The girls laughed.
“Yeah, it’s like my fate with Jason has been suspended. I’m just wanting to see what happens between us,” said Cajen.
There was silence, but Cajen didn’t say anything because she knew her sisters didn’t want her with Jason, and that they were concerned about her happiness. She also knew they could never understand what she felt for him, so she decided to keep all future comments about him to herself.
They picked up their meal and stopped by a grocery store to buy a chess pie. Even if they were caught by their big sisters, the energy they’d generated by carrying out a plan that was not dictated by their big sisters would carry them through whatever they would face that evening. The group spent the rest of their drive to the park singing, talking, and for a change acting as if they didn’t have a care in the world.
When they found the gray pavilion, they set up their picnic at one of the tables. The girls were hungry and couldn’t wait to dig in.
“Um, um, um. This chicken is finger-lickin’ good. I’m so glad we did this,” Tiara said. She licked her fingers to reiterate her point.
“I just hope nobody shows up,” Chancey said. She was trying to enjoy her meal, but she was too worried about being caught.
“But you have to admit, it’s good, huh.” Cajen smiled and patted her small stomach.
“Oh, it’s definitely the best food I’ve had in seven weeks,” Chancey responded.
“Let’s make a toast,” Stephanie suggested.
“As long as I can do the honors,” Malena requested. She loved to talk, as well as the art of ceremony.
“I would like to toast Hell Week because it’s the beginning of the end. I also toast sisterhood because I have gained four new phenomenal sisters in my life, and I sometimes wonder how I ever made it through life without you. Y’all are my girls, and I hope we will continue to remain as close as we are now and that we continue to stay in touch and visit each other, even after I’m a big-time owner of a high-profile PR firm, and Chancey and Donald become a big-time millionaire family and star in commercials and shit like that, and Tiara finally becomes an engineer and finds the man who rocks her world, and Cajen dumps Jason’s ass and moves to New York or some big glamorous city and becomes Miss America and has men falling over their feet trying to meet her, and Stephanie wakes up and realizes there are good men in the world who just so happen not to be filthy rich. Hell, you both could live off your trust fund and become a . . . well, I don’t know about him, but she’ll become a professional world shopper, shopping all across the universe. Anyway, after all that happens I hope we’ll make efforts to continue being friends and keep in touch like real sisters do.”
“I’m not a shopoholic,” Stephanie begged to differ.
“We follow where you’re trying to go, I think,” Cajen said.
“Okay, then let’s toast,” Malena said, and held up her cup. They touched cups and gave each other meaningful smiles. Every one of them really understood what Malena was saying underneath all her joking. They too hoped they could continue to share the special bond that had formed among them.
Their feast continued until it was time to check in with Dean Big Sister Nina. They even finished the entire chess pie Cajen had picked out. Neither Stephanie nor Tiara had ever heard of chess pie, but everybody seemed to like the sweet, eggy taste.
They found a pay phone in the blue pavilion and called Dean Big Sister Nina. She answered the phone.
“Hi, Dean Big Sister Nina. This is number five,” Stephanie said. Then she began to greet, “Greetings, Most Honorable Big Sister. I am so pleased—”
“Not tonight. I’m not in the mood to be greeted. Put number two on the phone.”
“Yes, Dean Big Sister Nina,” Stephanie said, and handed the phone over to Cajen.
“This is number two. Greetings, Most—”
“Not right now, number two . . . Listen closely. Do you have the phone number I gave you earlier?”
“Yes, Dean Big Sister Nina.”
“Call that number right now.” Then she hung up. Flabbergasted, Cajen stood there and frowned, still holding the phone to her ear.
“What is she saying?” Chancey asked.
“She’s not saying anything. She hung up,” Cajen replied, and put the receiver on the base.
“But what did she say?” Malena asked. They circled the pay phone, waiting to hear their next step.
“She said call the number she gave us earlier.”
“This is so stupid. I hate this shit,” Tiara complained.
Cajen asked Chancey for another quarter, put it in the pay phone, and called the number.
“Hello,” the person on the other end answered.
“Yes, I was told to call this number.”
“Who is this?” the person asked. Cajen was almost sure it was Big Sister Attitude Adjuster. Static coming from the other end convinced her she was on a cellular phone.
“This is Cajen,” she replied.
“Since when do you go by Cajen? Do you know who you are speaking to?”
“No. No, I do not.”
“Figure it out!” The person on the other end said and then hung up the phone. Again, Cajen held the telephone to her ear, stunned. When she hung up, Stephanie asked who answered.
“I think it was the Adjuster.”
“Big Sister Attitude Adjuster, oh shit,” Tiara said. “What did she say?”
“I gotta call her back. I need another quarter, Chancey.”
She gave her another quarter, and Cajen called back.
“Hello,” the voice on the other end said again.
“Big Sister Attitude Adjuster, this is number two. Greetings, Most Honorable Big Sister—”
“Cut the shit, number two. What’s the password?”
“Password?” Cajen asked, and looked around at her line sisters, confused. “I didn’t know that I needed—”
“Put number one on the phone. I bet she knows the password. And tell her not to waste time greeting. This is an urgent matter.”
