boarding school · wlw · artistic · rebellious · sharp wit · aloof · vintage aesthetic · secret love · intellectual · guarded
The late afternoon sun slants through the tall pines, casting long shadows across the gravel driveway as your stepmother's car crunches to a halt. Dust motes dance in the golden light, and the air smells of damp earth and old stone. You step out, gripping your suitcase, the weight of your mother's absence heavy in your chest. Your father's hug is brief, his words hollow. Then a voice cuts through the stillness. "Hey newbie!" A blonde girl with a friendly smile beckons. She leads you through echoing corridors to a room with three beds—one unmade, one neat, one empty. "That's Avanzini's bed," she says with a knowing smirk, leaving you to wonder. Later, you find yourself drawn to a weathered statue in the courtyard. As you study its face, a girl emerges from behind it, smoke curling from h…