hot angry tears, running down her face, grubby sleeves wiping red eyes. She had known this would happen, knew on the day she needed the most support she would find none- but that was just how it was. headphones far too loud in her ears, she ripped them out, thrusting them into her pockets, music still blaring. she always refused to cry in front of her mother- refused to let her see the effect she had. It had always been like this- she couldn't remember a time her home life had consisted of anything but swearing, shouting, fighting.
nowadays, she was numb. the empty words drifted over her, meaningless strings of abuse. she would look down, nod solemnly, and maybe say sorry when the silence lasted too long. To tell the truth, it didn't really effect her. she would just wait until it was over and leave- but apparently not today, no, today would be the day it all went wrong.
Ivy turned a corner, and saw the bus stop looming. shit. she wasn't ready to face the world- not yet. mentally shaking herself, she forced her feet to keep walking, rubbing at her eyes to make sure no tears showed, and took a deep breath. in the foggy morning light, the bus shelter was only a dim silhouette, framed by neatly trimmed hedges and freshly mown lawns reaching out onto the cobbled pavement. Ivy briefly imagined them trying to trip her up. a few figures were huddled together on the bench, sat peacefully in amicable silence, occasionally murmuring a few greetings when another student wandered over to await the bus. 'I can do this' she thought.
she was closer now, and could see the groups of people more clearly- two girls were sat closer together, in the centre of the shelter, texting on expensive phones, whilst a group of boys stood nearby, trying to flirt and look like they didn't give a fuck. on the edges of the stop were four or five more kids, lost in their own worlds, staring into space or drinking carry cups of coffee. it was quiet, and the air felt tired, despite the fresh chill that hung in it. settling between a boy and a girl who looked about her own age, Ivy put down her bag and tried to look busy on her phone. the atmosphere was sombre, and the eerie stillness was only broken by the occasional sound of a passing car or a new arrival to the shelter- to her, it was weird to be only surrounded by fields of complacent sheep and neat little houses- where were the apartment blocks and grubby parks? the homeless and those still out from the night before? everything was so conserved, polite and proper it almost hurt. the garish etiquette this town held still frightened her, and despite the almost complete lack of danger or threat, she felt on edge, ready to run.
she stopped pretending to text on her phone, and began to analyse those surrounding her. the girls were simple enough- expensive makeup, shoes and phones, they seemed to be the 'popular' type- but from what the girl had heard of their conversation, both were fairly bland characters. the boys were the same- all had ten a penny sort of attractive features, same gelled hair, and sports brand hoodies- although they exuded an air of tough ruggedness, she knew they would be eaten alive in the city. briefly scanning the others, she saw more of the same- all modern and on trend, but no one interesting, or genuine. she was about to turn back to her phone when her attention was caught by someone playing loud music, walking with loud, confident footsteps down the street towards the bus stop.
It was a girl, thick lilac hair bouncing as she walked, bright green eyes glancing up every so often from the pavement- composed,confident, calm, listening to a soul song on her phone- someone like Bill Withers, Ivy thought.. she walked with purpose, but she seemed casual, genuine, even, as though she had woken up like this, and didn't really have to try hard to be anything other than herself- effortless. as she neared the stop, she seemed to notice the new girl, and quickened her pace a little, as though she knew her, or wanted to. finally, she approached, and placed her worn out retro bag on the floor, multiple bracelets and rings reflecting the morning sunlight in a million directions as she did so.
'hiya sweetie- I'm Nova, Nova Hunter. you?' her voice was soft, but had an edge to it that made you sit up and listen, as though she had something important to say. it gently sliced through the drooping morning air, scattering dust particles with each syllable. the girl stuttered out her own name, a feeble 'Ivy..' softly colliding with the morning breeze, but Nova didn't seem to notice, because she was already being called to by another.
'oi, hunter! got anything nice for me?' one of the rougher kids, for this town anyway, was calling to her from the other side of the road, leering. he was a stocky, tall well built 'lad', but with a sigh, she replied coolly;
'don't sell to little kids,' and with a wink turned back to the new girl. 'sorry about that- some skank told him i sell drugs free, which is Not True, but hey, losers these days.' she sighed, flipping her hair behind her shoulder, and pulled out a lighter, absent mindedly flicking it on and off. the girl continued to wait, searching desperately for something to say, something to break the silence, but nothing came. Finally, after several uncomfortable minutes, an old double decker bus pulled up, and the group queued politely next to it's leaking windows to get on.
'hiya tom! how was date night?' nova was leaning over the bus counter, carelessly putting roughly the right amount of change on top of it, chatting to the bus driver, a balding man of about fifty who obviously enjoyed her company, as his features lit up when she had entered the bus. 'good, good,' he was replying, before; 'ready for your exam?'
' oh shit!' nova gasped, rushing off onto the top deck of the bus, loud footsteps echoing on the rickety stairs.
'you'd better go follow her love-she can't revise music theory by herself can she?' Tom smiled, before gesturing for the girl to follow essy upstairs.
music theory? the girl wondered; she hadn't known many drug dealers, but certainly none who cared about school or anything enough to play an instrument, let alone play one at such a high grade. weird. then again, Ivy was often so wrapped up in her own cliche she forget that not everyone was a stereotype.
venturing upstairs, her eyes cast about for nova, only to find her slumped at the back, feet resting on the seats, wearing huge round glasses and avidly reading 'grade 8 theory for the pianist'. cautiously taking a seat, the girl watched as she concentrated intensely on her work. she studied her- this new side of nova piqued the girls interest- here, she looked the model student, but less than a minute before she had been badass drug dealer who wanted to meet the new girl. before she could even begin to think what to say, nova stated: 'piano relaxes me- i like being able to play something; i want to be different y'know? don't want to be another one of those dickheads who just act up in class and wastes their life right?' the girl nodded, mute.
'fuck, this is pointless. i've revised, i'll be fine.' with a sigh, she threw down the book, put her glasses neatly back into her messy bag and slumped against the bus seats. the girl looked out the window, staring at field after field rolling by behind the dirty glass, and wondered what it was like to grow up in a place like this, and whether nova had. the two were in silence, as no one else dared to venture onto the top deck of the rusty old bus- however, neither found it particularly awkward- it was more a companionable quiet.
'where did you come from then?' nova asked, breaking the stillness.
'i was in london, but we moved up here for-' here, the girl paused, not sure how much to say, before simply deciding on 'we moved here.'
'nice! this must seem so shit compared to the city huh?' Nova laughed.
'yeah, it's weird everyone being so..polite, ' she responded, 'i can't get used to all the quiet either'
'oh believe me, once you get to school, you'll crave the quiet, it's hell in there'
great, she thought. the girl had almost forgotten that she would still have to survive the day- it was only half seven, and she was exhausted.
the bus ground to a halt, and the girl gingerly looked out the window to see what awaited her- a squat, red brick school stared back. the windows were small, and the front gates reached high up into the bleak morning sky, linking to a red brick wall that circled the premises. a few weeds were growing in planters outside the main doors, whilst a pond housed some dying water lilies, straining to find sun in the gloomy grey morning light. It wasn't fancy, but it seemed steadfast, resolute- and tired.
'come on, i'll show you around. it's really okay, i promise.' nova grinned, before sashaying off the bus and into the crowd of early morning students streaming into the building. the girl took a deep breath, and reluctantly followed.
YOU ARE READING
Fools on Parade
Teen Fiction******************************* fools that you would rather be beside than in front of, though she's never been the kind o be hollowed by the stares. ************************************** a cliche, bias but thorough observation of events that...
