forum I Went To The Woods Because I Wished To Live Deliberately || Brookestone Academy || Fem DPS || Closed

Started January 10, 2023 by @emilyevewrites group

tune

Meg set down her bags and nodded at her roommate. “I’m Mehan Hill.” she replied, politely shaking Birdie's hand. Though her hand was clearly different with small scars, callouses, and a sun-kissed tan. “It's nice to meet you. I hope we can get along as roommates.” she added sincerely.

Birdie nodded slowly.
"I hope so too, I hope you don't mind I took the right side, I was going to wait but last year my roommate didn't get in until about eleven, so I was unpacking until midnight, which was not a good idea before the first day." She said apologetically, with an air of dreaminess.

Gayle listened as her roommate talked. She didn't mind listening much; it was nice to learn about other people and hear their stories, though she disliked talking about herself. Juniper had shared more about her family and life than Gayle had cared to. Gayle really only said what she had to in order to answer Juniper's questions, and not much more than that. Maybe if they got closer and became good friends Gayle would talk more, but for now she was mostly limited to sharing in smaller chunks. It still felt as if her and Juniper were virtually strangers.

She looked over at the poster, smiling a little at Juniper's guesses. "You're pretty close; it's Nightflight to Venus. I really like the new album," she responded, glancing back at her roommate as she spoke, but quickly looking away again. She didn't like eye contact much: it felt too personal. "Rasputin's a good song." She had liked Boney M. since their debut album came out, before she had started to get into rock music, but there was something about their style that she adored. Her favorites now included a mixture of different genres, and she felt cool for branching out. She liked to listen to music when she studied sometimes, or the rare moments of true alone time she had. She had slowly become more into it. Perhaps she would play a few of her records while her roommate was here if she didn't mind. She was building up a collection of records, which may someday in the distant future rival her book collection if she kept it up. Her mother had always been happy to feed her love of books.

She didn't start any new tracks in the conversation, most likely because she didn't know what to say. What if she said something stupid? Or went on a tangent that Juniper didn't like or didn't care about? What if she tried to tell a joke and Juniper thought she was the least funny person on the planet? Gayle didn't want to jeopardize a possible friendship by saying the wrong thing. So she supposed that she would let Juniper keep the conversation going–if she still wanted to talk to Gayle. At least the other girl seemed to approve her music taste. Gayle seriously needed to stop caring what her peers thought, but that was about as easy as scaling Mount Everest for her. The idea that she would do or say the wrong thing could be paralyzing sometimes.

Juniper smiled. Everything was going pretty well. Her new roommate seemed pretty cool. She didn't talk much though. That was okay. Juniper knew she could be a lot sometimes. So she said some words to hopefully ease her roommate's mind.
"Ya know, you can be whatever you want to be around me. I'm an easy going person. Plus this is your room too. So it's a safe space. It's open for communication and ideas. Speak your mind. Play music. Dance around and have fun. You only live once, so you might as well have fun."

Gayle blinked. She supposed the girl was right, though it hardly did much for her anxiety. It was easy to go wrong within those parameters. At least her roommate was nice, which was comforting. But it wouldn't make her any more comfortable around the girl at first. If anything, that was a little anxiety-inducing. Did her roommate want her to be louder, more confident, more like her? Was she secretly disappointed in how shy and introverted her new roommate was? It made her feel awkward.

But she had to at least act like she was unbothered. People tended to get awkward and tried to help her when she was too outwardly anxious. She hated when people felt bad for her or got awkward because of her. She wished that she had the same 'you only live once' mindset, but Gayle was always worrying about her future. One night of making the wrong choices and she could jeopardize her future forever. Not enough studying and she could jeopardize her future forever. So Gayle had to do things the slow way, the careful way, so that everything in the future looked fine.

"Okay, thanks," she responded, giving her roommate a small smile before turning around to continue decorating her room. She didn't want to make things weird, so the easiest way to do that was just not talk much. It was her go to strategy with new people. The only time she said more than she had to was around her family or friends, who she felt more comfortable with (well, maybe not her parents, but other family). Maybe that circle would include Juniper, but that would take time. For now, the girl was just her roommate who she barely knew.

