Deprecated (On Hold Indefinitely)

Deprecated: Chapter Two

I pulled on my faded blue jeans and shrugged my arms into a ratty black cardigan. The socks on my feet were covered in holes, and my sneakers were falling apart. My eyes landed on the mirror, where I gave myself a full body inspection.

“I look fine,” I whispered with no hint of confidence in my voice. “Everything will be okay today.” I gave a determined facial expression to the mirror and pulled my cardigan tighter around myself. I gently caressed with bruise on my jaw, and reached for the liquid makeup I had on my dresser. Dabbing a large amount on my fingertips, I smeared it over the bruise. It was yellowing, but it still had a darker tone of purple and blue. I sighed at the finished product, and headed downstairs, slinging my backpack over my shoulder as I went.

My mother waved me goodbye, but I ignored her. She frowned slightly and retreated back to her bedroom, where the door slammed shut and the lock turned noisily. The rain was still falling as I headed to the bus stop, completely uneager to get aboard. The bus brakes cried in agony as it slowed to a stop and the doors opened. I climbed on and headed to the back, where my assigned seat was. Everyone was silent, still groggy with sleep. The weather didn’t help, I’m sure.

I brought a different CD to listen to today. It was one that Winter let me borrow a few months ago. I hadn’t really listened to it much, considering that I still preferred the bands I’ve always listened to. I was about halfway through the entire album when my CD player was forcefully removed from my grasp. The violent motion jerked the headphones from my ears, letting loud music erupt from the tiny ear buds.

“I told you yesterday to stop listening to this,” Wayne said, shaking his head and sighing heavily. “Listening to all of that devil music is bad for you. You should be punished.”

I rolled my eyes at his stereotyping of the kind of music I listen to. “It’s not devil music. It’s actually the complete opposite.”

“It’s devil music if I say so.” He removed the disc and brought it down hard on his knee, snapping it in half. I gawked at him, but he just grinned. He shrugged and stared at my empty player. “I guess you don’t need this anymore.” He pulled the top half of the CD player back, bending the plastic until it broke like the disc. Wayne’s friends began to laugh as he took out his lighter and started to burn the edges. The sickly smell of burning plastic filled the back of the bus, and the jocks put down the windows. Wayne winked at me and shoved the hot, burning CD player into my backpack and threw it back at me. It hit me in the face, the cloth on the outside becoming warm from the heat within.

“That should teach you a lesson, bitch.” His friends laughed wildly, and the bus driver had to yet again warn them to settle down. “I hope you burn in hell like your player did.”

I bit down hard on my lip to keep it from quivering. I could save my money to get a new one. I could even get rechargeable batteries this time. It was no big deal.

Wayne’s best friend Terrance placed a dark hand on my head and ruffled my hair. His gesture was rougher than it should have been. “We’re just playing, Deryn. You know we love you.” He made a smooching sound with his mouth, and I tensed my shoulders.

We arrived at school, and I slung my backpack over my shoulder and hurried off the bus, being the first one off. After what had just happened, I seriously needed my best friend. She was nowhere to be found, so I plopped down on a bench and tried to keep my breathing even. I felt like I was about to lose it, so I darted to the bathroom. I stumbled up the steps and dashed into the school building, just to run head on into Kade. He caught himself and me before we could both topple to the ground.

“Deryn!?” His voice was shocked and full of concern. “Are you alright?”

I nodded and pushed him out of my way, heading to my original destination. I shoved open the door to see several girls standing in front of the mirror doing their makeup, so I ran for one of the stalls and silently began to cry.