was one-tenth the size of the one in Billings and closed over by a folding accordion door in faux
wood.Compared to my room in Billings, this was a prison cell--a really, really cold prison cell.
Maybe the Crom should use some of that five mil to renovate Pemberly. These girls' parents were
paying ridiculous amounts of money for them to live like inmates.
I shoved open the closet's accordion door, which instantly came
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off its top runner, and threw my bags inside on the floor. A dust bunny skittered across the room
and I felt tears well up in my eyes. How had this happened? I had made one mistake. One big
mistake, but still. That meant my whole life was over?
Okay. No crying. No crying allowed. I will not let Noelle get the better of me.I sat down on the bed,
which creaked loudly beneath my weight, and pulled my coat closer to me, wondering if the
heater was working at all or if I'd have to complain to maintenance tomorrow. Through the open
door I could hear laughter and music and voices from down the hall. Unfamiliar sounds. Unfamiliar
people. And suddenly I was overcome with grief.
I missed my room. I missed the space and the cleanliness and the private, connected bathroom. I
missed my view and my closet and the frosted lights in the ceiling and the warmth. And I missed
Sabine. I missed everyone, actually. Even though they had turned on me--maybe because they had
turned on me--I missed them so much it hurt. Couldn't they have at least given me a chance to
explain? Couldn't they have given me a chance to win them back?
I pulled my knees up under my chin and was about to give in to tears when I stopped myself and
stood up.
"No. I am not going to cry," I said under my breath, splaying my fingers out at my sides. "No crying
allowed."
Instead, I turned and snatched up the pink sheet of paper that was propped up on something in
the center of the desk. The words PEMBERLY HALL RULES AND REGULATIONS were printed at the
top above a list
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of ten items. Rules and regulations. Yes. I could distract myself with this for about ten seconds. I
was just about to start reading when I noticed the items that had been propping up the page. Both
my hand and the paper fell.