Donna is a photography student; the best in her class. She has an eye for detail, and the ability to make a picture say not just a thousand words, but a million. When travelling through London with her sarcastic side-kick for school break,
Donna me...
The taxi slows to a halt, the wheels pulling ash-felt up from where it lies crumbled. Hugo turns in his seat, brushing his thumb over the bushy, uneven moustache that hides his upper lip. Manny's face is pressed against my top, his cheek flattened; fresh drool settles on the fabric.
"Sorry miss, traffic in this area at this time can be a hassle. When is your flight?"
I shuffle out from under Manny, his head colliding with the window, which unbelieving doesn't wake him. Manny continues to snore away as I empty out my backpack onto my lap. An assortment of items tumble out, but I catch sight of the two plane tickets and scoop them up.
"This afternoon at 2" I squint, reading the small print. "-will we arrive by then?"
"Oh totally. Traffic doesn't take that long, but you're sleepy friend has the right idea. Catch some zzzz's if you want the ride to pass by quicker" Hugo turns back to face the road, putting the cab into gear as the car in front inches forward.
"Um, thank you" I quietly mutter, though over the sound of passing vehicles zooming by, Hugo won't have heard me.
I tuck the tickets back into my backpack, where my fingers brush the strap of my camera. I pull it out carefully, and switch it on. The screen reflects off the window glass. As I flick through the pictures, a hundred memories flood back into my mind. The images are so significant and meaningful to me, though to the world are simply a couple blurry portraits and desktop backgrounds. I slide my finger across, and a picture of Karen appears.
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She's flipping through the pages of a book, focusing on every little word as if they contribute to the story as a whole. Her hair hangs down past her shoulders, framing her face. Karen looks so contempt, so naturally stunning the way she's turned away from the camera; as if saying 'this is me. I am not posing, or pretending. This is who I am'. That's what I respect about Karen; she doesn't care what others think about her. She smiles through negativity, and shakes off the hate whenever it comes her way. Karen once told me about how she was treated back in high school; though text-book obsessed, was nothing more than an average student who earned average grades. Karen was supposed to achieve, because of her Asian ethnicity. She was supposed to be able to speak Korean, yet Karen knew nothing more than a few greetings. But it didn't matter, she had told me; it didn't matter because her parents were proud of their daughter and how hard she tried throughout school. I'll always remember that. I'll always remember the times Karen opened up to me.
The next image is one of Shane. He looks dapper in a custom-made suit, the jacket undone, exposing a plain white tee.
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