Published: January 31st 2025, 4:05:54 am
What an embarrassing way to end the week.
Roxanne looked herself over in the mirror, feeling absolutely ridiculous. She was dressed like a schoolgirl from head to toe in Cynthia’s old uniform, and looked so much less mature than she did in her classy suits. Along with her painfully short stature, Roxanne also had to deal with poor vision and a smattering of youthful freckles on her face; she really had been screwed over by both genetics and puberty, and had unfortunately never been blessed like some other ‘late bloomers’ she used to know. She opted for contacts unless glasses were her only option, and always meticulously did her make up to cover/soften her freckles to the best of her ability. Heels, too, in pretty much every public setting.
Then there was what she did specifically for when she was teaching. In her personal/social life, Roxanne owned her natural size a little bit more. But when nearly all of her students were taller than her, many of whom had better curves as well, Roxanne felt the need to present herself as slightly more mature from a physical standpoint. That meant three inch heels, rather than the two inch ones she wore in other circumstances, and expensive silicone inserts that she padded her bras with. The latter enhancement was one of her most shameful purchases. They were surprisingly expensive, and she didn’t make a lot as a teacher; even so, she had been insecure enough about her size at an all girls’ school to buy the padding and couldn’t stop using it now that she had started. That was the kind of ‘false advertising’ that someone would be sure to notice if Roxanne was suddenly more flat than she had been all year.
Despite all of that, the boarding school uniform easily succeeded in visually shaving years off of her life, not to mention how unflattering it was for a girl her size. She was also showing off more leg than she would prefer as a professional young woman who would be standing at the front of a classroom and trying to teach while looking just like every student in the room. The plaid skirt was the one part of the uniform given to her that was a little bit too small. They were designed to be more conservative, though girls like Cynthia tended to wear skirts that really toed the line when it came to the requirements.
Roxanne tugged a bit at the skirt, frowning when she was unable to adjust it enough to make the hem reach her kneecaps. It was supposed to completely cover her thighs. Maybe she could borrow a spare uniform from the main office? While students were generally supposed to just go back to their dorm room to change if they spilled or tore something, the office kept a supply for emergencies as well as for girls who needed to buy a replacement for whatever reason. The down side to that idea was that more people would see her dressed like this, when her plan was to fly under the radar to the best of her ability.
Alternatively, she could use the ill-fitting skirt as a perfectly reasonable excuse to not wear the uniform. It was certainly tempting. However, that came with a whole host of problems. For starters, all her students expected her to do this today; if she stalled their reward for taking her challenge and succeeding in their endeavors, even with a valid reason for doing so, it wouldn’t look good. Also, it was Friday. Roxanne would much prefer getting it over with and letting the weekend be a natural ‘reset’ before the next week’s classes. Delaying until Monday, provided she could find a better skirt by then, would mean her awkward schoolgirl image would be fresh in everyone’s minds the following day.
Finally, she was already wearing the outfit. Putting it on once had been bad enough, plus she didn’t have a lot of time left to figure out a combo from her own wardrobe. Sighing to herself, ultimately settling on taking her medicine and reminding herself that it was quite the achievement to push an entire class of seniors to work for high grades when this was the year at least a handful of them were probably coasting, Roxanne grabbed her purse and headed down to her car.
It was a relatively short drive to campus, as the academy provided subsidized housing for faculty and staff. A fair trade-off–Roxanne made a lot less than her peers, but her rent was cheap and she didn’t have to deal with a roommate. Also, her commute didn’t involve traffic or too much time wasted in general.
She only made it a few steps away from her car before being stopped by someone.
“What do you think you’re doing, young lady?” the voice came from the other side of the small parking lot, “Yeah, you. This is the faculty parking lot.”
Roxanne turned to see that it was a fellow teacher reprimanding her. Neve Mercer, a ‘friend’ of hers. They weren’t particularly close, though they were a lot closer in age compared to the more tenured teachers. ‘Colleague’ would be more accurate, considering the limited time they had spent together since Roxanne’s arrival as a new hire.
So much for not being seen by anyone. While Roxanne knew she’d end up having a couple interactions with colleagues at some point during the day, at which point she had planned on explaining the unorthodox method of motivating her students (while leaving out that the challenge spun out from one of her more problematic students undermining her in class), she thought she could at least make it through an hour or two before having to deal with all that.
“Umm, I am faculty,” Roxanne replied, “It’s kind of a long story.” She gestured down to the uniform that had drawn Neve’s attention in the first place. “Trust me, I wouldn’t be wearing this if I didn’t have to.”
“Roxanne?” she asked, belatedly recognizing her as she crossed the parking lot to join the petite girl on the sidewalk.
