Spring Fire - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

Susan Mitchell ("Mitch") is pledging to the Tri Epsilon sorority at the fictional Cranston University. She is seen as a boon to the sorority due to her father's significant wealth, and the sorority is promised a new silverware set from the alumni if she is accepted. Large, ungainly, and shy, she is drawn to older sorority member Leda Taylor who is direct and independent; they become roommates and double date — Mitch with the president of the "Sig Eps" who turns out to be sullen, boorish, and humiliates her during a fraternity party one evening. Mitch flees the party after striking the fraternity president on the head and the sorority is blackballed. Much more experienced Leda trades her exasperation with Mitch's innocence with overt affection for her in rapid mood changes.

To avoid further exclusion, Mitch is persuaded by her sorority to invite the fraternity president to a dance at the sorority house, where he rapes her after getting her drunk. Afterwards Leda finds her stunned and calms her down by telling her how much she loves her. They begin an affair in secret, both of them continuing to date, Leda with her boyfriend whom she confesses to despise, and Mitch with relatively harmless "independents" (non-fraternity boys) to the chagrin of the sorority leaders.

Mitch's only friend in the pledge class is kicked out of the sorority after getting home at one in the morning because her date had a flat tire. Leda tries to teach Mitch how they must put men first in order not to be disrespected, but they may love each other in private. Leda's promiscuous and alcoholic young mother visits, and Leda tries to test Mitch to get her to be able to answer her mother's questions about men, despite Mitch's reservations and her unwillingness to lie about her feelings. But after her mother leaves, Leda is once again affectionate to Mitch in private, apologizing for ignoring her while her mother visited, and trying to reassure them both that neither is a lesbian.

Mitch tries to sleep with her date to see if he makes her feel the way Leda does, but he is unable to perform. Convinced that she is abnormal, infectious, and Leda is a temptation, Mitch writes to Leda telling her she's leaving the sorority. Leda tries to stop her by seducing her once more, but their sorority sisters enter the room and see what is happening. In an emergency meeting, Leda reads the sisters Mitch's heartfelt letter and explains that Mitch has had a crush on her and the sisters who saw it saw Mitch attacking Leda.

Mitch is interrogated by the Dean of Women while Leda gets drunk and wallows in her guilt for selling Mitch out to the sorority. When the dean asks to see Leda, the sorority finds her sobering up, but she is forced to drive to the dean's apartment when she crashes the car, then calling out for Mitch deliriously. Leda is injured seriously enough to put her in the hospital for three days during which time Mitch moves to the dormitory. They meet one last time as Mitch visits Leda in the hospital, driven there by the dean. After a tenuous final conversation, Mitch leaves Leda laughing and sobbing at once in the hospital. The sorority house learns that Leda has had complete nervous breakdown and is to be institutionalized, as they are unpacking their new set of silverware. Mitch begins new friendships as she realizes she never really loved Leda after all.