The Band Dude

Chapter 2

Days went by, until eventually the whole week had gone. I had suffered through several encounters with Oliver, or Shadow, as everyone had now come to calling him. Always, it was short and venomous, his voice dripping with poison, mine with disgust. I hated the way he was always so defensive, ready to take a bite out of anyone who dared speak to him. It disturbed me, but for some reason all I wanted was to find out what had made him so prickly. Even if someone attempted to be kind to them, he was quick to brush them off.

I never saw him at lunch or at break, and I wondered where he disappeared to in his free time. I only ever saw him in lessons, or in the hallways when we switched between classes. I was curious, but I chose not to act on it. I had better things to do than follow some emo kid around.

It was on Saturday that I saw him. I was walking to the bus stop to meet the girls in town, dressed in skinny jeans and a cropped t-shirt that revealed my silver belly piercing, when I noticed someone familiar walking a bit in front of me, in the same direction. Smirking to myself, I picked up my pace until I had matched his. He refused to acknowledge me, so I began to talk.

"Where are you going then, Shadow?" I asked him, seeing that he was dressed mostly in black. There was a splash of colour on his shirt, and the stretcher in his ear was red, but that was about it. He continued to ignore me, so I poked him.  

"What do you want?" He snapped irritably, moving away from me. People gave us funny looks as we passed by, but I didn't care. I had gotten him to admit that I was there.  

"To know where you're going, duh. That's why I asked you," I rolled my eyes, but I was careful not to smudge my eye make up.

"Somewhere," He answered, not looking at me. He walked faster, clearly trying to shake me off. Okay, so people would think that I was with him, but I was having so much fun annoying him that I made sure that I matched him step for step.  

"Why?" I blinked up at him, as he was taller than me, which annoyed me. It was harder to- not bully, irritate- someone if they were bigger. But I got over it quickly.  

"Because I want to," He growled, grinding his teeth. Which were very straight, and white, might I add.

"But why do you want to?" I questioned as we reached the bus stop. He stopped, and my smile stretched wider. The bus wouldn't be here for another five minutes or so, if it was on time, so I had plenty opportunity to vex him. He turned to glare at me, and for a moment, he looked so deathly furious, my smile faltered briefly. But I quickly plastered it back on.  

"Don't you have something better to do than stalk me?" He barked brusquely.  

"Oh, come one, Shadow, I wouldn't waste my time stalking you. I'm meeting the girls, but you being here is an added bonus," I laughed, making sure to flip my hair. A random guy about my age who was also at the bus stop looked as though he was about to start drooling.

He scowled at me, and didn't bother replying, jamming on some black Beats, and turning up the volume to his music to full. Aw, now he wouldn't be able to hear me if I made comments.  

The bus pulled up, and I grabbed my B-line and some loose change from my purse. I flashed my ID at the driver, and gave him the money, waiting patiently for a few seconds for my ticket. He handed it to me with a scowl to rival Oliver's, and I just smiled pleasantly at him.

I paused for a moment, to survey the seats remaining, and my eyes sparkled when Oliver, who had been behind, and to my delight chose the same bus, slumped into an empty seat for two. I slid in next to him, and smiled to myself when I heard his quiet, but audible groan. The other guy from the bus stop glared at him, and sat opposite us across the aisle.