Page 54 of Feel Free to Scream

“Right. Erm—how does it work, exactly?”

She tells me how to request the housing stipend, and pats my hands.

It’s not that bad. It could be worse.

* * *

“I’m fucked,” I say categorically.

I am back at the dorm, but as Lily’s guest, packing my bags with tears in my eyes.

I spent most of the day and some of the afternoon scouring the internet for rentals in Thorn Falls.

Campus aside, the town is divided in three: the riverside, on a hill; the west side, which is much cheaper, but also a lot farther; and southie.

Let’s put it this way: if I save the dorm stipend for ten years, maybe I can afford one month of rent on the hill.

West side, I could possibly afford a shoe box, but it’s an hour and a half walk—or endless bus trips with two changes of buses to get to campus.

Southie seems to be the better bet, out of the three, but it’s still incredibly expensive, and farther than I’d like. Regardless, it’s obvious that the dorm is designed to be affordable to the less fortunate students of Rothford—the monthly stay is only three hundred dollars for a shared two-bedroom—and I’ll need to supplement that allowance with more than a thousand per month if I want to live in town.

I can’t do it. Not with babysitting money. I’d need another job on top of that, and if I take one, when will I have time to study? My scholarship is merit-based. They made it perfectly clear it’s only valid so long as I pass my classes, and I know better than to think they were kidding about any part of the fine print.

I’m screwed.

“Maybe you could find a roommate in southie?” Lily offers.

“I looked.” In fact, I only looked at shared accommodations, because an apartment for myself is way beyond my means. “It’s still a lot of money. And from what I’ve read, southie isn’t super safe at night, either.”

Lily’s grimace tells me everything I need to know.

I am thoroughly fucked.

She fidgets. “Maybe…”

But Lily leaves it at that, changing her mind.

My heart stops in my chest, guessing what she almost said.

Maybe I should call Keller.

Ask him for help.

Everything that’s happened to me over the last two days, good and bad, can be traced back to him. He has an insane degree of control in this school. Maybe he could change the board’s mind.

He’ll have a price for that. I may not have known him for long, but I already understand that everything he does comes with a cost. But so far, I’ve been able to pay my dues.

“Yeah.” I remind myself to breathe in and out. “I don’t have his number. I’ll walk to the vesper tower, in case he’s home.”

Besides, something tells me this isn’t going to get resolved remotely. He’ll want a piece of me in return.

22

CLAIRE

My Wyvern House invitation lets me through the gates again.

I didn’t pay attention this morning, in my rush to leave, but the houses’ lane looks very different in broad daylight, like a well-to-do gated neighborhood. If it were my first time walking up here, I’d expect kids riding their bikes, happy little dogs, minivans. Instead, the street’s empty.

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