Take Five: On Stage - Part 2

Let me know if this is becoming a drag, I added less detail in the hope that it might help.. I'm a newbie so don't be too harsh.. or maybe you could be harsh nicely? I do, just read and enjoy I guess. oh, and comment.
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Chapter 2: Serimans High...

'See you later, then.' I shouted to Nick over the loud jazz music that wafted about the inside of his Porsche. I jumped out hastily, slamming the door behind me, not noticing the hemline of my sundress getting caught as the door clicked shut. If I had, it would have saved me the trouble of being jerked abruptly against the smooth exterior of the flashy sports car and an extra five minutes.
Nick chuckled. Still partially asleep, he turned down the volume and leaned across the passenger seat to open the door once again and free my hem.
'Crap.' I cursed, grabbing a handful of the crimson fabric and scrutinizing it for any apparent damage.

'Don't worry, it hasn't ripped.' He said, noting my furrowed brow. Of course Nick would think my current distress was the effect of the near possibility that my beautiful crimson sundress had been ruined. Perhaps it was but not solely for that reason. I swallowed hard, but hardly audible for Nick to hear the guilt screaming from it. I looked up and smiled weakly at him. He'd only assume that I was nervous for my first day, but I felt bad taking advantage of his state. Nick hardly ever woke before 1:00pm in the afternoon and if ever he did, he was the very definition of 'the living dead'. You could sneak a tiger in a party hat right past him and he'd hardly even notice. So now, standing on the pavement, beside a huge face brick building that loomed over us menacingly, I prayed that Nick wouldn't notice the peeling paint and dusty windows. I walked up to the old rusted iron gate and thanked God that at least the shutters didn't hang off their hinges and that the double doors up the tiled steps were still in their rightful spot. The place looked pretty abandoned. Well, it was.

I screwed my eyes shut and tried to even out my breathing, I could hear the idling of Nick's car behind me and I swallowed again. He hadn't left yet?
'Hey, Art,' he called. I turned to see him peering oddly at the vacant building, 'You're sure you're not too early?' he checked his wrist watch, 'I don't see anybody around...'
'Nope.' I shook my head, guilt flowing steadily into the pit of my stomach. Pretty soon it would drown the many butterflies down there as they batted their wings against my insides. On the outside, though, I smiled, 'I'm probably just late. Story of my life, you know.'
Nick eyed me suspiciously. 'Please buy it' I begged silently. With a shrug he moved the stick into first gear, 'Well, a word of advice; try not to walk head-on into any trees today' he grinned. I rolled my eyes.

'That hasn't happened in two years!' I defended, 'don't worry though; I have my lucky cowboy boots.' I gestured towards them.
Shaking his head and still grinning, he pulled off the pavement and yelled, 'don't forget about fittings this afternoon. Amora will kill me if you're late.' And with that, he sped off down the long narrow road, in an instant becoming a tiny spec before my eyes.
'Urgh!' id forgot all about that, and all about Nick getting married. It was only in six months but Amora, Nick's fiance, said 'six months' in such a shrill voice engulfed in panic as though it were less than a week. I liked Amora, she was a wonder but her only flaw was that she liked me too much, which prompted her to appoint me as one of her bride's maids. Nick would be hurt if I refused and so I ignored my human right to complete freedom of choice and obliged.

Now, though, wasn't the time to dwell on weddings and dress fittings, I had to get to get to school. Turning back to the abandoned building and suppressing a shudder (the old place couldn't help but remind me of ghosts and phantoms), I hurriedly walked around it and wondered what it had been, once upon a time. The icy wind whipped through my hair and at my dress and I shuddered again, only this time it was the cold. Clenching my teeth against the bitter chill, I pulled out a denim jacket from my check bag and slipped it on. 'Typical of me' I thought. Why on earth had I worn a sundress in the heart of winter? At least I had the sense to bring along a jacket. I rounded the corner, my cowboy boots splashing in a mud puddle every so often, and saw, just a few more feet ahead, the fence.
I hadn't realized how tense I'd been till that fence came into view and I allowed myself to relax. I had finally made it to the end of this god forsaken property and about time too. The overgrown foliage and the unkempt creepers began to freak me out somewhat.

