Chapter 5.

Tiffany's POV

The next day, Tiffany decided that it was best if she put all Shawn Gold business to the side. As she lay awake last night, she had come to the decision that she would tell her father she couldn't marry that man. The company was important to her, yes, but if the price was demeaning herself and condemning herself to a life full of misery to do it, she didn't know if it would be worth it at all. There were more things important to her than money in life, such as dignity, love, and family, and when there was a will, she believed there would always be a way.

She could take a break from school, and join her father in the office. They could merge with a lesser company, and put in the work to bridge the gap. Or they could ask Mr. Gold for help that didn't involve a marriage. Even if they didn't fully merge the two companies, they could still become partners. Mr. Gold hadn't seemed like an unkind person, and afterall he was a friend of her father's. She was sure he would understand. However, she hoped that he wouldn't take it as an insult that she didn't want to marry his son.

Anyway, that was an issue for later. Right now, she had to focus on getting ready for school.

The maid had washed and ironed her uniform in preparation for the first day, and it laid neatly over the back of her study desk chair. She ran a hand over it and put it on piece by piece, then stood to admire her uniform in the full-length mirror that hung on her bedroom wall.

She had always liked their uniform. It consisted of a short plaid skirt with black, red, and green colours that ended somewhere along mid-thigh. It was already getting chilly even though it was still early September, so she paired it with light black leggings that hugged her long, straight legs smugly, accompanied by black boots. Her top was a white short-sleeved collared shirt paired with a dark grey vest and a plaid ribbon tie that matched her skirt. She only had on light makeup, partly because of the school dress code and partly because she knew she always looked better natural. She only ever wore makeup to official events, where a lot of photos would be taken and it might be considered rude to not wear any makeup.

She twirled a bit, admiring her reflection, then picked up her phone to text her friends. There wwere a few messages from friends and acquaintances alike, but she only opened the messages from her group chat.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

Queen Freya:

Guyssss, where are you? T-T

Lord Timothy III <3:

Freya, it's not even eight yet. Chill.

Who even gets to school this early?

Queen Freya:

I do.

And you all should too!!!

Especially you @Lady Tiff,

you're literally in the student body committee!!!l

Lateness isn't tolerated!

Lord Timothy III:

Tiffany doesn't go late. Everyone else

is just early.

Queen Freya:

Shut up Tim. You're not supposed to have

favourites.

And seriously y'all I'm so aloneeeee

I need my pals

Lord Timothy III:

I am a lord, and I decree that I shall

doeth whatsoever I pleaseth

And why don't you ever make some

new friends

Queen Freya:

I'm a queen, you bozo. What I say goes

over whatever rubbish you can spew

@Lady Tiff

@Lady Tiff

@Lady Tiff

I'm being bullied!! Help

Tiffany read the messages while chuckling to herself. She hadn't realized how much she had actually missed her friends before today. Reading their texts and witnessing the usual playful banter brought a sense of normalcy she hadn't noticed she had been missing. Her life the last few days had been like something out of a fairytale or worse, W*****d, and the feeling almost brought tears to her eyes, but she quickly blinked them back.

The hell? What was wrong with her? She had felt very fragile since waking up. Had the dinner taken a greater toll on her than she had originally imagined?

Lady Tiff:

Timothy, can you leave Freya alone?

@Queen Freya hi

                                        I'm almost at school dw. OTW!!!

Lord Timothy III:

By 'almost at school', I'm sure she

means she's just getting dressed.

Tiffany laughed. It was true, she was still in her room. Timothy knew her so well.

Lady Tiff:

Shut up :( w/e

ok now I'm really omw. See y'all

in ten. byeeeeeee

Queen Freya:

Waitingggg xoxo

@Lord Timothy III come

or don't come if you want, no

one cares

Downstairs, the driver was already waiting for her. Her dad had of course left for work, so besides the staff it was just her at home. She waved at him as she approached.

"Good morning, Miss Dion," he smiled at her. He was an old man in his sixties, with greying hair that had once been light brown. He was always happy to see her.

"Morning Rafael," she greeted, getting into the car. "And I told you to just call me Tiffany. Please," she begged. It made her very uncomfortable to be deferred to by people who were much older than her. Rafael's youngest daughter was older than her.

"Okay, Miss," he said, and Tiffany sighed, giving up for now.

The drive to school took about ten to fifteen minutes, depending on traffic, and today traffic was relatively light, even though it was Monday. They made it to Tiffany's school in under ten minutes, and she got out of the car, breathing in in excitement.

The school building was huge and elaborately designed, as befitting of a school as prestigious as Shine High School. Students walked around with their neat uniforms, excitedly reuniting with friends and sharing news of each other's summer holidays. Tiffany smiled to herself, knowing that in a few weeks, the uniforms would all be less neat, and the students would get tired of school again, and be less happy.

Tiffany turned around to say goodbye to Rafael, but before she could get more than three words out, a heavy weight suddenly barrelled into her, and she stumbled in shocked surprise before catching herself on the car.

"Tiffany!" The person hugging her from behind shrieked, and Tiffany recognized the voice as one of her two best friends, Freya Meyer.

"Freya!" Tiffany said excitedly, and the two girls squealed, hugging each other, "You scared me, oh my gosh."

Freya grinned brightly, showcasing her cute canines. "That was the aim," she said proudly, causing Tiffany to laugh.

Freya Meyer was one of Tiffany's best friends. She was a very short girl with short blonde hair that she usually let roam freely in curls around her face. Her strong spirit and determination allowed her to become the student body president when she ran for it last year, and Tiffany had ended up as her assistant. Freya was also transgender, and so it hadn't been easy. Even now some people sent disgusted looks at her as they passsed, some going so far as to call her 'Fred', which was the name she used to go by. Freya was already accomplished at ignoring these types of people and pretended as if she couldn't see or hear them, but Tiffany still sent death glares at each and every one of those people as they passed.

But something was strange, this time. It seemed that some of the whispers were directed at her, too. But of course. Throughout the break, news had been circulating about the imminent fall of Dionysus Enterprises, and it seemed everyone in school knew about her father's failing company. Many of their parents were deep in the business circle, afterall.

Tiffany suddenly felt very nervous, and the feeling of fragility was back, but Freya noticed and held her hand, squeezing softly.

"Don't mind them," she whispered fiercely, "They're insufferable cowards who don't know how to mind their own business."

Tiffany nodded, grateful, and soon Freya brought up another topic to distract her.

The two girls headed into the building, chattering away about their break. Freya had gone on an overseas trip to the Bahamas with her two dads and was talking about a cute guy she had met there while Tiffany listened eagerly, interjecting with excited sounds from time to time. She hadn't told her friends about her supposed betrothal to The Shawn Dion yet. She had thought that she was giving herself time, and that she would tell them once she saw them in person, but now especially with what had happened last night, she found that she wanted to even less. She felt a little guilty about keeping such a secret, but she wasn't ready to tell them yet, and she hoped they would understand.

The bell rang for first period, and Freya checked her watch, frowning. "Um, Timothy is late, again. I swear, we have to stop talking to that boy. His trashy reputation is going to rub off on us!"

Tiffany laughed at the joke, and was about to reply when the voice of the school Principal's secretary sounded out from the intercom, interrupting her.

"Will Miss T. Dion please report to the Principal's office," she said, "Miss Dion, T. Please report to the Principal's office."

Everyone still in the hallway turned to look at Tiffany, and the whispers seemed to grow harsher. They was no doubt that they were about her now.

She exchanged a worried look with Freya, who looked back at her in confusion. No one ever got called to the Principal's for any good reason.

Was Tiffany in trouble?