Neve was one of countless peers who was taller and more developed than her. Blonde and busty, easily a half foot taller than Roxanne, and way more confident in the classroom. Roxanne knew that last bit because she had been required to observe a handful of teachers in action before her first day. And, at the moment, they were even more dramatically contrasted due to Neve wearing a blouse and pencil skirt that made her look way more mature compared to Roxanne’s attire.
Feeling more self conscious as she looked up at Neve, always envious of girls who looked like her, Roxanne briefly ran through the explanation of why she was dressed like a student. “ . . . Anyway, it’s just for the day,” she concluded, “I know, it’s absurd, but they did earn it.”
As Roxanne filled her in, Neve’s mind was racing.
She normally didn’t have anything against the recent hire. This week was a special case, however. Her friend, Bree, broke up with her boyfriend a few months ago. And tonight, Roxanne was going on a date with the guy. There was no funny business involved or anything like that. The only reason Bree knew about it was that she and her ex had decided to ‘stay friends.’ As in, Bree still had feelings for him, and was obviously hoping that he’d change his mind if she hung around long enough to give him the opportunity to do so.
Apparently he and Roxanne had been doing the usual dating app texting before deciding to meet up, and she mentioned where she worked. Then, Bree’s ex mentioned it in passing and Bree immediately confided in Neve that the guy was going on a first date with Roxanne in the near future.
If he had moved on to literally any other girl, it would have been a different story. Though Roxanne didn’t know that he had history with one of her colleagues, the two that did know slightly resented her for the turn of events.
“Hmm. Why don’t we go to the main office and make sure we have this all sorted out before your first class of the day?” Neve suggested. If she was going to keep Roxanne from her date, then she needed to figure out a way to keep the uniform-clad girl on campus beyond her normal hours. Neve didn’t really have a plan yet, though she did have a few ideas that stuck out that the walk would allow her to mentally explore.
Roxanne winced. The whole point of arriving early was so she could make a beeline for her classroom and avoid as many people as she could. Neve’s suggestion completely opposed that goal. “I really need to get started on my prep work,” Roxanne said, since she couldn’t just come right out and say that getting to her classroom was because she was embarrassed. If anything, today was all about feigning confidence and authority in spite of what she was wearing. “And-”
“And nothing, Roxanne,” she said, placing a hand on her hip, “You haven’t told anyone about this? What if someone else doesn’t recognize you, or doesn’t believe that you’re not a student. No offense, but you do look a lot younger in uniform.”
Because- Well, because she was a teacher! There shouldn’t be any confusion, since her class knew who she was and she probably wouldn’t have any real interaction with the administration on a Friday. Still, Neve’s point was enough to give her pause. It’s not as if everyone at the boarding school knew who she was, after all.
When Roxanne didn’t respond right away, Neve simply asked, “Do you want my help, or not?”
That was enough to push her over. Roxanne hadn’t connected very well with the faculty or staff so far, through no fault of her own; it was just difficult to get any quality time with anyone when she was so focused on her responsibilities both before and after school hours. Neve was offering to help her out with a problem Roxanne hadn’t considered until now, when the blonde could be using that time for her own prep or whatever else she needed to do before class.
Also, Neve’s height was a little intimidating. She wasn’t standing that close, but she still towered over Roxanne when only one of them was wearing heels. “Umm, sure,” Roxanne nodded, “So, you think we should go to the office?”
“Of course,” Neve said, “If you’re going to be a student for the day, this will all be a lot easier if we take care of a few things in the office before class.”
“I’m just wearing the uniform for the day,” Roxanne clarified. Hadn’t she mentioned that when explaining the wager with her class?
As they walked further onto campus, Neve dismissed her reply with a wave of her hand. “You know what I mean, Roxanne. Didn’t your class earn this? If I were you, I’d go the extra mile for them. I bet that would encourage them to try just as hard on the next test.” Pausing for a moment to let that logic sink in, she continued, “They might also complain if you don’t follow all the rules that they do where your uniform is concerned. What if they use a technicality to pressure you to do this all over again on Monday? A deal is a deal, after all.”
The scary thing was, Neve was right. Roxanne was a bit of a pushover, and she was only in this mess because she wasn’t the best at keeping her class in line. She could absolutely visualize Cynthia pulling out a student handbook and quoting this or that about why Roxanne wasn’t technically dressed properly.
Thankfully, the administration building was rather quiet for the time being. Roxanne kept her head down and quietly followed Neve to an office on the second floor that was only vaguely familiar. Aside from her interview and her onboarding, Roxanne really hadn’t spent much time in the building.
Roxanne couldn’t avoid people forever. While she knew some non-teachers had flexibility when it came to working from home one or two days of the week, working at a school meant that students would always have needs during the week. In this instance, Roxanne found herself face to face with a secretary who greeted her with a smile that was subtly patronizing.
