Bloom

49. slippery waves

Zephaniah

The bus ride was long, too long if the only thing you could do was sitting and waiting. Staring outside the window had no point- everything was a blur, the bus went too fast. Haven had been reading a book, but that made me nauseous while I would be in a vehicle. I slept, I isolated, I felt bad for Haven.

It was only to protect myself. The day would be long still, it was too early to lose it already. I had counted to ten quite a few times, and it seemed to have worked, along with my few hours of sleep. I was feeling calmer, better because I had something to look forward to; getting off the bus and onto the ferry instead.

Glancing at Haven, my eyes lingered on her beret again. I thought about mum, remembering she had one when she used to be my caregiver. I had secretly touched it when she had left it on the stairs years ago and I had weirdly enough liked the feeling of it, so every time she came over to play with me, I watched her put it away, walked over to that specific place and touched it.

I wondered if Haven's beret felt the same, but the moment I put my hand up to touch it, she looked at me, startling me. "Hey, you're awake."

Gulping, I didn't know what to say for a moment, my mind feeling as if I was in a daze. Haven looked sweet, I had always thought she was a beautiful girl, but I didn't think someone being pretty could do something to your mind.

"We're getting off the bus in ten minutes, finally. The short break was way too short. My legs are stiff, so is my bum. Literally feels as if I'm sitting on a wooden bench." Haven chuckled, closing her book. I watched her as she tucked it away into her backpack, her blue eyes finding mine again. "Did you sleep well?"

"Okay." I nodded, looking away. Fiddling with the zipper of my backpack, I opened it eventually, fishing a bag of cheetos out of it. "Like crisps?"

"Oh! Food is the way to kill time." Haven chuckled again, taking the bag from me as I handed it over to her. I didn't really understand how food could kill the time. Food didn't do much other than laying around until somebody would eat it.

She stuffed the bag between her leg and mine, so we could both eat from it. I didn't really like the feeling of our hands brushing together, it was too soft for my liking. I knew I could be sensitive to any touch, but when I would be touched and I wanted it- I'd rather it would happen firmly. Unless it was mum stroking my cheeks, they would always end up looking red.

Besides that, I had a feeling her touch did something else to me, but I wasn't quite sure what. I frowned and glanced at her, but she didn't seem to notice. Or she didn't mind. Or she felt the same so she didn't do anything about it either because it was unclear. How could you act in an unclear situation? That, I did not know.

Once the bag was finished, she threw it away in the trash bags that hung at some seats, wiping her fingers off a handkerchief she fished out of her bag. She handed one to me as well, I accepted it gratefully.

She gave me a smile. I returned it, but without eye contact.

"Alright guys! New instructions. The bus will get onto the ferry, so once it's safely parked, we'll leave the bus. You all have to follow me, so we can get on the right deck, alright? You can bring your backpacks, but it's only an hour and half. No returning to the bus while the ferry moves. Clear? Clear! Let's go!" William cheered, leaving the bus first. I frowned a little as I tried to recall what he had said. What about backpacks?

Haven stood up, I gulped, tugging at her sleeve. "Uhm, I want to- I want to wait.." I hesitated, glancing behind me as some of our peers were still seated and laughing loudly, probably cracking jokes. I didn't know if their humor was simply bad, or if I didn't understand the jokes, but it all didn't make sense.