Cajen put the receiver against her hand and whispered. “The Adjuster wants a password. We weren’t given a password, but she wants to speak to you now, Chancey, and don’t greet.”
“Me?” Chancey squealed. Her voice was trembling.
“Girl, you better take the phone,” Tiara demanded. She took the phone out of Cajen’s hand and gave it to Chancey, who went through the same thing as Cajen. The Adjuster asked for a password, which she didn’t know. This little ordeal continued with all of the line sisters until the phone got back to Cajen.
“Number two, did y’all figure out the password yet?”
“Well, no, Big Sister Attitude Adjuster.”
“Well, that’s because there is no password.” The Adjuster couldn’t stop laughing. “You girls are so funny. Do you have the address and the time?” She spoke in a condescending tone.
“Which one, Big Sister?”
“You don’t know by now?”
“Jackson and Vine at one?” Cajen hoped she had the correct information.
“Are you asking or answering?” she questioned. “You have to be sure of yourself, number two, if you want to make it in the world. There are no handouts in life.”
“I’m answering,” she said in the most confident tone she could manage.
“Better. Now, BE THERE!” the Adjuster said and hung up. Cajen looked at her line sisters and asked the time.
“Twelve-fifty,” Malena answered.
“We are dead!” Cajen said, and sank down on a bench.
They made it to their destination at one-forty-five a.m. Once there, they began the completion of their final weekend as pledges.
NINETEEN
Deprived of sleep, the exhausted girls were barely able to get back to Stephanie’s apartment and dress in their black ceremonial outfits. They were told to take their white dresses with them. The pledges piled into the bedroom, bumping into each other as they dressed.
Dean Big Sister N
ina instructed them to wear makeup, and to make sure their hair looked nice. Stephanie looked at herself in the mirror. She hadn’t had a facial in weeks, her hair had not been properly cared for, and she was tired. There was no way of camouflaging the bags under her eyes, and no amount of makeup was going to make her, or her line sisters, presentable for the ceremonies.
She turned away from the mirror and informed everyone that she was in a shitty mood, and if they valued their lives, they wouldn’t say a word to her. The whole pledging situation had finally gotten to her. She questioned what the big hype was all about. Her view of joining a sorority had changed. It all seemed so immature. Their big sisters were a bunch of attention-starved females, power-tripping because they were in the position to give out something the pledges wanted.
Tiara was cranky and irritated too, and didn’t want to continue. Earlier she tried to call her mother to check on things at home, but couldn’t get through because her mother’s phone had been disconnected. Although they were on the eve of their crossing, she lost her will to finish. She felt she should be spending time studying to make sure she graduated so she could take care of her family.
She was losing it. She wanted to walk out of Stephanie’s apartment and back to her dorm room. The only thing keeping her there was hearing Rhonda, in the back of her mind, saying, “Tiara, if you start something, especially something that really means a lot to you, you need to finish it.” So she had to stay.
Cajen and Chancey, on the other hand, were positive and beginning to feel relieved. They were tired, but managed to embrace the advice given them by their big sister Kim. She often told them that no situation, no matter how difficult it seems, lasts forever. Before you know it, it’s over. With all they’d experienced, surely they could hold out for one more day.
Malena was humming a show tune from an old movie she had seen years ago. “Que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be . . .” She believed that, and was quite indifferent to their lack of sleep and the physical and mental challenges they endured. She embraced the “No pain, no gain” motto.
Her almost too pleasant attitude irked Stephanie. “Will you please stop humming that stupid song?” she snapped.
“Wait a minute. I can deal with you not wanting anybody saying anything to you, but that ‘stupid song’ keeps me calm,” Malena said. “Now, you do what works for you, and I’ll do what works for me.”
“Well, if you have to sing that song, why don’t you get dressed in the living room?” Stephanie snapped.
“I have no problem with that,” she said, rolling her eyes. She had on a bra, panties, and panty hose. She picked up her dress, shoes, and makeup case, and walked into the living room.
“Whew, there is too much tension in this room,” Cajen said, picking up her things as she walked out.
Tiara, who was disgusted with her line sisters as well as herself, didn’t say a word, because she knew that whatever she said would probably not be tactful. So she sat silently, curling her hair with the curling iron. She needed a relaxer, however, and it was tough trying to make her style look good.
“Does anybody else have a problem with the tension in the room?” Stephanie challenged.
Chancey didn’t say anything. She wanted to pick up her things and go to the living room, but she was too tired to move more than necessary.
The sisters continued dressing in silence. It was the most uncomfortable they’d been around each other since they first met. No one liked the mood, but there was no time to fix it.
Once she was dressed, Cajen looked at her watch. It was time to go, and she informed everyone that they needed to leave for their final ceremony.
Dressed in black from head to toe, they each carried garment bags containing white dresses and accessories. They walked out of Stephanie’s apartment, realizing it would be their last time in her place as pledges. Nobody expressed it, since the mood wasn’t quite right.
They put their garment bags in the trunk of Chancey’s car. Malena got into the passenger side because she didn’t want to be near Stephanie. Tiara sat by a window in the back, and Cajen sat in the middle—she had no choice. She only hoped Stephanie would not snap at her, because now she was in a bad mood.
