That One Time We Kissed // Bishova College AU

Bricked Up

Rush week was a double edged sword. On the one hand, for the self professed extrovert Yelena Belova, it was an opportunity to meet and mix with personalities from all over campus. It was a test of her robust people skills, an exercise in intrigue. At the same time, though, the mingling bordered on exhausting, for as much as she loved parties, a girl could only sip on so many cocktails and small talk with so many pledges.

On day three, after waking up still in her mini skirt from the day before, Yelena took a page out of her girlfriend's book and slacked off of class. Instead, she staggered her way down to the kitchen, where Wanda held court with a few pledges.

"There she is," Wanda said before Yelena could slink back out of the kitchen. "Our fearless president."

Smoothing her skirt, Yelena waved at the staring freshman. "Uh, hi." Unceremoniously, Yelena poured herself a mimosa, eyeing the group. "I thought interviews weren't until later?"

"It's three pm, Lena," Wanda replied with a forced laugh, one eye twitching. "You're so funny sometimes."

"Just joking, of course," said the blonde, quickly downing her glass. "I'll be right back. Lovely to meet you all."

Muttering a string of curses under her breath, Yelena bounded back up the stairs, hurriedly freshening up for yet another day of mingling. She switched out her skirt, freshened her makeup, and put on her most dazzling smile before returning downstairs, posting up at the front door. More pledges had already amassed in the time Yelena had slipped away, all hoping to be early for a shot at one on one time with the president herself.

Honestly, admittance was Yelena's least favorite sorority duty. If it were up to her (and partly, it was) then she would let everyone and their sister in, but alas, some of the draw of the sorority was exclusivity. The main hindrance, though, was space, as only so many girls could live in the house.

So now, Yelena expertly worked the crowd, asking endlessly about majors, hometowns, and classes. She loved talking to people like this, she just wish the pretense of membership was not a factor. She was well aware that every girl she met was performing, acting as amiable as possible to gain brownie points, and she tried to ignore it. It was, however, the single greatest source of her insecurity.

For as well connected and likable as she was, Yelena had few sisters she called close friends. This was partially her own doing, as her many flings before meeting Kate had not left fertile ground for sewing close platonic bonds. The other part, though, was the performance. Everyone seemed to be wearing a mask around her, not wanting to draw her ire or fall into ill favor. Everyone was nice to her, sure... but few were kind.

Yelena shook the thoughts out of her head, focusing on the perplexing conversation at hand.

"Sorry," Yelena cut off the redhead in front of her, feeling as though she was missing something. "You don't believe in what?"

"Eggs," she confirmed, taking a long sip of White Claw. "There's just, like, no way those come from birds, right?"

"Right..." Yelena nodded, slipping off to another corner of the living room, where she greeted a taller brunette with dark circles under her eyes. "Hey, how's it going?"

The girl seemed startled to be noticed. "Oh, hi. It's going pretty well, I guess."

"What's your name?"

"I'm Ava." She offered a hand, and Yelena shook it lightly. "No need to introduce yourself. I know who you are."

"Right. So... why are you rushing? Why do you want to join Tri Delta?"

"Well, um..." Ava paused, chuckling to herself. "I guess I'll just be honest. I don't think I even want to join. I'm just here because I told my mom I would try to be more outgoing in college. So, here I am trying."