What was Rachel thinking? She should've just told Jesse she was Randy from the start. Then maybe Jesse wouldn't have agreed to give the speech at Randy's memorial and made it that much more awkward for Rachel to come clean with him. But it was too late now.

The day after the memorial assembly, Jesse seemed pretty down in the dumps when he came into Science. "Hey," said Rachel. "About yesterday, I just..."

"Don't be sorry," Jesse said miserably. "It's not your fault."

So Jesse wasn't mad at her. "Well...okay, I guess," said Rachel.

"You said those girls Maddie and Hattie were your roommates, right?" Jesse asked.

"Sadly, yes," Rachel answered. "Why?"

"Because they just tried to hit on me," Jesse answered. "Hattie came up to me and asked me if I was free tonight."

"Really? What did you tell her?"

"I told her no. I didn't like her or her sister, and I was not going to go out with them."

Wow, Rachel thought. Her friend had given Maddie and Hattie just the tongue-lashing they deserved! "Props," she said, sticking out her fist. Jesse willingly bumped it with his own.

"Thanks," said Jesse. "I just hope they don't try hitting on me again."

***

That afternoon, when Rachel got back to Pretty And Pink, she went right to her dorm room. Vanessa was already there, working on her homework. "Hey Vanessa," said Rachel.

"Hey Rachel," said Vanessa. "How's it going?"

"It's...fine, I guess," Rachel answered. She sat down on her bed and got out her phone.

Less than a minute later, Hattie and Maddie burst into the room. "Rachel!" Maddie shouted.

"What?"

Maddie came up and grabbed Rachel by the shoulder. "You told Jesse that my sister and I wanted him, didn't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Rachel said frantically.

"Oh, yes you do," said Maddie. "Jesse said he'd heard that we liked him, and you're the only one who we've told."

"That's not true!" Vanessa defended. "You told me-"

"Stay out of it, Vanessa!" Hattie barked.

Maddie threw Rachel onto the floor. "You stole our chances with Jesse Pindle," she said. "And you're gonna pay." She and her sister both stood over Rachel with their fists clenched.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" said a new voice. "What is going on here?" All heads turned to see Ruth poking her head into the dorm room.

"They're beating up Rachel!" said Vanessa.

"Because she broke her promise!" said Hattie.

"What the fuck-I didn't promise you!" said Rachel.

"Oh, yes you did!" Hattie said, angrily giving Rachel another kick. "You told us-"

"Hey!" Ruth shouted. She clenched her fist, and Maddie and Hattie both doubled over as their heads suddenly exploded with pain. "Maddie, Hattie, and Rachel, all three of you come to my office at once! I will not tolerate this kind of behavior!"

***

Ruth had some of her workers keep an eye on Maddie and Hattie as she took Rachel in to question her about her feud with Hattie and Maddie. Rachel willingly told Ruth everything-her failed reunion with Jesse, Hattie and Maddie confronting her, Rachel spilling the beans about the twins' crushes on Jesse, and the fight that had ensued in their dorm.

"So they didn't want you moving in on their crush," Ruth said when Rachel had finished.

"I wasn't moving in on him," said Rachel. "The reason Maddie and Hattie confronted me in the first place was to tell me not to do that."

"But you still told Jesse about how Maddie and Hattie had crushes on him."

"Yes. He has a right to know."

Ruth looked at Rachel very seriously. "You said Jesse was your friend when you were a boy," she said. "You didn't tell him about your change, did you?"

"No," Rachel said in a kneejerk reaction. She didn't want to give any hints that she was meaning to tell Jesse. "And I don't think he suspects anything. He thinks I'm a different person from the Randy Miller he knew."

"Good," said Ruth. "That is how it should be."

"But why?"

Ruth sighed. "Let's just say my superiors have their reasons," she said.

That told Rachel absolutely nothing, but she didn't push it. "What about Hattie and Maddie?" she asked.

"I will talk to them next," Ruth answered. "But given their history of not only bullying you and Vanessa, but also many of the other girls here, I think a transfer is in order."

"A transfer?"

"Yes, a transfer. I think I should transfer them to one of our other Pretty And Pink locations-perhaps the one in Virginia."

"Well, as long as we don't have to deal with them anymore," said Rachel.

"Yes," said Ruth. "I will have you and Vanessa remain in your current dorm for the time being. But after I've transferred Maddie and Hattie, I will find another dorm for you two to move into."

Rachel nodded. "Okay," she said. "I think I can live with that."

To be continued. Sorry for the gaps in chapter uploads, but I...well, there's this thing called "life..."