2.1
The shocking red plate was poised perfectly on her hand and she marched purposefully along the corridor, the steaming hot cookies staying perfectly set upon the plate
“Violet where do you think you are going?” the sharp voice carried along the hall way from the far classroom “It’s the middle of a lesson”
“I told you Miss, I have to go shopping and Daddy will want a cookie” Violet didn’t even break her step as she spoke, snickering first years scurried past her towards the cookery wing.
Moments later she smoothly swung into the office marked as principal, the idle secretary barely blinking at this daily occurrence
“Hey daddy. I brought you some cookies” she shoved the plate cleanly onto his desk ignoring the arrangement of papers
“I’m busy Vi honey. What do you want?”
“I need some money, I’m going shopping”
“Fine just take the card. You’ll have to get a job one day you know” he shoved a handful of credit cards towards her, which she quickly scooped up into her red clutch purse
“Thanks daddy” she smiled sweetly and quickly left the office back the corridor. She turned a corner to find a tall girl dragging feet as she moved slowly towards the office
“Jayjay, what are you doing?” she smiled stopping by the girl
“We were up on the roof throwing the invites out, bloody Grimsly got me din he. Sent to see the head”
“Oh dear, what about Addy and Ammy?”
“They got away, he’s gone looking though, thinks all of us were involved as per”
“Oh well Daddy will let you off, he needs you at that concert. Money for the school and all”
“Speaking of which you gonna be there?”
“As if I’d miss Jayjay’s concert! I’m now off with Tori, gotta find something fabulous to make Leon drool”
“God do we really need Leon to drool more? If you see Muffinhead tell him I’m after him. I’m sure he told Grimsly”
“Okay will do” Violet hugged her tightly before continuing down the corridor, towards the door where the young black haired boy stood slouched against the wall
“God Tori. I know your young n’ all but do you have to slouch so much?” she called from a distance
“Well next time don’t be late and I won’t get bored will I?”
“Less of your lip, your younger than me remember?” she giggled lightly as she stared scolding at him
“Come on then, let’s get you dolled up” he smirked pulling the door open.
2.2
The emerald green door of flat six clicked silently shut behind her, the court yard was perfectly still and dark. She set off picking her way carefully through the dark towards the main building, the array of badges on her shoulder bag tinkling lightly in the cool night air. She shivered slightly pulling her deep khaki jacket tight around her bare shoulders.
Swinging carelessly around a corner she immediately shrunk back into a shadow as the silhouettes of the sports students emerged ahead, framed by the few sun rays of the day. In moments they would see her, their running route turned this corner. Barker may be blind, but his students weren’t. Her heart pounded loudly in her chest as she dug into her bag for her phone. Moments later the runners stopped dead as a melodic ringtone drifted into the air. Barker clearly went stomping away dragging a small figure behind him
“Poor Malcolm” she mumbled under her breath
“Trust you to be getting him in trouble” she leapt out of her skin at the voice and spun around to see Leon leaning out of his flat window
“Leon” she hit him hard “Don’t make me jump like that”
“You’re too easy Jayjay” he smirked at her “You better hurry up, Addy left an hour ago”
“I’m going, I’m going. Just try and get Malcolm off the hook in the morn yeah?”
“How on earth?”
“Jeeze quit acting, we both know your gonna pull it off”
Several minutes later she slipped onto the soft green carpet of the expansive library, a single torch beam hailed her silently towards the bank of photo copiers lined pristinely behind the leather clad desk of librarian Grimsly.
“Nice of you to show up” Addy smiled at her from behind the torch beam
“I got held up by the runners, gimme a break” she threw her bag at him
“Do you realise how much acting it took to get the head boys master key?”
“The fliers in my bag there, enough for one on each machine” Jayne wandered around the machines lifting the lids to create an ominous green glow and typing numbers into each. Adrian followed close behind slipping a piece of paper into each before setting it going.
“Five hundred fliers coming up” Jayne perched lightly on Grimsly’s desk, speaking through the deafening hum of the machines her face flickering in the streaks of green light they cast.
“All this noise better not wake anyone up” Adrian looked nervous
“Chill out, there used to be gun fights way louder than this right outside my house. No-one ever woke up
“Yeah but these teachers are used to dead silence, they are like bats of something”
“I miss my old life sometimes ya know” Jayne clearly was off in her own little world again.
