Chapter Text
alice w
alice w: soooooooooooo
Jemilla: Sooooooooo
alice w: now that u have a gf,,,,
alice w: PLEASE COME ON A DOUBLE DATE W ME AND DEB
alice w: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE IT WOULD BE SO FUN PLEASEEE
alice w: YOU COULD MEET EMMA and also paul BUT EMMAS COOLER
alice w: YOU HAVE READ MESSAGES ON I CAN TELL YOURE READING THIS
Jemilla: Zazz says she’s in
alice w: are you in???
Jemilla: Yeah sure
alice w: GREAT WE TAKE THE BUS AFTER SCHOOL ON FRIDAY
Jemilla: Eleanor wants to know what time we’ll be back from our friend date
alice w: friend??????? date?????
Jemilla: Zazz isn’t out to her mom and neither am I, she thinks we’re just really good friends
alice w: gal pals lol
alice w: anyways i usually take the 11:30 bus back so we’ll be back on the mainland at like 11:45 and then however long it take u to get home
Jemilla: Okay, she says that’s fine
alice w: FUCK YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
☾◯☽
Alice ran into Jemilla after the bell rang on Friday and promptly began dragging her down the hall towards the front doors. “Why are you walking so slow? Pick up the pace, bitch, I want to see my girlfriend,” she said exasperatedly. Jemilla met Alice’s eyes and took off in the opposite direction, away from the doors. Alice squealed in shock and ran after Jemilla, “WHERE ARE YOU GOING?”
“TO THE ENGLISH HALL!”
“WHY? THAT’S NOT HACHETFIELD!”
“NO, BUT IT’S WHERE ZAZZ IS.”
“NOT GONNA LIE I FORGOT ABOUT HER,”
“RUDE”
They made it all the way down the hall and stood outside Zazzalil’s classroom, clutching their sides. Her class was still sitting at their desks, not moving. Mrs. Miller was notorious for keeping classes after the bell, even if it was only one person who had disrupted the class. After several more minutes, students finally started to leave. Zazz spotted Alice and Jemilla and walked over to them.
At that point, Alice was practically vibrating with impatience. She grabbed both of them and hauled them down to the front of the school. Jemilla had offered to drive them to the bus stop and Alice had immediately accepted, saying she’d rather not walk to the bus stop in 20-degree weather.
The bus was completely empty when the girls got on and the driver looked surprised to have anyone get on. They sat together in the back as the bus driver peeled out of the stop and headed towards the Nantucket Bridge.
“Why is there no one on the bus?” Zazz whispered, utterly confused.
“Because no one likes fucking Hachetfield, Zazz.” Alice murmured back.
“And no one in Hachetfield likes Clivesdale. It’s a hate-hate relationship.” Jemilla added on. Zazzalil furrowed her brows but said nothing more. It was a short and quiet ride to the island, the only other words being spoken by the driver when they were getting off the bus.
“You girls stayin the night or comin back to Clivesdale later this evenin?” The man had a southern drawl, which was rather uncommon in Michigan, and tended to leave the “g”s off of his words. The girls looked at each other, uncomfortable with what the man had asked, but Zazz spoke up.
“We’ll be taking the 11:30 bus back,” The man nodded slowly, looking a little disappointed.
“That’ll be Charlie drivin you back. Y’all be good girls, okay?”
They let out an uneasy laugh and set off down the street. Alice had said that her Uncle Paul and his girlfriend Emma would pick them up a little ways past the stop. The three of them walked quickly, not wanting to be in the cold longer than they had to.
☾◯☽
Jemilla could tell Paul was uncomfortable. He kept picking at the steering wheel and letting out deep breaths. Alice, Emma, and Zazz were all engaged in a conversation that, from what Jemilla could tell, was about appreciating women. She stayed quiet, not wanting to talk over the other conversation. After several minutes, Paul pulled into the parking lot of a small diner called “Calypso’s”. Jemilla thought that was strange, considering Calypso’s role in Odysseys’ story, but she wasn’t one to judge.
It was busy inside the diner, but Alice immediately let out a squeal and ran to a table in the corner that had a young girl with curly auburn hair sitting at it. They kissed and Jemilla looked away. She felt Zazz take her hand and she met the eyes of her girlfriend. They said goodbye to Paul and Emma, who would be picking them up later, and made their way over to the table where Alice and Deb were.
☾◯☽
The evening was filled with loud laughter that earned them a couple of dirty looks from the old couples around the diner. The girls didn’t mind though. They all had the girls that they loved with them and if the old people around them couldn’t handle that, then they could leave.
When it came time to leave, Jemilla and Zazz stood near the door and waited for Alice, who was spending several minutes saying goodbye to Deb. They wouldn’t be able to see each other in person until next month on Valentine’s Day. Jemilla knew Alice had a deep-rooted hatred for Valentine’s Day but would make an exception for Deb. She felt the same way.
The bus ride back was even quieter than it had been on the way there if that were possible. Something about riding an empty bus at 11:30 P.M. over a deep lake with harsh white lights made for a hollow vibe. They had had fun though, there was no denying that.