Teenage Bones

Didn't you hear?

I turn the key and pull up the handbrake. I take my bag and use nearly all my strength to pull it into my lap. It's yellow, a box shape with straps and handles at the top. Summer last year, Hope practically dragged me to the nearest shopping centre and got me everything I needed including this stupid yellow bag. Even though I at least have a dark colour on me now, I'm adamant to use the back and I will for a while. For some reason, it's a symbol of her being with me like she's always going to be here and for that, I am grateful that she took me to that stupid shopping centre and- there's a knock on the window and Ava's concerned face is at the window of my car. She pulls open my door quickly, and thank god there is an empty parking space next to me otherwise the car would have a giant dent in the side where she has pulled open my car door. She smiles. She has dark skin and long hair, elbow-length and green eyes. Her appearance is perfect and she has a nearly-full modelling job. Ava's choice of clothes is dark green high waisted jeans and a white top with black print writing that reads 'sorry I'm late, I was debating if to get out of bed'. She still carried a worried face and took my bag from me, she was so close to me, I would not be able to stand up without bumping noses with her.
"Esmè... have you..." She asks but doesn't finishes. I swing my legs up from the pedals and hang them over my seat and out of the car. I look up to her and smile, trying really hard to let her finish but I'm known for my lack of patience.
"Have I killed someone yet?" I ask and she chuckles, but it's fast and fake.
"No Es, have you seen the video?" She says, straight out. And I shake my head, in response to me she whips out her phone. She turns her back and leans against she's lower do I can rest my head on her shoulder and watch this video. The video starts in a dark room, there's a lot of loud music and people were talking, the video then focusses on a girl in a red dress with curly hair that reaches just below her shoulders. She's pressed against a guy that's also pressed against a wall. He looks like a guy I know, Tate. The girl looks like my sister but doesn't act like it, she's pressed against the man in promiscuous ways that I didn't know was possible, not like that. She drunk-smiles into the phone and camera and someone laughs behind it, she rubs herself up against Tate, and when he pushes her away she laughs and carries on then the video stops and cuts out. The last thing I hear is her laughter: drunk, sweet and totally out of control. Ava turns back around and pockets the rose gold large iPhone. She still looks concerned, for me.
"That was Stacy? Not me." I say. Looking down, I saw my bag on the floor and go to pick it up but Ava moves to catch my attention.
"I get that." She says, "but Tyler doesn't." Ava finishes. Tyler is this kid in school, mostly wears black, tall and has more piercings than school books and he's high level in everything. He also happens to used to be friends with me, I do say used to, when Hope died, he turned away from everyone and got new assholes of friends. I get to get up and Ava moves this time, granting me space I need. No stars crowd my vision and I take it slow, put the bag on my back gently and shut the car door, making sure to lock it. I turn to her, "well then we'll just have to tell him!".

-*-

I didn't see Tyler walking in, even as I change my books out in my locker and walked all the way to class (the long way) he wasn't seen and in the classroom, he's normally in, history, he wasn't there. Ava is in this class with me, sitting next to me and patiently looking at the door and back to her work. I don't know how she does it. I can't keep my patience and she doesn't make me. Soon enough I can't concentrate and I look to her for help. She doesn't exactly look too involved either, she looks back at the door and back at the teacher and all the teacher does is shrug. The teacher knows what are asking about Tyler, we normally talk to him and class. I mean, we don't have big conversations, but we have big enough ones to know how we feeling. Not any big conversations about life or how is his parents are but they get big enough to know that he doesn't really like history. It seems like it's been hours even though the class is only two hours, but suddenly he walks in and walks up to my table, smiles at me and takes a red spray paint can out of his bag, placing it on my table and sits down. Everyone knows Tyler's moods are explosive since Hope died, now we're all staring at the red spray paint bottle. His smile is mysterious and I don't like it. I look at him and he looks at me and grins and pulls his silver lip ring between his teeth. Our poor teacher has no idea what to do. He looks just as confused as the rest of us. He sits right to me, just displaying a shit-eating grin. His black hair is pushed back and he is wearing black skinny jeans, black vans, a white top that vaguely shows the tattoos underneath and a new vans black and white checked bag that he swung on his back. I placed my own on my back. His brown eyes are dilated and hold buckets of humour. We make eye contact and once his eyes rake down my body, a little surprise takes him as well as more humour.
"Tyler, what did you do?" I say through gritted teeth. She to the other side next to me looks more worried about his life then for mine, she looks at him and I can tell she's a scowling. He looks and the humour just builds up as he leans back on his chair, hands on his knees. He looks away.
"Well," he sighs, grins and makes full eye contact. "Why don't you check your locker Esmè?" He answers in an American accent. Carefully, and slowly,(And some hidden help from Ava) I manage to get up quickly and walk through the stars. I lean on Ava until they pass.

-*-

On my locker, it looks normal, until I put in my code and pull open the door. There are big messy words saying "check your car" with red all over my books. Ava pulls me away and slams the door shut, turning the code lock to turn it again. We march outside to look at the once white car.

Now the car has red thick letters the spell "cheater" and "it's over" and "here's for the victim". I can't stop the gasp as it leaves my mouth.

He thinks I cheated on Hope.

By now teachers are out and so are most pupils. Tyler finally makes his entrance pushing through the teenagers holding up their phones for pictures. He jumps onto the bonnet of the car and looks at me, his long legs swinging. He smiles and leans back on his elbows.
"What do you think Esmè? I thought it needed a touch up!" He sat forward. Opening my bag, I get out the can he used and threw it at him. The spay can hit him on the chest and his lap catches it. I take a step closer to him into the circle made of bodies.
"You think-you actually think I cheated on her?" I say and he shrugs, grinning.
"How should we know?" He says loud enough for heaven to hear, and his grin disappears. "She's dead."
I try to hold my temper and count back from ten in my head. He's an asshole, that's all he is. I walk very close to him, only half a metre between us.
"Get off my car and get inside," I say and then smile at the surrounding people before leaning into his right ear. "Or I'm going to hit you with my car and reverse on you."
I get he didn't think I'd drive, Ava either as she's in the passenger seat before I put my car in gear and pushed down the gas pedal with him still on my bonnet.