when you met me

working

Working

Dud adjusted his glasses and continued to read his book in subdued silence. He had decided to only wear contact lenses when he was working, as he still found them uncomfortable after a while. He tapped on the edge of his book with his forefinger until he wasn’t even reading anymore, he’d completely zoned out.

“C’est la vie, c’est a mort.” Mara had sung quietly to herself. She strummed her roughly used acoustic guitar and Dud watched her secretly while pretending to study. “You and me, forevermore.” Mara smiled at Dud watching her. “What?” She asked, stopping.

“Nothing, you should revise if you want to do well in exams.” Dud covered up his admiration with logic. Mara rolled her eyes. She pushed her hair back off of her shoulders and Dud wondered when it would stop being torture being around her.

“This is a duet, you should be helping me out.” She quirked an eyebrow. Dud laughed out loud and shook his head, still laughing as he started to read again. “Fine, I’ll just keep going then.” Mara answered defiantly, and Dud pretended to be annoyed when he loved to hear her sing.

“Heaven or hell, or somewhere in between- don’t go, please don’t go- don’t go without me.” Dud’s heart shook and he pushed his glasses back on his nose. He decided it wouldn’t end until he admitted to her what he’d known forever. So, that day, Dud promised himself that by the end of the school year, he’d tell Mara.

Mara plucked her base guitar in a slow, deliberate pattern, readying herself for practice of a song, which the more she sung it, the more it stung. Dax rubbed his hands and began strumming his electric guitar, creating a static atmosphere that clouded the room with Mara’s projected nostalgia.

Cole’s drumsticks rested in his hands, ready to start the beat that sounded like a heartbeat after the first verse. Mara would be proud, no, she was proud. Her nervousness was just overwhelming. They’d play the song for the first time soon, according to Cole, and hopefully get signed. She reminded herself that no one would actually know what the song was about.

That is, WHO the song was about.

Dud was on patrol duty and yawned as he walked down a street once more, seeing no one. He reminded himself that he had actually done well on the job. One day they’d promote him. He’d find really dangerous criminals, he’d save lives. But for now, he was bored.

Kids gave him wary looks, as if he was the threat. He smiled courteously at them, asked why they weren’t in school, and they ran away. Dud laughed. Mara always ditched school, and sometimes dragged Dud with her. He wished he could tell the kids that he wasn’t that old, that he knew what it was like to hate going to school.

He was twenty now. Twenty. That wasn’t old. Right? No, he just felt older because- well, at a certain age it was decided by someone that you must take care of yourself. Dud did his duty, he respected that it was the way of society, and no matter how much he wanted to just be lazy, and he knew he had to be an adult. It wasn’t so bad.

Mara, on the other hand, found it harder to embrace adulthood, unless she was doing what she loved. With people she loved would be nice too. But that wasn’t possible anymore. People she mostly liked would have to do.

“Bloody hell, this song is depressing.” Dax commented after their third practice session of the day.

“It’s a good song.” Cole replied with a condescending edge in his voice that he always carried around. Dax held up his hands as he walked over to Mara’s fridge without asking. “Never said it wasn’t mate, just emotionally draining.” He got a water bottle and chugged it.

“Thanks.” Mara said to Cole.

“Yeah, it’s just Dax. Never been in an actual relationship before.” He raised his voice so his cousin could hear, and Dax made a face.

Beth’s locks shone in the sunlit window of their bedroom. “It sounds good.” She commented as she ran her fingers through her hair and examined its length with some serious regard. She hadn’t come in and even said hello to the boys, though sometimes Beth was like that.

“Thanks, it’s coming along.” Mara smiled and sat on her bed, ready for a nap before the show that evening. “Do you ever-” Beth cut herself off, sounding distant, not quite there. Mara hadn’t ever heard her with that tone. “Do I ever what?” Mara asked, curious.

Beth looked at her, and stopped with her hair. “Do you ever wish you could hit a reset? Like, on your life?” It was so out of the blue, Mara frowned and then considered the question, weighing it carefully. She knew what it was like, for people not to answer your questions properly. “Yeah,” Mara answered, “Sometimes. Not all of it. You?”

Her head shook slowly, and she contorted her face into a smile. “No,” She said, pushing her mane over her shoulders and fluffing it gently, “Not really.” She said goodbye with no other information, and walked out, clutching her bag.

Mara watched her leave and rubbed her temples. If Beth thought of things like that… Well, Mara learned in that moment that everyone had layers, thoughts, emotions. NO one was two dimensional. Some people were just better at acting like it.