Songbird

My Bullshit Friends

You've probably heard this story a million times. A bunch of stupid kids, in their stupid town, with their stupid little life stories that nobody really cares about. 
You'll probably care eventually. About my bullshit friends, and our bullshit parties. 
Or you won't.
I guess we'll just have to see.

I woke up that morning praying for snow. It was a cold October day, but not cold enough. I sighed, forcing myself out of bed. My pink blankets fell onto the ground, knocking a glass of water across the hardwood floor in the process. I'll deal with it later. I sat down at my vanity to fix my blonde hair, flat-ironing and brushing and flipping it around until I was satisfied with it. I dug through my wardrobe for a solid five minutes before finding what I wanted to wear, pulling my  pink tank top over my head as fast as I possibly could, knowing I was almost late. I grabbed my over-the-shoulder bag from the corner of my room and rushed out, pulling my shoes on quickly. I waved goodbye to my mom and raced out the door. 

Ziggy, Viv, and Alex were waiting for me at the end of my driveway. Ziggy picked Alex up from his house every morning and walked with him until they got to Vivian's house, where he then skateboards down to mine. We relished in the silence for a while, walking to the bus stop, where Mae was already waiting for us. She gave us a quick hello, kissing both of my cheeks as a greeting.  We continued to sit in a comfortable quiet until the bus came. We talked for a bit, complaining of future tests and past friends, as we usually did. 

I was tired, distracted. Scratching at my elbow as somewhat of a nervous tic became normal for me after I saw Frankie do it. It calmed me down. Scarlett got on the bus a few stops after us and I smiled at her. She played with her braids and the hem of her dress as she sat down. She was always fiddling with something or other on her person; Her dress, her bag, her hair, her fingernails. 

When we get to school, we visit each other's lockers. We always do. We've settled into a routine at this point and we all refuse to stray from it. I helped Mae carry her science project from her locker to her classroom, setting it down quickly and rushing to my class. If I was late to Old Lady Pickard's class one more time, she'd call my parents. 

When I sat down, Ms. Pickard was already handing out last week's tests. She placed mine on my desk. Face down. Shit. I only flipped over the corner so that only I could see the grade. A big red F was circled on the top right corner, with the words "I expected better :(" in big bold red letters. I sighed and rolled my eyes, putting it back down and leaning back in my chair. I watched Viv stand up. She leaned on my desk and put her other hand on Ziggy's. 

"What did you two get?" She asked, tucking a loose hair behind my ear. She did that a lot. I loved when she did that. The sun reflected off her bright red, freshly dyed hair and she smiled at me. That smile she only gives when she's really, truly, honestly happy. Ziggy leaned over to be more involved in the conversation.

"B minus," He laughed, passing his test over to Viv so she could confirm he was telling the truth. "Which is like, basically an A, so that's what I'm gonna tell my mom." Viv rolled her eyes at that. Ziggy was barely passing all of his classes, but Alex had started forcing him to actually study for his classes. 

"Birdie?" Viv cocked her head, looking at me and pulling me out of my head. I was scratching at my elbow again. Frankie would laugh and grab my hand. He would play with my hair and tell me he thought it was cute that I was copying him. I was doing it subconsciously at first, but now every time I realise I'm doing it, I think of him. "Earth to Birdie?" I ignored her, sketching on the corner of my notebook. 

"It wasn't good then?" Ziggy asked. I laughed and shook my head. Viv took that as an opportunity to snatch it off of my desk and read it. She frowned and looked at me above the top of the page.