Battle for Top Girl

*Earlier that day*

‘Take a deep breath… Hold your head high… Look like you belong. You can do this!’

Fiona Townsend was embarking on an adventure unlike she’d ever done before. This day has already proved to be one of many firsts. Her first time flying by herself, her first time in America, and the first time she’d be living away from her family. She likes to view herself as an adventurous girl, but this is nearly too much for the beautiful young blonde. She’s been in a haze ever since arriving at the airport and along the hour-and-a-half drive to this small, wooded community. She stayed glued to the window as her shuttle drove her closer to her new temporary home. Outside of the major cities, the scenery didn’t look too different but enough to make her feel small in this much larger town. She nervously fiddled her thumbs as she grabbed her phone to try and calm her nerves. She texted a few friends back home but was mostly focused on texting her writing friend whom she’s never actually met in real life. This pen pal of sorts played a large part in motivating Fiona to enter the writing competition in the first place. Fiona sees her as partially responsible for this journey to unknown parts, for better or worse.

Fiona: Is it too late to chicken out??

TheGirlNextDoor: LOL I’m afraid so. Just think, the hardest part is over!

Fiona: And how do you figure? I don’t know a single person here, have to room with a stranger, and don’t have a single clue how my classes are going to go…

TheGirlNextDoor: Ok maybe I’m not as good at pep talks as I am story writing lol. BUT you took a chance and you’re finally here!! You’re a badass Fiona.

Fiona: Thanks… I don’t exactly feel like one. This is a bit much.

TheGirlNextDoor: I don’t have any experience with moving to a different country, but remember what I said about giving new things a try. You don’t know what you’re missing until you put yourself out there. I know that better than most.

Fiona: Well as your friend, I’m ecstatic for you. As a fan of your steamy stories, I’ve noticed a decline in publishing time lol.

TheGirlNextDoor: Bite me! It’s not just my characters getting all the action now! lol. Speaking of my charming fella… I think he just got done fixing something on his car so I’m supposed to go act all excited or something. Maybe even get some firsthand inspiration for my next chapter if I’m lucky!!

Fiona: TMI! Well I’m almost here, it’s now or never!

TheGirlNextDoor: You’re going to rock it! Maybe put your books down long enough to meet a cute boy or two. I sure to hell wish I would have back in high school. Talk to you soon and don’t forget we have a trip to plan!

Fiona put her phone down and looked in awe as the immaculate campus became more visible through the clearing trees. There had been little to nothing to see for the last thirty minutes or so and now she was immediately overwhelmed by the troves of people around her. She glanced back and forth at all of the families and her peers that she figured she’d be getting acquainted with soon enough. She was still gazing around as the driver cleared his throat to let her know that they’d reached their destination. Fiona fumbled with the money as she handed it over and gave him a nervous smile. She was finally here to begin something she only thought was possible in dreams.

“There’s a cute boy! And a cuter boy! Damn, he’s a hottie!” The petite, ginger-haired Natalie Curry cheered as her focus darted from one guy to the next. Barely visible behind the giant cart of bags, the cute redhead was bouncing with every step. She wore a body-hugging yellow tee that did little to hide her lack of bra, with a tiny black skirt that stretched across her amazingly firm ass. Her hair was currently fixed up in pigtails and her light blue eyes were hidden behind the current must-have designer shades on her freckled face. Natalie was a wealthy, social girl that couldn’t be more delighted to leave the all-girls school at ‘Sacred Sisters’ and to be surrounded by the opposite sex here. She saw this as a new opportunity to hopefully define herself. That’s if she has the courage to do so. Natalie is an intriguing girl that has much more going on than the vapid, ditzy girl she initially appears to be. It’s easy to miss, as she’s often seen as the ‘girl behind the girl’ to her very overshadowing friend.

