༄ SAM watched her mom speak to a man who she guessed was one of her colleagues: a teacher at Etril's Boarding School For Boys. Talks like these often made her wonder why her mom was the principal of the boys, and not the girls.

However, a part of her was very grateful for that; she wouldn't have to spend the coming year close to her mom... a strict, frequently stressed woman.

Sam got her mom's genes and was taller than most girls she passed on the streets. The curly hair was what she gained from her dad, and the color of her skin a mix of both.

Her mom was pale, with her hair brushed back so tightly Sam believed it caused a constant headache. Her father was rather small, with a darker skin tone. A bit stocky. Brown, curly hair. Usually, a smile was glued on his lips.

You could say her parents were the total opposite of each other.

She sat next to her father, waiting for the boring conversation about the boarding school to be over. The thought of not being able to finish her back-to-school routine rises her anxiety. 

"I heard you'll be sharing your dorm with two girls." Her father leaned closer, tilting his head.

"Hm."

A chuckle escaped his mouth.

Sam groaned and rested her head on his shoulder. "Hey, if I behave this year, can I not get that forced wedding?"

"Everything is set already. Your mom wants this. She believes it's better for us all, alright? You'll be safe, protected by a man. It's just the way it will go."

Sam's jaw clenched. "I don't want it."

"Well, unless you find someone else to marry, you have no choice," he sighed out, the guilt clear in his voice.

"Woah, woah, woah." With wide eyes, she straightened her back immediately. "You're saying that if I find someone else... I don't have to marry that man who's like twenty years older than me?"

"If your mom agrees."

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?" She murmured.

Well, maybe it didn't matter. Her mom would never agree unless Sam showed up with a holy gentleman.

❤︎︎

Jeff greeted his sister with a grin. Beads of sweat slicked his forehead after basketball training, and his red team clothes were still on.

Sam raised an eyebrow. "What's up?"

"I got in the team! Etril's Team! Holy shit. And not just me. I'm with Thomas, Minho, and Alby."

"And those are...?"

"My friends!" He somewhat bounces in the air.

"How come you've already made friends before the year started? We moved here two weeks ago! School starts tomorrow. How?"

"Unlike you, I'm not awkward." Jeff wrapped an arm around his sister, leading her into their new kitchen. Small but fancy. "Hey, would you bake those brownies again? They're amazing." A quick pause before he adds, "Don't say it's because of the baker."

"It's because of the baker." She leaned against the wall. Fidgeted with the millions of golden bracelets on her hands. "But sure, if I have time. Gotta finish my thing first."

"Man, who still has a back-to-school routine?"

"Literally everyone who isn't a disgusting little rat, Jeff."

"You're a disgusting little rat."

"Alright, that's it. I won't bake the brownies until the next holiday." Sam clapped in her hands, a gesture that hints at the end of the conversation.

Except Jeff wasn't done, and stopped her from leaving. "That's like weeks from now!"

"Patience is a virtue. Congrats with getting in the team, though!" With a last bump against his shoulder, Sam ran up the stairs and locked herself up in her room.

Even though they had only been living in this house for two weeks, Sam's room was already to her liking.

And it was already messy.

Yet she didn't care. She liked messy rooms better than the neat rooms, unless the messy room was dirty. Messy was just the right contrast. 

Plants were spread all over the place. Some fake, some real. The flowers she dried last summer hung on her wall, next to the ivy that was twisted in fairy lights. Candles were planted everywhere, but she didn't light them since the chance her plants would catch fire was... very big.

Brown sheets covered her bed, along with a million pillows. Her bookshelf was overloaded with all kinds of books. Some lay on the ground too, but not a single one's spine was cracked. She was fine with other people treating their books however they wanted, but her books got treated like they were her babies. Gentle, careful, and with an extraordinary amount of love— her mom could take that advice.

In a corner, she had put all her books to study, papers, and anything else she needed for school.

School was an important thing to Sam. She wouldn't call herself her a nerd because she certainly didn't like studying, but she always had an annoying itch to get A's, and nothing less.

Mostly because of her mom, too. Sam hadn't cared about her grades until she overheard her parents talk about a few bad ones. When she failed another test, her mom lost it. So Sam decided to never fail again, for everyone's good.

Sighing into the mirror of the bathroom, she pulled the face mask off and decided to deep condition her hair so it wouldn't be a fuzzy mess on the first day of school, as if she had been electrocuted.

Lastly, she lay her uniform down. She was happy it was a pretty decent one. A skirt with blue and red squares. A white blouse, along with a blue tie. On top of that, a black blazer.

It wasn't bad at all. In fact, she found herself admiring it.

❤︎

The next morning, Sam sat on the backseat of the car. Her mom was driving her and Jeff to their first day at the boarding schools.

All that work in her bedroom just for her to visit it once a week, in the weekends.

In her hands, she held a book. Jeff kept going on and on about the basketball team while their mom explained the school schedules. Sam listened to neither of them, allowing herself to drown inside the pages of the book.

Until she noticed Jeff was peeking at the pages. "Romance?"

"Yes." She nods. "A new one."

She was a sucker for both old literature and new, trending books, depending on her mood.

"Right." Jeff turned back to the window. "Hey, I see Etril!"

With vague curiosity, Sam followed his eyes to the enormous brown towers of the school. Details curved and curled around the stone. A fountain spat water. A big field separated the boys' school from the girls'.

"Here we are." Their mom parked the car next to the schools. Sam rushed out of it as if something was chasing her; no way she'd give people the chance to notice she's the principal's daughter.

When she finished picking the keys of her new locker up, Sam arrived in class. She sat down in silence, not planning to socialize, and certainly not on her first day. The other girls streamed into the room. And soon, the first period started.

"Hermanas... hijas, whatever..." An unknown voice entered the classroom. Sam looked up at a man. Older, but not elderly. "Welcome to the beautiful subject... Spanish." He ran a hand through his curly hair. "I'm sure not all of you will agree with me on that, but I'd rather have you to pay attention anyway."

Sam rested her chin on her palm as she listened to the teacher. He readjusted his brown shirt and before he sat down on his desk, eyes twinkling.

"My name is Jorge Esposito. Unlike most teachers, I prefer it if you just call me by my first name. Jorge. Not Mr. Esposito or whatever else." He raised his eyebrows. "That alright?"

Everyone simply agreed.

"Perfect!"