The Pledge
By
Inanimate77
Leah was still a little tired as she walked out of her Monday morning calculus class and headed back toward her dorm. The sorority rush event last night had taken a lot out of her. Being a bit of an introvert, she had expended a lot of energy to socialize with all the girls of the Alpha Beta Kappa house. Despite all this, the college student was committed to being accepted. Her grandmother, mother and older sister had all been a part of various chapters. It was a family tradition.
However, the problem for Leah was the sorority itself. At her college, Alpha Beta Kappa was the most popular sorority on campus. It was made up of cheerleaders, athletes and girls from prominent families. Even being a legacy did not ensure that she would be admitted. It didn't help that while her older sister was outgoing and vibrant, Leah was definitely not. She was much more like her father, serious and focused on her studies, and if all went well, in 4 short years she would be on her way to medical school.
While Leah had really put herself out there in an effort to please her family, she still was not getting a good feeling about things. She simply dreaded what her mother would say if she failed to successfully pledge the sorority. Despite all of her academic success, Leah's mother was constantly finding ways to critique her. Like her father, Leah was a people pleaser and it killed her that nothing she seemed to do made her mother happy.
It was a beautiful September day as Leah approached the quad, her mind still going over last night's event analyzing every individual discussion. In a bit of a haze, she walked right past Olivia Rhodes, the President of Alpha Beta Kappa. Olivia was the stereotypical picture of a sorority girl. She was wearing a sundress with her hair in a ponytail. The college senior had an aura about her that told Leah that she was the most popular girl in school. She was poised and appeared to be totally confident in herself.
As Leah turned and nervously approached her, she detected Olivia's floral perfume, light and alluring, wafting in the air. "Ummm... hi Olivia."
Engrossed in her phone it took Olivia a moment to realize that someone was actually talking to her. She looked up at Leah trying to place how she knew the mousy looking girl.
"It's Leah. I'm pledging your sorority," Leah blushed as she realized the college girl did not recognize her. That certainly could not be a good sign.
Although Olivia couldn't place the pledge out of context the name was familiar. Then things began to register. Ah yes, Leah was the nerdy legacy that had pledged this year. Declining a legacy was highly frowned upon and Olivia was struggling to figure out a solution on what to do with her. The quality of the pledge class this year had been incredible. If she approved Leah, she was going to have to cut someone much more worthy. Composing herself she finally said, "Oh Leah, I'm sorry. The sun was in my eyes. Please have a seat."
The pledge instantly felt a sense of relief as she took a seat next to the person who had the power to make her dreams come true. "I just want to thank you for hosting such a wonderful event last night. I'm really excited about pledging."
"Thanks. I thought it went well. We really have a great pool of pledges this year." It wasn't that Olivia disliked the girl. Leah was nice enough. She just wasn't Alpha Beta Kappa material. This left Olivia in a real bind. If she declined Leah's application there was a chance that the powers that be of the national chapter would be really upset. But if she let Leah join, it meant disappointing someone who deserved the incredible honor.
"I hope I made a good impression. It was so hard to tell with so many girls in the room."
"Well we definitely discussed you after the event." That was true. Olivia had discussed Leah's application with two other girls. She had consulted them to try to think of a way to reject her application, but none of them could come up with anything.
Leah could barely contain herself. Olivia and the girls at the sorority were talking about her. That was a really good sign. For once in her life she was going to prove her mother wrong. This was almost too good to be true. As her excitement continued to build, anxiety quickly followed. She felt so close, yet part of her doubted that she could really do this. Leah needed to be sure that she got in. After an awkward pause, she finally mustered up the courage to speak. "That's amazing Olivia. I have wanted to be a member of Alpha Beta Kappa my entire life. I would do anything to get in."
Things were going poorly. If anything, Olivia had actually made it worse. This loser girl was not going away. She was really beginning to lose hope when an idea suddenly sprang into her head. "Leah, I know you're really excited about pledging the sorority, but there is something I need to tell you." Olivia did her best acting job as she moved closer to Leah and feigned concern.
Olivia looked worried which made Leah nervous. "What?"
"Leah, you are a nice girl, but I need to warn you about the Alpha Beta Kappa initiation and hazing. It can get really intense. As President I've been trying to eliminate it, but well... it's hard to go against tradition."
"Hazing?"