“Can you possibly sound a little less **** and focus on not scratching up my new Louie Vuitton bags?” Hazel Hightower did nothing to disguise her annoyance as she walked quickly ahead of the girl with no more than her purse in her hand. She wouldn’t dare cover up the tight evening dress that formed to her amazingly curvy body. Her large breasts jiggled, as her perfect ass swayed with each step. The dress looked much more fit for a runway than a simple moving-in day, but you’d be hard-pressed to find the girl in anything less formal. Her tall heels made the already tall, model girl nearly eye-to-eye with most of the star-struck guys around them. She simply huffed as if the attention was annoying her even though she’d be lost without their gazes. Her hair was done up in a fancy bun and tucked beneath her black floppy hat. Hazel was used to being the alpha bitch at Sacred Sisters and expected nothing different here. The whole scene of high school just felt small and claustrophobic to her at this point. She was ready to get out into the real world and conquer it all the same. Judging by her massive social media following, she was well on her way. “Drop everything and come snap this picture of me. The lighting right now is absolutely perfect for Insta.” Hazel worked on striking a pose as Natalie struggled to not damage any of the fragile belongings while also hurrying to make it over to Hazel before she has to bark orders at her once again. The dynamic between the two girls looked quite odd, if not borderline abusive at times. From an outsider’s view, Natalie looked much more like hired help than a friend to the wannabe famous model. You’d rarely see her gripe about it, as Natalie longed for the same life of infamy and luxury. The shorter girl hastily snapped picture after picture for the impromptu photoshoot. She quickly showed the results to Hazel as she waited with anticipation for her response. Hazel merely huffed and mumbled her dissatisfaction with the results as she shoved the phone back at the girl and continued walking towards the Academy.

Fiona hurried to the registration area and found the line for help. She prayed that someone could assist her in navigating all of this as she made it to the front after a few minutes. She saw a very pretty caramel-skinned girl who looked a bit frustrated but smiled at her all the same to help.

“Welcome To Eagle Crest! We are honored for you to join us at the prestigious academy in this landmark year! The school was first founded on the belief…” The girl did a quick look around to see if any of the staff was still watching her greet the new students and let out a sigh of relief when she noticed they were all occupied. “And blah, blah, blah we’ve made it to this groundbreaking year!” She finished the last part with an exaggerated voice that hardly covered her irritation. Fiona gave her a slight giggle at the attempted performance. “But seriously, if I have to announce that entire long-winded story one more time, I’m going to bang my head on this desk. I'm Alicia and I take it you’re new here because I don’t know you. Knowing people is kind of my thing. What’s your name new girl and what can I do for you?”

“Uhh, Fiona.” The nervous blonde choked out as Alicia seemed to pep up a little at the notice of her accent.

“Whoa. So you’re new, new then huh? Welcome to the middle of nowhere. Where most of the girls are stuck-up assholes and most of the guys are pompous assholes. You’re going to love it.” Alicia said now with an oddly more sincere smile. Fiona simply smiled back as she was still trying to figure out how to take the sarcastic girl.

“Ok Alicia, I have absolutely no idea where to go… Can you help me out, perhaps?”

“Sure. This one’s on the house. Let me just look you up real quick. Wow! Your transcripts are quite impressive. You should fit in very well academically and with some effort could finish ranked in the top 5% of the class. I can’t say for sure. I don’t pay that much attention to who all is behind me.” Alicia added smugly as she continued to scroll through her file on the school laptop. “So you’re the essay contest winner? Congrats. I actually read it and was quite impressed. It might be nice to talk to someone around here with a brain. We’ll have to catch up sometime. Which will be quite easy because you’re just two rooms down from me it appears. It looks like your roommate is Clara… Well, let’s just say good luck. Anyways, I’d show you around but I’m stuck at this damn welcoming desk for the next couple of hours. It feels like an eternity. I was mostly joking earlier about all of the students here. The majority aren’t too bad once you get through their surface appearance.” Alicia did a quick look around and noticed two of her close friends, Scotty and Alex, unashamedly hitting on some new girls. “Just watch out for the two dimwits in traffic vests over that way. There isn’t much that’s redeemable about them.” She added as both girls shared a small laugh. “I’ll have to introduce you to some of my more reputable friends sometime soon. Welcome to the Falls!”

Fiona felt relieved to meet someone who seemed both friendly and real. It helped diminish some of her initial fears. She put on a brave smile and grabbed up all of her bags to make it to her new room.

