Where Do We Go From Here?

I walked through campus with thoughts of my siblings. When they were seniors everyone knew their name and desperately wanted to befriend them. However, I was stuck with only two titles—that of which I hated equally. To most of the burnouts and slutty girls I was labeled as “Jason’s little sister”. To the jocks and just about anyone who thrived to be a part of the Prom Court labeled me as “Veronica’s little sister”. At any rate only one person truly knew my name and would call me by it: Callie. My brother now lives in LA and has his own brewery. I guess after his years of partying with his friends in high school he finally decided to make a living off of it. Veronica on the other hand lives in New York. Occasionally she’ll snag modeling jobs, but when that income runs a little dry Veronica finds employment as a fashion magazine editor—a job that goes hand in hand with her modeling.

I arrived at campus early since morning conversations back at my house always made me cringe. It usually started off with my father blabbing about how much he needs to accomplish for the day, in which my mother would then remind my father of something that he completely forgot in his schedule. My father would then sigh in exasperation while hastily drinking his coffee and flipping through the morning newspaper. Once that blew over, my mother would talk about how Veronica loves New York and has found yet another modeling job that would most likely pay her a heap of money for being blessed with beauty. On occasion, my mother will speak of my brother but since we see him more regularly she mostly will inform us on Veronica.

Did I envy Veronica? Partially, but it was only because Veronica had a way with life that I never could acquire. She was truly a force to be reckoned with. Veronica was never scared about failing at something and even if she did—which was practically never—she could brush it off with such grace. Her God given beauty was just the cherry on an already perfect ice cream sundae. I envied my sister’s impulsiveness more than I ever envied her beauty.

My locker was located all the way in the back of campus; a place that would nearly wind me every time I walked to it. What sucked about my locker placement was the fact that it wasn’t near any of my classes. I had AP classes which were located in the conveniently air conditioned building near the front office. The only class I had remotely close to my locker would be the Art building which was directly behind my AP classes. So, my entire day was spent either rushing to my locker or carrying a stack of textbooks in my book bag. Either way, it was an unnecessary hassle that I just dealt with.

The hallways were empty and all you could hear was the subtle tapping of my feet on the tiled floors. The lights were blaring down on me as I passed, first the front office then the cafeteria. Marching past the janitor’s closet, I finally came up to my locker. Unlocking it, I pulled out my Physics and Calculus textbook before walking towards the back exit of the school which led into a green patch of grass with a large tree. No one really came around to this place—Callie would be the exception since she comes with me pretty much everywhere. I sat with my back leaning against the bark and my ass on one of the roots that was jutting out of the ground with a small curve just big enough to fit my ass in. I adjusted my Led Zeppelin tank just a little before relaxing into the tree and pulling out my copy of The Looking Glass—a longtime favorite book of mines which I managed to fall in love with every read.

The world is changing, and there’s nothing you can do about it but watch.

It was one of the countless quotes I gravitated to. This book has been my life since, by sheer happenstance; I stumbled upon it at the age of twelve. Taken away by its authenticity and brilliance, I graphed my life around this story’s message and its morals. I allowed my eyes to dart back and forth on the pages, reading the same thing I’ve been reading for years, and still I manage to get lost in this fake world. It wasn’t long until the sun ate away the remains of the cool night air, soon to be replaced by yet another sticky morning of San Diego.

Unwrapping my granola bar free from its wrapper, I bit into it while my eyes were still glued onto the book. In one ear I had Blink-182 playing while I had the other side free, in case Callie came walking up to me. I never minded being by myself.

“You’re Verity, right?” An unfamiliar voice asked, approaching me.

Looking up I saw one of my peers. I didn’t really know who he was since I barely spoke to anyone if it didn’t involve being partnered up. He wore a hoodie and a snapback paired off with jeans. He was cute, but I knew that he had a type which usually involved girls like my best friend Callie.

I nodded a hesitant yes since I still had my mouth filled with my granola bar. I swallowed the dry lump as I waited for him to speak again.

“Thought it was you. So, I was wondering if your friend Callie was single?” He asked.

His question wasn’t surprising, nor was it at any cost painful for me to hear. I was used to this. I went through these motions with my sister which gradually eased me to handle this with Callie. I was like the middle person which—people somehow got into their head—I could help them navigate their way to Callie or Veronica’s heart.

Fighting the urge to roll my eyes, I replied “She is.”

“I’m Tony, by the way.” He blurted out.

I nodded with a half smile on my face. “Hi Tony.”

“I was just thinking that maybe—you could help me out.” He added while taking a seat next to me.

I sighed, closing my book and looking at Tony. “Listen, if you really want to impress Callie then try and actually talk to her without going through her pathetic friend. Believe me, Callie likes sincerity so be that or be gone.”

My voice sounded a little harsh for the early morning, but I hated when guys actually think that just by speaking to me they’ll win over Callie’s heart. Callie was a shy girl, considerably timid than me. She truly liked it when guys would ask her out personally rather than through me.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to bother you.” He mumbled out while remaining where I sat.

Rolling my eyes I looked at Tony and said “You seem sweet, so just talk to her.” It was the only advice I could offer him.

A few moments of silence passed over us until Tony’s phone kept buzzing. If it wasn’t a phone call it was text messages, all of which he took care of while sitting next to me. My phone never rang with such fervor. I only ever used it to contact my family or Callie. Occasionally, my boss would contact me but that wasn’t often since I had a set schedule that rarely deviated. However, now that I’ve been working on my college applications, I’ve been hoping to hear from admissions officers.

“So what are you reading?” Tony asked as he tucked his phone into his pockets.

I held up the cover of my novel to him rather than speaking. I was at my favorite part—where James kisses Harper for the first time.

I was smiling at the story, completely oblivious to Tony who happened to be speaking. “Hmm?”

Tony stopped his talking and looked at me with a peculiar expression. “You seriously don’t like me, huh?”

“I was reading.” I replied while pointing to the book in my hand.

Tony chuckled. “This is a first.”

I shrugged in response since I didn’t know what to say next.

“Most girls find it hard to read when they’re around me.” He commented.

“Good for you, I guess.” I answered. He sounded smug and it made me want to chuck the last of my granola bar at his head.

Tony turned his head, smiling at something. I returned back to reading as I heard him say “What’s up, Mikey?”

I glanced up briefly to find two more guys heading our way. Silently groaning, I checked my phone and found no texts from Callie. I debated on whether I should tell her that I was out by the tree, but decided against it to keep myself from sounding like a nagging friend.

“Who’s this?” One of the guys asked.

“Dude, that’s Jason’s little sister.” The other replied.

Great, they’re morons. I thought to myself.

“Actually, my name’s Verity.” I said aloud while closing my book in one fast motion so it made a prominent sound once the pages hit each other. Tossing my book into my bag, I stood to my feet and slung it over my shoulder.

One of the guys was tall and lanky with lip piercings and visible tattoos on his arms. The other guy, who I recognized from one of my art classes, was tall and lanky as well with a nose piercing and a few tattoos scattered across his arm. Giving a very noticeably forced smile, I stalked off into the building before any of them could say anything.

Notes

Your feedback made me whip this chapter up. Thnx guys <3

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