[sarahsarah]

Chapter 3

Jade lay in her bed in complete misery. The tears from the day before may have dried up, but the disappointment still remained. She wanted to feel happy for Iris, to support her sister, but all she considered was how close she had come to her desires, only to have them snatched away at the last moment. Iris hadn’t returned to her dormitories after the result, but all of her things were already missing when Jade had entered. She assumed they must have been moved some point during the day.

Her worst fears had pretty much become a reality. A month of trying and hoping had been destroyed in a matter of seconds. It would be difficult to join another sorority this late, not that Jade even wanted to try. The sorority she had dreamed about for so long had dismissed her and rejected her in favour of ten others, including her own twin sister. In Jade’s mind, it was like being told she was the worse twin, that she wasn’t as good as Iris, and that there was a better version of her to be chosen. She knew that the sisterhood didn’t hate her but she found it nearly impossible to comprehend the situation. It had all happened so quickly; her dreams shredded with two words, the name of a different hopeful pledge.

Jade felt sick; her stomach was turning over and her whole body felt weak. Only thinking of the moment threatened the fall of another tear. But as the morning travelled towards midday she started to settle down, letting some rational thought enter her mind. The hurt and pain still lingered but less overwhelming than previously. She had spent the entire morning wallowing in self pity but for what. It wasn’t going to change the outcome; it wasn’t going to be productive and Jade knew that she needed to think about her future.

In a weird way she wasn’t even surprised by the outcome, by the fact that Iris had been chosen over her. It seemed destined that Iris would be the one chosen to join the sisterhood, only Jade hoped that she might find a way in as well. Throughout their childhood, school life and everywhere, Iris had always been the more outgoing natured out of the two of them. Her twin sister seemed to find socialising and making friends easy, a natural process. She was always popular, no matter where she went. People just seemed to instantly like her.

Jade had always found it far more difficult. Often when joining new friendship groups she started off in them as tagging along with her sister. Only after a while of settling in did people seem to grow closer to her, to see her as a true friend they could confide in. Regularly, Jade knew she grew better friendships in the long term than her sister, but it took a lot longer than a single month. She considered all of her friends she had left behind at school. She’d spent three hours last night talking to one of them; she couldn’t imagine Iris confiding in anyone but her in that way.

All of her life, Jade had been told how identical Iris and her were. It was to be expected as identical twins, especially when they had similar style choices, similar hobbies and the same friends. However, on closer inspection, they could be very different. Iris could happily host a party and invite a hundred guests, whereas Jade would much prefer four or five close companions to share an evening with. Jade knew her sister was the quick thinking, fun drinking, and party animal out of the pair. She, on the other hand, was the intelligent, friendly, enjoyable but slightly reserved counterpart. In a social environment like a house filled with fifty young girls for a relatively short period of time, Jade wasn’t surprised that Iris gave a better impression.

Jade didn’t feel that Iris deserved it any less, or that the sorority necessarily made the wrong choice, but it hurt nonetheless. In a way, it was almost like jealousy, despite the fact there would be very little she would choose to change about her past. What now though? That was the question that Jade had to consider. What could she do now that she had been turned down? What was plan B? She couldn’t go crying to her mother like a child. This was her life, and although it had knocked her down, Jade was ready to get back up

No matter what the next step in her life was, Jade knew she would get nowhere by lying in bed. She forced herself up and got dressed. Looking in the mirror and seeing her dressed and looking far less of a mess made her feel brighter. The blotchy eyes were gone and stood in front of her was a respectable woman, ready for the next challenge in life. Her phone rang.

Jade picked up the phone and looked at the number. She certainly didn’t recognise it instantly. Tentatively she answered. “Hello.”
“Hi, is that Jade Miller?” a voice spoke. It sounded vaguely familiar to Jade but she couldn’t quite place it.
“Yes, I’m Jade,” she answered.
“Great, this is Monica, president of the sisterhood,” the voice stated. Jade was shocked; why on earth was the president calling her now.
“Oh… Hi Monica, how can I help?” Jade asked shyly.
“Well… This is a bit of an unusual situation. This morning Cat Johnson, one of our pledges, has decided she no longer wishes to pledge our society. This is the first time this has happened for quite a while. As the eleventh voted pledge, I wanted to see if you would still be interested in joining our sorority?” Monica explained.
“Yes!” Jade shouted a little bit too quickly, “I mean… I would love the opportunity. Why has Cat pulled out?”
“I will explain everything shortly. Can you get to the house within the next hour? I need to run a lot of things by you,” Monica queried.
“I’ll be there in about thirty minutes,” Jade replied.
“Superb.” The phone hung up instantly. Jade looked into the mirror. Somehow, someway, she had another chance.