Juniper pursed her lips and crossed her arms when Gayle turned around.
"No problem!"
She chirped.
She had been too much. Her new roommate probably thought she was too loud and bubbly and careless and probably messy, even though she hadn't been messy. Yet. She needed to find her adhd medication. She was struggling to focus. to her it felt like she had checked through every bag and couldn't find it. She looked around kind of panicked, and then saw the little bottle on her bed where she had taken it out and throw in carelessly earlier. She sighed in relief and put the bottle on the nightstand beside her bed. She went over to her belongings and picked out one of her favorite books that was in her suitcase. She sat down on her bed and began reading To Kill a Mockingbird.

Birdie nodded slowly.
"I hope so too, I hope you don't mind I took the right side, I was going to wait but last year my roommate didn't get in until about eleven, so I was unpacking until midnight, which was not a good idea before the first day." She said apologetically, with an air of dreaminess.

Meg shook her head, almost chuckling at the explanation. “No, I don't mind. I don't really have a preference anyway.” she assured. “Though I have to agree; waiting until midnight is not a good way to start a school year.” she smiled faintly before moving to her side of the room to unpack.

Birdie nodded slowly.
"I hope so too, I hope you don't mind I took the right side, I was going to wait but last year my roommate didn't get in until about eleven, so I was unpacking until midnight, which was not a good idea before the first day." She said apologetically, with an air of dreaminess.

Meg shook her head, almost chuckling at the explanation. “No, I don't mind. I don't really have a preference anyway.” she assured. “Though I have to agree; waiting until midnight is not a good way to start a school year.” she smiled faintly before moving to her side of the room to unpack.

Birdie stared at Meg's back for a solid couple of seconds, with her wide eyes.
She then nodded to herself and turned her back to Meg, continuing to unpack the small things still left in her bag.

Juniper pursed her lips and crossed her arms when Gayle turned around.
"No problem!"
She chirped.
She had been too much. Her new roommate probably thought she was too loud and bubbly and careless and probably messy, even though she hadn't been messy. Yet. She needed to find her adhd medication. She was struggling to focus. to her it felt like she had checked through every bag and couldn't find it. She looked around kind of panicked, and then saw the little bottle on her bed where she had taken it out and throw in carelessly earlier. She sighed in relief and put the bottle on the nightstand beside her bed. She went over to her belongings and picked out one of her favorite books that was in her suitcase. She sat down on her bed and began reading To Kill a Mockingbird.

Well, at least it seemed like the issue was settled, but as Gayle glanced back at her roommate again, she wondered if the girl was hiding her true feelings. She had the feeling that she had messed up somehow, but she wasn't sure what she had done. She was pretty good at reading people and empathizing with them, but she still somehow seemed to always manage to mess things up with new people. She just didn't know what to say, getting too into her head and all anxious, and it ruined any attempts at communication that she didn't actively prepare herself for (and sometimes even those too). Gayle wiped her sweaty palms on her skirt and went back to decorating her side of the room. Hopefully the next time she talked to Juniper, things would go better. The two seemed to be total opposites as far as social settings went, but they did say opposites attract, didn't they? Maybe they could become good friends at some point.

Gayle bit her lip as she adjusted one of the posters, making sure all of her decor was artfully arranged on her wall. She would do what she could to befriend this girl, but in the end if their temperaments were too different, being friends might just be too difficult. She supposed that she would try to interact in small ways until she felt more comfortable around the girl. Or possibly just avoid her altogether. That might be best for her anxiety. But she did want to try and make more friends this year, be more outgoing, all the good things. She took a deep breath. Well, Juniper appeared to be reading now, so she wouldn't interrupt. Maybe another time.

After finishing her wall, Gayle set about making her bed and desk area pretty. She had a cute little collage and calendar ready for her desk, and a blanket and a couple of stuffed animals for her bed. Hopefully her new roommate wouldn't think her childish, with her colorful (especially pink) aesthetic and plushies. Those things just comforted her. She had brought a lot to decorate with, so it was taking some time. She hummed softly to herself as she put the finishing touches on everything, making adjustments as needed.

