Gem | Daniel Desario

[4]

Layla walked towards the bus stop, a bit irritated as Nicole had lost her privileges to use her car since she was caught sneaking out the other night. Jacob had asked his parents for a car ride to school, as well as Nicole, leaving Layla to take the bus, which she hasn't done since sophomore year. Eating a bagel, Layla stood next to everyone else.

"No, it's devils day." Layla heard from beside her, one of the new freshman talking along beside Sam, Lindsay brother, and another freshman. "Each of the seniors bring a hair removal foam and spray it on freshman's heads. Then all your hair falls out."

Layla quietly snickered at what the Freshman had said because Layla and her friends had made that rumor a long time ago. "Really?" Sam asked as Layla finished up her bagel, leaning against the stop sign that was near her.

"No." Lindsay chuckled. "That stupid rumor has been around for years."

"And I started it," Layla said, pushing herself off the stop signpost, walking up beside Lindsay, looking down at the Freshman's, seeing one had a blue hat on.

"Yeah, I know. I was just goofin' on 'em."

"No, you weren't."

"Yes, I was."

Layla deeply sighed, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked around the neighborhood she was in. Her apartment wasn't too far from here, but this part of the neighborhood was way better than what she would've thought. To her, it looked like a neighborhood where a family of four would be living in, allowing their children to roam the streets without fear. It was weird to her as not even a ten-minute walk to the right where she had come from, it was a neighborhood that was trashed.

After a while of just standing around, Layla heard the sound of tires screeching on the pavement making her turn her head to see a red car speeding down the road before turning around the corner, coming to a stop in front of her, Daniel and Kim coming into view. "Hey Layla, Lindsay." Daniel greeted the two girls, hanging his arm out the car window.

"Hey, Daniel." Lindsay greeted the boy while Layla just gave a simple wave. "Hey, Kim." Lindsay waved to the blonde in the passenger seat.

"Hello, brain."

"So, this is your bus stop?" Daniel asked the two girls, looking around at the other students who lingered around.

"No, Daniel, we're just waiting here with other students for no fucking reason whatsoever," Layla said with a sigh, wanting to be somewhere else rather than standing in a corner, waiting for a bus that was a couple of minutes late.

"Damn, what's got you in a mood?" Daniel mumbled, tapping against the side of his car that had scratches all over. Suddenly, Millie came into view as she leaned against Daniels car as Daniel backed away further into his seat.

"We've had the same bus stop since kindergarten." Mille looked at Daniel. "How fast does your car go?"

"150, if I hook up the nitrous tank." Daniel looked down towards Millie's hand, which she held a packet of sugar in. Kim laughed from beside Daniel, leaning her head against her hand.

"Your car is really loud," Millie said, making Daniel look up at her with his eyes squinted from the sunbeams shinning right towards his eyes. "My dad says you need a muffler. Once, he even threw a rock at you when you drove by." Daniel looked over to Kim, silently laughing. Layla looked over to Lindsay, seeing she had her eyebrows furrowed and her hand up against her forehead as Mille continued talking. "But I guess you didn't hear it."

Layla laughed, making Daniel look over towards her before back to Millie. "He threw a rock at me?"

"Hey, kid, what the hell are you eating? Is that laundry soap?" Kim asked as Mille stuck a candy stick covered in that blue sugar into her mouth.