Bridgeport Academy 2

17

On the second-floor landing, Kae pressed her body against the wall to allow Zoe and Sevyn, who shared a room down the hall in Waverly 309, to pass. Zoe, who Kae had never seen in anything other than elegant dresses and heels, was looking like a club girl in a pair of skintight black leather pants and a white tuxedo-inspired halter top, and Sevyn, who loved anything formfitting, looked classy in a turquoise long-sleeved, off-the-shoulder dress and a pair of ballet flats.

"Hey, Kae! You look great in my dress," Zoe cried as she and Sevyn flew down the stairs in a fit of giggles. "But you're going the wrong way! The party's in the lounge!"

Kae wasn't used to wearing a strapless dress—she thought they'd just slide down below her boobs, exposing them to the world. But she felt kind of sexy.  "Just, um, gotta brush my teeth." Kae smiled awkwardly at the two girls, who disappeared down the stairs with their arms playfully linked. 

Suddenly Kae missed having Alex as a roommate, and she missed even more being on friendly terms with Robyn. Not that they'd ever exactly been there. From the very beginning, Robyn had merely tolerated her until suddenly she became useful, and only then was she half nice to her. But Kae didn't care—she knew Robyn wasn't really as cold as Jasmine, and she felt like they might have ended up being really good friends if the Chris thing hadn't come between them. Was it completely naive to think that Robyn would eventually get over that?

Back in her room, Kae felt even lonelier, and the room wasn't even empty. Robyn was standing in front of the mirror, applying mascara. A pair of jeans hung loosely around her hips, and though they bagged a little around her nonexistent butt, she looked fabulous. On top, she wore a sheer white cami, and her newly short hair was black and shiny.

Robyn turned around, the open mascara wand in her hand. Her eyes were lined thick olive, and her lips were covered with clear gloss. She looked like the epitome of a model—thin, natural, and playful. She'd never looked prettier.

Robyn smiled nervously at Kae. "I'm not, like, insane for wearing jeans, am I?" She fumbled with the zipper, making sure it was flat. "I know everyone's wearing, like, evening gowns and looking fabulous ... like you do," she added. "But I tried these on from this girl Ashleigh? Down the hall? And they just felt so good." She paused to catch her breath.

Whoa, Kae thought. I guess after being silent for so long, Robyn finally had something to say. She certainly wasn't going to let that opportunity pass. "I think you look beautiful," Kae gushed, because she really did. "You look like Tyra Banks from back in the day."

"Well, I'm glad I don't have her acne problem," Robyn answered wryly, reaching for a gold bangle bracelet on the top of her dresser. She glanced over her bare shoulder at Kae.

"She has an acne problem?" Kae asked curiously.

"You didn't know that?" Robyn seemed surprised, as if everyone knew about Tyra's acne woes. But then she softened a little. "Yeah, it must really suck. When she gets nervous, her entire, like, face breaks out." Robyn opened a tiny pot of lip gloss. "It's why she doesn't go to award shows."

"Oh." Kae was grateful that flawless skin ran in her family. Not being able to go to award shows would kind of suck, especially if you were famous.

"Everything okay with you?" Robyn glanced over her shoulder. "You seem kind of... out of it."

Robyn Fenty was asking her how she was feeling? Two hours ago the girl wasn't speaking to her, and now she was sharing celebrity gossip and acting all concerned about why Kae was quiet? But maybe that was Robyn's way of getting over things—one day she woke up and moved on? Or maybe she met a new guy?

"Well..." Kae hesitated, trailing off.

"Is it Chris?" Robyn asked softly, kneeling down by the stack of new shoe boxes, searching for the right pair. She bit her lip. "I mean, look. I'm sorry I've been kind of... a bitch." She glanced up and Kae was surprised to see she actually was blushing. "It's just been, you know, kind of weird."

"Hey." Kae felt something heavy in her throat. "You don't need to say anything. I completely understand." She could see that Robyn was uncomfortable apologizing, and even if the last few weeks had been more than uncomfortable, Kae was still the one with Chris. She could afford to be generous. "Really."

Robyn glanced up at Kae and gave her an incomprehensible look, then grinned. "Okay." She pulled a gold ankle strap sandal from the top box. "Too fancy?"

Kae cocked her head. "No. I think it's a perfect balance to the jeans."

Robyn collapsed on the bed and started tugging on the shoes. "You can talk to me, you know. I won't bite."

Feeling a rush of roommate love, Kae had the urge to spill everything to Robyn. "Well ... it's just that he said he might try to sneak in tonight. But I haven't heard from him all day."

Robyn nodded sympathetically. "He can be bad about those things. He was always standing me up or showing up like an hour late. It's really frustrating."

"It's just kind of nice to know what's going on, you know?"

"Yeah. But when he was growing up, his parents were super strict and made him tell them whenever he was going somewhere, exactly where he was going, and when exactly he would be back." She held out her right foot and waggled it back and forth, examining how it looked from different angles. "By the time he got here, I think he just couldn't deal with that anymore, and now it's sort of impossible for him to be on time or tell anyone where he is."

"Oh." That answer was an unavoidable reminder of the enormity of Robyn and Chris's relationship. It was like pulling a tooth—at first, it looks kind of tiny, but then you see how far and deep the roots go back. Kae and Chris were just starting to know each other, but Robyn had been a part of his life a lot longer. "I guess I didn't realize all that."

"I'm sure he'll be here," Robyn said, deliberately not mentioning that Chris had also texted her that he'd be sneaking in tonight. "He'll find a way to get in." There was no way Chris would miss out on something as legendary as sneaking into the girls' dorm when it was on lockdown. Please.

Kae unzipped her pink travel bag and spread her makeup in front of her. Robyn watched as she opened her highlighting powder and brushed a little bit onto her face, making her skin look even more radiant than usual. In that deep brown strapless dress, with her long hair, she looked like someone who would frolic barefoot in a wildflower meadow and not worry about stepping on bugs. In other words, the kind of carefree girl Chris would fall in love with.

"I guess you're right. I really can't imagine Dave letting all of us girls get dressed up and drink his beer without him." Kae closed one eye and swept her wand of clear mascara over her already-long lashes, her mouth opening as a reflex. Her hand was right above her Altoids tin of bobby pins, which was—shit—half full again. So she must have realized that Robyn flung them all over the room?

Robyn suddenly started to feel like a bad person, and not just because of the bobby pins. Kae looked so innocent and vulnerable that Robyn started to have regrets about going out to dinner with Chris and his dad last night. Maybe it wasn't the smartest move for anyone involved? Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth, and she wondered if she should just tell Kae about it while they were being open about all things Chris. 

But she couldn't. She had told Chris that she wouldn't, and even though she felt bad about it, she kind of liked having a special secret with him.

"I think I'm going to go up to the roof and get some air." The room felt crowded, and Robyn needed to get away from Kae, whose sweetness only made her feel more and more guilty. "I'll, uh, see you downstairs." Robyn opened the door and the sound Cardi B wafted up the stairwell. 

At least someone was having fun.