She finally made it to the room and peeked in nervously to see that her roommate wasn’t currently in. Fiona wasn’t quite sure how to take Alicia’s odd warning about her roommate, Clara. It was clear that Clara had already been there though as her bed was already picked and she wasted no time in decorating her area. The posters and decorations were quite odd, Fiona thought at first react. Everything appeared to be very artsy but also mostly monochrome. Almost everything was in a dark gray or black shade. She next glanced at her side of the closet and noticed that all of her clothing, outside of school uniforms, were of similar shades. This was very contrasting with Fiona’s bright and vibrant style. It did little to discourage her as she took lead from her mysterious roommate and began to decorate her side as well. She started with pictures of her family and a couple pictures of her beloved pet cat. She followed it up with a small but important selection of her book collection. She then brought out a funky lava lamp that her mom gave her half jokingly from when she first went away to college years ago. She was almost done when she turned around and was startled to see a strange girl laying across the room on her bed with headphones in. She didn't hear her come in but was quite focused on unpacking. Fiona let out a small squeak as she grasped her chest and jumped a bit. Her motion must have caught the attention of the girl from the corner of her eye. She hesitantly removed one earbud as she kind of stared at Fiona, waiting for the blonde to make the first introduction.

“Hi there. It’s Clara, right? I heard your name from registration. I’m Fiona. Fiona Townsend!” She added as her confidence and excitement returned to her voice as she quickly stepped forward with an outstretched hand. Clara only stared a bit longer before offering a half-hearted wave. The nerves started to return to Fiona as she wasn’t sure how to respond to her new roommate.

“I like your style. It’s quite unique. A little different from mine if you haven’t noticed. It gives the room a cool, edginess to it.” Fiona finally stopped herself as the girl across from her just glared and continued to study her. ‘What the hell am I even rambling about? Why does she look like she hates me before she’s even met me?’

Clara was indeed studying the girl but in a different way than Fiona may think. Clara’s unique style and reserved personality has long caused other students to only appear to be nice to her, before quickly joining in on the teasing and rumors. She’s dealt with it for years at Sacred Sisters and 'Welcoming Day' has already been proving to her that this place wouldn’t be much different. She simply hoped that if she kept her head down long enough that she could finally be done with this place and start again at college. Regardless of the many rumors and speculations about the loner girl, it was clear that she was strikingly beautiful. She had silky, long brown hair and striking gray eyes. She was a tall girl with the build of a model or dancer. Her legs were quite fit, and she had a tight ass with perky breasts that fit her frame well. It might even make some wonder how a girl with her looks isn’t in contest for prom queen.

Fiona continued to make a polite impression before Clara finally removed both earbuds and softly spoke for the first time.

“Look you seem like you might actually be a decent person which is probably just as much reason for you to avoid me. I think it’s best that we just kind of keep to our own around here. This room can be neutral ground where we mind our own business and kind of co-exist. It’s fine if we don’t talk in public or anything. It’s probably going to turn out better for you if we don’t. I’m used to it anyways.”

Clara gave the smallest hint of a sincere smile and then put both earbuds back in as she laid back flat on her bed.

Fiona walked out to the busy courtyard to try and get a better feel of the students, the facility, or anything really, as long as it was away from her awkward dorm room. She saw many interesting personalities filling the road and yards and saw as most of the families were starting to hit the road. Some teachers were present but it was clear that they could do little to control the excitement and emotions from all of the students seeing each other for the first time after the break. Her nerves lightened when she saw the familiar face from earlier, Alicia, ripping into some guys across the yard. She smiled even if she couldn’t tell what was being said, the expressions said enough. Two of the four guys happen to be the same ones that she warned her about earlier. It only made sense to Fiona that she’d be friends with them. But the other two were both tall and athletic guys whom she found quite attractive. Their looks contrasted with one another as the taller of the two had blonde hair and softer features with a warm smile. The slightly shorter one looked a little more muscular and reserved, which made her think that he likely had an interesting enough story if you were able to get him to open up. She was reminded of the words from her friend earlier, who told her to live a little and maybe meet some guys here. She wondered if one of the two that had currently piqued her interest could fulfill that role. Fiona glanced up to admire them once again but only this time noticed they were both staring at her as well. She nearly panicked as she stood upright and offered a kind but embarrassed smile. She fought the urge to run and tried to slowly turn away while playing with her hair. From what she could tell, neither guy had broken off their stares yet.

