Gregory Girls Gone Wild - Chapter 35: Chapter 35

"Shit," Rainey muttered, erasing an answer bubble on the scantron. Her Development Biology exam was a lot harder than she had anticipated. Judging by the frazzled looks of her classmates, she figured that she wasn't the only one woefully unprepared. Her professor, Dr. Ooden, walked down the aisles, carrying himself quite smugly in the midst of their misery.
Yes, his shoes seem to clink, you're going to fail...and you're going to fail...and you...
Nakir exchanged a miserable glance with her. Rainey itched her ear with her pencil. Only thirty minutes to go...
After the exam was over, Rainey walked out of the classroom, feeling like she had experienced a car crash of catastrophic consequence.
Nakir caught up to her, almost limping it seemed. "I feel like I went to war."
"Same," Rainey said glumly. "Maybe we should study harder next time."
"It's that damn professor," Nakir said furiously. "He's trying to weed us out of the major, like we're freshman."
"Oh, well, at least it's over."
"It's only the first exam of the semester," Nakir reminded her, biting his nails. "We're going to have to come up with a study plan if we want to pass our classes."
Rainey rubbed her chin. "I agree." She needed to manage her time well this semester, if she wanted to keep up with her classes as well as her work.
"No more partying the week of our exams. Or going out to God knows where the night before. Speaking of, where were you yesterday night while I was sleep-deprived at the library?"
"Oh, that's a complicated topic," Rainey began, before her attention was caught swiftly by the newspaper stand. No one read actual newspapers anymore which was why there was a thick stack of them available to Rainey, who read the headline in horror.
FRAT HOUSE VANDALIZED: UNIVERSITY OFFICERS HAVE NO SUSPECTS AT THIS TIME
"What is it, Rainey?" Nakir asked, peering over her shoulder.
She read the article, mouthing the words out loud.
Lambda Phi Sigma was vandalized overnight in an act of senseless violence. Located on the east block of campus, the oldest fraternity in Gregory College was subject to unusual scrutiny. The fraternity house, known for its striking architecture and legacy admissions, was broken into, the perpetrators destroying its ultimately unsalvageable furniture and property. Luckily enough, members of Lambda Phi Sigma were attending their annual camping trip and were not present during the time of the crime. Over $10,000 of damages are estimated to have been lost. University police do not have a suspect lead at this time. If anyone knows anything about the incident, please contact the University Police with your information.
Rainey dropped the newspaper.
"Hey, where are you going?" Nakir exclaimed. Rainey raced down the street, following the path that she took last night. She headed down the east block, navigating through the slow rush of morning traffic and the speeding students on scooters. She arrived at the house that she had mistaken for the Phoenix Kings headquarters.
They were clever, she thought. Always one step ahead...Sam Stabbings, Stella, even Ethan.
The frat house was surrounded by yellow tape. Beer bottles and spray cans littered the lawn. It looked like a frat party had gone wild and destroyed their own house, if it weren't for the sinister black letters 'PK' painted on every single white pillar. A boy sat at the steps, arguing loudly with someone over the phone. He sounded upset. Rainey looked around and saw a couple of other guys in Lambda Phi Sigma shirts, looking equally devastated.
She took a step back, and then turned around and ran.
"You're really in it now." Ethan's voice reverberated in her mind.
She recalled destroying an entire bedroom at that house. Guilt teared through her.
I'm an idiot.
She had been stupid to attend a Phoenix Kings meeting. She had thought it harmless enough, and now look where that got her? She was complicit in a crime without even knowing one was being committed...the university police were probably looking for the perpetrators at this very moment. She ducked behind a dumpster when a patrol car passed the street...irrational, but clearly that was a pattern with her lately.
At her apartment, all Mariah wanted to talk about was the vandalism.
"Loser Phi Sigma was totally destroyed last night!" Mariah said gleefully.
"Oh, really?" Rainey said weakly. Making a split second decision, she decided against telling Mariah the truth, as that would only make her an accomplice.
"Who do you think did it?"
"I dunno," Rainey shrugged, ears reddening. "What are you so happy about? Their house is trashed."
"The Lambda Phi Sigma fraternity is notorious on campus," Mariah explained. "Don't you know them, Rainey? They were disbanded like ten years ago for hazing and harassing pledges. They only just got their chapter back. Plus, at least a quarter of them have some kind of rape allegation. Boozy mutts. I hope they have to sleep on the streets, although I'm sure their daddies have booked them in a nice suite hotel."
"Really?" Rainey asked, stunned. She felt a tiny sense of relief, knowing that she hadn't wrecked an innocent frat house. She couldn't recall hearing of the fraternity before, due to her avoidance of Greek life and their attention-seeking stunts, and wondered why the Phoenix Kings had targeted them, of all groups on campus. Perhaps, the Phoenix Kings had decided to purge the more unsavory parts of Gregory College, along with the Dean's administration.
