The Mark of Ilman

Chapter 7 - Unexpected

*unedited*

Finally the trip to Port Townsend was here. We were staying in the city for about four days during spring break for history class. I was happy and excited that Lutah was letting me go but she put down some rules. Like calling her three times a day and to always stay in sight of a teacher or chaperone.

I met Sarah at the school and somehow we were able to ride the whole way up with Damon. He winked at me and I couldn’t help but giggle as he walked past me to put our bags in the trunk. Then he came around and opened the passenger door for me. I slide in and made myself comfortable.

When Sarah and Damon got in we set off. The ride was silent as we drove out of the school parking lot and onto the road. The radio played soft music and I let myself relax.

“So Amarie,” Damon said, his voice cutting through the silence. “what kind of music do you like? I got some CDs sitting around. I might have one you might like.”

I searched through some of the CDs in the glove box. None of it was really something I liked. “Well, it seems like you have a lot of good music in here but it’s not exactly my kind of music. You a fan of metal and stuff?”

“Yeah, kinda. I like alternative rock too. Like Paramore and A Day to Remember.”

I nodded, “Those two are okay but I’m not really a fan of the genre, just a few bands.”

“I have some Awolnation. You like that?” He asked.

“Yeah, I do.”

He smiled as we turned onto the highway. “It should be in the back. Sarah, can you find it?”

Sarah ducked down and dug through some CDs and handed me Awolnation’s Megalithic Symphony. I stuck it in and soon all three of us sung along.

We didn’t talk a lot on the ride but instead relaxed and at some point I fell asleep. I woke up when we stopped at a fast food restaurant to eat and use the restroom. Damon sat next to me and stayed close as we ate. He cracked some jokes and I laugh hard. I smiled at him when I caught him watching me, my face flushing a little every time.

When we got back on the road we struck up more conversation.

“How’d you get it to where Amarie and I could ride with you?” Sarah asked, sipping on some water.

“I’m the best student at the school, I get lots of perks and the teachers know my mom. She’s kind of strict so I guess they think I’m a good kid.”

“None of the teachers think we’re good kids,” I said. “No matter how much you stay under the radar the teachers still don’t trust us.”

“Maybe not some of the kids,” he agreed.

Sarah laughed a bit, “I haven’t done a things since getting kicked out of the public school and they still look at me as if I’m going to violent. It’s ridiculous. If they treated us like we’re normal then they wouldn’t have too many more problems. It’s like they think we’re animals.”

“What did you do to get here?” Damon asked, raising an eyebrow in the rearview mirror.

“It was a year ago. I beat up a girl who cheated with my ex. I didn’t mean to but the beating almost killed her so I got kicked out and just missed getting time in jivi. My lawyer got it to where I was sent to this school and as long as I don’t miss a day of school, I’m off the hook.”

I had heard the story before about how Sarah’s boyfriend of two years cheated on her several times with one girl. She never knew about it before she caught them together and the truth came out about how many times they’d been together. It made me sick and sad that I didn’t know her at that time. If I had, I would have kept her from beating up that girl and getting stuck here.