Riverview School For Girls [GxG]

eleven

The sun was kissing the horizon, inky orange rays spilling through the naked treetops, bathing the muddy ground beneath their feet. Willow and Jordan were trekking down the winding country lane that took them to Riverview, trudging through puddles and thick waterlogged mud. Their cheeks were rosy, noses pink, fingers frozen in their pockets. The sun was rising and the icy chill in the air grew thick in their lungs.

"I can't believe you do this journey twice a day." Willow groaned, tightening her coat around herself. She was still wearing Jordan's clothes, and planned to change into her uniform once she got back to her dorm, before lessons started.

"It's not too bad." Jordan shrugged, tugging at her tie distractedly, eyes cast to the ground, looking to avoid deep murky puddles threatening to suck her in. "I used to get a bus to my old school. Full of loud kids." She gazed up for a moment, early morning sunshine cast across her face, glowing, beautiful. "I prefer this."

Willow admired the sunrise; the clear sky in the wake of a storm, the treetops rattling, warm orange light spilling through the branches. "It's pretty." She said thoughtfully.

They continued in silence, foggy breath fanning out in front of them, the February frost biting at their exposed flesh. "So," Jordan said, "Tell me about this book."

Willow glanced across at her, then back to the ground, "'The Yellow Wallpaper'?"

"What else would I be talking about?" Jordan teased.

"Right." Willow pushed her glasses up her nose distractedly, "It was written in the nineteenth century." She explained, "It's about a woman whose husband rents an old mansion for the summer, and confines her to one room."

Jordan was watching her, intrigued, captivated by Willow's clear blue eyes in the winter sun, "Sounds like a delightful book." She smiled, "Go on."

"Well, the main character is an unreliable narrator." Willow continued, "As she stares at the yellow wallpaper, she slowly starts to lose her mind. The wallpaper mutates; it tears, it leaves stains on her clothes, and eventually, she starts to see a woman in it."

"Wow, blondie." Jordan chuckled, "I'm invested; what happens at the end?"

"She becomes the woman in the wallpaper." Willow shrugged, "Or, at least, she believes she does."

"Holy shit." Jordan breathed out, "So, she goes insane?"

Willow nodded, "Can you blame her?"

Jordan watched the sunrise, lost in thought, "No, not really." She decided, "Can I borrow it?"

"Maybe when I'm done with it."

It was still early when they arrived at the tall oak doors that marked Riverview's entrance. The castle was still in its slumber, its shadowed silhouette outlined by the orange sunrise, making every tower and turret sharp and strong. They had gotten there early so Willow would have the chance to change into her uniform before breakfast, but as she stood in Jordan's soft clothes, the other girl's smell still lingering, she didn't want to move.

"Do you want to come with me?" Willow offered, body already turned in the direction of the West Tower.

Jordan smiled and shook her head, "No, you're alright, blondie." She declined, "Your friends won't want me getting in their way when they're trying to get ready."

Willow swallowed her disappointment, "I'll see you at breakfast then?"

"I've never had breakfast here before." Jordan mused.

"Right." Willow realised, "Because you're a non-boarder." She felt the heaviness of the empty corridor; the cold stone sealing them away from the world, the ghosts surrounding them like mist, the faces of past students lining the walls from dusty gold frames. "Well, you don't want to miss breakfast; the cooks make an amazing full English."