure attempted, dragging my attention away from the beautiful building I would be living in.

"Kay-hill," I corrected politely. "Lainey Cahill." Maternal figure smiled and made a note on her clipboard. The older woman spoke up, clasping her hands in front of her as I lugged my suitcase up the steps. It wasn't very heavy, but tiny wheels and big stone stairs don't agree with each other.

"Welcome, miss Cahill. I am Ms. Pepperscale, headmistress of this school." I shook her hand with a smile and a "nice to meet you," and we continued with the new girl shpeal. "This is Ms. Tetrick, your councelor. She will show you around campus and explain how things work around here. Now, I must go run orientation for the incoming seventh grade students. I hope you find your time at this school pleasant."

        With that little speech and a nod, Ms. Pepperscale left Ms. Tetrick and I to our business. She handed me a schedule and guided me through the front door, heading to the left. The two-story main building held the academics and dining hall; math and science in the left wing; english and history in the right; and the dining hall and kitchens in the center. The dorms lay behind the main building, ringed around a courtyard and olympic pool. Behind that were the sports fields and infirmary. I attributed the rich appearance to the many charity funds and generous alumni.

        While I was receiving the grand tour, it was also explained that I hadn't been assigned a dorm yet, due to a glitch in the system. I would be sleeping in the infirmary until the school year started in a week. Could be worse, I told myself as I lay on a cot that night. No one was here to make cracks about it. Being alone gave me the opportunity to evaluate the situation. I was about to start my junior year of high school in a new place. A place where I could make friends for once. A place where I didn't have to deal with my parents.

I fell asleep with a smile on my face.