Days passed. Melody bonded more with the Magnus twins. She and Stephanie had sleepovers. A lot of sleepovers.

The two girls would stay up late singing karaoke and then telling jokes while laughing into their pillows. Then they would fall asleep on Stephanie's princess bed.

Although Melody wouldn't admit it, she was starting to get a crush on Stephanie. This was confusing to her, to be honest. Were girls allowed to date girls?

Besides, it seemed wrong to be in love with Stephanie as she was clearly still mourning Larry. Melody tried to focus her thoughts on school, which was going to start soon. She was super nervous but also excited.

Finally, the day to go to Celeste Academy came. Melody and the Magnus twins were wearing their uniforms, which were white blouses with scarlet ties and blue vests with a black skirt for girls. The boys wore white shirts and black pants.

Melody helped Stephanie do her hair and confined it with a pink ribbon. Melody's hair was in braids and she wore a green hairband.

Stephanie and Benjamin told Melody about the school. "There are a lot of extracurricular activities," said Stephanie. "You will like them. It's to make sure the students try out a wide range of activities. I once participated in a gardening event."

"And you are responsible for your own belongings," said Benjamin. "If something does go missing, it must be reported to one of the staff at once. You must make your own bed in the morning."

"Wait until you see the swimming pools," said Stephanie. "We have an outdoor pool for the summer and a heated indoor pool for winter."

Melody almost fainted with shock when she saw the school. It looked like a castle with light grey walls, several windows, white paths, and a beautiful landscape.

"I will never find my way in there!" exclaimed Melody.

Benjamin laughed. "Oh, you will find your way around soon enough. For now, we will help you."

Stephanie led Melody to a tall woman with dark hair in a bun. She smiled at Melody.

"Ah, so this is Melody Starring, right? You must be one of the three new students in the senior year."

"Melody, meet Mrs Wilson, our class teacher," introduced Stephanie. "She teaches English."

Melody barely heard what Stephanie said. She couldn't help noticing how Stephanie's golden ponytail bobbed perfectly, her even white teeth shine, and her sugar sweet voice chime out...

"Melody? Melody? Earth to Melody!"

Melody snapped out of her trance. "What?"

"I am supposed to be bringing you to our dormitory," said Stephanie. "We are together, of course."

"Oh. Of course," said Melody. Her heart was doing loop-the-loops inside her chest at the thought of rooming with Stephanie. She smiled a little.

They had to be separate from Benjamin since boys couldn't room with girls. Stephanie told Melody that there were six in a dorm.

Two girls were already in the dormitory Stephanie and Melody were in. They both waved at Stephanie.

"Melody, meet Ashley Jennings and Emma Soot. "Ashley and Emma, meet Melody Starring."

Ashley was very tiny and had ginger pigtails. Despite her braces and glasses, she looked very cute.

Emma was dark and had black curly hair. She was very quiet and just nodded at Melody.

Another girl came in. She didn't look like any person Melody had seen before. The girl was very pale, with snow white hair and pale pink eyes. Melody couldn't help but stare.

The girl looked super uncomfortable. "I'm gonna go..."

"Wait, don't be worried," said Stephanie. "Melody, this is Paisley Hoffman. She's an albino. That's why she has white hair."

"Sorry that I stared at you," apologized Melody. "I have never seen anyone like you before. But for the record, I think that you are pretty."

"No I'm not," said Paisley. "You only say that to be nice."

"Paisley, we are all beautiful in our own way," said Stephanie. "We just look different, that's all. If everyone looked similar, it would be boring."

"Yeah," said Ashley. "I used to feel so insecure because of my height, glasses and braces. But now I don't worry about that anymore, especially since I will be getting my braces off in three months."

"When I was in kindergarten, I was called ugly thanks to my skin," said Emma. "But now people say that I'm gorgeous."

"Exactly," said Melody. "I once lived with an aunt who constantly belittled me. But now I don't have to see her ever again."

"That's right," said Stephanie. "Why don't we sing? Melody is a good singer."

Their new dormmates looked eager to listen, so Melody took out her guitar and started playing.

But before Melody could start singing, the door opened to reveal the sixth dormmate. In came a tall, willowy girl with shiny black hair and blue eyes.

Melody gasped and stopped singing at once. She would recognize that girl anywhere.

"Lucy..."

Author's Note: The prompt for this chapter is I Want It That Way by the Backstreet Boys. I used the meaning of the song.