The woman clearly thought Roxanne was a student. They hadn’t met before, and Roxanne saw herself in the mirror earlier, but still. Surely she still carried herself like a young adult, even if she didn’t exactly look the part.
“Morning, Eleanor,” Neve said, with a smile of her own, “Could I trouble you to give us the room for a few minutes? My new friend here is a little bit shy. She just needs an ID and a spare uniform. I know how to work the machine, and she’s already in the system!”
“I mean, I guess?” the woman said, “You sure you don’t want me to take care of it?”
“I don’t mind,” Neve said, “She just gets overwhelmed so easily. Poor thing! We’ll be quick, I promise.”
Roxanne looked at Neve in confusion, lightly blushing at how her fellow teacher was talking about her. Also, was Eleanor actually getting up from her desk just because of a friendly request? Neve and Eleanor must have had a good relationship and/or it was early enough in the day that Eleanor wasn’t worried about anyone else stopping by in the near future.
As Eleanor turned the corner, Neve got to work. She opened a nearby drawer and started looking through it, while Roxanne complained, “What was that?! Why did you tell her I was a student?”
“I didn’t tell her anything,” Neve shrugged, “I just let her believe it. Wouldn’t you prefer meeting Eleanor under different circumstances? I doubt she’ll recognize you later.”
Yeah, but- Roxanne hesitated, realizing that Neve had a good point. She didn’t look at all like herself at the moment, and going along with Eleanor’s assumption meant one fewer person who saw her like this.
Neve retrieved a camera from the drawer, then stepped over to pull down a white backdrop that was set up a few feet away. “Over here, Roxanne,” she said, “Just a quick picture, and then I can make you a student ID.”
Was that what Neve meant when she mentioned an ID to the other woman? “Is that really necessary?” Roxanne asked. She couldn’t think of a single reason why she would need something like that.
“Where do students keep their ID?” Neve rhetorically asked. They both knew that all the girls on campus were supposed to store their ID in the outer breast pocket of their blazers, to easily access the laminated card whenever they needed to swipe for a meal, let themselves into their dorm building, or when an authority figure wanted to see it.
Roxanne hesitantly stepped towards the backdrop, while replying, “That rule isn’t that strict. A lot of girls have it on a lanyard or in a different pocket.”
“Yes, but your students might call you out on those strict rules. Remember? It will be best if you’re following every single uniform rule when you step into the classroom. Speaking of which . . . ” she gestured to Roxanne’s heels, “You’re going to need new footwear. Students are to wear flats or one inch heels; you have the right color, but those are way too tall.”
“But, umm-” Roxanne cut herself off, trying to figure out what to say. She hadn’t expected Neve to notice something like that, and was now dealing with the same problem as when Neve had offered to take her to the office. It was objectively reasonable advice. Roxanne just wanted to keep the enhanced height that she currently had, while also not wanting to explain why she would rather not lose two inches when she was barely over five feet tall with her usual footwear.
Neve stepped over and placed her hand on the small of Roxanne’s back. “Come on, we only have a few minutes before Eleanor will want her desk back. Okay, stand right here.” She positioned Roxanne in front of the backdrop, then stepped back and held the camera up. “Ready? Smile!”
Since she had been given very little warning, Roxanne scrambled to force a smile the way she did for any non-candid photo. Between her tiredness from it still being early morning, as well as how she was flustered from the recent developments where Neve was involved, Roxanne had to imagine it wasn’t the most attractive picture taken of her. She didn’t say anything, however, since it was on a digital camera and for an ID that would end up in the garbage within twelve hours.
“That should work!” Neve said. Her energy was a lot more positive than Roxanne’s, which made sense; she wasn’t the one dressed like a schoolgirl. “Alright, give me a minute to make your student ID. While I work on that, there should be some boxes in the closet. I bet there’s at least one pair of shoes your size.”
After another short exchange, Roxanne ended up caving and heading over to check out the collection. Painful as it would be to lose some of her false height, she also didn’t want to be on the hook for going through this whole ordeal again if Neve’s prediction about her class came true.
Meanwhile, Neve was thinking quickly. She needed a fun name for Roxanne, and didn’t have much time to think of one. After deliberating for thirty seconds or so, she settled on ‘Meadow Thorn.’ A more modern first name than ‘Roxanne,’ along with an amusing twist on the girl’s last name.
If Neve could play her cards right over the next thirty minutes or so, there was a very real possibility that Roxanne would be ‘out sick’ for the day while ‘Meadow’ would be given an unique opportunity to experience life from her students’ perspective.
Whether she liked it or not.