Page 71 of The Academy
Charley had been thinking the exact same thing: The similarities between the themes inThe Crucibleand what’s happening now at Tiffin are uncanny.
“Mr. Rivera has access to our journals,” Dub says. “Do you think he’s…”
“Conducting a social experiment?” Taylor says.
“I love Mr. Rivera,” Charley says. “He isnotbehind Zip Zap.”
Love is blind,Dub thinks. The second he gets back to his room, he emails Ms. Robinson with their theory.
17. The Kringle
In the second week of December, packages from Revolve, Retrofete, and Reformation pile up on the mail table outside the common room of Classic South, overtaking the gingerbread house display. The parcels contain prospective dresses for the Kringle—and the first-floor hallway soon rivals a runway at New York Fashion Week.
Davi has been dreaming about the Kringle since she got to Tiffin: a special evensong service for fifth- and sixth-formers followed by an elegant holiday party. Students dress up; some go with dates.
Davi and Cinnamon had shopped for Kringle dresses as early as the previous Christmas. Davi bought a half dozen, which now hang in her closet. She hears other girls out in the hallway modeling for one another. She knows they’re waiting for her to poke her head out and offer a blunt assessment in the style of Nicky Campbell. But Davi is uninspired. She feels a fresh wave of grief about Cinnamon and she can’t bear to think about the holiday break—three weeks stuck with her parents and Saylem.
On the other side of the door, she hearsebullient(“extremely lively, enthusiastic”) squealing. Sixth-former Teague Baldwin has asked Madison J. to go to the Kringle with him. Davi rolls her eyes; everyone is reacting as though Madison J. just got engaged.
Maybe Davi should get a date for the Kringle. Maybe if she has her own relationship to focus on, she’ll be better able to stomach her parents’ threesome. The question is who? The boys at this school are children. She’d happily ask her father to fly Paolo in from Italy for the event (the other girls woulddie) or ask Olivia H-T to set Davi up with her cute cousin (Olivia owes her after that weird Thanksgiving)—but the Kringle is for Tiffin students only.
Hakeem Pryce is a possibility. He’s with that third-former, Cassie Lee, a future queen bee, but third-formers aren’t allowed to attend the Kringle even as guests. So, Hakeem and Davi could go as friends. Taylor can’t get bent about it; she’ll go with Dub. But does Davi really want to insert herself into that messy situation? She does not.
There’s only one other person at Tiffin who’s worthy of Davi Banerjee… and that’s East. Davi sort of resents the guy. He’s been granted all kinds of special privileges—he keeps his truck in the Back Lot and he takes English as an independent study, which isbasically a joke—because his father is president of the board and the biggest donor Tiffin has seen in the past 114 years.
Davi will overlook these annoyances: East is older, he’s hot, they’ll look good in the pics, her followers will eat him up.
She sends him an iMessage because he’s not on Instagram or Snapchat.Do you want to go to the Kringle together?She hesitates before she sends this; she has never before texted East. They’d exchanged numbers during the Move-In Day cookout when they were third-formers and Davi assumed they’d be friends. They are not friends. Davi became internet famous, East became anenigma(“a person or thing that is mysterious, hard to understand”).
She edits the text to read,Hey East, it’s Davi. Do you want to go to the Kringle together?She presses send. She doesn’t feel weird about being the one to ask; she knows she’s intimidating and not even East would be brave enough to ask her.
He texts back right away:Hey Davi, thanks, good idea. But I already have a date.
Shit,Davi thinks. She wasn’t expecting this because East never mingles with Tiffin commoners. Were the rules bent for him again? Is he importing someone from New York? Coco Arquette? Lexi Underwood?
Davi texts back.I love that for you!!! Who are you taking?
Three dots appear, then disappear. He doesn’t want to tell her. Or maybe there isn’t anyone. Maybe he just said that because he doesn’t want to go with Davi.
There it goes,she thinks. The last of her self-esteem.
Then her phone buzzes with a text:I’m taking Charley Hicks.
Davi marches down the hall, passing Olivia H-T, who is modeling a holly-green knit dress with faux fur at the cuffs and hem. The fur isa fun touch, but someone with Olivia H-T’s body type shouldnotbe wearing a knit.
“You can do better,” Davi says.
“Wait, Davi!” Olivia H-T says. “Can you—”
But Davi is on a mission. She opens the door to 111 and finds Charley lying on her bed readingThe Crucible.Shocker.
Charley’s eyes flick over the pages to Davi. “What?”
“I can’t believe you aren’t using the SparkNotes,” Davi says. “But of course that’s what makes you you. You read the original.”
“I feel seen, thank you,” Charley deadpans.
Davi steps in and closes the door behind her.
