The steel door slamming shut echoed down the cinder block hallway as Mandy dove face first into her pillow, tears streaming down her cheeks. About three minutes passed before there was a gentle knock at the door.
Mandy sat up and slowly wiped the tears from her eyes with a stuffed teddy bear and got up to open the door. It was unnecessary; the door creaked open before she got there.
"Is everything OK?"
At the sight of another person, Mandy broke down again in a stream of sobs. It was Kirsten, her roommate. Kirsten glanced around the spartan dorm room, half of which was decorated with homemade signs and banners for Gamma Chi. "The bid party was tonight, wasn't it?"
Mandy nodded and handed her a crumpled up piece of paper that had already been soaked with tears and went right back to the pillow. At least the pillowed drowned out the cries. The letterhead crinkled as she opened it, flattening it out with her hands.
"We regret to inform you," Kirsten read aloud, "that you have not been accepted for this year's Gamma Chi pledge class. Of course, as a legacy, you are entitled and encouraged to apply again next fall. Thank you for your interest in Gamma Chi and we wish you success this year at State University."
"So you didn't get in?" Kirsten asked, looking away from the letter. Kirsten never understood exactly why her roommate was so focused on that sorority. But she hadn't known Mandy that well. They had gone to the same high school but weren't really friends; the random drawn for dorms had thrown them together and when they moved into the room ten days ago, it was probably the first time they had talked in years.
Kirsten wasn't exactly the skater/stoner type that most people thought she was when they saw her long blond bangs, nose ring, and marker-colored Chucks. But she did hang out with them a lot, and smoked a joint every now and then.
Mandy couldn't be more different; in her plaid skirt and sleeveless sweater, she looked every bit like Betty Draper. Kirsten used to joke that Mandy walked right out of the Tommy Hilfiger catalog. It wasn't as funny anymore since half their room looked that way. She didn't mind as long as Mandy didn't complain about her music, or the loser-ish looking boys who stopped by every now and then.
After drifting for a minute, Kirsten refocused. Since they both ended up in a college out of state so far from home, she thought she needed a friend, someone comfortable she knew – and she knew Mandy needed a friend right now, too.
"Sweetie, I'm sorry that you didn't get in." She said quietly. "Those girls are bitches. Maybe you're better off without them?" her voice lilted slightly at the end, unsure if that was the right thing to say. Mandy's sobs had receded to soft sniffles and she sat up, folding her hands neatly in her lap as she looked down.
"You're probably right, K. It's just that pledging Gamma Chi meant so much to me." She jerked her head back slightly, tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder.
"I just don't understand why you'd want to be in a group so badly that didn't want you," Kirsten asked.
"It's not that," Mandy retorted. "My mom pledged Gamma Chi here – so I'm a legacy – and that's why I came to State. I don't know if you knew this – but she met my dad at the spring formal her junior year, and their story was so romantic. I don't know," she paused, "I guess I just wanted the same kind of romantic story for me, and I felt like this is what I needed to do to get it."
"Mandy – is that it? Is it over? I mean, is there some kind of petition or appeals process?" Kirsten was searching for something to say that would help. "I saw they said you could reapply."
"No – that's only their way of trying to be nice to me because of my mom. I knew when I got there today I wasn't getting in. One of the officers pulled me aside and told me about the financial requirements. You know, things have been tough for my dad since the real estate market collapsed, and we haven't done as well as we used to. It was a real stretch for them to send me here. Somehow the sorority knew that – I think one of the girls had seen my financial aid application and that's how they knew. Unless he wins the lottery, I don't think I'm ever getting in."
"Those bitches." Kirsten stood up and started pacing around the rug, Mandy's plaid teddy bear under her arm. "If I didn't know any better, I'd bet that girl is sleeping with someone at the financial aid office. Sure as shit she's not working there," she fumed. "It's still early, let's head over to the Quad and see if we can figure something out."
Nothing came to them that night, or the next night. But two days later, Kirsten was sitting on a bench on the quad looking over the list of clubs to join when a gorgeous and well-built blonde sat down next to her.
