Glory Days

Chapter 2: Old Friends

-Emme-

I leave the messy, alcohol scented house and wait at the bus stop before my dad wakes up. Finally, school. I can get away from home. Even though I was a lifeguard this summer, I still want to be home for the smallest amount of time possible. I put on my jean shorts, tank top, and my converse. I put my air pods in as the bus pulls up to my stop and opens the door.

I step into the bus and I see the lax boy crew. Ugh, great. I turn up my music as I walk past them.

"Hey art nerd, wanna save me? I think I'm drowning." Jack says. Ugh, what a jerk. I keep walking.

"Hey Mark, bet you can't beat this." One of them says. When I sit down, one of the boys throws a paper airplane at my face and hits me right in the nose.

"OH!!! GOT 'EM!" They shout. I glare at them. I hate the Lax boys. They laugh and turn around. I realize though that Aaron isn't with them. Aaron is Mark's twin; we were friends when we were little. But people grow apart. I look around the bus to see if Aaron is on, usually the football players and Lax sit together, but I don't see him. That's odd.

Someone taps on my shoulder. I look up and see a girl in my grade. She is a beautiful African girl with brown curly hair and amber eyes.

"Can I sit here?" She asks.

"Oh yeah sure." I say. I move my bag so she can sit down. "I'm Emme."

"I'm Rylee. Nice to meet you." She says.

"Are you new? I don't think I've seen you on this bus before."

"Not new to Lakewood, but new to this neighborhood." She says. We arrive at the school. Ah, Lakewood. Hawk pride, am I right? I pick up my schedule and find my home room... Mr. Peterson. Nice he's also my AP Lang teacher, that will be helpful. I walk into homeroom and introduce myself to Mr. Peterson and sit in the middle. more student come in one by one. I pull out my sketch pad and finish my most recent sketch. It's a portrait of Maleficent, the one portrayed by Angelina Jolie. Her high cheekbones are hard to draw, but I'm really proud of how it turned out.

"Hey art girl." I hear someone say. I look up, ugh it's Mark. I roll my eyes and continue with my sketch. "Hey, I'm sorry about Jack, he's a jerk."

"Well, it's not like you tried to stop him or anything." I say, not looking up. Mark is silent, for once.

"Yeah, but... it's not... I- "Mark starts

"You have no excuse." I say. I turn up my music, tuning out the world around me. It's just me and my sketch book. Someone taps on my shoulder. It's Mark. What does this kid want?

"Your right, I don't. Usually Aaron would keep him in line, make sure he didn't do jerky things." Mark says, a sad look in his eyes.

"Where is Aaron." I ask him, curious.

"Uh, he switched schools?" He says, clearly lying. I shrug my shoulder, not that I really care where Aaron is. Last time he really talked to me was middle school, back when we were friends. But then in high school Aaron and Matthew joined the jocks and I went into the arts, and never talked. Actually, why is Mark even talking to me? Some of his friends are in this class. The bell rings and I quickly grab my things. "Well it was nice sorta catching up with you, Emmee." He says. So, he does remember my name.

"Nice catching up with you too." I say. I head to my next class, History. Every morning I have to sit in the same homeroom as Mark? Great, this will be an interesting year.

-Mark-

"Mark, you're going to be late." I hear my mom yell from the kitchen. I quickly grab the pop tarts she made me and kiss her on the cheek.

"Love you mom." I say and leave to go to the bus. This is the first time I will go to school without Aaron. Our parents divorced this summer, and dad moved with Aaron to the other side of town. The bus pulls up and I get on. Jack, Mason, and Finn all wave at me.

"Hey guys." I say and sit next to Mason.

"Hey Mark, we're sorry about Aaron, we're really going to miss him." Mason says. All the guys nod their head in agreement.

"Yeah, I miss him to. But I guess it is what it is, he's really good at making friends." I say. Jack then starts talking about the Lax camp he went to this summer before football season.

"Well, look who it is." Jack whispers. A girl gets on the bus... hey it's Emme. We were friends when we were little... Aaron had a crush on her too, I think.

"Wasn't she a lifeguard this summer?" Mason asks.

"Yeah, she was pretty hot in her bathing suit." Finn said, a sly smile on his face.

"You guys are disgusting." I say and laugh.

"What? Usually people that spend their whole life in an art studio don't look like that." Finn says.

"Hey art nerd, wanna save me? I think I'm drowning." Jack says to her as she walks by. She rolls her eyes.

"Hey Mason, give me a paper airplane." Jack says. Mason gives him a piece of paper and Jack folds it.

"Hey Mark, bet you can't beat this." Jack says and hits her right in the nose.

"OH!!! GOT 'EM!" Mason yells.

"HA ha, very funny." I say to him. This is usually where Aaron would say Come on guys, don't be rude, that's how you make people not like you. But He isn't here.

"What's wrong Mark?" Mason asks.

"Oh, nothing." I say, lying. We arrive at school, the wonderful Red and Gold Lakewood Secondary School. I get my schedule and walk to Homeroom, Mr. Peterson. When I walk in, I see Emme, air pods in and sketching something. "Hey art girl." I say to her. She rolls her eyes. "Hey, I'm sorry about Jack, he's a jerk."

"Well, it's not like you tried to stop him or anything." She says, not looking up. I don't know what to say.

"Yeah, but... it's not... I- "I try to explain myself but can't.

"You have no excuse." She says and smiles. She goes back to her Sketch, it's a wonderfully detailed drawing of Maleficent. I tap her on the shoulder.

"Your right, I don't. Usually Aaron would keep him in line, make sure he didn't do jerky things." I tell her. That was a little personal, whoops.

"Where is Aaron." She asks me, curiously.

"Uh, he switched schools?" I say, lying. I don't want to go around telling everyone that our parent divorced. The bell rings, thank goodness. It was getting a little awkward. "Well it was nice sorta catching up with you, Emme." I say. She looks a little shocked that I remember her name. We were friends in middle school, but then we grew apart.

"Nice catching up with you too." She says and smiles. She rushes out of the room. I blush when she said my name. Come on Mark, what is wrong with you, you never blush.