2.3
The stacks of paper split and divided in the wind drifting down to the courtyard below where students grabbed them excitedly
“I gotta go you guys. Need to get this key back”
“Fine Ads bail on us” Jayne smirked teasingly at him
“Bet he just wants to go get off with some secret girlfriend”
“Oh shut it Ammy or I might tell Tori where you go during Thursday lunchtime”
“I’m only messing with ya Ads. Best put your best acting face on to deal with that Peter”
He slipped down the through the fire door and down the tight spiral staircase to the corridor below, ensuring the hideous orange–bronze tapestry that hid the door feel back into place. He checked his watch the orange numbers blinking blindingly at him in this dim corridor; 9.58am.
“F**k I’m gonna be late” he mumbled under his breath as he began to tear along the corridor towards the main staircase. A few last year fashion students stared at him with their wide make-up laden eyes as he rushed past their classroom.
The toilet door creaked loudly as he swung through it
“Out. Now” he barked roughly at some startled boys who were huddled around a single cigarette “Pathetic kids” he stared them out of the door before turning to the clean porcelain sinks. He pressed his hand against the mirror, third from the left, it slide upwards cleanly to reveal a small crevice in the wall. A black crack passing through the smooth wall tiles into the orange brick dust beyond. He drew his hand back out clasping the master key he’d used the night before, letting it fall into the sink to wash the dust off as he slid the mirror back into place. The brick dust turned into a mesmerising swirl of speckled orange, bold against the clean white sink and his pale hand. His watched blinked 10.02am at him menacingly
“Late already” he sighed sliding to the floor, his back pressed against the wall, head between the knotted pipes of the sinks, he span the key slowly around his fingers passing it from hand to hand. His pocket buzzed loudly as his phone was pressed against the floor. He lazily pressed buttons to bring up the message
“Where r u? Xx”
He stuffed the phone back into his pocket standing up to look into the mirror. He had to end this, today; anyway possible.
2.4
“Why exactly do I need to help you?” she sighed leaning heavily on the dance studio door
“Jayjay got Malcolm into trouble with Barker, I can’t get him off on my own”
“Again? Jeeze what is it this time?”
“Had to ring him while he was on run, divert Barker so she could get to library and copy them fliers”
“All this for some bloody song contest. You better be this involved next time some dance show rolls into town”
“Course we will Princess. Now just go and distract Barker long enough for me to get that phone back”
“Leon, what exactly makes you think I can distract him?” she smiled sweetly twirling her golden blonde hair around her finger
“Well he quite clearly wants to f**k you and we both know your no stranger to seducing boys”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she looked suddenly stern, the lines of her forehead deepening as she glared at him
“Patricia don’t play dumb now. We both know you slept with half the male students in your year, not to mention the fact you got both the student dance teacher and trainee coach into bed”
“Oh fine, I'll do it. Just this once, but you owe me big for this” she turned sharply on her heel and walked away down the corridor towards the playing fields. Rich golden sunlight shimmered through the windows as the sun began to appear over the roof tops of the art studio.
As she walked she carefully loosened the straps of her dress, letting the neckline drift scandalously low as she strode out onto the broad playing fields. Barker's hunched form was silhouetted against the sun entering the storage shed in the centre of the fields. Within minutes she was languishing lazily on the flaking wood of the door frame
“Hey sir” she smiled sweetly
“Oh Patricia, what are you doing all the way out here? Did Miss Heartlidge need something?”
“Oh no Sir” she stepped into the musty store room, letting the sir roll on her tongue. Barker shifted uneasily
“Well I sort of have a detention to attend too” He moved towards the door, dropping his gaze away from her face, she kicked the wedge holding the door open, letting it swing shut behind her, dropping down gently onto the edge of the tightly folded pool cover. Her legs crossed just enough to slide her dress up to show more flesh
“Patricia, I, we, it. This can't happen” he garbled his words, rubbing his neck trying to look anywhere but her
“Oh sir, I know you want me” she let her dress fall from her shoulders and he turned too her. His rough hands grazing her thighs and kneaded her breasts. She breathed heavily in the musky air, a silent tear rolling down her cheek while his face was buried in her neck.
2.5
The bland cardboard box, punctuated with a nauseating purple stripe, dropped to the floor by the bin, the plastic crunched under his fingers as he pressed the last two pills into his hand and threw them back with a swig of coffee. He was on an all nighter trying to get this essay done, but morning had already crept onto the clocks. About an hour had passed since Jayne had been past the window, it was still open. The crisp breeze cut him to the bone, but it kept him awake more than the coffee or pills did.
