We Were Free

DAY 3

DAY 3

"Boulder, Colorado," an automated voice echoed around the bus.

I stood up and looked over at a sleeping Maggie. Should I wake her up?

"Denver?!" the bus driver called back.

"One second!" I called up.

I pulled out a pen and wrote my phone number on a gun wrapper, I dropped it in her lap, grabbed my bag and headed down the aisle. I turned around and took one last look at her, accepting I would never see her again.

I stepped off the bus and listened to it pull away, a puff of dirt hitting me in the face. I took a breath and turned around. The dirt cleared to reveal a modern building; it towered above me, casting a shadow.

Funny, I thought, I don't even go here anymore and it still manages to cover me in darkness.

I entered the secretary just waved me through the lobby and into the halls.

I was immediately hit with the familiar smell of cleaning products and unimaginable evil. Now for the hard part, I had to find my friends.

I got to the sophomore hallway and checked all the lockers. If anyone did sports the over-preppy, high-on-estrogen, dance team made little posters with the people's names on them. Last year the school had created a rule that the posters could not be taken down because typically, everyone ripped theirs down on the first day.

I scanned the lockers for Kieran's name, he did football, so I checked for the oversized posters with the oversized football players, with enormous biceps and abs showing through the jersey, obviously chosen by the slutty head bitch Bella Ross.

I found his name on a ripped poster and opened it. Our school believed in some "respect other's property" bullshit, which was basically and excuse for them not to buy locks.

Kieran's schedule was plastered inside he door. I checked it. Seventh period was drama, room 214, for him.

I walked down the halls, the distinctive sound of my feet hitting the rubber cement mix tile reminding me of when I used to walk down the halls after school with Cassidy, Annabelle and Kieran.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by a familiar high old voice yelling from behind me, "where is your hall pass?"

"Oh shit," I muttered turning around and faking a smile, "Mrs. Aldridge!" I faked happiness.

"Steven Hanson?" she asked, sounding surprised, "I thought you moved over the summer."

"And I thought you died over the summer," I shot at her.

"Watch how you speak with me!" she screeched.

"Watch your pitch..." I muttered, pretending to rub my hurt ears.

"You need to go to Principal Anderson!" she squealed.

"I would," I laughed, "if I still went here."

I turned down the hall started to walk away.

"Steven Hanson!" she yelled, "get back here!"

"Steven?" I heard another voice call from behind me.

I turned around and from behind Mrs. Aldridge came Annabelle Wilder, my best friend.

"Annabelle!" I laughed, running at her.

"Holy shit! Steven!" she yelled with delight.

We met in the middle, hitting each other head-on, she jumped up onto me and I fell backwards, unable to catch myself, so we just laid there, sprawled out on the floor, laughing.