This story is about two old best friends that finally meet for the first time in a couple years. They decided to take a road trip to California. However, they both realize how things have changed in their relationship
Not So Peaceful
I sit in the uncomfortable metal
chair, feeling awkward already. I drink
my herbal tea, fidgeting with my peace sign necklace. I hold the stiff
cardboard cup in my right hand, my neon pink lipstick stain on the lid. I look
at my flip phone that I found in the trash. The screen is cracked at the top
right corner. The dirt and muck on the keyboard run a shiver down my spine. The big white numbers on my phone tell me its
two o’clock. Fifteen minutes late, it better be for a good reason. I start
tapping my foot on the floor, growing more impatient with every second. I
become aware of my surroundings. A group of students laugh hysterically at
their own study session. I wish I still had an easy life like theirs,
surrounded by their perfect pink Macbooks and ringing Iphones. I hear a click as the door opens. My eyes
shoot over to the loud piercing noise. A five foot eleven geek with curly
dirt-like hair and square glasses approaches me. She looks at my outfit; I can
see her eyes pop out of her head when she sees my bare feet.
“Hey girl! Do you remember me?” Her
body sways back and forth, moving to her own beat in her head.
“Are you Sarah?” I question, not
knowing if this might be my old best friend. The one who would always call me
when I got home from school, the one who would always beg me to hang out. After
I finish that sentence I flash a peace sign towards her. She looks puzzled. Her
eyes scan my outfit. My outfit is something that symbolizes me well. The long
flowy flower pants make me feel like I am floating on a cloud. My sheer top
blends into my skin tone which is a tan brown.
“Of course I am. How have you been?
I haven’t seen you in like three years. Are you ready for this vacation?” She
does a little jig and prances around. I don’t remember her being this crazy and
wild. She takes a seat right next to mine.
“Yeah, it’ll be so much fun. I
already have my bags in the car,” I stand up and gesture towards my car. My car
is like a baby to me. Its vibrant orange color makes me feel like the sunshine
is hitting me in the soul. The giant peace signs on the side of the car remind
me of how this country needs some peace. I daze off when I suddenly hear a
snap. Sarah’s hand is right in front of my face, urging for attention.
Both of us exit through the door. We
grab all of Sarah’s designer luggage and head to the car. I only have one bag
for two weeks and Sarah has about twenty. At least my car is big enough for the
luggage and us. I brought some CDs to play in the car in case anything got
awkward between us. We do have plenty to talk about, since we haven’t seen each
other in over three years. I can’t wait to start our eight hour trip to
California, one of my favorite places. I love the way California is so free;
nobody cares what you do there, nobody will judge you. We both hop into the car
ready to begin our journey.
The music starts blaring a natural
vibe. This indie pop makes me feel like I am at home, wearing my favorite long
maxi dress. I snap out of my thoughts and look over to Sarah; I have missed her
so much. I can’t believe we are going to be spending eight hours in this van
together. She looks over at me and rolls her eyes; I wonder what’s up with her
mood.
“So what is your major?” Sarah looks
confused and already grumpy. I always remembered that she got mad easily as a
kid.
“I’m majoring in philosophy. I love
learning about different cultures other than ours. Hopefully I will just be a
free spirit though. I haven’t really decided what I want to do with my life
yet,” I try to laugh it off, but Sarah is taking it the wrong way. I start to
listen to my music, hearing the beats that hypnotize my body. Sarah is giving
me this weird glare; I try to play it off.
“So how have you been, what have you
been up to?” Sarah tries to move this conversation along. I look at the clock
and it has already been one hour; the time is going too fast.
“Well, after graduation I went to
the University of Colorado. I met this guy there that changed my life forever.
I noticed how free he was. He didn’t care what anyone thought of him. He would
always wear tie dye clothes; his hair dangled down his back in dreadlocks. I
thought he was so strange because he never wore shoes either.” I blurt out
while I look down at my pale shoeless feet, “He would always wear a peace sign
necklace. He influenced who I am today. However, he dropped out of college and
moved to New York City and I haven’t seen him since,” I say. I watch Sarah’s
face. I can clearly see the confusion spread throughout her face. She doesn’t
even acknowledge me; she stares at the buildings passing our van. I turn up the
music, hoping this awkward silence will pass us, it doesn’t.
“Anyway, what have you been up to?”
I try to venture away from my awkward story.
“Well I went to Miami University and
studied to become a doctor. I have worked really hard the past couple months
trying to accomplish my goals. I have barely even been outside because all I
have been doing lately is studying. So I was so ecstatic to come on this road
trip with you, but now I don’t really know how I feel about this situation,” I
can barely even hear what she says at the end since it’s a whisper. The awkward silence stings my ears. Something does seem different
about our relationship these days.
We have been driving for a total of
five hours, we can do this. After that story I have shared, Sarah has not said
a word to me. I really want her to like me so we can become friends again. My
mind starts to daze off. I think about Steve; the man that changed my life
forever and decided to leave to New York City. One of my favorite songs starts
to play. The way the bongo is playing in the background puts me into a
hypnotized stage. I look up from the radio and notice a red light. I slam hard
on the brakes and our bodies move forward. I really need to start paying
attention to the road ahead. I suddenly hear a loud creak. My first instinct
believes that it is just the music playing. I try to shake the idea out of my
head and start listening to the music. I look over to my right to start talking
to Sarah, I notice that the passenger door is open and Sarah is getting out. I
try to yank her arm back into the car, I was too late. I see tears in her eyes
as she makes a huff when she falls on the concert beneath her.
“ Jessie, you’re physco! Whatever happened to
you, I don’t want to deal with you. You used to be so normal. I was jealous of
you when we were younger. Now, I can’t even look at you without scolding. That
random guy that you met changed you. I just think I’m going to go home.” She
screamed, my body is frozen but my mind is racing.
“Sarah! Why are you doing this? I
thought we were friends and we were going to have the best vacation yet. Just
come back into the car and we can talk through this,” I really wanted this to
work out, but I guess it won’t. Sarah shakes her head and opens the back door
causing the whole car to shake. I don’t know what to do. I hear the back door
open and all of the luggage fall out onto the dusty road.
“Uh! Stupid designer luggage!” Sarah
shouts and throws her hands into the air like she is praising God. The door
slams shut again, causing the other luggage to knock into each other. I roll my
eyes to myself, this is ridiculous.
The light turns green, signaling me to leave.
I try to wait for a minute, praying she will come back in. I hear two loud
beeps behind me. I hit the gas. My body moves lunges forward. I try to call
Sarah’s cell phone, but she won’t answer. I turn my head around and look in the
mirrors, I don’t see anything. I try to get the image of her saying all those
nasty comments out of my head. I look in my rearview mirror to see a tall girl
standing by a red light waving at me.
I chose this character writing because I tried to pick a weird character that I could describe really well. I also enjoyed making up such a silly character. I believe that it shows great description, you can really see what my character looks like and how she is. I also believe that you can infer facts about Jessie. You can infer that she is a hippie. Overall, I think this writing shows how I created a great description of the characters.
