𝙸 𝙲𝚊𝚗'𝚝 𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚜

𝚂𝟸𝙴𝟷𝟷: 𝙵𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚔 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙻𝚎𝚘 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚘𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐

And the answer to that last question is hell yeah!

All Piper has to do is pass around a petition and then she's in.

She's going to kick Jason's stuffy little dump truck of an ass.

✎✎✎

You wouldn't believe how easy it is to file a candidacy for the New Rome Community College student government ballot using forged signatures.

On second thought, it's New Rome Community College. You would be crazy if you didn't believe it.

Anyways, Piper's wearing jeans and a flannel t-shirt for the first debate because she's just one of the regular folks out there. It sounds tacky now, but promise, it'll charm the pants off the voters. The voters love to see someone like them out there.

There are a couple of other candidates alongside Piper in the food court.

Of course, there's Jason, wearing a suit and tie. He's cleaning off his glasses, a nervous habit Piper can't help but have noticed over the past two years. He's got those stupid notecards again, just like last time he debated, except last time, he and Piper were on a team. This time, they're against each other. A year ago, she'd have wiped the floor with him, but now that he's had her coaching in public speaking, she's got this weird feeling in her chest.

Travis and Connor Stoll are running not for student body president, but for co-student body presidents, which might be absurd for anybody else, but they pull it off. They've got coordinating outfits and everything. Of course, Piper is skeptical; this could be part of some elaborate prank, but maybe they just need something to add to their resume. Their resumes are probably identical; they do almost everything together anyway. How does that look to employers?

Piper doesn't know Lacy well, just that she's about twenty years old and still wears pigtails and has adult braces, and she's also running for student body president. Maybe she was wrong, but Piper always pegged Lacy as the shy type. Her outfit is pretty well put together though. That's something she'll credit her for.

This guy from the local private college, Valhalla is also on the stand, but Dean D shows no intentions to stop him from running. All Piper knows about Valhalla is that it has a reputation for having the best and most outrageous parties. Classes don't start until the afternoon because all the students are hungover all the time. Maybe that's it! Maybe the Valhalla student is just confused and hungover, and he'll realize he's in the wrong place sooner than later.

Dean D sits at a cafeteria table across from the podiums with a red, white, and blue eagle bobblehead at his side.

"Alright candidates," he says, adjusting his headband with springing star antennae. "Welcome to the first round of debates. The candidates will each make opening statements to begin, and then we'll move into a town-hall-style sort of thing."

Travis raises his hand. "What does that mean?"

The dean facepalms. "Audience questions. You'll be answering questions from the audience."

Jason is the first to present his opening statement. "My name is Jason Grace. You may recognize me from various student activities including Ultimate Frisbee, New Rome Ambassadors, and the classics association, just to name a few. I am double majoring in classics and education, and there's nothing I'm more passionate about than my school. If elected-"

"Okay, that's enough from you, Jarrod," says the dean.

So that means Piper's next. "Why do we have these podiums anyway?" she asks. She picks up the microphone and carries it to the ledge of the makeshift stage. "I just want to talk to you all as my peers. That's all. I'm just one of you when it comes down to it."