Chapter 5
I opened my own Instagram and uploaded a post: Dr. Patterson's medical report (with permission), showing only the diagnosis—minor ankle sprain, no complications. Caption: "Always important to trust medical professionals over social media drama. #factsoverfiction #teammatesupportteammates"
Two can play the social media game.
The next day, I was called to see Dean Thornton.
"Miss Rosemont," he said as I sat down, "I've received some concerning reports about conflicts within the cheerleading squad."
"What kind of reports, sir?"
"Miss Blackwood claims you've been engaging in harassment and bullying behaviors. She says you secretly recorded her without permission and are spreading malicious rumors about her injury."
Of course she went straight to the administration.
"Sir, with respect, I can provide evidence that Miss Blackwood has been deliberately fabricating her injury for attention and sympathy."
"That's a serious accusation."
"Yes sir, it is."
I showed him the video, the medical report, and screenshots of Sienna's manipulative texts to Axel.
Dean Thornton studied everything carefully.
"This is... complicated," he said finally. "I'll need to investigate further before making any decisions. In the meantime, I'm asking both of you to maintain distance and professionalism."
"Understood, sir."
But as I left his office, I saw Sienna coming out of the adjacent room—the office of Mr. Chen, the assistant dean and notorious campus gossip.
She's working multiple angles. This is about to get much worse before it gets better.
At the end of Friday's practice, Coach Morrison made an announcement.
"Ladies, as you know, Homecoming is in three weeks. The traditional Homecoming Queen election will begin next Monday. Any female student can be nominated by collecting 50 signatures."
I saw Sienna's eyes light up.
"The winner will be crowned at the Homecoming game and will represent Texas State at all major university events for the year."
After practice, Sienna cornered me.
"You know, Evie," she said, "I've been thinking about running for Homecoming Queen. I think it would be good for school spirit if someone... prominent... represented us."
"Prominent?"
"Someone with the right background. The right connections." Her smile was sharp. "Someone who belongs here."
She's not just talking about Homecoming. She's talking about class, money, social status. If she only knew.
"May the best woman win," I said.
"Oh, she will," Sienna replied. "Trust me, she will."
As I walked away, my phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number:
"Time to show her what real power looks like. You know what to do. -M"
M? Marcus? My father? How does he even know about this campus drama?
But then I realized: if Sienna wants to play in the big leagues, maybe it's time she learned what the big leagues actually look like.
Monday morning, I stood in front of the bulletin board, staring at the official Homecoming Queen election announcement. Fifty signatures required for official candidacy, deadline this Friday.
"Planning to run?" Madison appeared beside me.
"I wasn't planning to," I said, which was the truth. Homecoming Queen had never been on my radar.
"Well, you might want to reconsider," Tyler approached with a serious expression. "Check this out."
He showed me his phone. Sienna had already posted her "candidate manifesto" on Instagram: a professional-quality photo of her in a designer dress, with what looked like a mansion in the background. Caption: "Excited to bring elegance and class to Texas State👑 Some of us were born to lead💎 #HomecomingQueen2024 #Leadership #Legacy"
Born to lead? She won't even say her real last name.
"Look at the comments," Madison said.
Over 200 comments, all support and praise. "You're perfect!" "Natural born queen!" "Finally someone with real class!"
"How did she get so much support so fast?" I asked.
"Money," Tyler said simply. "She hired social media bots. Look at these accounts—half of them are fake."
Of course. When you're faking your entire identity, what's a few hundred Instagram followers?
"So," Madison said, "what are you going to do?"
I looked at that photo, that confident smile, those designer clothes. Then I remembered last night's mysterious text.
"I think," I said slowly, "it's time to show her what real competition looks like."
The next few days were pure warfare. Sienna had her strategy: standing at the busiest campus locations, wearing increasingly expensive outfits, basically cosplaying her fake rich girl persona.
"Hi there!" she said to every passing student. "I'm Sienna Blackwood, running for Homecoming Queen. Would you support bringing real sophistication to Texas State?"
Her approach was working. By Wednesday, she'd collected 85 signatures.
Meanwhile, I took a completely different approach.
"Hey," I said to a girl in my study group, "I'm running for Homecoming Queen, and I was wondering if you could help me out?"
"Sure! But why are you running?"
"Because I think our Homecoming Queen should be someone who actually represents the student body. Someone who understands what it's like to work for everything you have."
Technically true. I do work for everything, even if the scale is different than she imagines.
This approach was working too, but slower. Students appreciated the authenticity, but Sienna's glamour was undeniably appealing.
By Thursday night, we both had enough signatures. The race was officially on.
"Okay," Madison said Sunday night, laptop open in her room, "let's assess the damage."
Sienna's Instagram following had grown to 5K overnight. Her posts were getting hundreds of likes within minutes.
"How is this possible?" I asked.
"Bots, bought followers, probably some paid promotion," Tyler said. "She's spending serious money on this campaign."
Then Madison showed me Sienna's latest post: a "candid" photo of her studying in the library, surrounded by expensive textbooks. Caption: "Even future queens need to study📚 Excellence in all things💫 #Dedicated #Academic #Queen"
"Look closer," Madison said.
I looked. The textbooks were all wrong. She had a calculus book open, but she was a communications major. One of the books was clearly a prop—the pages were blank.
"Amateur," I murmured.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just thinking about strategy."
She's making mistakes. Getting overconfident. Time to use that against her.
I opened my own Instagram, which I'd been keeping deliberately low-key. Time to change that.
First post: Me actually studying, surrounded by my real textbooks. Caption: "Real studying for real classes. Sometimes authenticity speaks louder than aesthetics📖 #RealStudent #HomecomingQueen2024"
Second post: A throwback photo from high school cheerleading nationals, carefully chosen to show skill but not reveal the expensive team uniform. Caption: "Cheerleading isn't just about looking pretty—it's about dedication, teamwork, and earning your place💪 #WorkHard #EarnIt"
Let's see how your bought followers stack up against real engagement, Sienna.
Two days later, rumors started spreading. I first heard them when I was getting coffee before practice.
"I heard she only got on the cheerleading squad because she's sleeping with someone on the selection committee," one girl whispered to her friend.
"And that scholarship? My friend in financial aid says her paperwork looked suspicious."
"Plus, have you seen how she follows Axel Kingsley around? So desperate."
Sienna's playing dirty now. Good thing I expected this.
I approached the girls. "Excuse me, were you talking about the Homecoming election?"
"Oh!" One of them blushed. "We were just... we heard some things."
"What kind of things?"