Jade stood staring at the house once more. It was a building she never thought she would get another chance to enter, her chance lost for good. She gleefully walked the full length of the garden and knocked on the door. Emotions were flooding through her body. She was excited, nervous, blissful, hesitant and looking forward to seeing Iris again. Only a second after she knocked, the door was swung open revealing the president’s stern face.
“Follow me, quickly,” Monica ordered and turned around leading Jade through the house. As they walked through the lounge and into the dining room, she was surprised to see none of the other pledges. As they entered the dining room, Jade was taken aback. The tables were all gone and the chairs stacked in the corner. The room seemed somehow darker than usual as well. Monica led Jade into the center of the room and stopped to face her.

“OK. I need to check that you still are certain that you want to pledge this sorority?” Monica asked.
“I am. I want nothing more.”
“Good, then it is my duty to welcome you to pledge week,” Monica stated, “We had the official ceremony last night before Cat dropped out this morning. The first thing I must state is this; although you were eleventh in the list of pledges, that doesn’t make you any less deserving of a place. You are now a pledge of this sorority and will be treated entirely equal.”
“That’s good to know,” Jade said a bit relieved. Monica held a hand up to her to instantly shush her.
“During this conversation, I only want you to talk when asked something. The same was in place for everyone else last night and although this is a little bit away from the usual tradition, I want it to go as smoothly as possible,” Monica explained. Jade nodded to indicate she understood.

“You have fortunately been spared a lot of the theatrics of the last evening but you still need to know exactly how everything in this sorority works over the next week. This was too much for Cat which is why she made her choice. If after I have said everything, you choose to leave, that is your decision, but there are no second chances if you do. Understand?”
“Yes Monica,” Jade answered, but in reality she was getting more scared by the second. What on earth was Monica going to tell her that could cause someone to leave after working so hard to get to this stage?

“You need to realise that everything that led up to this point in time was friendly introductions and rush culling. These were the easy parts of initiation and the boring bit. That isn’t the case anymore and the coming week is the true initiation into our sorority where you can truly become a sister of the sorority. I’ll be honest and tell you it will be tough, confusing and may change the way you think about yourself. Hopefully you will find it enjoyable. If not, the door is always open, but remember, if you leave, you may not return,” Monica informed her. Jade nodded her understanding again.

“During the ceremony, each pledge drew three pieces of paper. The pieces of paper would contain the names of one sophomore, one junior and one senior member of the sorority. These girls are the big sisters of each pledge. You will be adopting the names picked out by Cat last night. These big sisters will be yours for the rest of your life, but for this week they are far more. They are your guides and your masters. If you have any questions or problems you can talk to any of them. In exchange you will be completely under the control of your big sisters. Anything they ask of you, from the mundane to the most difficult of tasks you must complete. Any refusal to follow orders is grounds for the potential expulsion of you from the sorority. There will also be organised activities with your big sisters later in the week. Do you understand so far?” Monica questioned.

“Yes,” Jade answered, trying to process everything she had just been told. It was all incredibly intimidating, and as far as Jade understood, it meant she had to do everything that three older girls told her to do in the next week, or she would be kicked out of the sorority. It was starting to become clear how Cat might have been scared off.

“Right, as you know, we only have nine sophomore girls in that year, which means that one of them will have two little sisters this week. It just so happens that the girl who has two pledges to guide will be one of your big sisters. This girl is Olivia Walker, but she prefers to be called Liv. Your junior sister is a girl called Mia Close, not sure if you know her. Finally your senior sister is none other than me. That means that I am your big sister. You still may not fully understand what I meant when I said that you must do whatever asked by a big sister so I will make a demonstration, as is tradition. You are my little sister. Do you understand?” Monica asked.

