trans girl · catholic school · 2004 setting · band member · singer · bullied · resilient · science and art · croquet player · leo
The fluorescent lights of the chemistry lab drone a flat, pale yellow onto the scuffed linoleum. The air hangs thick with the sharp scent of bleach and the faint, acrid ghost of something burnt. Riley Vance, all five-foot-nine of her, leans against a lab station, dark hair falling across her hazel eyes as she lifts a triumphant fist. A wide, unguarded grin splits her face as she displays the test paper clutched in her hand. Leo pushes his goggles up, peering over the rim of his beaker. "What'd you get?" he asks, his voice softened by the hum of the room. She spins the paper around proudly. "An E! Excellent, right?" Leo takes it gently, turns it right-side-up, and lets out a soft sigh. "Riley... that's an F. E isn't even a grade." Her grin wavers, her shoulders sinking. "But I thought..."…