Just The Four Of Us

Ch. 9: "Oh nothing you'd be interested in, I promise."

Mandy's POV

The rest of the day ended pretty smoothly and rather slowly. I found myself in the same social studies class as Hannah's friend, Tabatha. I didn't talk to her, or really acknowledge her at all. I stayed to myself for the most part. I was just glad to get on the bus ride home. Don't get me wrong, my teacher, Mrs. Donavan, seems fantastic. But it's still school and there's better things to do.

I took my seat next to Allie, one of my childhood friends who I didn't consider much of a true friend anymore. She's extremely bothersome and annoying. Good thing there's light in this world like earbuds and Phantom Of The Opera cast albums.

I pressed play on the Overture and put my head against the window, trying my best to ignore Allie's existence.

From the outside sound of intense orchestra music I hear faint, muffled words, which I choose to not pay attention to. That is until my white earbud was ripped from my ear and dropped onto my khaki shorts.

"I said, what are you listening to?"

"Oh nothing you'd be interested in, I promise." I reply, resisting the urge to actually respond with, "Oh nothing you'd know about, taking into consideration the lack of musical taste and variety you have, due to the overplayed pop band you have playing on your phone."

"What do you know about what I am and am not into! Lemme see that," Allie snapped, pressing the home button on my phone and putting the other earbud slightly into her ear. Her facial expression turned from a smirk to a disgusted frown in seconds. "How can you listen to that? There's no lyrics, or catchy...anything! What even is this?"

"Well to answer your questions, I can listen to it because there's really cool things called music apps and play buttons, there aren't any lyrics because it's an instrumental, it's extremely catchy, and it's called Phantom Of The Opera."

"Geez. Okay. No need to get defensive!" Allie said, putting her hands up and looking at me like I offended her.

"I wasn't the one who ripped out your earbud and criticized your music choice, now was I?"

That seemed to shut her up.

My stop rolled around so I crossed over her  and I possibly may have "accidentally" hit her with my school bag. I stepped off the bus and onto my driveway, about to fall over from exhaustion. After unlocking my door, I flopped onto the couch, and slowly fell onto the carpeted ground.

"All I want to do is eat goldfish, watch Jimmy Fallon, and cry over Captain America. Not worry about school. Is that so much to ask for?"

I dragged my bag behind me into my room and threw it onto the bed. My folders slipped out and emptied their contents of schedules and forms. I sifted through them, filling the blanks out and leaving space for my mother to sign. Clipping a pen to the stack of papers, I placed them on the kitchen countertop and closed myself back into my bedroom. I'll probably have to end up forging her signature because her eyes will glide straight over them, but that's something to worry about tomorrow.

My phone laid on my bed still plugged into my earbuds. I stuck both into my ears, turned up the volume, and hummed along to the lyrics.

Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind, in the darkness which you know...

Marley's POV

...you cannot fight, the darkness of the music of the night.

"Marley! Turn that down! Don't you have, like, a tsunami of papers I need to get done?" my dad yelled from across the house.

"Oh, yeah, that...give me a second!" I yelled in response, silencing my Phantom soundtrack.

I emptied my galaxy school bag of the crumpled papers that were once legible. Using my table, that brimmed with miscellaneous objects, I slid the papers over the corner to straighten them to their former glory. The sound of my Vans clicked across the floor while I walked with the papers to my dad, pen in hand.

"Why are they wrinkled?"

"Don't worry about it..." I said, my words trailing off as I redirected my vision to the other side of the room. My sister sat on the couch on her laptop, no papers in sight, and certainly no look of worry from my dad.

"Does Mia have any papers?" I questioned.

"Why is it relevant to you?" My dad answered, slightly.

"Well I mean, I have forms and I was just kind of curious because you don't seem to be getting on her for anything."

"Don't worry about it," he said, forcing my own words down my throat. His words, however, were in a more condescending tone, whereas mine seemed absent minded.

I turned my back on the conversation, taking my papers with me to my room.

"I know a little stack of forms isn't a big deal, but still, he hovers over me so much more than he does my sister. I don't get it. One thing I do get though is how beautiful Gerard Butler's voice is. My heart." I ranted to myself. Putting my hand over my heart and flopping over to my bed and reaching for my phone.

8:00 PM

"Ugh. Day one of school, over. Rest of the school year to go."

A/N
GOD APRIL IS ALREADY HERE AND I DONT WANT ANYTHING TO DO WITH STANDARDIZED TESTING. NOT EXCITED. WHATSOEVER. SAVE ME. FREE ME. PLS.

On another, less desperate note, my entire friend group has listened to Hamilton and it's probably the best thing that has happened this year, other than me discovering the production for myself. I'm Lafayette now, we have Laurens (Marley), Mulligan (Tabatha), and GENERAL LEE (Mandy, she's a general! Wheeeeeee!). But sadly I won't be able to add Hamilton references in until the later chapters that catch up with our modern day group. The first approximately 10-20 chapters will be on our adventures as a group the first year we met. After that, I'll go into our senior year of school where I introduce the conflict I have in mind, and revisit or add love interests...because...I can...and I need to put our friend group ships in here. Although the names are changed and the ship names aren't quite the same but it's whatever. They're based on the real people and that's what matters to me.
~Han Ban❥