Her eyes, his lies

Chapter 3

The high school campus itself was an expansive concrete-and-brick structure spanning several blocks. From the smooth asphalt of the parking lot, Jane could see barely-filled classrooms through rows of glass windows. To her left stood the axis of the campus, a nexus of grass and concrete with a statue of some long forgotten hero at the center.

Very continental.

The mustached bus driver shut off his engine with a final sigh of exhaust.

"You'll be late, kiddo," he called from the driver-side window.

Jane breathed in, held it, then exhaled.

Her stomach was in knots as it always was, here, in this place. The worst part was always the fear beforehand. The fear of descending into a sea of people.

She took slow, deliberate steps through the mostly empty parking lot, carefully avoiding eye-contact with any of the stragglers that still remained.

The arching double doors were painted a muted red, with frosted glass inlaid at head height. Beyond, she could see the misty shapes of dozens of people, going about their daily lives.

Pushing her way through the heavy doors, she was suddenly barraged by the sound of hundreds of conversations echoing throughout the hallway. Metallic blue lockers lined the walls, vertical pairs with the occasional personal touch of its owner. Stickers, band posters, and crude marker drawings that the janitorial staff had missed.

The floor was polished marble, reflecting the too-bright light of the ceiling bulbs. A pair of students bumped into Jane, turning to whisper apologies without stopping their walk.

If one cared to notice, they would see that there were few students that walked alone. It was common place to see them clumped together, as if they were afraid of the mere idea of being on their lonesome. Even the kids too strange to fit in with regular company had formed their own mismatched group, chattering amongst themselves. Jane found herself searching the throngs of people for a red jacket and a pair of piercing green eyes.

She shook her head.

A bell rang shrilly overhead, signaling that there were five minutes until classes officially began. The clamor of students redoubled in volume as conversations came to hurried ends. Footsteps rushed around Jane.

The school, with its labyrinthine hallways, was a mess to navigate if one had not yet drawn a mental map of the place. Jane was quickly realizing she had taken a wrong turn somewhere, and the hallways were emptying as fast as they had filled.

Even if she could, somehow, summon the courage to ask for directions from someone, the few teenagers that were straggling behind were rushing towards their destinations as the school bell rang. It didn't seem like they would stop to help the weird new girl.

Jane was running out of options, and it was unsettling her. The lights seemed all too bright, the humming of the vents a sudden mocking laughter.

She hated it here so, so much. She wished she were back in her room.

She stopped her aimless wandering, the lines of lockers and glass-pane embedded doors appearing to stretch on forever. How did anyone find their way around this place?

A sudden mass bumped into her, nearly tipping her over. A single hand caught her under the shoulder as she fell forward, her arms extending to reflexively catch herself. Luckily, she never needed to, as the hand gripped her with surprising strength, preventing her from touching the ground.

Jane spun around, the hand flying from its spot beneath her arm. She wasn't quite sure what it was that she intended to do, once she faced whoever had barged into her, but it would have been intense. A profound expulsion of heated curses, or even the scathing glare of an annoyed cat. Absolutely.