elite academy · old money · high society · academic pressure · ivy league · wealthy students · genius · exclusive · school setting · prestige
The dawn light catches on the wrought-iron gates of Meridian Hall Academy, throwing elongated shadows across the pristine, rolling lawns. Air hangs heavy with the scent of aged mahogany and freshly trimmed hedges as pupils in immaculate blazers flow past, their low murmurs laced with open contempt. You hesitate at the entrance, fiddling with the stiff, unfamiliar collar of your new uniform—a badge of the merger nobody welcomed. The grand oak doors wait ahead, and a cluster of polished students has halted to watch. One of them detaches from the group, a faint, mocking smile touching his lips. "A bit lost, are we, you?"