Several hours later he jolted awake, the laptop had mauled his face. The essay sat incomplete, garbled from his lack of sleep
“Dam it” he sighed heavily, brushing his hair back and stretching “F**k it, pointless anyway”
He closed the laptop, the door thudded dully behind him as he headed down the hallway.
The road into town slouched downwards as it lazily meandered along the coast line, the sidewalk was punctuated with the towering street lamps and the small tables of coffee shops, one, a new one, had hideous table clothes spattered with deep violet orchids. He lent heavily on the old wooden door frame, waiting to be served his eyes wandered lazily stopping only to observe a petite girl who sat alone in the back, she smiled at him briefly knocking her coffee over as she did. She'd gone by the time the sour-faced girl behind the counter had handed him a scorching cardboard cup of dishwater-like coffee.
Aimlessly he walked the streets peering into musty shop windows. One in particular caught his eye, it was painted in flaking purple, thick wooden boards sealed the door and the heavily dusted window read “Primrose's” in an over curled font. That shop hovered like a ghost in his mind as he strolled towards the beach through the many rows of suburbia housing, his feet stopped short and he stumbled to a halt. This street, every garden, brimmed with primroses; each lawn perfectly manicured, each car meticulously waxed.
Squatting down on the curb he pulled tortured notebook and pen from his back pocket and began to avidly take notes, noting every detail of every house as the day wore on around him. His watch beeped loudly into the dusk
“7pm, d****t. The show.”
He stuffed the notebook back into his pocket and began to run back through suburbia, this time with great purpose. Nearly an hour later he swung out of an alleyway onto the street of the concert hall, the faint hum of the music already filled the air. Violet stood outside in a sweeping, low cut dress that was strewn with deep violet stripes, her face looked severely at him
“What the f**k?” she yelled across the road, he bit his tongue “You're and f*****g hour late and you've not even made an effort. Not shaved or anything, god sometimes Leon I dunno why I'm...can't you just? Oh screw it just get inside before Jayjay gets on stage, this isn't over” she marched back into the concert hall leaving Leon standing numb in the middle of the road, highly aware of his strewn hair, unshaven face and scruffy torn clothes. Silently he ducked into the hall, pulling a fake id from his wallet he slumped down at the bar
“Double vodka, and keep em coming”
He dropped his id and a $50 onto the bar.
2.6
Towards the back of the musky studio, ducked down low behind her easel she carefully layered the neon pink onto her nails.
“The human figure is among the hardest to master...”
She did her best to block the breathless stream of tips and tricks the lecturer spewed at them, she'd finished her 5 sketches of the life model within the first half hour. They were pinned to her easel pristinely; she had been doing her hair and make-up for at least an hour.
“Going on a date or something?” the boy next was smirking it her, his eyes lingering on her chest
“If I wanted someone to stare at my tits all day I'd go talk to Nancy” she turned her back on him, rummaging in her bag for the eye-liner she'd already got out.
“Come on Ammy gimme a chance, I'll take you to that Italian place and everything”
“Don't like Italian” she lent deeper into her bag, her top rode up exposing a slither of flesh
“Well perhaps just to mine then” his hand felt cold against her skin, sliding up her top towards her bra strap. In a single lunge she turned launching a nearby bottle at his head.
It struck his temple with a satisfying shatter that cascaded glass over the boy followed closely by the inky contents, he swayed slightly on his stool and collapsed to the floor, the glass cut into his hand and face. The lecture's voice broke into a shout as he began to head towards the back of the room. Amethia swung her bag onto her shoulder and marched from the room without glancing back, the ocean of whispers growing ever louder behind her as she ignore the yelling lecturer and left thick inky footprints tinged pink with blood across the floor. The corridor seemed to swim and sway slightly in front of her eyes, she'd had a headache all day, lost count of the number of pills she'd swallowed.
Clinging to the walls, stumbling over her own feet she headed towards Leon's he always had loads of medicine. The door swung open, it hadn't been locked, but the room was empty only a few empty pill boxes and some cherry flavour cough syrup. She gagged as she gulped it down, it left a powder-like residue in her mouth. She slumped onto the floor by the bed, her legs numb and cold, she tipped her bag onto the floor and sifted through the blurred rubble to find her phone.
The new message icon swirled on the screen the phone slumped from her hand as her head fell back heavily onto the bed, her eyes darting wildly under her lids as the last thoughts of consciousness slipped from her body.
2.7
His head slumped dangerously towards the wall, jerking back up each time as he tried to stay awake. The grey-haired seamstress with her thick rimmed glasses eyed him unnervingly, his head was swimming with sleep in the thick perfumed haze of her store. He hated coming here, but it did have the best dresses in town and Violet needed something amazing to wear.
