New Rain

II.

A/N

Hey,

I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Things get a little bit interesting near the end, so I hope you don't mind the slow start. 

Also, please, rememeber to vote and leave a comment. I'm always open to suggestions and your feedback means so much to me :)

-Astrid

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//TWO//

I leave the house a little after 8am. The sun is shining brightly, with no clouds in sight, and its beams bounce off the metal city, sending dazzling rays of light into my eyes. Up close, it's blinding, but when I take a look at the skyscrapers in the distance, the effect is magnificent, with hundreds of small beams of sunshine being reflected, making the buildings look as if they're covered in glitter.

It’s rush hour on the streets of the city, with everyone either driving or walking to their work or school. Everything starts at 8:30am, which means that the streets go from silent and empty to noisy and crowded very quickly.

As I make my way down the main street, I have to navigate around the stragglers and step out of the way for those who rush past. We all walk shoulder to shoulder, a never-ending tide of people, flowing throughout the city.

As I near my school, I spot more and more students lugging grass green bags with the same school emblem on them as my own. Our school bags are the most vibrant things in the crowd, and we stand out like dots of green glitter sprinkled amongst a pile of ash.

I see my school up ahead, sparkling just as brightly as the rest of the city. The school’s emblem is displayed in metal above the main door which remains wide open as students pour in through its entrance.

I join the crowd of green bags and ordinary clothing as I enter the building. Inside, many students are at their lockers, fishing out their books for first and second hour, and others are chatting in groups, probably spreading the latest rumours or talking about how much fun they had on the weekend.

I make a beeline for my locker at the end of the main hallway and stuff my bag into it before grabbing my history and mathematics textbooks. I shut it behind me and lean against it, staring at the clock and its slowly ticking hands. A group of girls wearing neat ponytails that swish back and forth as they laugh talk excitedly next to me about their plans for next weekend. I try to block out their high-pitched voices and focus harder on the clock, willing it to speed up the next five minutes until school officially starts.

I used to live for the early morning chats - for the gossip and the rumours. Every morning, I surrounded myself with a bunch of loud and carefree friends and we would talk for ages about nothing of importance until we had to go to class. I remember spending hours each night calling them about our plans for the weekend or texting them about the details of the latest party. I was innocent and didn't have a care in the world. I had no idea just how cruel the world could be.

Then one morning, I woke up and found that my father was dead - just like that. He had been on a nightshift at work - he was a guard at the government building - when the acid storm came and he was caught outside.

After that, nothing was the same. My friends new what I was going through - lots of people have lost people they love - but they were always so cheery and it was hard to be around them when I was filled with sorrow. I soon stopped attending all the parties and the weekend get-togethers. I turned up late for school to avoid my friends in the mornings. It wasn't that I didn't like them anymore, it was just that I couldn't stand the looks of pity they gave me, the way they always spoke to me in a soft, overly-sweet voice as if by speaking too loud or being too harsh they might break me.