carpe diem ⊶ joseph descamps

37 | bus buddies

—
[thirty-seven]
laubrac, the dreamer
—

Sitting at the front of the bus filled with rowdy teenagers came with its own pros and cons.

Pros: First, you get more space; the front two rows face each other and have more walk room, so Sadie was actually able to talk with Laubrac and Pichon (her new best friends, being trauma bonded by their shared forced proximity to Giraud), who had also sat in the front with her and Giraud. Second, you're right next to the door and driver; whenever it came time for a pit stop, Sadie was the first one out, so she'd be the first in line for the bathroom! A huge perk, if you asked her. Plus, she was able to make friends with the driver (whose name turned out to be George, a foreigner!) and he let her play whatever station she wanted on the radio. The bus was genuinely grateful, as it turns out she had good music taste, making the trip that much more enjoyable. And third, the more troublesome students tended to sit at the back; this made the ride a bit more peaceful for Sadie as she sketched, chatted, and napped the whole way.

Cons: Giraud.

Honestly, she wasn't as bad as Sadie thought she was going to be. Instead of barking orders and criticizing how she breathed, the teacher took to grading different papers from earlier that week, no doubt taking joy in the results under ten. Though one good thing that had come out of being bus buddies with the woman, was that her broad shoulders were a snuggly pillow to rest on.

"Miss Devereaux...Miss Devereaux...MISS DEVEREAUX!"

"It wasn't me!" Sadie yelped, suddenly shooting up.

There was a round of laughs, which made her open her eyes, unaware she had closed them in the first place.

Then, was she able to realize that she'd fallen asleep during the bus ride, cozied up on a peeved Mrs. Giraud, who had spent the past few minutes trying to wake her after reaching their destination.

She wished she could say this was a first time offense, but Sadie had honestly lost count of the amount of times she'd done it. She was just surprised the woman had yet to chuck her away.

Instead, she was subjected to the woman's unimpressed stare that made Sadie cringe.

"Sorry, Madame," she tittered nervously, tucking a loose strand behind her ear. "...again."

Giraud huffed before standing up to address the rest of the laughing students. "This is our last pit stop, okay? That means if you need to go, this is your last chance before we get to Paris! I don't want any of you wandering off or lolly gagging with your friends in the other forms!"

Sadie half listened as the woman started to drone on about different rules and instructions. She probably would've cared more, had Giraud not done this speech at every stop they'd had today. Now, Sadie was just itching to get out and stretch her legs.