SLAM! That was all I heard as my girlfriend, Ashley Rouse, stormed out of the house toward our bus stop.
I looked at my mother. Her nostrils were flaring like they always did when she was angry. I arched an eyebrow. "You do know she'd run away again, if you separate us. I don't think either of us could handle that emotional blow."
My mother sighed. "Yes, I know. Don't tell her I said this, but, she's like the daughter I never had…"
I cracked a smile. "I figured. You treat her A LOT better then me."
"Ha ha. Get going Jokerboy, or you'll miss the bus!"
I nodded and grabbed my backpack and my Kindle Fire. I looked at her. "Love you." And I walked out the door. Okay look, if I would've known it would've been the last time I'd see my mom, I would've done a lot more than say "Love you," But I couldn't have known.
I poured on the speed, trying to catch up with Ashley. When I did, we were already there. I decided to tell her on the bus. After all, our best friends Chase Westerbur and Stacy Zhadanov sit in the back with us. So, when we got on, Chase grinned. "Out of breath?" He asked.
"Go… Jump off… A roof… Danger Boy…"
Stacy giggled. She was the odd one out here. Not in a bad way, it's just she was sort of a… Runner-up, I guess?
Anyways, we where the weirdest bunch of kids you've ever seen:
A black haired girl, with tan-ish shorts and an Orange tank-top, and a light blue jacket. Ashley was the strangest girl I'd ever met in my life.
So, naturally, I fell head-over-heels in love with her.
She had the most adorable giggle, and the cutest blush. One of things about her is when she's excited, she'll go: "SQUEEEEEEEE!" And run around you in circles. It makes me laugh.
A dirty-blonde haired guy who looked like he needed a visit from the Marines, but hey, I may not look like it, but I've got baseball legs. When I want to, I can RUN. I could swing an arm, but I'll admit, I look pretty scrawny.
Then there was Chase. This guy looked like he had been IN the Marines. He wasn't, but he wanted to be. He looked up to them. Heck, his hero is John F. Kennedy. He was buff, complete with a six-pack and strong ceps. Now don't misunderstand, it wasn't grotesque buff. It was more like… David Hasselhoff in his youth, (Or prime. Whatever.) buff.
Then there was Stacy. Stacy Zhadanov, or, 'The Miracle Maiden' as everyone called her, was brought into our trio when Chase narrowly saved her from being flattened by an out-of-control 18-wheeler. The next day, Chase brought Stacy to our lunch table. We've been friends ever since. Today, Chase and Stacy were sitting next to each other. This was a rare occasion, but Ashley and I got it instantly. Chase and Stacy had had crushes on each other ever since that close call. Apparently, they'd realized. I grinned and gave him a thumbs-up.
He blushed and grinned.
Stacy giggled and kissed his cheek as we sat down in the seat opposite them.
I looked out the window and I could've sworn I saw something move in the forest across the street. I shook it off.
I noticed something weird. There were new passengers on the bus. Adults, 4 of them, all whispering together.
One of them kept looking at us, he quickly looked away, but I could've sworn I had seen that face somewhere. I just couldn't figure out where. I nudged Ashley.
"I know. We see them too." She said.
"They look familiar." All four of us said in unison. We then laughed, turning a few heads, including the four. They all quickly looked away.
"Why do they keep doing that?" Chase asked.
"Search me." I replied. "I just want to figure out why they look so familiar! It's bugging me!"
Ashley nodded in agreement. "It's irking (Leave it to her to use a better word than me…) me as well."
I began to form a plan. "If I could get close enough, I could listen to their voices. That should spark something." I offered.
Ashley smiled and wrapped her arms around my neck. You probably could've fried an egg on my face.
"Always so brave…"
I didn't speak. That was one of the many traits of Ashley Rouse that I adore. (My mom too!) She could control me. Keep me out of trouble.
She let me go and I stood up, bent over so the four couldn't see me, and slowly made my way up the isle. As I sat down quietly behind them, I started to catch some of the things they were saying. One of them was a German, one was American, one was a Russian, and the last was Japanese. It sorta went like this:
"Richtofen! They are much too young!" Said the American.
"Nein Dempsey. Zey are Wundabuh." The German replied.
"Doctor, please, we must reconsider this." Pleaded the Japanese guy.
The last guy spoke up. He was drunk, no doubt about it.
"I don't know about you two…" He said, motioning towards Dempsey and the Japanese guy. "But I think Richtofen is right. I like the one that looks like he could be one of your colleagues Dempsey."
Dempsey considered this. "Maybe your right." He said.
Richtofen grinned. "Excellent.
My face paled as I snuck back up the isle.
Naturally, all three of them rushed to steady me as I lost my balance. I love my friends.
"What happened?" Ashley asked. "Did you hear their names?"
I nodded. "Two of them. That was all I needed though. All four of them are from the same place." I said.
"You look like you've seen a ghost." Chase commented.
"You would've looked the same. If you heard those two names." I said. I took a deep breath, and got ready to say the names.
I never got the chance.
Some of the kids in front screamed, and then there was silence.
The hair on the back of my neck and arms stood up, and I kicked the window out. "OUT! NOW!"
Thank god, they understood.
All three of them dived out the window, and soon after, I did too.
We all hit the road, and just in time.
Lightning flashed, Thunder shook my bones, and the bus exploded.