Juniper would occasionally look over at what Gayle was doing. She was decorating still, and everything was pink. It was so much different than what she was used too. It wasn't that she disliked pink, it was just something that stood out as odd to her. She was used to blues and grays, and brown and greens. What her home looked like. Her interest was still enthralled in her book, until Gayle pulled out her plushies. She was interested. She had left most of hers at home, but she had brought two. Her polar bear, and her kelpie plushy, that was made courtesy of her grandmother. She called out to Gayle.
"Hey, I have plushies too. I thought you would find it weird if I brought them out. That's why I kept them in my suitcase…"

Gayle perked up a little at the mention of stuffed animals, turning from where she had aligned the few she had brought on her bed. Her favorite plushie was a dog that she had gotten when she was practically a baby, and while it was beginning to fall apart, the texture still felt nice. She had a couple of other, newer stuffed animals as well that loved dearly, all neatly arranged in front of a small throw pillow.

Gayle turned to her roommate, leaning against her bed as she smiled. "You do?" she asked, eyes bright. "That's pretty cool. I was honestly hoping you wouldn't judge me for bringing mine." She glanced down at her feet for a moment before looking back at Juniper's side of the room. It was very different than her own, but not bad. She actually liked it, if she were honest. She should probably tell Juniper that, but somehow even adding that seemed like talking a lot for her.

Juniper laughed.
“Why would I judge you for bringing stuffies? And by the way, your side of the room looks good. However, I’m not used to the color pink. If you look at my side, it’s the color of the sea and forest. It reminds me of home. Pink just seems unnatural for me. But it’s fantastic on you. It suits you.”

There was a lot of pressure to get this right, that much had been implied by her father. Lisette knew that he would never say it out loud but he expected a lot from her.

Her brother had visited that week before school started and as usual, Aaron and her father got into a pretty serious fight. There had been a yelling match that lasted for a good while before silence took over the mansion, their echoes stopping briefly before Aaron stormed out.

She didn't understand why her father was so hellbent on wanting Aaron to pick up on the family business, he was doing his own thing and that was enough, he was making a lot on his own, and he was successful.

Last night she hadn't gotten any sleep thinking about the events that had unfolded that week, thinking about how everything was better before her mother died, the family was well put together, Aaron and her father didn't dare fight because they knew it would put more stress on her mother, but after she had passed everything fell apart. Things were worse off and Lisette wished that her mother were still alive to help mend things, but there was no repairing their broken relationship. Lisette found herself in the middle, stopping both parties from hurting each other, and somehow she was supposed to pick a side. Aaron was a good brother, he didn't ask that of her, and understood if she decided to stick with their father, but her father didn't want Lisette anywhere near Aaron.

Lisette had been put under a lot of stress before and she found that the more stress was added to her, the better she performed, yet she wished she didn't have to deal with family issues as soon as she started school again.

Part of her was grateful she was starting, it would take her mind off things and she would be away.

Lisette was in the middle of putting up some of her clothes, still lost in thought, when someone else entered the room. Her eyes trailed the other smoothly, eyeing the girl and her parents. Lisette didn't say anything and kept unpacking her stuff until everything was laid out in front of her on the bed. She was still deciding where she was going to put everything.
When the girl spoke, Lisette closed her suitcase, locked it, and started shelving things. Putting the current books she was reading on the small desk beside her bed.
"A pleasure," Lisette said, resorting to formality. "My name's Lisette and it looks like we're stuck with each other" She spoke, not really giving her words much thought. Lisette stopped and looked over at Emaria for a second. Hopefully, there wouldn't be any trouble with her as Lisette took her studies very seriously. She didn't need anyone interrupting her when a big test would be coming up.

Emaria arched her eyebrows and studied the girl – Lisette – at the same time Lisette studied her. "I guess we are," she remarked, leaning down to grab her biggest suitcase and hoist it onto her bed. "I think I remember you… didn't we both have Trig 102 with Mrs. LaSont last year?"

