Free Get What You Give by Stephanie Perry Moore Page B

horrible sight when we had just left a beautiful ceremony talking about love, oneness, and making things better. Not even five minutes later, our Chapter President and Vice President were practically at blows. Other Betas tried to help pull them apart, but they were torn down by the ladies’ fists. How were we supposed to be united as sisters when our leaders’ actions were way past immature and pesky?

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    S am was smiling like she wanted to throw down. “Come on, Cassidy. Show me what you got. If this is what you want, come get it.”
    Betas pulled them apart and yet they ran back to tear each other to shreds again. This was not ladylike behavior nor was it the Beta way to act. It was disturbing to see my big sisters act so ghetto. They were setting the wrong examples. And I knew Cassidy had more compassion than that.
    â€œYou’re supposed to be our Chapter President!” Evan yelled out, not caring if it was her place or not. “Stop, please! Have some respect for yourselves and each other. I know hitting on any level is wrong.”
    It was weird, but I really didn’t know why I wasn’t more forthcoming with how awful I thought this was. I was getting mixed signals about our sisterhood. Someone needed to be the bigger person and just quit these childish antics. I looked to my line sisters, and we had to stand up with Evan. We needed to be leaders; it was time for us to step in.
    Teddi said, “I ain’t saying nothing. I don’t want either one of them to get mad at me for taking sides, even though I think Sam is dead wrong for getting all in her girl’s face.”
    A group of Betas took Cassidy to one side, and the others put Sam in a corner. The five of us were already on shaky ground in our own relationships, and now we were in a circle as one, wondering what our fate would be now that our leaders were at odds with each other. If this was what they considered sisterhood, did I really want to get involved deeper in this? Hayden and I argued as sisters, but not to this extent. Physical violence had never been a part of my world.
    Cassidy came over to us and said, “Ladies, I apologize for what just happened. Please do not follow in my footsteps. It’s time for y’all to go on your retreat. Our adviser left when the ceremony was over, and she was headed over there with some alumnae ladies. She just called, and she’s wondering where you guys are. Thankfully, we can’t go, or else they would see what a mess we just caused. Here’s the directions.”
    â€œBut we didn’t bring anything for an overnight trip,” Teddi said.
    â€œYou won’t need anything,” Cassidy responded, still clearly shaken from the fight. “Just get over there. They got you.”
    To ease the tension, I put my hand on her shoulder and said, “It’s gonna be okay.”
    She gave me a small grin. Cassidy was so cool. She needed to know we cared. Sam, on the other hand, was still being calmed down by her sorors. I’d lost respect for our leader, who was unable to keep her feelings in check. And to know these two used to be roommates and best friends ... I knew I truly needed to make sure Teddi and I got past our differences so we would not have a severe fallout like I’d just witnessed.
    â€œJust do better than what you saw. Really talk to each other tonight and get a deeper understanding of one another. Love and respect your sister. If you got anything you wanna say, just let it out, because if you keep it in, it could blow up and get real ugly,” Cassidy told us, seeing we were affected by their blowup.
    The fight between Sam and her was explosive. I knew deep down she was in agony, and her bond with her sister was now broken. My line needed a retreat to make sure we reconnected.
    All during the ride over to the bed-and-breakfast ten miles out from the school, I thought about Teddi. I missed my friend even before the crazy