LOST & FOUND II Wolf Pack

FROM A SPARK TO A FLAME

I hate the bus. It sucks. It's the last place you want to be after failing a biology test.

When I got on the bus it was already pretty full, I decided to sit next to a junior who I'd seen before in my Algebra II class. He gave me a small smile and wave before I sat down, he was tapping his foot and his eyes were moving down as though he was nervous. I don't know what got into me, but I decided I would try to calm him down.

"It's Everette, right?" I ask, turning to him. "I think we take Algebra II together."

"Yeah, you're the one who always knows all the answers." He responds with a little laugh, his nerves subsiding the smallest amount. I put my bag down by my feet, "Never met a sophomore or a junior who could pick up trigonometry that fast."

This time I'm the one who laughs. "Well as a freshman, I think it's pretty simple. I'm Kerrigan," I introduce myself.

"I know, I thought your brother normally takes you home from school."  He tells me and I think back to my annoying brother who forced me to ride the bus home from school.

"He had to set up his music," I respond to him. "He works as a DJ at this club, and he had to be there right after school."

During our chat, the bus had started to pull away from the school and, seeing how our conversation had ended, I decided to put in my air pods and listen to some music, and by music I mean mostly Taylor Swift.

As we entered the highway that we needed to take in order to get home we were practically stopped in our tracks. Every now and then we would move up a couple feet but for the last ten minutes we hadn't even moved an inch.

Everyone on the bus had become more and more restless the longer we sat in the long line of traffic, and to make matters worse we could see the yearly wildfires out the window of the bus.

Everette seemed to be on the phone with someone, so I decided it would be best to let him be as he seemed to be in a minor panic. I was sort of panicking myself, I think everyone was.

I looked at my phone trying to see if it would calm me down when everyone on the bus stood up going to the window. Small whispers of questions relating to, "What is that?" Rang throughout the bus and I was quick to go try and look out the window as well.

The fire was only growing closer, destroying all the trees around us. "Hey Connor why are we stopped?" Everette asked the guy standing next to me who seemed to be on crutches, guess he was done with his phone call.

"Nobody knows." The boy started. "Look at that shit out there, if we have to run I'm screwed." Fear lacing his tone.

Everette moved up to the window we were all looking out of, becoming just as mesmorized as the rest of us. The bus had an eery silence, as we all where in shock and terror. "Everyone get back in your seats. You guys really aren't supposed to be up in the middle of the isle." The bus driver told us but no one moved a muscle.

"Look at that car." Everette pointed towards the seemingly abandoned car. "See that car, there's no one behind the wheel. Like the driver abandoned their car."

"Maybe they're coming back." A girl standing next to Everette said. She had long hair with blonde highlights that was currently being covered up by a hood.

"Maybe they didn't want to burn to death in their car." Everette responded which scared the crap out of me.

"Who said anything about burning to death!" I exclaimed, probably louder than I would have liked too. 

I moved next to the girl with her hood up, and noticed she had acne scars on her cheeks and forehead, but she still looked utterly beautiful. "Where not gonna burn to death." She says moving me in front of her and grabbing my shoulders. I don't know why but it made me feel safer.