Although my arrival at the fence only meant that soon I'd be in the realm of the dreaded Serimans High, I still felt relief wash over me. I stopped a foot away from the metal fence and waited a moment, gathering a few strayed thoughts. Firstly, I was only 99.99 percent sure that beyond that fence lay Serimans High. The trees that lined the fence from the other side were so huge and thick that they blocked everything from view. I couldn't make out a thing as I strained my eyes to peer through them. And another thought resulted in me cursing once again. I hadn't banked on the fence being that high and looking down at my dress, I hated myself ever the more for wearing one.

Groaning out loud, I began to clear my head of every negative thought that had somehow crept in. checking that my bag was secured, I scrunched up my toes and hoped that my cowboy boots still had some luck left in them. If I got stuck at the top, at least I'd always have a memorable first day of school to look back on. Inwardly I cringed at the thought and began to climb.

I'm pretty sure that the fates did have some kind of sympathy towards me as I thanked the many trees for being where they were. Remembering what Nick had said, I smiled. This very fine day, these trees were giving me a helping hand instead of being a hazard. According to Char though, I was the hazard and of course Nick agreed to that. Good Old Nick. My heart suddenly froze over and the guilt renewed itself. Usually I'd never keep anything like this from him. I suppose I was trying out complete independence or something.

My arms began to ache with every pained movement I made. I probably looked ridiculous. At least if anybody looked over this way from the other side, they wouldn't be able to see a slightly deranged girl in a denim jacket, crimson sundress and cowboy boots scaling the school fence. I must have been deranged! I made a mental note to pay a tribute to the trees. It may sound crazy to have thought that but my situation was exactly that; crazy!
When I finally made it to the top, I reached out to the nearest sturdy branch and hauled myself over the fence. Kicking off from it I hung, momentarily suspended before letting go and landing, crouched, upon the damp earth, keeping my balance and not falling over for once.

Gathering an altogether composure, I abruptly stood and dusted myself. I found myself behind the trunk of a tree, I peered round and still could hardly see a thing. There were loads more trees ahead obscuring my view. I edged closer to a tree nearest the walkway I could see and finally got a good view. I was on the side of the school and, thank god, not yet late. It really was as though I was on a movie set of one of those high school clichés. There were students scattered about everywhere, all in their own cliques. The Goths, nerds, skaters, plastics, jocks, loners. But only, this was reality, none of them were paid actors. The lunch tables and benches and the basket balls being bounced around weren't props. I had entered into an entirely different world. Then again, I had hardly entered into it yet seeing as I was still hiding behind a tree.

I just stood there, my mind a whirlpool of thoughts, and I tried to lend it some coherency. I'd made it to school and now all I had to do was make it through the rest of the day. I'd made it so far unnoticed and so the rest of the day couldn't possibly be that terrible. I'd prove to Verra and Char that I was a normal teenager who could socialize when she wished and that I was not a hermit. Sighing, I had to admit that it was a good thing that stupid fence was behind me or I would have bolted right back the way I'd come. Seriously though, how tough could this be. Verra had probably overrated the importance of this whole idea. I knew there was nothing wrong with my previous way of living.

Suddenly, from the depths of nowhere, came the sounding of a siren that tore at my eardrums. 'Great.' I thought bitterly, I'd have to get used to that. Not wanting to be tardy on my first day, I dashed from my hiding place and ran as fast as I could. I suppose I should have been more careful because just as I made it out into the open, the sleeve of my denim jacket snagged on a bramble, the thorns locked into it. I jerked backwards and stifled a yelp as I nearly collided into the bush of thorny branches.

'Now!' I thought to myself. It really had to happen just then, didn't it. Twice in one day, so much for the fates having any sympathy for me at all. And of all places, here, in full view of anybody who bothered to look this way. I started to unhook my sleeve with my free hand and when that didn't work, I pulled at it. Tugging vigorously, I didn't care if my sleeve ripped, all I knew is that I didn't want a stupid tardy or to give a stupid excuse of being late on the account of I got hooked into a tree. I was determined not to let my day pan out any more negatively than it already had.

A second siren went off and my tugging suddenly became more frantic. I willed all the frustration I had into a tight, vehement bundle and gave one last tug, channeling every ounce of my frustration into it. The bramble snapped and I staggered, unintentionally swinging round violently as my clenched fist came into contact with something firm. A searing pain shot through my arm and I instinctively brought it to my chest.
'Watch where you're-'I cut off as I saw a pair of narrowed sea-green eyes sweep over me. I dropped my hurt arm to my side suddenly and swallowed. I'd just punched him in the ribs!
I ignored the pangs in my left arm. He didn't need to know that I'd hurt myself, and certainly not if he hadn't even felt a thing.