He feigned a smile
“Have you had a new hair cut Miss Demia?”
“Oh call me Carol you charming fellow” she played the friend routine every time, but Tourmaline had learnt that calling her Carol would produce an invite to tea at her house and a deep scolding when he declined “How's your nice girlfriend getting on in there?”
“She's not my girlfriend. Just a friend” Carol smiled sweetly, showing her greying teeth
“Oh so you're still on the market then?”
“Tory! Get in here now!” Violet's voice rang sharply from the dress room, thankful for the escape he hopped the heap of bags in the doorway and slid behind the curtain.
“Wow, Vi. That looks gorgeous!” he smiled broadly “What's wrong?”
“Oh nothing, just thought I'd save you from Carol” he put a seductive emphasis on the name smirking broadly
“Oh ha ha” he threw her a dirty look as he turned to rummage through the many bags “These heels should go perfectly with that dress, you're gonna look fab”
“Oh yeah, by the way, he text me. He'll be there tonight”
“Who?”
“You know that boy, the one I was telling you about. Roger? Reece? I dunno I'm sure it began with R”
“Oh lovely Vi setting me up with some guy you barely know. I can get my own dates you know”
“Yeah right, the closest you had to a date since I known you was when you went to the cinema was Ads last month”
“Shut up and get the dress off so we can get out of here”
“Did you two make out? Do you love him? Is he the 'one'?”
“God Vi I'd stand more chance of turning Leon than Ads”
“Leon is not gay”
“Well we'll see about that”
“Tory quit it!” she snapped
“Shut up about my love life then?”
“Fine”
The persistent beep of the heart monitor gave him some comfort as he stared at the pale grey linoleum floor of the hospital many hours later. Ammy was so pale and cold, pierced by tubes and wires, the buzz of doctors and nurses had died down about 3am. Mrs Caredge, their official foster mom, was on her way; she lived five hours down the freeway in the poorer part of town. The boy Violet had introduced him to lurked in the corner, his hair dishevelled and his face set with concern.
“I s'pose I better get someone to take you home” Tory tried to sound calm as he glanced at the boy
“Nah it's okay I'll walk. You sure you wanna be alone?” Tory nodded softly and turned back to look at Amethia's pale form; he waited until the door clicked softly shut, before tears started to trickle softly down his cheek
“Ammy, why didn't you tell me? Anyone? We could of helped, got you better. I can't lose you, it'd be like losing half of myself. You gotta come back for me.”
2.8
He'd left a trail of murky brown footprints across the clean marble floor. He watched them slowly hardened and deepen in colour as the sunlight began to splinter through the windows signalling morning.
Why had he taken his phone with him? He knew Barker hated them, but worse than that his parents. How could he tell them he'd lost the $1,200 phone just days after his birthday?
“Ergh, do the cleaners not come up here?” the soft voice broke his train of thought as he glanced up to see Patricia appearing round the corner
“What do you want?” he scowled at her briefly before staring elsewhere. Her breasts seemed to shine in this lighting and it made something stir uncomfortably inside him.
“Oh, perhaps I'll keep this phone then? Y'know its quite a nice one, might fetch me some shopping funds”
“You got my phone back?”
“Yes you plank, sometimes I could swear all that running is killing your brain off Mal”
“Still in 'tention though aren't I? And how'd you get my phone anyway?”
“Jayjay was the one who rang ya, needed a diversion. So they sent me to...” she paused momentarily as she considered what to say “...charm, it out of Barker”
“What about getting me outta here?”
“I dunno, could get me in trouble y'know. What's it worth?” she edged closer to him, smirking broadly
“Who do you want to accidentally meet now?”
“That Drake on the basketball team is always rather nice”
“Fine, whatever Princess”
She grabbed his detention ticket from his hands and leant against the wall carefully scrawling a signature on it. Once she'd finished she tossed the phone and piece of paper back to him, swooped down to plant a kiss on his cheek and immediately dashed away down the corridor.
He sat and blushed deeply for a while, before sliding off the chair and shoving his detention slip into an ambiguous slot in the wall beside an office door. He jammed his phone deep into the pocket of his jogging bottoms, winding through the corridors and grounds until the soft scent of fresh cut grass filled his lungs and the thick brown mud of the runners track oozed underfoot. A sheer embankment of dark stone and mud gently held the track in place, he slammed his fist into it; again and again until thick mud stained globes of blood began to ooze from his knuckles. He sighed deeply as something inside him felt relief, joy, freedom.
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