Our school library stays open until 7pm on Fridays, meaning kids can stay and get all of their homework done before the weekend.
Mrs Liston in the corner, at the scanning desk, reading a book to herself to pass the time, and there are a couple of juniors browsing the shelves. I was upstairs in the senior area, which is filled with all sorts of work stations. Large oval tables, barricaded desks, movable ones, floor area, and many more. The whole floor was completely deserted, which both fuelled and lightened my anxiety. I had chosen to sit at a rectangular desk in direct view of where Mrs Liston was sitting, in a dark red upholstered chair. With music blasting through my ears, I had been working for 3 hours on all of the school work I had missed.
Suddenly, almost startling me, a large icon flashed into my screen.
Christina Balakatoe is asking to Skype Video with you.
Accepting the invitation, I let the screen fill up with her face, plugging in my earphones to my computer as to not disrupt anyone.
"Are you okay?" Is the first words out of her mouth.
"Yeah. I'm okay, exhausted, and in pain. But okay."
For the first time in awhile, I actually meant it.
"Tell me about the fashion show!"
"Oh my gosh Dani! It was AMAZING! I am so proud of my future wife!" Joel walks into the picture, looking admirably at Christina.
"Do I get pictures?"
"Even better Dani. Some people filmed the whole thing. We get the final cut on Tuesday."
"That's so cool." I could tell the pair were trying to steer around the topic of earlier, and for that I was glad.
"So we get back tomorrow morning, and we are coming over for lunch with mum and dad to try and sort everything out." Joel comes into the picture once more after grabbing something from the other side of the room.
"That won't end well." It's not often you can sway my parents opinion on anything.
"That's true. But it's worth a try."
Looking at the time in the corner of the screen, my mind suddenly registers that the last bus of the day that actually has people on it is going to leave in 5 minutes from outside the school.
"I've got to go. Gonna miss the bus." Without letting the couple say goodbye, I quickly shove everything as gracefully as I can into my bag. I run quickly down the stairs, much to Mrs Liston's disapproval, and out to the bus bay.
The doors were about to close as I run up to the doors, despite the way it made my casted wrist thrash against my body painfully in the sling.
"Close one Missy." The plump old man snarls, obviously annoyed by my late arrival.
"Sorry..." I walk to the middle of the bus, where I always sit. Close enough to the bus driver that if lots of passengers get off I am close to him, but far enough away to not seem like a clingy teenager. The uncomfortable red leather seats expel air as I sit on them, deflating the foam encased in it with defeat.
It's been a long day for them as well.
The throbbing in my arm is so intense I want to close my eyes and wish the pain away, but if my eyes close, then I will instantly fall asleep, which would be both blissful and hellish.
On the seat opposite me is a man dressed in trades clothing, covered in mud, carrying a small baby carefully, lovingly in his arms. It somehow did not look out of place. It was clear the child was his, but the contrast of the white blanket and the bright orange vest leave questions surrounding the pair.
To keep me occupied on the short bus trip, my mind starts to create stories of why the man is in the situation he is.
His wife left the baby at the doctor. A bit dramatic.
He was bringing the child home from its grandparents house. That could work.
They just wanted a private cuddle. You could go somewhere cheaper.
The bus jolts go a stop, signalling it was time for me to depart. Hopping up quickly, I walk down the rubber isle to the small doorway of the bus.
"Thankyou." I call as I step off, only to be greeted with a grunt and the doors slamming behind me.
I'm obviously not the only one having a bad day.
YOU ARE READING
In Your Company
Teen Fiction--Re-written-- When I was 8 we were playing hide and seek in the little park surrounded by bush down the street from my house. It was a large group of us. It was always fun down at the park, since our parents never really came and checked on us. Bei...
