Free Got It Going On by Stephanie Perry Moore Page A

that night while we were sleeping, Dr. Garnes was in another room. There was a knock on our door, and we were startled when it opened up on its own. In came five of the Alpha chapter sisters. Torian grabbed the sheets and threw them off everybody. Another girl came in and started splashing water across our faces.
    â€œGet up! Get up right now! Get up!”
    Looking around for the Beta leaders, I huffed when I didn’t see Malloy or Alyx anywhere—those were the two who had kept their heads on straight, not wanting to give our line any form of hazing. And to see that mean look in Torian’s eyes, I knew she was up to no good. But what were we to do? We were told not to participate in hazing with some other chapter because that could jeopardize things, but if our own Big Sisters asked us, demanded that we follow them out of the room and out of the hotel into the dark night into some woods nearby, who were we to resist? If we followed them and Alpha chapter got in trouble, it wasn’t on us anymore. But if we didn’t go, all the collegiates in the state, in the region, and in Grand Chapter would know we were paper, and deep down neither I nor my line sisters truly wanted that.
    â€œListen,” Torian said once we were outside in line from shortest to tallest. All thirty-seven of us were shaking in the cold night’s air. “You guys need to put your hands on your sister’s shoulders in front of you. Don’t let anyone come between you and the person in front of you. We’ve got stockings we’re going to put around your eyes now, and this is called a project of trust.”
    Isha stood behind me and said, “Okay, I’m a little scared now.”
    I took a couple deep breaths and wondered if I was being a punk for going along and not questioning this. Had Torian and her girls thought this through?
    Apparently they hadn’t, because Torian called out to one of them, “All right, Loni, I love you, girl, but I’m not going to bring on a group of girls and not have them be real. I’m just not down for it. I’m just not ready for it. I just have to put my hands on them and make them some group we can be proud of.”
    â€œBut do we have to do that by whooping them?” Loni said to her.
    Isha shoved me. “Did you hear that? Whooping? I can’t have anyone touch me, Cass, I’ll break. What are we going to do?”
    â€œI’m thinking,” I said.
    We were blindfolded by that point. None of us knew if they were really going to beat us or not. All of a sudden we heard folks wrestling around. It seemed Loni and Torian were fighting and then folks were screaming out. Was it the Betas trying to mess with us, or were some of our sorors in the back of the line getting beat down? We were locked together, and we were told not to let anybody break the line, and then we felt a few people bum-rushing us. It was more than just seven. It had to be about twenty—no, thirty—no, maybe forty voices we heard around us. What in the world was going on? And how could we make this stop?
    All right, Lord, we were crazy enough to go for all this, and now it’s getting out of hand. I don’t know if they’re messing with us or if someone is getting beat for real, but this is not cool.
    And as soon as God heard my prayer, we heard Dr. Garnes’s voice and could see a bright reflection shining on us. “What is going on out here? I know this isn’t what I think it is! Why would you all risk your chapter forever? Everybody who doesn’t go to Western Smith College better get out of here right now. Did I not speak your language? Move! Go! Bounce!”

8
    GREAT
    â€œN obody’s moving. Did you all think I’m playing? Betas who don’t go to this school, get your stuff and get your butts out of here right now! Alpha chapter, front and center!” Dr. Garnes yelled. “Pis, take those blindfolds off. You know you signed a