Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: ❝︎Miss Mystic Falls❞︎
"I HAVE SOME NEWS. Many of you, like me, have forgotten that we are hosting this year's Miss Mystic Falls pageant. Trust me, I know." Students let out groans and mutters of annoyance, Harper simply opting to roll her eyes. She hated that stupid pageant. "But the rotation is set in stone. So, let's take the opportunity to maintain our image as a normal school for the rich and awful. As usual, anything remotely magical, enchanted, vampire, wolf or witch-related must be kept tucked away, hidden, and under lock and key. Now. . . with your chore assignments."
He pointed towards Lizzie before moving from the podium and letting her take over. She had a wide excited smile on her face. "Okay, so we'll split into teams." Harper scoffed, rolled her eyes, stood up and walked away with everyone's eyes following her. Hope and Josie met one another's eyes, Josie asking a silent question to which Hope just shook her head, not knowing the answer.
Harper sat on her bed, her arms crossed over her chest as she narrowed her eyes at the chest that lay at the end of her bed. She swallowed thickly, before forcing herself up from the bed and pulling open the drawer on her bedside table, a small box inside. She grabbed the box, held it in her hands for a moment, before opening it to reveal a key. She picked it up, held it in the light before glancing towards the black chest once more. She stood up, placing the box back in the drawer before kneeling down to the ground.
The teenager held the key shakily in her hands before inserting it into the lock, and turning it, listening to the click of the lock before opening the chest. Inside was all of her old stuff from her home that she couldn't bear to look at on a daily basis. Most of it were pictures, a few stuffed animals that her father had given her in hopes of her forgiving him for whatever he had done to her the night prior. It all hurt for Harper to look at. She picked up one photo, the photo that caused her hate for pageants. She used to be a pageant girl, winning first place every time because her father would be disappointed if she didn't. Anger seemed to fuel her body before she dropped the picture back inside the chest.
A knock fell on her door. "Come in." The door opened to reveal Penelope. Harper frowned, closing the chest and locking it once more as she stood up and turned to face the brunette. "Penelope?"
"Lizzie decided not to run this year." Penelope informed her, closing the door behind her. "And she wanted a replacement. You know who she chose? Hope. Not her own sister. Josie won't ever admit this, but I know that she wants that title."
"I thought you hated this thing as much as me?" Harper cocked her head slightly. "What do you want me to do about it?"
"I want you to help me convince Josie to win."
"Like that's going to happen." Harper scoffed, walking away from Penelope to place the key back inside of the box, closing the drawer, and muttering a small spell to keep the drawer closed.
