The Digital Age

Chapter One - Happy return

The world is cruel. The day my prom dress flew above my head, causing my friend's dad to look away in embarrassment, I realised that life isn't fair.

Sorry Marilyn, we can't pull it off like you do.

I started off the day committing a typical teenage crime, sleeping through my alarm after staying up watching Netflix. Consequently, I had ten minutes to get ready. Following the general get ready routine, I rushed out the door and power walked, jogged, then ran. I hadn't been doing any rain dances recently so imagine my surprise when the heavens opened, unveiling their wet, dirty glory. I did sweep through the doors, however, I was soaking wet. Students cowered away from the impending rainy doom and my bag snapped, spilling the contents all over the hallway floor.

I snatched my books from the ground and rose slowly, glaring at the pair who were shaking with laughter.

'Did you do a Vicar of Dibley and fall into a puddle?' Lily asked while snickering, forcing Damon to howl with laughter. His guffaws echoed in the large room, causing strangers to search for the source of the loud bursts of laughter.

"Ha. Ha." I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. Very much like my clothes dripping water onto the floor. Lily originally tried to suppress her giggling, but then she clung onto Damon for support. Her laugh was contagious and sounded more like an evil cackle than an expression of amusement. I wrung my hair, trying to dry it, watching them calmly as they doubled over with laughter.

When they finally finished gasping for air, I placed my hands on my hips, raising an eyebrow.

"Are you finished?" I interrogated, a poker expression masking my face. Lily looked up from the ground and scanned my body composedly for a second, before exploding back into laughter.

"Right, that's it." I announced, my eyes gleaming with deviltry.

To their horror, I stepped forwards and wrapped my arms around theirs, my lips curling into a revengeful grin. Lily screamed and I laughed, ignoring the looks people shot across the room. I might have had mascara streaming down my face, foundation forming patchy clumps on my cheeks, but why worry about the insignificant things in life? I squeezed my friends extra tightly before releasing them, forcing Lily to stumble back.

She gasped, staring gravely at me before excitedly jumping up and down.

"Scarlett, please tell me you've seen the fit new English teacher?" Lily asked, drawing a sigh from Damon. I raised a quizzical eyebrow and held her by the shoulders.

"Oh, Lily, please tell me you're not lapsing into a cliché romance novel?" She folded her arms across her chest defensively, opening her mouth in shock.

"Am I not entitled to appreciate the aesthetic creations of the universe?" After this comment, Damon's eyes lifted up from the ground and a charming smile graced his face. His fingers softly stroked Lily's arm as he murmured,

"You are, and yet I fail to see you ogling at my handsome, greek chiseled features." Lily looked at him in disgust and slapped his hand away.

"First of all, you're British. Not Greek. Second of all, you're too focused on admiring your reflection to notice if I ogled."

Damon's eyes widened. "Aha! So you admit, you ogle at me!" He loosened his collar and swept his hand through his hair, looking at his reflection in the window.

"I don't blame you." He sighed, lazily shifting his eyes to the ceiling with majestic subtlety.

I shook my head and sighed, "No Damon, notice Lily used the word 'if'? Anyway if she did ogle, it would be out of curiosity. Since when did the male species learn to put his head so far up his ass?"