Wandering Alone

Chapter 5

Beep. Beep. Beep.

I groaned as I rolled out of bed, falling to my hands and knees on the ground. A shiver racked the length of my body as I was exposed to the cold air. Slowly, I trudged to the bathroom, glancing in the mirror at my reflection. I sighed as I saw my face. The bruises were better, but not healed. I would have to put on makeup again today.

After applying the concealer and foundation I applied a thin layer of eye shadow and lip gloss. I ran a brush through my hair and skipped into my room, finding myself suddenly happy and awake. I pulled out a blue tank top out of the dresser and a pair of black skinny jeans. Grabbing my backpack and black hoddie I ran down the stairs and out the door, stepping onto the school bus just as it was pulling away.

I took a deep breath as I took a seat on the back row, examining the people here so far. My house was one of the first stops, so only two other peope were on the bus. A boy and a girl, who apparently thought it would be a good idea to swap spit in front of me. I turned my head away in disgust, trying to block out the sucking noises and occasional moans.

After several more stops, the bus was full of kids, all shouting and throwing things in the air. I looked out the window as we pulled up to my high school. I could see Katie waiting for me outside the doors. Her black hair was pulled into a high pony tail, and she was wearing her signature purple converse with her purple sun dress. As the kids jumped from the bus, I got caught in the swarm of people, being pushed and shoved every which way. My head began to throb as my head collided with another head. I heard someone scream, and another shout to get out of their way.

Finally, I could see the outside. Only a few more steps to go. I pushed and shoved to get to the open doorway, taking step after step. Suddenly, there wasn't anything under my feet anymore. I fell face first to the ground, scraping my hands on the hard concrete. I could see several pairs of feet walking straight by me, not caring I was on the ground. I couldn't move, if I did I would be crushed under the massive amount of people spilling from the vehicle.

A strong grip grasped around my waist, slipping under my body and pulling me up out of harms way.  At first I braced myself to be thrown, but no such thing happened.   I twisted quickly, trying to pry myself from the persons grasp. I raised my hand, intending to slap whoever was holding me. When I turned, my face was inches away from no other than Zane's. I felt my cheeks go red as I lowered my hand and he released me. We stood silent for several seconds, him observing my flushed face and me trying frantically to find the right words.

"Sorry," I finally muttered, twirling a piece of hair around a finger. "And thanks."

"Don't mention it." He said with a smirk, "Do you think you could show me to the office? I need to pick up my schedule." I nodded, grabbing his wrist and pulling him after me. It only took a few seconds for him to worm his fingers into mine and catch up so he was walking right besides me. He swung our hands slightly, smiling straight ahead. I mentally kicked myself for staring, but couldn't help it.

Who the hell holds a strangers hand like you're their fucking boyfriend?

His blue eyes were completely mesmerizing, I couldn't help but stare into them. As we neared the door, I saw Katie waiting for me. I opened my mouth to say something, but she placed a finger to her lips and shook her head. She mouthed something to me that looked like "We'll talk later" before she disappeared through the red metal doors. I felt hurt. I need to talk with her, to make things right. The urge to run after her, to grab her by the shoulders and tell her I was sorry was almost to great to ignore. With great effort, I lead Zane to the office, crying on the inside.

--------------------------

The rest of my day passed with increasing slowness. Most of my classes I had with Zane, so we took the opportunity to sit by each other and, when the teacher wasn't looking, learn about each other. I found out he had moved here from Dover, England, he had five other siblings, all younger, and they moved because his father had got the job as a pastor at a local church. When it came my turn to share, I told him the story I told everyone. I was an only child, and my parents were too busy with their jobs to be around so I lived by myself.

Finally, the bell rang. I ran out of my class room, my still sore muscles screaming at me, and out the front doors. I welcomed the blast of the warm spring breeze that hit my face, ruffling my hair. I was the first out if school, which was odd, so I sat on a bench, content to wait for Katie. I waited for about five minutes when a pair of black shoes stopped in front of me, and someone coughed. I looked up to see Zane smiling down at me. Smiling back, I looked past him, searching for my friend.

"Hey." I said, shooing a fly from my face.  Still no sign of Katie.

"Hey, want to walk home with me? I live on your street so I thought maybe we could..." He trailed off, noticing my distracted behavior. "Or maybe not." I sighed, I really needed to talk with Katie. Just then, my best friend walked out of the building, chatting with her long time crush Chase. If I interrupted her now, I would 'throw off her grove' and make her even more mad.

"Sure." I said, swinging my bag over my shoulder and stood to my feet.

"Oh here, let me take that." Zane took my backpack, slipping it on top of his. I smiled wider at him, thanking him for his kindness. He dipped his head in response, taking a few steps forward. We lived a few blocks away, so it wouldn't take to long but the walk was still tiresome. I began to sweat halfway home, my hoddie heating me to the extreme. I could feel my cheeks turning red from the heat, and I longed to rip off my jacket.  I knew perfectly well that I couldn't, though. If I did it would reveal my not yet healed scabs and scares; the result of my cutting.

We turned left, taking a short cut through the small park near our houses.  Old people walked hand and hand, young people jogged with their dogs, birds flew around in the air, landing in trees and chirping loudly. I loved the park, it always made me feel better. We neared the center of the park, which had a large fountain. When I was little, I came here and threw pennies into the bottom, wishing my parents would come back. I was too old for that now, I knew that wouldn't happen. Suddenly, my vision swam and my head began to throb. I grasped around with my hands, trying to steady myself.

My hands landed on the cold stone of the fountain. I lowered myself to sit on the edge, planning to wait till I wasn't dizzy anymore. I could feel my self swaying, and I could head the muffled yells of Zane, but I couldn't understand what he was saying. I could see him in front of me, his face twisted with concern and worry. Suddenly, my vision dimmed black before coming back again, this time brighter than before. Another wave of dizziness hit me, and I felt myself loosing conciseness, fading to the blackness.

Cold.

Wet.

Darkness.