Gem High

!25!

Lapis' POV:
"Why can't you drive?" Moans my 19 year old sister, Mal, as we walk down the pebbled driveway to her midnight blue Volvo. She's wearing her signature forest green hoodie, a black tank top (that has a white skull embroided into it), her pearly grey skinny jeans and some heeled boots, that have been torn so many times that they might as well be open toed sandals. All of this pairs with her stark white mess of hair to make a pretty convincing 'loner' persona.
"Yeah, cos letting your only just 15 year old younger sister drive 100 miles, is a super responsible idea" I retaliate boredly as we squeeze into her car, the floor is littered with cigarettes that she's been smoking since before she was of legal age. She lights one nonchalantly.
"Seriously sis?" I question as she pulls out into the road, still smoking her cigarette.
"Oh right, you want one?" She offers, eyebrows raised and feigning interest in what I have to say.
"Just drive" I command without gusto.
"Ugh, you're so controlling" she complains, flicking her cigarette out through the opened, frost bitten, window and turning up her stereo.
"So, how are all your kid friends?" She asks, also bored and seemingly refusing to concentrate on the road, instead biting her nails. I do that too.
"We're not kids, and if you're talking about Peridot than, well, she was acting kinda strange yesterday when I called to wish her a good New Year's Day. She kept blushing and fiddling with her glasses, it was... Not like her. And my only other 'friend' there is Rose, I guess, I mean, I don't really trust the others. But Rose is too kind not to trust." I explain to only a nod from Mal.
"You're not listening, are you?" I say, brushing my fringe back with my fingers.
"Sorry Lapis, but I'm not driving you to give you some f****d up big sister advice, I'm here cos Mum said I couldn't leave you behind when I drove to college this time. If it was up to me, I'd have done what I did in Autumn and left you to catch the coach whilst I drive peacefully to school. Kay?" She explains, before turning the stereo on full blast and not speaking for the next three hours.
At school:
"Lapis!" Squeals Peridot happily, still in a wheelchair but managing to rush to hug me.
"Not much of a hugger, remember?" I warn her, as jokingly as I can muster.
"Yo Lapis" greets Amethyst, who's standing next to Peridot outside the main gates. She and Peridot have this weird dynamic going on, as if their trying to avoid eye contact with one another, but are slowly getting closer together.
"How come you're so late? The coaches arrived an hour and a half ago and we've got drama in like, 20 minutes." Asks Peridot as we make our way through the gates and towards the main buildings.
"Oh, my sister drove me. She didn't want to so she decided to get lost, she said it wasn't intentional but it totally was." I explain, ready to rant about my sister but then realising which lesson Peridot said we had first.
"Wait, we don't take drama' I exclaim, confused and waiting for a reply.
"Didn't you get an email yesterday? We all got one that said we now have drama, it's compulsory." Explains Amethyst, I hadn't gotten an email yesterday because my new phone hasn't got that account.
"So now we do drama? Just.... Great." I moan expressionlessly, this day is just getting better and better.
"I forgot to ask, how was your swimming tournament?" Enquires Peridot.
"Oh, I won. By a landslide. It'll be harder next year though, cos I'll be up against my sister and she's just as good as me, if not better" I recount.
"Who is your sister anyway?" Questions Amethyst whilst pushing Peridot towards the performing arts section of the school.
"Oh, her name's Malachite, she's kind of a lone wolf. She attends Fusion College, that school that adjoins our's and is for students aged 18-22, the idea is you go there immediately after you've graduated from here." I explain, I never really liked the idea of going there, once Mal showed me around it was maybe the worst experience of my life. Not because it was a bad school, quite the opposite, it was just my experience that was the problem.
15 minutes later, on the school's stage:
"Good morning students of Set SU, I am Mrs Temple and I teach the performing arts at Fusion College. I have been told that you are very capable young women and so, your Headmistress asked that your Spring Performance be 'spectacular'. This is something new we're trying out, I know none of you have ever put on a show during your time at Gem High, so you will all get some motivation from some of my students who take theatre at Fusion College." Explains Mrs Temple to my horror, some people's delight and other people's discomfort. At the word 'College' a line of students who I recognise (as I have seen them in my sister's year book) walk onto the stage, simply radiating with confidence. Well, most of them do. First comes Garnet, a 21 year old bad ass with chocolate skin and an afro some might kill for, she swaggers up to us, totally collected. Then Rainbow Quartz, Rose's cousin, basically dances towards us, her movements fluid and graceful. She is sporting a golden mane of thick hair, and is somehow making leg warmers look good, and her leotard looks so stylish that it's no wonder she has a girlfriend, the next person to stroll onto stage. Or should I say that she flips onto stage, her name is Opal and she is an acrobat that I wouldn't question. It's not that she's scarily tall or big or whatever, but terrifyingly perfect, her ponytail hasn't got a hair out of place and she simply seems at peace with herself. Especially when she reaches Rainbow and takes her hand slyly, their chemistry almost as stunning as the girls themselves. After that there's Sugalite, or as Mal calls her behind her back: Sweaty Suggy, seeing her in person I'm surprised my sister has the nerve to make fun of this 6 foot wrestler/rapper, who's shades are almost as on point as Garnet's. Next comes Sardonics, my sister's second least favourite person (Mal says she's annoyingly chipper), a girl who's training to get her own talk show and is also wearing sunglasses, what is it with this school and eyewear? She also has on a deep purple tuxedo that makes her showy strut across the stage to us make a kind of sense. It's like these girls were told to make themselves intimidatingly awesome at theatre. Back on track, a more down to Earth girl, who couldn't be any older than 18, strolls towards us, her name is Stevonnie. My sister tells me that half of her likes Stevonnie, but the other half doesn't. Stevonnie's wearing a red crop top with a star and some shorts, despite the fact that it's winter, and basically seems like a charming, bubbly and all around kind human. After her comes Smoky Quartz, Rose's second cousin, who is shorter than her peers and has freckles that I haven't seen on anyone else. Her black mop of hair isn't particularly stylish, and neither is the rest of her appearance, but she's still very pleasant looking, and seems like a joker, she actually does a roly-poly towards us. Alexandrite comes in afterwards, she is very strangely dressed (she's wearing colours that clash horribly) but has this wiseness about her that I can't explain, also she is my sister's least favourite classmate. And she too is wearing sunglasses in winter, I'm starting to think these girls have problems with their eyesight. Finally Mal shuffles over to us, not bothering to be part of the previously shown routine and is given a glare from Mrs Temple.

"Thank you girls, as you can see these are our top students (mostly) and though they don't all major in a performing art, they are all exemplary at them (mostly). Set SU, one day you could be like these girls, and that's why you'll be up against them, for motivation. You will all do the same production, but in separate groups, my girls will be teaching and directing themselves as they are more advanced, whereas I will be choreographing all of you. Our Performance is of something entitled 'Miss Multiverse', a student written play about rebel aliens who are fighting against their homeworld. Auditions will be tomorrow, 4:10pm. Except for you, you'll have to be on tech. Okay, that will be all, goodbye" explains Mrs Temple after the Fusion girls, or simply Fusions, have finished their routine. Now they're all leaving the hall, similarly to how they entered but without the same gusto.
"Well, at least I don't have to audition." Whispers Peridot, she was the one Mrs Temple assigned to tech. I leave the stage but pick up a character list as I do so, I'll audition for the most low key role. But what about everyone else?