A Matter of Qualifications

Ramin Labisheh- Unsplash

When there's a girl who shines at everything in an all-girls' school, envy starts to make its way to her, wanting to absorb a little of that light.

Virginia was that girl: she got the medal of honor for her grades, she was the student council president, the volleyball team's godmother, the soloist in the choir, and a long list of titles because she was involved in all extracurricular activities.

Her intention went beyond being popular, she wanted to accumulate the most credits to be able to apply to one of the few spots in the medicine school of the country's main university. However, popularity found her and she enjoyed it too, even though she was aware she had to keep her feet on the ground.

Hassam, her boyfriend, was the cute son of the mall's owners, he would always pick her up after school. He was of Israeli descent, and even though they had different religions, he was looking for a way for his parents to accept her.

They met through Samira, Virginia's best friend, a girl who wasn't as good-looking as the others because, according to her religion, she wasn't allowed to wear makeup or such revealing clothes as the others

But for Virginia, Samira was the best. She loved learning about her culture and she could spend hours listening to her talk about her traditions. Samira, even though she sometimes got annoyed having to explain things that were obvious to her, deep down she was pleased to have someone who connected her to that world her parents told her was full of sinners.

When they met, a couple of years ago, they were both new students, and even though adaptation was easy for Virginia, it was a nightmare for Samira at first. She wanted to be like Romina, the popular girl in class, and no matter how hard she tried to get close, she was only met with rejection and mockery.

So when Romina gets transferred to another school and Virginia takes her place among the popular girls, Samira sees her dream come true: to be the popular girl's friend. Even though she wasn't the protagonist, it was her way of shining among the crowd.

As the final exams approached, the tension between the friends started to be noticeable. Virginia wasn't as willing to go out anymore because she preferred to stay home studying, or, in her few free moments, go out with her boyfriend.

Samira started to feel rejected, and that annoyance led her to distance herself too. She felt like the story from her previous school was repeating itself. Bullying wasn't only about abusing others, it was also about ignoring their existence, as if they were an insignificant particle, but she had feelings, even if the others didn't notice.

Hassam would tell her she shouldn't think that way because Virginia was different, she was just going a little crazy because of the pressure to get credits. And, indeed, after the school year ended, she went back to being her old self.

With the final results, she could be more relaxed because she had gotten the credits she needed. Next year she would start her career in medicine!

Patty Brito - Unsplash

As a celebration of the end of the school year, the girls in the class decided to have a party at the club's pool. Virginia talked to Samira's parents to let her go, after all, it would only be girls and, after begging a little, they agreed to let her go: "just for a little while."

The day was sunny, and little by little they started arriving at the club. The last to arrive were bringing an old friend with them; Romina joined the celebration with those who had been her classmates until the previous year.

They were all enjoying the water, the snacks, and the sodas until a deafening scream cut through the festive atmosphere.

Everyone's eyes went to the corner of the pool, where they saw Virginia's body floating face down.

Almost immediately, they called the authorities and the police, firefighters, and forensics arrived. Virginia's lifeless body was taken to the morgue. But what happened? She was an excellent swimmer!

Everyone was pointing at Samira, because her behavior had changed too much in the last few months, but she passed all the tests in the interrogations. So they had to investigate more.

The autopsy showed that she had died by immersion, but a small detail gave light to the investigation. There was a mark on the back of her neck like a ring that was made under pressure.

Mattia - Unsplash

When reviewing the photos taken at the site, only one had rings ... when interrogating her again, she could not stand the pressure and confessed what had happened.

Romina agreed to go to the celebration with only one goal: to end with the one who had taken her place to study medicine.