While waiting for her new roommate to respond, Emaria unzipped her bag and began to pull out her clothes, books, and other miscellaneous items that she'd packed. She set the deskset her mother had bought her lightly on the top of her desk like she was worried it would break if she set it down too hard. Despite being at odds with her mother most of the time, she loved her mom, and Farah felt the same way for her daughter. It was just difficult when they rarely saw eye-to-eye and Saul had to step in and be the moderator for their feuds.

Juniper laughed.
“Why would I judge you for bringing stuffies? And by the way, your side of the room looks good. However, I’m not used to the color pink. If you look at my side, it’s the color of the sea and forest. It reminds me of home. Pink just seems unnatural for me. But it’s fantastic on you. It suits you.”

Gayle wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that, but she was glad her roommate wasn't at odds with her side of the room. Well, at least she figured the other girl wasn't. She gave Juniper a small smile and simply said, "Thanks. I like your side too."

She really did like Juniper's side of the room; from what little she knew about the girl, it seemed fitting. She had always thought that you could learn a lot about a person just by looking at their room, and she was learning about Juniper by seeing the green and blue decor and the Star Wars paraphernalia. It was clear that she was a fan of the movie. Gayle had never actually seen it herself; fantasy was more her thing than sci-fi, and she rarely even watched movies in the first place unless it was when she was babysitting her siblings. They loved Disney movies with a passion. In fact, one of the stuffed animals that Gayle had brought was based off of The Aristocats because it reminded her of her siblings. They loved that movie.

(Oh, oops! Sorry.)

Birdie stared at Meg's back for a solid couple of seconds, with her wide eyes.
She then nodded to herself and turned her back to Meg, continuing to unpack the small things still left in her bag.

Meg was a fairly meticulous person when it came to her space, so as she unpacked she would make sure that everything was somewhere where she could find it when she needed it. Except for a large notebook which she just threw on her bed alongside a small pouch.

She looked back at Birdie with a slightly raised brow when she felt her roommate staring at her. “Yes?”

(Oh, oops! Sorry.)

Birdie stared at Meg's back for a solid couple of seconds, with her wide eyes.
She then nodded to herself and turned her back to Meg, continuing to unpack the small things still left in her bag.

Meg was a fairly meticulous person when it came to her space, so as she unpacked she would make sure that everything was somewhere where she could find it when she needed it. Except for a large notebook which she just threw on her bed alongside a small pouch.

She looked back at Birdie with a slightly raised brow when she felt her roommate staring at her. “Yes?”

(it's cool :p)

Birdie smiled dreamily.
"I was just wondering," she said. "If you're okay with me hanging changing in here, or would you prefer I go into the communal bathroom?"

Meg just shrugged. “We’re both women. As long as you don't stare, I don't mind. And I’ll give you the same courtesy.” she assured.

Birdie nodded and pulled a pair of plaid pajama pants from one of her dresser drawers.
She then undid her belt and turning her back on Meg, began stepping out of her jeans and into the pants instead, she then got a oversize T-shirt and changed her shirt quickly.

Meg rolled her eyes with a soft brief chuckle at the sight of her roommate’s night clothes and turned back to focusing on unpacking. Though she had to admit that she liked Birdie’s apparent no-nonsense attitude about doing things.

Birdie then quickly hung up her posters and unpacked her constellation patterned comforter, which she unrolled and sat on the floor, she then worked on changing the schools white bed sheets to her black ones, and put dark blue pillow cases on her two pillows, adding a few smaller pillows in the mix.

When she was done, she added the comfort back and viewed her twin sized bed with her hands on her hips and her legs slightly bent.

Meg’s side of the room was fairly simple with pictures of landscapes instead of posters and rich green bedding. Though she was always careful of the notebook she had left out. It stayed on her bed, for the most part, but always where she could see it and she never let anything cover it for a moment.

When she glanced over at Birdie’s side of the room, she couldn't help but smile softly. It was almost ironic how she had decorated in a very down-to-earth way while her roommate choose an astrological theme.

Birdie climbed under her covers, pulling them all the way up to her chin, where she looked back at Meg with wide, owl-like eyes.

