The Indigo Lights

We're All Mad Here

Pheobe is a very smiley person.
Indi isn't sure whether that should freak her out or comfort her. Pheobe smiled as she told Indi that she could have the top bunk, and as she complimented her T-shirt, saying she doesn't know who 'The Who' are, but they seem cool. She also smiled as she asked, "So kid, whatcha in for?"

That sounded like something you'd be asked in prison. Orange is the New Black had not prepared Indi for this camp. "Well...basically everyone in town thinks I'm crazy..." She answers nervously.

"Join the club, kid," Pheobe bows and pretends to tip a hat, "We're all mad here." Indi smiles with her.
"Anyways you must be hungry." Pheobe takes Indi by the arm and drags her out the door, up to the gravel path. "So do you just go by Indigo?"
"Well most of the people in town refer to me as 'Indigo Winters', as if there are a number of women in the community named Indigo, whom they believe are nuts, so they have to use my full name. But Alex and my family mostly just call me Indi." Pheobe laughs softly.
"So...who's Alex?" She asks, wiggles her eyebrows suggestively.
"Ha. No. We're just friends...well I think we're still friends anyway..."
"He's a little weirded out by your stay at Peterson's this summer?"
"No...yes...well...He's here too actaully. You know, he's friends with the crazy girl so he's considered at least semi-nuts by default."
"Wait, your talking about the tall, blonde, super hot guy who was with Miles and the boys earlier?"
"Yeah...haha...that would be Alex."
"Mmm."pheobe smiles and winks, "I don't think he'll stay mad at you."
Indi shrugs and sighs, "That would be awesome."

Pheobe seems to be pretty popular around campus, every ten seconds someone is saying hi to her. She just smiles and waves, continuing on her journey to the Dinning Hall, Indi in tow. Everyone at camp seems so normal, which is strange in an ironic way.

At some point, when a squat building, looking a little worse for ware, that Indi can only assume is their destination, comes into view, Pheobe breaks into a run.
"Disney!" She squeals, sprinting up to a slender girl with auburn hair and a giant grin.

Pheobe throws her arms around the girl's neck as Indi approaches.
"Ah, I missed ya Diz!" Pheobe exclaims.
"I missed you too, pheobes!"
Pheobe looks up at Indigo, "Indi, this is Disney. She's the most optimistic person you'll ever have the pleasure of meeting!"
Disney laughs, "That's just a polite way of saying I'm naive...or at least that's what Miles tells me..."
"Eh, Miles is an asshole." Pheobe says it in a way that makes him seem like a lovable asshole. "Anyways Diz, this is Indi, my new bunk mate."
Disney jumps forward and wraps Indigo in a tight hug. "Hey Cabin Buddy!"
"Hi." Indigo responds nervously.
Five minutes ago she thought she'd never meet someone as smiley as Pheobe, but this girl takes the cake.

She can see why they call her Disney, it doesn't seem to just be the naivety. The girl really looks like someone right out of a Disney Princess movie, maybe even a Disney princess herself. She sports huge blue eyes and naturally flowing loses auburn curls. She's skinny in a natural looking way, but if she dropped even just five pounds it would be unhealthy. And she grins like someone just named her Miss America, like she might burst into an explosion of glitter confetti and happy tears at any given moment.

Pheobe and Disney continue to converse, but Indi just zones out. No, these people here aren't normal, from Indigo's past experience with 'normal people', they shouldn't be nice, or smiley, or huggy. Normal people are patronizing fools to caught up in their false self worth and haphazzardly built personas, to realize they've cut themselves off from any slice of happiness or community. Ordinary people are boring. These people are anything, but boring.

Maybe they're extrodinary.

Eventually the girls make there way into the building. People continue to to greet Pheobe as if she's royalty, she smiles and laughs with every single one of them. Everything about the Dinning Hall is loud. Conversations and the clanging of dishes echo and clash into eachother, filling up every gap. It's not noisy in an ear ache sort of way, more of a comfortable, easy way. The way Indi imagines the Cheaper by the Dozen household to sound like. Pheobe leads them through the maze of people and tables until they reach one where Miles stier, Levi Amstrom, Chris Teller, and Alex sit. Two girls sit on one side of Alex both sharing a pair of ear buds and a celebrity gossip magazine. Levi and Chris seem to be bickering while they eat chicken nuggets. A short girl sits next to Chris, snarling and aggressively chewing on an apple. Pheobe takes a seat next to Miles, Disney sits next to her. Indi is left with the spot next to Alex. Fuck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck...

Are they still supposed to be mad at each other? That seems stupid, this isn't a TV drama. Taking a deep breath Indi decides to get over her and Alex's little skirmish. Because that's what friends do, they get the hell over it.

But then he looks up and makes eye contact with her. At first he looks relieved at seeing a friendly face amongst these mostly strangers. A moment later his eyes widen just a bit and she sees him mummble "shit" under his breath. Looking away he scratches at the back of his neck nervously.

Fuck.