“Yes, I understand,” Jade replied. She was very confused by everything, and a little surprised to find out the president had been selected as one of her three big sisters.
“Good, then I demand that you give me a kiss,” Monica said. Jade was shocked.
“Wait… what… are you joking?” Jade stammered. Monica gave her a stern look.
“I am not joking. This is a demand. If you fail to do as is requested, we have grounds to remove you from the sorority,” Monica stated firmly. Jade was in a stunned silence; she saw in the devious eyes of the president that she was deadly serious, that if she paused for too long she could be kicked out. Having been thrown a life line in the last seconds, she wasn’t ready to discard it so quickly. After all, it was only a kiss.

Jade leaned in, tilted her head and locked her lips with the president’s. At first, Jade was incredibly nervous, but as the president’s hands fell onto her hips and pulled her in, she relaxed slightly. The president knew exactly what she was doing and as she felt the tip of Monica’s tongue press against her lips, she instantly gave way to allow it access. She was lost in the moment, her nerves faltering and inhibitions kicking in, a flame ignited. The flame caused her to melt into the moment and soon she was pushing back with her own tongue. It felt passionate; it seemed natural, all other thoughts leaving her head to make room for the president. It was the first time that Jade had passionately kissed another woman, but in that moment, she didn’t want it to end.

When eventually Monica broke the kiss, Jade felt in a dazed state of bliss. The kiss had excited her body and somehow removed her doubt. “Well done Jade; I have to say you’re a natural. I look forward to doing that again soon,” Monica said, biting her lower lip as she finished. Jade blushed at the president’s comments, embarrassed by how she had embraced what had just happened.

“So remember for the future, no delays, only obey. I hope you now understand exactly how things work, especially considering what a good job you just did. I must inform you that for the entirety of the week, there are two other very strict rules that must be abided by. Firstly, as you may have already noticed, all of the blinds are to be closed at all times. That is to protect the pledges’ dignity, as the second rule is that all pledges must be naked at all times during the week. That rule is enforced the moment you agree to take the final place in our sorority. Do you agree?”

Jade considered everything she had just been told. She was shocked; she knew that to continue, she was required to strip right now in front of the president and remain that way for the entire week. It made complete sense now why Cat had decided to leave the sorority. It was a massive decision to take on. Then Jade thought of the other nine girls, especially Iris. If they could do it and her sister could do it, surely she could as well. She was just as tough as her twin, and she was ready to prove it. “I agree,” Jade stated.

The second the words left her mouth she didn’t hesitate. The feelings of being turned down and her possible reclusiveness were still bubbled up inside. She wanted to prove herself, prove exactly how strong she truly was. In just two swift motions, her t-shirt and jeans were on the floor. Her bra was quickly unclipped and landed on the pile exposing her breasts and light pink areolas to the cool air. Only then did she hesitate slightly, but it wasn’t for long. Taking one more look at Monica, who seemed fairly surprised by Jade’s instant acceptance, she discarded the last barrier protecting her dignity.

She glanced back to Monica who was now looking over her body gleefully. Jade wasn’t sure why she wasn’t trying to hide herself, maybe because she knew Monica would tell her to move her hands anyway, maybe because she kind of liked the idea of the president enjoying the sight of her, but something was stopping her. Despite the awkwardness, she stood there, waiting for Monica to say something, still smiling about getting another chance, even if it wasn’t what she expected.

“Good job Jade, I’m glad you accept the role. You can go upstairs and see your room if you like. We will have your belongings moved across during the day and we will send these clothes up shortly. Don’t be surprised when you see nine other girls walking around the house without clothes; they’re all in the same situation and everyone else is here to support you,” Monica said.
“Thank you for giving me the chance,” Jade replied.
“It wasn’t up to me; it’s how the sorority voted,” Monica stated.
“Thank you anyway,” Jade said before turning towards the door.

“One last thing Jade, before you go. As you are replacing Cat, you will also be taking her room and we can’t change people around as everyone else has unpacked and settled in. That means that you will be sharing a room with Iris.”