Rejecting The Heroine Loyalty Test

The week before move-in day at Preston University, I got a direct message in the official incoming freshman Discord server from a sophomore named Emma.

Her messages were effortlessly charming—dry, clever, and just warm enough to keep me hooked. The voice notes she sent had that low, sleepy rasp that sounded dangerously intimate through AirPods. And the photos she casually dropped into the chat? Golden-hour selfies in vintage oversized crewnecks, messy blonde hair, high cheekbones, aesthetic film grain. She looked like a girl pulled straight from an East Hampton summer campaign.