“Bonjour? Parles-tu français?” A new voice questioned Fiona from behind in fluent French.

“Pardon? I’m sorry I’m not sure what you just asked.” Fiona slightly stuttered as she was still panicking from being caught checking out the two guys.

“O so just British, huh?” The beautiful blonde girl replied dryly as she seemed to take notice of Fiona’s unique look. “Well, that’s still better than all of these boring Americans. I could tell by your style that you certainly weren’t from here. I’m Malia Morgan. You may want to get a picture now before I start charging. It’ll be worth a lot when I’m a famous actress someday, but please no autographs.” The vibrant girl teased. Malia also had a brand all her own. She was currently wearing a pair of light-colored designer jeans that had many other colors embedded in the material. She had a bright red halter top that showed off her toned abs and arms. It also hugged her body and made an excellent display of her medium-sized breasts. The jeans made her ass jut out perfectly and her outfit was finished off with some black designer boots. “Nice taste by the way.”

“I’m sorry?” Fiona replied in a confused tone.

“Abercrombie and Fitch over there,” Malia said as she motioned her head in the direction of the two guys that Fiona had previously been staring at. “Abercrombie, or The tall hottie is Drew. Star athlete, student, basically everything. He’s like fucking Captain America or something. Then chiseled and broody next to him, Fitch, is Mason. I’m not sure if he just hates everyone here or has a very limited vocabulary. I don’t think I’ve heard the guy say more than five words. But going off some rumors, it is very much worth the time if you can get him alone.” Malia smiled in a way that was both mischievous and always predatorial. “I’ll be sure to let you know if the rumors are true for both of them. Hopefully, you’ll do the same cutie.” She continued to tease. “That’s unless you happen to favor the fairer sex…” Malia said as she eyed Fiona once more and took a slight step toward the unassuming girl.

“For fuck’s sake, Malia! Do I need to get the hose?” Came a strong voice from a well-dressed girl, a short distance behind Malia. Her annoyance towards her friend’s bold and flirty nature hit its boiling point when it was towards a girl. Malia got the hint and turned to make her exit.

“The boring one there is Lillian. She isn’t always around to keep me away from the fun. I’ll see you around sometime, England. I have a sixth sense for finding parties and other good times. I’ll show you that it’s not all bad around here.”

It took much longer for Hazel and Natalie to reach their destination due to the many different students who came up to greet the girls. Natalie was excited to see some and admittedly couldn’t place many of them to save her life. She was cordial enough regardless. Hazel made her annoyance much clearer. Outside of a couple of the girls that she sees at least within her realm to be seen with, she mostly ignored the rest. Her blood boiled when she saw Natalie flirting with a couple of guys and laughing at their corny introductions. She grabbed her friend by the wrist and yanked her back toward their belongings to remind her that she had a job to do.

“I don’t have a clue why you even give a damn about these nobodies. They are only high school guys at that. The oxygen thieves should have to pay us for even looking our way before putting the mental images away into their spank banks. They’re fucking useless Natalie.”

“Even that one?” Natalie said with a less than discreet point, “The fucking useless one you use to date?”

Hazel snapped her head toward the direction that Natalie was pointing, and her face soured when she saw Drew Murphy. “Especially that one. I can’t imagine how embarrassing it has to be for him to see me slay the entire year and to know his life peaked at 17.”

“Didn’t he break up with you?” Natalie mumbled as she was quite distracted while staring at Mason and Alex. She had a pretty obvious crush on both boys whenever the two groups mingled in the past.

“Will you shut the fuck up, Natalie! He was just trying to save face from knowing I was going to dump him at any time.”

“It kind of looks like he’s moving on.” Natalie naively said as she nodded first at the guy and then toward the direction that his gaze was pointed. Hazel clenched her fists as she locked her eyes on the unknown blonde that her ex was currently enamored by.

“Who the hell is that?”