The induction ceremony was private and beautiful. All of their big sisters, as well as several members of the graduate chapter, were there, and elegantly dressed in white. It was truly an enchanting sight.
After the ceremony, the five line sisters also wore white dresses, and their precious new sorority pins. Their big sisters were now their sorors, and they hugged and congratulated them and welcomed them to their exclusive sisterhood. It was like being in the twilight zone. The same ladies who were so condescending and nearly unapproachable were now reaching out to them. It would take some time for them to adjust to the change.
After individually welcoming each new soror, Nina walked to the front of the room. “To celebrate and welcome the neophytes into our sisterhood, we have planned a twofold celebration: dinner this evening and a party tonight. And, of course, because last year’s line, the Inevitable Seven, are no longer neophytes, we have to celebrate their graduation to prophytes,” Nina announced.
The sisters applauded, and the new prophytes were asked to stand.
Once they were seated, Nina continued. “Okay, everyone listen up, please. We rented out Bigelow Hall in the Student Center for the party. We’re gonna throw the phattest coming out party this campus has ever seen. We’ll all meet at my apartment for a private party where we’ll teach the neos all of our steps, and we’ll all learn a new one that I hear someone has made up,” she said, smiling. “We’ll have dinner at Ryan’s Family Steak House because it’s close to campus, and then we’ll go to my apartment and from there we’ll go to the party. First, we’ll go home and rest a little. We’ve got a long day ahead of us, and I’m sure we can all use some rest. We’ll meet up for the celebration dinner at about six-thirty.”
The excited sorority sisters talked nonstop on their way back to Stephanie’s apartment. Stephanie apologized for being a bitch earlier, and her line sisters forgave her. They joked about the discomfort they all felt before the ceremony. But now that they were sorors, they felt ecstatic and free. No more “Yes, big sister. No, big sister.” No more greeting, no more standing in line and keeping and protecting pledge property. They were official, pinned, and there was no turning back.
Now, if only they could get some rest, all would be good.
The sisters crashed at Stephanie’s apartment because they were too tired to drive back to campus. Sound asleep, no one heard the telephone ring except Cajen. Once she figured no one else was going to get it, she got out of the bed and answered.
“Hello,” Cajen said.
“Hey, Soror, this is Nina.”
“Oh, hi, Dean Big Sister Nina.” She stopped herself because she still felt obligated to greet her.
“Girl, chill with that Dean Big Sister stuff. I’m not big sister anymore. I’m your soror now.”
“My bad. I’m still programmed.”
“It took me a while too, after I crossed,” said Nina. They both laughed.
“I’m calling to ask you to do your last secretarial duty for the Phenomenal Five, if you don’t mind.”
“What’s that?” Cajen asked. Even though she knew it was all over, she still felt on line.
“We changed the preparty from my apartment to Room Two Hundred in the Student Center. Girl, everybody wants to come. Some of the grad sorors even have gifts for your line. It has gotten too big for my apartment, so we reserved a meeting room.”
“Really?”
“We’re still gonna meet for dinner at six-thirty, but pass the word and I’ll see you then. Oh, and Cajen, tell everybody to wear jeans,” she said, and did their sorority call. Cajen laughed and returned the call.
She fell back on the bed and did the call again, giggling to herself. She would share the information with her sands when they woke up.
There were only a few s
orors at dinner—fifteen, including the neophytes. They had the hostess put several tables together so they could all sit and chat about their expectations of the party. The president of the chapter was there, and she informed them of upcoming projects they would be involved in. Although the year was nearly over, there would be an end-of-the-semester clothes drive for a homeless shelter, and they would host a finals study hall that would run twenty-four hours a day through finals week.
After dinner, they went to the Student Center. There were several sorors there already. Most were dressed in their best party gear, and the neophytes felt awkward and out of place wearing jeans. When they walked through the door, their sisters yelled out their sorority call and walked over to the neophytes and showered them with hugs. But no one mentioned or seemed to notice that they were all underdressed. This made the neophytes feel more relaxed.
The door opened, and in walked The Adjuster, whom they now called Sheila. She carried a box.
“Can we get this show on the road?” Sheila asked.
All the neophytes looked at Sheila in astonishment. They couldn’t believe she was excited to do something nice for them.
“Why are y’all looking at me like that?” Sheila asked. They continued to look at her in amazement. “What? Listen, the Big Sister Attitude Adjuster is no more. Hello, I’m Soror Sheila, and I’m cool people. I just wanted to make sure that every one of you earned these letters, ’cause I take my sorority seriously. I don’t have anything against any one of you. As a matter of fact, I’m gonna cook dinner for y’all when we can get our schedules coordinated.”
“Cool,” Tiara said. Everybody laughed.
Nina told the five to be seated in the chairs lined up against the wall. They took a seat in order of their line numbers. It was a habit that would take a while to break. Once the line sisters were seated, they were showered with so many gifts of paraphernalia that they wouldn’t have to go shopping for sorority attire and trinkets for a while. They were even given matching T-shirts, hats, and socks.
Sorority Sisters Page 17