Meredith's POV
I sighed, looking out the bus window. My best friend stood on the curb, waving sadly. It was the second year I would be going to the private all girls' school. She thought that it was just a rich school, but it was really for becoming a spy. I had already survived one year of it there, having friends and acing classes. The only thing that I missed was her; Layla.
We couldn't hang out on weekends, we couldn't talk for hours at night, and we couldn't see each other until breaks. No wonder either, I was in England and she was in California! It was really hard to deal with at first, but I made friends. Sarah and Lee were my favorite girls at the Academy.
Layla's POV
I stood on the curb and waved at Mere, almost drowning in despair. She was off to some rich, snobby school only her family and elite few could actually afford. She was off to do whatever her parents wanted while I was stuck at some public school in the middle of California. She was going to friggin' England where Prince Harry would probably be at a spitting distance while I was all alone. I breathed through my nose and whispered a quiet 'Relax . . .' to myself. Sure, I still had Jay and Laura but they were far from Meredith.
Her blue eyes flashed in my direction as I lay my dull, gray and watery eyes on her round, petite face. Full of sorrow, I waved again and the yellow creature started moving for the airport. And so, another year without a necessity began.
Meredith's POV
I sighed. Layla was out of sight now, and I leaned against the seat. Already, I missed her beautiful, grey eyes. She hated them, saying they were ugly, but I loved them. They were so different. Some girl sat next to me, listening to her iPod. I was being completely ignored. We got to the airport, where we boarded the planes. While I flew, I knew that Lee and Sarah were already there; the sisters lived only about an hour from the school. I was only able to visit on Christmas break, and I never went home over Spring break. I just stayed at the school, bored to tears, while my parents were off in Cancun or some exotic, exciting place like that.
Soon, the blue ocean appeared in front of us. Beautiful, I thought, I could draw that. I will. I'll send it to Layla! I pulled out my notebook and drew, but the finished product was just blue, bland, and uninteresting. I couldn't see the life below the surface, the sea was too dark. After what seemed like hours, we finally landed.
A woman picked us up. There were only thirty girls from America. "Welcome back, girls." The woman smiled. I recognized that face; it was my favorite teacher, Mrs. Camarad.
Layla's POV
I opened my locker, already missing my dear and needed friend. The commotion around me only the first day back after a long summer break could provide was so loud, I couldn't think. I heard a high pitched squeal, and as I turned, I felt two skinny arms wrap around me and give me a big bear hug. I smiled slightly at Laura's outburst. She looked at me and squealed again.
"Laylee . . . I've missed you so much!" she started and from the look on her face, I knew she wouldn't stop. "Ireland was fun, but I would much rather hang out with my besties. Where's Conrad? Have you seen him yet? Oh, girl, summer treated him well! You'd think he would stop being so hot after a point but, no, he continues! Anyway . . ." She blabbered on, as I reached for my history book. Grade ten history . . . delightful. I closed my locker door with a loud bang, a little tired of Laura already. I needed peace and Laura was far from it. Sure, her bubbly personality was very fun to be around, but just not when you're mourning. I snapped a piece of gum and nodded to something Laura said. Oh dear, where was Meredith?
Layla's POV
"And so, that concludes our Meet and Greet. Let's get down to American history girls and boys! And maybe, if we finish everything early this year, we?ll even touch Canadian history! What better way to know our neighbors? Exciting, no?" Mr. Jefsaw said giddily to the room full of bored teenagers. His perky attitude was so draining that most people were already asleep, even with the heaps of sunlight streaming in through the open windows. I wanted to be on the beach again, surfing the waves with Meredith, not learning some country's history I've never even been in. Mr. J loved history so much, he was 48 and single. He had dedicated his life to history and so that was probably why his girlfriend was history.
I thought about what Meredith was doing, probably talking with her new, snobby friends and meeting, rich, preppy boys while eating crumpets with the Queen. Swell. Meredith's family was relatively rich, while my family was far from rich as possible. Although we came from different families, Meredith and I were always like sisters; sharing clothing, gossiping late into the night and hitting on untouchable, hot, senior guys.
The two 60 minute periods passed and my lunch period approached. I was so tired from mourning that I developed a healthy appetite and so lunch seemed appealing. The best part was that both Jay and Laura would share the same lunch. Jay's mom (the school secretary) pulled a few strings and so our lunch periods were the same.
I excitedly pulled the cafeteria doors open to see a huge range of teenagers eating, laughing and simply enjoying their break. I padded toward a lunch table to the right of the cafeteria and sat down on the cold plastic. I motioned with my hand to Jay who had entered through the doors, equally elated to finally eat something. She rushed toward the white table and gave me a swift hug. She smiled at me and for once, I felt at ease. Jay was always quiet and so I was sure that I could relax in her presence.
"How was your summer?" I asked the lean figure in front of me. Jay smiled and shrugged her bony shoulders.
"Okay, just read a little, swam and just enjoyed the 'no school' part. You?" Jay replied as she dug into her salad.
I chewed my apple thoughtfully and swallowed. "Well, Meredith was the highlight. We totally caught up and simply had a great time. She had to go back to England though." I whispered, my melancholy mood coming back to me.
Meredith's POV
I flipped over the bars, mats, and other obstacles in the maze. Lee cried out to me, our code echoing through the halls. "Turkey legs, crumpets, go!" I flipped off of the wall and ran towards our enemy, to the north. I shot him with my laser gun. I ducked behind a wall and escaped his shot with a mere inch to spare. This was getting dangerous.
Finally, the bell rang and Lee and I walked out to the courtyard. We grabbed our lunch and ate in silence. We were all tired from the journey to the school from the previous day; we didn't feel much like chatting.
I wondered what Layla was doing.
Layla's POV
I endured another boring class. Math was so boring and highly unnecessary. Well, it was, but I chose to think so. And then it was language; my favorite subject. I loved writing and reading and literature and just all of it. I loved how you could express everything in just one poem, or sentence, or through a word. We started reading Shakespeare and I was delighted. It was definitely the highlight of my day apart from eating a brownie. The day ended and I started walking the long way home, filled with many thoughts filled with Merry Mere and what she was up to. I missed her way too much, it hurt.