There was still so much she didn't know about the Phoenix Kings, and there had been little explained at the meeting last night. Rainey recalled the existence of small groups. Perhaps that was where she could get more information.
Her phone alarm rang, signaling that she needed to clock in to work. She shook her head, as if to clear her bustling thoughts. She should focus her efforts on making enough money to forfeit her membership, rather than trying to find out more about the Phoenix Kings. Learning more about them could land herself in a worse situation, worse than a vandalism charge.
Her position as boss, or Overseer Coordinator, consisted of more responsibilities than her previous job as a simple delivery worker. She had an office now, in the student activity center, so that she could create and maintain the freewheeling schedules of all the delivery workers on campus. Someone had installed a coffee machine in her office; she drank a cup of instant brew as she logged into the computer. Danika and Ethan were covering their station while she was busy creating a report on monthly delivery counts. When she was finished, she locked up and headed over to the gymnasium, where Danika and Ethan would be making their final stop.
Ten minutes later, she was still waiting in front of the gymnasium door, frowning. Danika and Ethan hadn't arrived yet, and it was well past their expected time.
Why are they running late? she thought. In the tree next to her, a squirrel scurried down to collect a nut that had fallen. The squirrel scurried back, cheeks full, its eyes suspiciously drawn towards Rainey.
"I'm not going to steal your nut, man," Rainey told the squirrel.
Finally, the delivery truck came into view. Rainey was surprised to see that Danika was the only one to come out.
"Where's Ethan?" Rainey inquired.
"He left," Danika muttered, opening the cargo door.
"He skipped?"
"Nope, I said I could handle it."
Rainey examined her closely. Danika looked tired and burnt out, her hair tied in a messy bun. She wore no make-up and her forehead was glowing with sweat.
"You look tired," Rainey said. "Let me give you a hand."
"I'm fine." Danika stubbornly carried a load into the gymnasium. Rainey's eyebrows knit in a deeper frown.
"Are you okay? Did you fight with Ethan?" She held Danika's wrist and checked her knuckles, which looked red.
Danika's breathing was sharp. "Nothing happened. I just feel sick."
Rainey touched her forehead. "You're burning up. Let me finish this station and you can go sit in the truck. Don't argue with me," she added, at Danika's protest.
Worried, she finished the rest of the load and closed the truck with a resounding thud.
"Can I drop you off at home?" she asked.
"No, I can walk home myself—"
"Don't be stupid," Rainey said firmly. "You're running a temperature. Here, wear the helmet." She turned on her engine.
"I want to be alone," Danika said quietly.
She looked so miserable that Rainey was beginning to feel alarmed.
"Being alone is exactly what you don't need," Rainey said, feeling convicted. "Now, c'mon, let's get out of here."
She ended up parking her bike outside Danika's dorm and escorting her inside. Danika walked slowly, like she was trudging through molasses. Rainey eyed her. It was the no-talking that worried her more than anything. Danika who loved to chatter, whether it was about the weather or inviting her somewhere or even just to tease her.
"Where's your roommate?" Rainey unlocked her dorm room door, recalling the anxious Indian girl who shared the dorm room.
Danika stared off into space.
"Hello, Dani? Your roommate?"
"Sheba's studying," Danika winced. "Exams, you know."
"Yeah, I had an exam this morning," Rainey said, recalling. "I'm pretty sure I failed."
Danika flopped on her bed, without taking off her shoes. Rainey crossed her arms. "Do you have any medicine? Tylenol? Motrin?" she asked.
"Not sure." Danika's voice was muffled against her pillow. "I don't get sick often."
"Where's your medicine cabinet?"
Without raising her head, Danika pointed at the cabinet near the microwave. Rainey sighed, and looked through the arrays of medical pills and tablets which were marked for every condition except for what she needed.
"Allergies? Anxiety medication? Melatonin?" Rainey asked. "And you only have one Tylenol tablet."
"It's mostly stuff for Sheba...she gets anxious a lot, you know...depressed..."
"Well, take this for now and I'll get you some medicine from the store."
"I'll be fine, can you just leave—"
"Shut up," Rainey ordered. "Just focus on getting better." She filled a cup of water for Danika to drink and watched uneasily as Danika swallowed the pill and lethargically collapsed onto her pillow.
"No more work this week either," Rainey said.
"No, I have to work. You don't understand."
"Are you trying to kill yourself?" Rainey asked seriously.
Danika fastened her eyes on her. "I want to die."
"Don't be dramatic," Rainey said, exasperated. "It's a fever not a doomsday diagnosis."
"Leave me alone."
"No, okay?" Rainey made up her mind. "Let's get you of these clothes and then I'll do my homework here while you rest. If you need anything else, I'll swing by the store to pick it up."
"No!"
"Take off your shoes!"
