Chapter Four
[Tori]
I can't believe it. Here I am, singing a song and laughing together with Jade West, the girl who is supposed to hate me. I continue to look dreamily up in the ceiling as the song comes to an end and the final tone dies out. I hear how another song begins. But it never continues. I look over at Jade and I find her sitting with her phone in her hands. She looks up at me with a faint smile before she puts back her phone onto the table. So, no more music I guess…
"What?" I ask Jade.
"I guess you don't want to listen to heavy metal." She smirks back at me.
I think about it. But it feels like I'm getting closer to Jade. Something inside me warms my heart when I think about having Jade as my friend. I want her to like me so bad. She is so interesting and special, she screams personality. And if I want to befriend her I suspect it can't be that bad to learn the extraordinary about her music taste "Why not? If you like it, it can't be that bad." I smile back at her.
Jades smirk widens as she picks up her phone again.
An electric guitar and drums kick off a hard beat on the highest volume. So high that it sounds as though the speakers are going to burst. I feel how I wrinkle my nose in distaste. I glance over at Jade who sits with closed eyes, nodding lightly in time with the music. Someone begins to sing (or scream, I'm not sure what to call it). I want to ask her to turn it off. But when I look over at her, she looks so rapt in the song that I can't bring myself to ask her.
I wonder how she looks at music. How she interprets it and how it affects her. I know that I often listen to the music and that the lyrics rarely come in first hand. If the music mimics my mood then I often like it, no matter of what the lyrics are. But how is it for Jade? Something must make her appreciate this type of music.
No pain no gain No time for losers you make the call The weak will fall the strong remain
No pain no gain
Believe in yourself stand tall
Another day it's in your hand
You can be the winner in the end
I realize that the more I listen to the lyrics, the more I understand the meaning, the deeper meaning in the song. Being strong even if it hurts sometimes, is that what Jade hears in the song? And as the song continues I find myself not even noticing the music, the disturbing sound of the repeated riff and minor chords that give the song a somber mood. Maybe that is how Jade is? Songs often reflect what we carry inside us. Is this how Jade feels?
Keep runnin' don't look back
Keep movin' paint it black
Keep goin' don't ever stop
There's time to rest the day you'll drop
Even when the song ends I hear how the lyrics play over and over again inside my head, like a recorder on repeat.
"So… isn't it good?" Jade's voice pauses the replay loop inside my head and I can only come up with one answer to her question.
"Yeah… I liked it…" The answer coming out of my mouth surprises me slightly. Because I have never thought I would appreciate this kind of music. Jade looks at me with one corner of her mouth lifted and one raised eyebrow. Her whole expression screams 'I knew it.'
"I know you did." She says as she picks up her phone to click on pause before the next song begins. Strangely enough, I feel as though I want to burst out into a 'no' when her thumb presses the pause button on the screen of her phone. Actually I wouldn't mind to listen some more to her music. But when I look on the screen of my own phone a feeling of sadness fills me up. The clock is almost half past five. One hour has gone by so fast and I feel sad because we have had such a good time. It feels strange… but I actually enjoy Jade's company.
Jade puts her phones into her black leather handbag with rivets and chains. Then she gets up and with one move she's on her feet. Her black curls bounce against her shoulders and her green highlights swirl around her face. And I see… I see how beautiful she is. I feel how my mouth slightly part as I inhale. Her face is perfectly symmetric and her full lips colored with a dark purple lipstick. Of course, I have always known that she is beautiful. It's just that mostly when I see her I'm just so focused on defending myself when she attacks. Now I can watch her, without any fear of her attacking me with her vicious words. She looks down at me and I don't know why but I quickly turn away, feeling how I blush for getting caught looking at her. But she can't possibly know what I thought when I looked at her… but I know, and that's enough for me to make me blush.
"Two detentions left Vega." She says. I look up at her and see that she smirks at me. I too get up so that we stand face to face. I nod and smile at her in agreement. "I actually… enjoyed your company…" Jade continues. My jaw drops, but I close it instantly as I feel how gravity draws it down. I give her a smile. And I open my mouth to tell her that I too have enjoyed her company, but I never get that far. Jade's expression changes and she points a warning finger at me. "Don't you dare telling anybody, because if you do… "She presses out between gritted teeth and she holds out on the word 'do' in a threat. At least I take it as a threat.
