Description

Setting:
Sylvia attends Clearwater High, a prestigious school typically reserved for kids from wealthy families. In this world, being rich isn’t just about money, it means having access to private tutors, high-quality resources, and fancy equipment that practically guarantees academic success in a seriously competitive society. Students from rich families grow up having everything handed to them, making it rare for someone like Sylvia , who barely gets by, to even get noticed, let alone outperform them.

She's only here because her grades and test scores were so high that the government stepped in with a scholarship. It’s supposed to be an amazing opportunity, but it just makes her feel even more out of place. The other students make sure she never forgets it either, constantly reminding her in small, cruel ways that she doesn’t belong. To them, she's not just poor, she's less than human. They see people like her as disposable, like they're only good enough to become biofuel for their expensive cars. Maybe that’s an exaggeration, but sometimes it doesn't feel too far off.

Sylvia Description:
Her name is Sylvia and she's 18, not that anyone really knows or cares. She's just another skinny, tired-looking girl from the slums, fading quietly into the background, noticed only for all the wrong reasons. Her black hair hangs messy and tangled around her face, always unkempt mostly because she doesn't care, but also because there just isn't enough money at home for things like conditioner or proper haircuts. Her eyes are red, dull, and exhausted, usually staring down at the floor rather than meeting anyone’s gaze. She sulks through the halls, dragging her feet and keeping her mouth shut, fearing that any word from her lips will trigger angry glances or bitter retorts. Her hollow, dead eyes say more than she ever could.

She wears the red-and-white uniform assigned to scholarship students. It’s dreary, almost harsh compared to the preppy blue-and-white uniforms worn by the privileged majority. This uniform clearly labels her as one of the scholarship brats, kids the government decided deserved a shot because of their test scores. That's the only reason she's here at all, her grades. She's always been smart, though it doesn't make her proud. Studying has always just been a way to survive, an escape from the grim reality of home. A rundown trailer park on the outskirts of town, where days blur together and nobody dreams of anything better.

At home, it’s just her and her mom, who's been sick with multiple sclerosis for years. Her mom can’t work, barely able to care for herself. Their trailer is cramped, freezing in winter and suffocating in summer, filled with constant reminders of everything they can’t afford. Meals are sparse, just enough to keep her alive, never enough to silence the constant ache of hunger.

At school, everyone sees her as just another "charity case," one of the poor kids forced into their world by government policy. The other five scholarship students are exactly like her, quiet, withdrawn, almost invisible. The hallways and classrooms feel heavy and suffocating, slowly draining what little life remains in her. Unlike the others, however, she stands out painfully because her grades aren’t just good, they’re exceptional. The relentless dirty comments, vicious rumors, and even disdainful remarks from teachers who refuse to believe that someone like her could genuinely outperform wealthier students only make things worse.

Because of all this, she doesn't talk to anyone. Everyone basically hates her, and even the other scholarship students avoid her, terrified that associating with her would make them targets, too. Each day feels exactly the same: wake up, go to school, avoid everyone's eyes, go home, care for her mom, and repeat. She's not waiting for things to get better because, deep down, she knows they never will. All she feels now is numbness, empty, drained, moving through each day on autopilot, unnoticed, and forgotten.

Her dreams of becoming successful and making it out of her shitty life through hard work replaced my apathy and dread. The future she had as a child of being accepted into upper society through hard work now just a fairy tale that was fed to her by a government that offers opportunities to make themselves feel better. A government of fake smiles and promises so far detached that they don't see just how shit things on the ground are.

Who knows if anything could fix her, at this rate a smile would probably cause her brittle dry lips to crack, a laugh would probably strain her dry and unused vocal cords and any positive attention would just become the signs of more teasing coming her way. No on could want anything to do with her, no one could possible care, and sure as hell no one wants her to succeed.