Danika groaned. "You're like a sergeant, yelling into my ear. I'm not a soldier."
"Clearly you're not, you ungrateful underclassmen, you never listen to a word I say..." Rainey manhandled her into taking off her shoes and then threw a pair of sweatpants and a shirt at her from the closet. Respectfully, she turned around and let Danika change in privacy.
Danika shivered under the covers. "It's cold."
"It's the fever," Rainey remarked. "I hope you don't have the flu. Have you been around anyone sick lately?"
"No, I don't think so."
"That's good news at least," Rainey said. She approached the bed and sat on the edge. Danika's eyes filled with tears.
"Are you okay?"
Danika blinked and Rainey saw that her eyes were clear. It must have been the trick of the light.
"Is there something wrong, Dani?" Rainey asked uneasily.
Danika's dark brown eyes were nearly black. "Why do you say that?"
"I don't know, just your general demeanor..." Rainey felt awkward, analyzing her friend. "Other than being sick, I feel like something's bothering you."
"Wow," Danika said restlessly. She stared up at the ceiling. "You're more observant than I give you credit for."
"I can be...observant." Rainey absentmindedly tucked a stray hair away from Danika's face. Danika inched forward to give her more access and Rainey began to to stroke her hair, despite herself. In a friendly way, she thought.
Danika's eyes were closed, and Rainey began to feel braver, arranging her hair anyway she liked.
"Are you good at keeping secrets?" Danika asked, and Rainey froze.
"Why do you ask that?" Rainey said tensely, thinking about how she ditched Danika last night for the Phoenix Kings meeting.
"I'm not good at keeping secrets. I'm awful at it. Eats me up when people don't know the real me."
Rainey relaxed slightly. "You're an honest person. That's nothing to be ashamed of."
"Honesty gets me in trouble," Danika said listlessly. "I'm better off being dishonest. Teach me how to lie, Rainey."
"You're talking nonsense," Rainey declared. "Your fever is making you babble."
"I'm so unhappy." Danika's voice sounded so desolate and twisted that Rainey stared at her.
"What's wrong, Dani?"
"I can't tell anyone else...I have to keep my secret..."
"What's your secret?"
Danika's face relaxed. Curiosity piqued, Rainey shook her by the shoulders but the sophomore had fallen asleep. Pin pricks gathered in her gut. Did Danika have a secret? Was that why she was so upset?
Against her moral reasoning, Rainey found herself snooping around the dorm room, looking for what could be the source of Danika's unhappiness. Homework sheets were strewn on the desk, and there was nothing but textbooks and a water bottle in her backpack. Rainey found a fist-shaped hole on the bathroom wall, near the mirror. She stared at her reflection, imagining someone punching the wall hard after staring at themselves for too long.
She began to do her homework at the desk, but she was distracted by her thoughts. Was Danika involved in something too, similar to Rainey going to a Phoenix Kings meeting? What could be so bad that she couldn't tell her?
Maybe Danika didn't trust her enough. Rainey frowned. She should come clean about her own activities before getting hypothetically angry at her friend. But what did Danika have to hide?
She bought some medicine and snacks at the store and left them on the night stand. Danika was snoring soundly, which made Rainey feel a little better. She warmed up a bowl of hot soup in the microwave and left a text as a reminder. Then, sizing up the room as if it was full of undiscovered secrets, she left for her shift at Nutty's.
She received a text from Fiona.
Fiona <3
hiii, i just got my play approved for the spring seniors show!
Rainey
That's wonderful, babe! Can I be in it?
Fiona
of course :) you can be my lady lead, rapunzel !!
Rainey
Nvm, I hate having long hair... I can be the girl that gets the director flowers instead
Fiona
hmm. ok, deal.
r u sleeping over 2nite?
Rainey
Yess. Right after work. Let me drop off my backpack and change.
After her shift at Nutty's, Rainey stopped by her apartment. Tired and hungry, she was about to unlock her door when she stepped on a piece of paper. A dark feeling overcoming her, she unfolded the scribbled note.
FDPSLQJ WULS, ORVHUV. OHDS GDB, VPDOO JURXSV. IRUHVW RI JODVV WUHHV.
"Great, another freaking code." An object fell out of the note.
She picked it up.
"Wow," Rainey breathed, far more impressed. It was a gold ring with a phoenix carved into the insignia. It looked like it was worth a fortune.
The scene of the ruined Lambda Phi Sigma house flashed in her mind. She should tell someone about her involvement and the note...Mariah, Danika, anyone...but Danika seemed to be dealing with her own set of problems, and Mariah, well, she wouldn't be sympathetic would she, after her car had been stolen?
As for Fiona, Rainey didn't want her innocent girlfriend involved at all. She sighed. Her life had gotten significantly complicated over the past several months. She tucked the ring and note in her pocket and went inside her apartment.
That was when a brilliant but simple idea popped in her head. She should contact Loralie.