"No I won't, I promise." I say as convincing as I can. Why would I? Now that Jade finally lets me in, slowly. Why would I want to risk that?
"Good." Jade takes her finger down to her side again and her lips curve into a light smile.
"So… are we like… friends now?" I ask carefully. Inside I'm terribly scared that my question will turn Jade against me once more… So it feels like a heavy stone gets lifted from my chest as Jade smiles at me.
"Sure. But don't say that to anyone either, ok?"
"No I won't." I say and hold out my arms to the sides. I smirk and wiggle my eyebrows as I plead "Then you have to give me a hug" Because friends do hug. And if Jade hugs me I take it as a sign that she really meant what she said.
I watch her roll her eyes before she steps close enough for me to embrace her. I either expect the feeling of getting my spine crushed or the feeling of getting pushed away after an extremely short embrace. But she doesn't do any of that. It's a warm hug and it feels unusually real for being a hug from Jade. I don't want the hug to end and I want to hold her for as long as I possibly can. But as expected, Jade is the one to end it. But when she backs away from me it is with a smile playing on her lips.
"See you tomorrow Vega." She twitches her neck and her smile turns into a smirk as she takes her handbag under her arm and walks out of the library.
With a smile on my face I take my handbag and walk towards the door. I lay my hand on the doorknob and before I open the door I turn around. I look back at the table where Jade and I sat, laughing together. I feel how my smile grows wider as I feel a bit emotional. I hope that we will be friends and that it will only become better from now on.
I think about the detention as I walk out to the parking lot behind the school. I look around, but of course it is empty. I take up my phone to check the time, 17:43. Trina is almost fifteen minutes late. She was supposed to pick me up half past five. But on the other hand, it is Trina we are talking about. I bet she is sitting in her room, painting her toenails. I sigh as I sink down onto the stairs leading up to the place we eat lunch.
I hear a car's engine approach the parking lot. Then with a gnashed sound, when rubber slides across asphalt, Trina's red car spins into the parking lot. I get up and brush of my jeans.
Trina drives up extremely close to the stairs. I watch her as she kicks the passenger door open with a foot in high heels. She leans over so that she can look at me. Her expression looks slightly desperate as she waves me into the car. "C'mon, we're in a hurry."
I nod and sigh. "Yeah, I can tell." I reply. I shake my head at Trina's normal behavior as I jump into the car.
The second I shut the door the car abruptly starts and quickly picks up speed. I find myself holding a tight grip around the handle in the ceiling as Trina drives out to the highway.
"Could you please slow down?!" I yell at Trina, my eyes locked onto the road in front of me.
"No." Trina says simply and at the same time she drives out to the inner file to drive past a long line of cars (that are driving legal speed!). And I am one hundred percent sure that if a police would show up right now, she is going to lose her driver's license. But if she did lose it I wouldn't get myself to school, since I don't have a driver's license.
"Why are we in a hurry?" I ask calmly as Trina stops at red lights. I exhale as the fact, that I still am alive, dawns on me.
"I'm going to meet up with John in, like, twenty minutes. And then you had to go and get yourself detention!"
"John?"
"Yeah, the hot guy who graduated last year."
"… I don't know who he is." I look over at Trina who sits leaned over the steering wheel, looking furious and irritated at the cars in front in the queue. I wonder if this date is going to end like every date Trina has ever been on. Either the guy leaves her even before the date begins (understandable), or Trina ends up leaving the guy because she thinks that she is so much better than him (not as understandable). Trina lives in this, kind of, bubble where everything revolves around her.
"Well, he's hot." Trina clarifies as if it is going to make me remember who he is. She slams both her hands against the steering wheel and the car gives away a loud 'toot' "C'mon, move!" She yells, almost frantic.
I place my index fingers against my temples and begin to gently massage them, I sigh.
A/N: A typical behavior from Trina, right? Well I thought she deserved a date.
I'm leaving today at 14:30 and will be gone until Sunday, so no updates this week. I haven't even begun the next chapter, so expect at least one week before update. But I will update, that is a promise.
Please leave a review, if you feel like you have the time.
The song I took the lyrics from is "No Pain No Gain" by Scorpions.