Next

The girl in the doorway gives a casual wave. The headphones around her neck play a synth-pop song: ♫ Maybe if you let me be your lover… Maybe if you tried then I would not bother… ♪

Ms. Delilah stands up and straightens her skirt. “Peter, meet Jessica. Jessica, meet Peter. His local church raised every bit of the tuition to send him.” Jessica glances you over and slightly nods.

“Praise the lord, I guess,” she says with a slight curve at the corner of her mouth. Jess lowers the volume on her music. “I’m the RA for the Senior dorms. And you can just call me Jess.”

With your class schedule in-hand, Jess leads you out of the secretary’s office and outside. You walk across St. Hartley’s sprawling lawn, a rectangular park surrounded by academic buildings.

“Mess hall,” Jess says, nodding toward a large building that has stone gargoyles perched along the roof. Then she nods to the building beside it. “Athletics building. Swimming, fencing.”

Jess turns to you with a slight grin. “I bet they shoved you onto the fencing team, since you’re a transfer.” Well, sure. But that’s the least of your concerns, considering the video you just saw.