"Are you planning to sleep soon?" She asked, stifling a yawn with the back of her hand.

“Might as well.” Meg shrugged, noticing the obvious clue that Birdie was tired. “We've got a big day tomorrow.” she commented as she turned around and changed into her pajamas.

“Good night, Birdie.” she said simply as she turned off the light and climbed into bed.

"Goodnight Meg." Birdie said into the dark in her melodic, dream-like voice, which was naturally soft.
"Remember to have nice dreams, nightmares do no one good, especially before an important event like the first day of classes."

She rolled onto her side and pulled her legs up slightly.

(Sorry I've been so spotty! I'm trying not to spend as much time on the site anymore… but here we go!)

Like any other school, the first day of classes at Brookstone Academy was chaotic. Young, lost first years wandered from wing to wing and room to room of the massive building until they eventually found where they were supposed to be. And for older girls, the day went by in a long, monotone fashion.

Mrs. LaSont ran her trigonometry classroom strictly and without any margin for error. Her sharp eyes constantly swept the classroom as the girls scrambled to transcribe their notes and the correct formulas before the board was erased in a few hasty wipes to make way for the next round.

Ms. Spades was over the moon about the new chemistry textbooks the school had purchased over the summer, so she dove right in as quickly as she could. She quite nearly forgot to hand out the class syllabus until she remembered five minutes from the end of the period. Afterward, she assigned the first 27 problems on balancing chemical equations for the night's homework.

Madame Rousseau graciously took the first few minutes to review the French fundamentals that had escaped all of their brains since the end of the last semester. But the class barely got to thank Madame before she began to teach an intensely hard lesson on the first of many different passive and future verb tenses.

By the mid-afternoon, Miss Lansing's English class was about to start. As the girls in her class would all soon come to learn, none of them would be able to predict the events that happened in Miss Lansing's class each day as they could with their other classes. To being with, Adalise was nowhere to be seen. She stood, hidden behind the door that led to her small living quarters, with her expression calm and relaxed. But truly, she was the furthest thing from it. Excitement coursed through her at the prospect of teaching her very first class at Brookestone.

(no worries! i've been the same lol)

Gayle walked quickly to her next class. She was usually one of the first students to enter the classroom, terrified of being late. She wasn't sure why she was scared of so many common things, but perhaps the ever-present fear of failure was the true culprit behind these many anxieties. She had done her hair in a bun today, leaving two curls dangling on either side of her face to frame it. She hated tying all of her hair up because it made her face look weird. She liked the comfort that those two strands gave. Today she had decided to wear a little concealer for her acne and some mascara and lip gloss. Why wasn't that annoying bout of acne of her cheeks going away? It was determined to stick out the entire first week of school, if not longer, and it made her insecurities flare up again.

At any rate, Gayle was trying not to think about it. Instead, she forced her mind to focus on thinking through the French verb tenses that they had been working on Madame Rousseau's class. It was actually helping to calm her down. Thankfully, she was really good at French, having already known some Spanish which made her better at conjugating since the two languages were relatively similar. The only problem was when she mixed them up a little (it wasn't her fault that some of the words were basically the same), but mostly she excelled in French. She was honestly pretty gifted when it came to school in general, luckily for her. Though that could be due more to the insane amount of studying she did than any innate talent. She hadn't always been great at math, for example. But her studying eventually helped her to get A's and B's. If there was one thing that could be said about Gayle, it was that she knew how to study right.

As she entered the English classroom, Gayle's eyebrows raised. The teacher was nowhere in sight. That was unusual. Well, maybe she was having a tough first day? Gayle decided to give the woman the benefit of the doubt. She sat down in her usual seat–edge of the second row. It was close enough to the front to get a good view of everything, but not so close that she was picked on to answer everything. Gayle hated getting chosen to read aloud or answer a question in class. The truth was, nine times out of ten she knew the answer, or could at least guess at it, but she always had a lingering fear that she would be wrong. She crossed her legs, waiting for the other girls to enter as well. In the meantime, she traced her finger over the desk, making invisible doodles in the polished wood.