The Gray Case

seventeen

The color is grey, today.

Tall anonymous buildings stand high all around them as the car moves, its wheels scraping the cement roads.

The sky accommodates puffy clouds, fogged by the grey that they fall into and becoming grey as well, they signal the arrival of rain.

Maya watches outside the car window, her eyes wandering, searching for a familiar feeling that seems to be close to gone right now.

She can still feel his arms around her, if she closes her eyes. If she breathes slowly and shuts her mind, gradually a frigid shiver tiptoes its way down her spine. So she closes her eyes to see him as she did yesterday.

And maybe a hug is just a hug, maybe Maya cares too much and feels to much.

But fire burns and she is aflame.

They talked to each other in school, Alexander smiled at her, he cracked some jokes and then was dragged away, blown away by the harsh, winter wind which in this case, couldn't be else anybody but Sofia.

Of course she didn't miss the chance to give Maya dirty looks and of course, Alexander was lured again, captivated by a pair of glossy lips and maybe a little bit of interest.

Maya sighs, returning to the world's reality; where perfect can't exist because simplicity doesn't.

Her hands hidden in-between her thighs, she looks over at Lisa who is singing song lyrics while bobbing her head to the tunes that come from the radio.

Marcus sits on the backseats, his head bent low as he is on his phone, texting. He every so often raises his head and our eyes briefly meet when he tells Lisa the directions to where he is taking us.

He hasn't told them where actually he wants to take them, not that he has talked a lot today, anyway.

He seems to be absorbed by the grey of the world. "Turn left," he says, with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

Maya stays quiet as Lisa makes a turn, but immediately gasps when she abruptly hits the brakes, extremely close to another car in front of them.

"Lisa!" Maya exclaims, wide-eyed. "I think I'm too young to die," she continues, looking at Lisa who's eyes are now hidden by her ruffled hair covering them.

She simply laughs, continuing with her driving. "I'm sorry."

Marcus furrows his brow. "What the fuck you laughing at? And why did I even let you drive my car... You literally have the potential to break it in a matter of minutes."

Lisa laughs again, shrugging. "You let me drive your car because you are the laziest person ever, you can't be bothered to drive your car yourself, I guess."

Maya joins Lisa's laughter. "I have to agree."

Marcus just rolls his eyes, sighing. He gives Maya a look she can't quite decipher and then purses his lips leaning back on the seat, leaving too many things unsaid.

They get out of the car and Marcus stops in front of what seems to be a gun shooting range.

"Oh my God, this is so cool," Lisa says, her curious dark eyes reading the name of the place they are in front of.

"Yeah..." Marcus trails off, his hands dipped in his pockets and his eyes averting Maya's with insecurity as she doesn't utter a single word.

He craves something more than just what she is giving him, which is silence accompanied by her deep, earth-shaking stare.

"Come on," Marcus says, giving up.

The two girls follow him inside the building, one with excitement in the body and eyes, the other thinking about someone else who told her about gun shooting, Ryan.