Road to Someplace

Chapter Six

 I turned out to be even more doomed to follow Raveena's stupid plan than I thought I would be. Once the gears start churning in her head, there's no turning back, no matter how many clogs I tried to throw in the scheme. Instead of slowing down the cogs in her brain, any resistance broke down to oil, the more you tried to stop her idiotic plan, the more encouraged she became. She saw obstacles as more of a challenge, a way to show off, usually just to piss me off. So really, I was always going to end up cooperating, even if I didn't realize it. The first step came a day after Raveena announced that a plan was in the works.

I was in the lunch line, hunched over, my hands tucked away in my hoodie pockets. I was near the front, so I got through quickly. I went to one of the large stainless steel carts full of napkins, utensils, and straws. I rifled around in one of the lower drawers. I could feel someone behind me, their leg pressing up against my back. I glanced at the ground, and spotted a pair of lace-up boots. I recognized them as Raveena's, mainly by the style, and also the abnormal size of her feet. "What is it?" I asked, groaning internally. I rose up, a fork in hand, and turned to face her. I tipped my head back, looking directly at her.

"Okay," She whispered, leaning in close to me. "Sebastian looks hella exhausted, so ask why he's so tired. He's going to say that his sister is making him learn to drive so she can pass her old car onto him before she leaves for college, even though he doesn't want to, since the car's basically a piece of junk. His sister doesn't really care about if he takes it or not, she just wants it gone. Offer to take the car, and he'll hand it over to you sometime soon," She rushed through her sentences, keeping her voice down to a hushed tone.

I was pushed to the side by some kid trying to grab napkins. I took a few steps to my left, and Raveena followed. I stared at her, narrowing my eyes, a skeptical look on my face. Raveena sighed. "C'mon," She urged me on, nudging my arm. "Just trust me," She whined, pouting. I pursed my lips, thinking for a moment. "Did you bring your lunch today?" I asked. She nodded. "I'll do whatever the hell you just said, as long as we can trade lunches today, and for the rest of the week," I said, crossing my arms. Raveena beamed, and stuck her hand out. "It's a deal!" She proclaimed, abandoning her quiet tone.

She waltzed over to the table. I followed close behind. I gave my tray to her, and she handed her paisley-print lunchbox over to me. It was a huge bag, and was overflowing with food. It smelled delicious, and I could tell that Raveena had already reheated most of her food in the school's crappy microwave. I started to empty it, taking out the plastic boxes of food. She had a ridiculous amount of food in her bag as always. Whenever she took her lunch to school, she brought her family's leftovers. That day, there were samosas, a thermos full of spiced soup, and a tin of curry. There were also some packages of fruit snacks and two juice pouches, but Raveena snatched them up the moment I unpacked them. I snorted, and opened up the thermos.

When I glanced to my side, I noticed Sebastian. He had giant eye bags, the purple blotches consuming most of his face. His mouth was slightly ajar, and his eyes were almost closed. He was paler than usual. The whites of his eyes were bloodshot. He looked terrible.

"Woah, what's up with you?" I asked, genuinely concerned. He grumbled under his breath. He raised his hand up, limply clawing at his face. He wiped at his eyes, stretching skin beneath them. When he fully opened his eyes, he winced at the light, and closed his eyes partway. He rotated his head, pointing his head in my general direction. He let out a mumble, then finally uttered something audible.

"My sister's leaving for college, and she has this rusty junker that she doesn't know what to do with, so she's forcing me to learn to drive so I can own it when she leaves. She made me spend a few hours of my evening driving that junk pile from hell, and I had to pull an all-nighter to complete all my homework," He muttered. He pronounced his syllables slowly, like he was pondering every word he said, letting it slowly digest. I opened my mouth to say something, to express my sympathy, but I was interrupted.