The bus was taking longer on this particular day after school. Not only was the weather getting colder as the days pass, but today was the day I just wanted to get home as quickly as possible. I sighed and decided to text Mollie to see what she was up to.
milolani: wyd?
I looked at my phone for a moment to see if Mollie read my message. Typically she writes back within a couple of minutes; if anything she’s probably on her way home or something–
“Hi Milo,” I heard a voice speak near me. I looked up and see Sophie standing there. She smiles at me, which makes me instantly smile back. I feel like I never get to see Sophie these days, so I was surprised to see her standing at the bus stop.
“Scout,” I answered back. “Whatcha doing here?” Sophie sat next to me on the bench.
“Well, Mr. Kamalani told me that you had left once the bell rang,” Sophie started. “I figured that you were waiting for the bus to go home,” I smirked, knowing that she went to my dad to ask where I was after school. I then remembered that she was probably wondering where I was since today was band rehearsal, which is something I’m not a part of anymore. Fuck, Scout doesn’t know that.
“Yeah, just waiting for the bus,” I answered, not really convincing. The air is awkward now; I can feel Sophie’s eyes look away from me and out toward the street. If anyone deserved to know, it was her. “Scout, I know there was a band rehearsal today.” Sophie immediately turned her head to look at me.
“You haven’t been in band class for the week,” Sophie admitted. “I was wondering if maybe you didn’t-“
“My dual major is suspended,” I finally confessed. I saw Sophie’s eyes widen in shock. “I got into a fight with Aaron at the dual major rehearsal.”
“Is that why…” Sophie asked as she pointed toward the cut on my face. I simply nodded at her. She looked like she was at a loss for words, and I don’t blame her. I wish I was able to tell her sooner, but I felt ashamed that I lost my dual major over someone that wasn’t even worth it. I was avoiding Sophie, but something in me is happy that even after not seeing her this week, she found me. It was a different feeling. I looked at Sophie; her shock turned into anger.
“Why would they only suspend your status and not Aaron’s? That’s completely unfair!” Sophie spat back.
“That was technically his first warning; I got mine when my dad sent me to the principal’s office…” I said as I tried to not look at Sophie. I felt ashamed to admit these things; things that not even Mollie knew about me. I looked down at my phone, wondering if Mollie ever texted me back. Nothing.
“‘I’m sorry, Milo,” Sophie said. “I hope that this suspension doesn’t last long. You deserve to be in band just as much as Aaron, and it’s unfair that Mr. Harrison would just throw you out of band like that.” I didn’t say anything back; I didn’t know what else to say about this besides the fact that I wanted to punch Aaron’s face at any given time I see him in vocal class. I simply sighed, wanting to just change the conversation.
“At least I’ll get to see you perform at the showcase,” I mentioned, smiling at Sophie. I’m glad I was able to at least make her smile still. I missed Sophie so much. “I’ll be the loudest in the audience!”
“You’re too sweet, Milo,” Sophie said as she laughed. “At least someone will stay awake for the string orchestra performance. I feel like we’re just there to put everyone to sleep.”
“That’s not true,” I reassured Sophie. I know that there were people talking about the String Orchestra and how their set for the showcase was boring. It makes me think of what Aaron said about Sophie at the dual major rehearsal. It angers me, but I wonder if she heard those same words go around in band class. Sophie looks at me, not convinced by my words.
“Every time we have our rehearsal, Mr. Harrison is constantly yelling at everyone else to be quiet because they all talk through it,” Sophie explained. “Today, it was so bloody loud in that auditorium that I kept messing up the notes. It didn’t help that people would point and laugh as they watched.” I saw Sophie’s face drop. She was getting lost in her thoughts, second-guessing every decision she has made up to this point.
I saw my bus come from down the block, moments away before stopping at my stop. Sophie looked up and saw the bus as well. She gets up from the bench once the bus slows down to stop in front of us. I didn’t want to leave Sophie here by herself. I didn’t want to leave Sophie; period.
“Well, here’s your bus,” Sophie pointed out. The door of the bus opened up. Before getting on the bus, I turned around and grabbed Sophie’s hand. She looked at me, confused about what I was doing.
“Come with me,” I said. Sophie didn’t know what to say; she looked nervous.
“I-I don’t take this bus,” Sophie said in a panic. I smiled, pulling toward me and the bus.
“I know,” I answered. “We’ll get you home before it gets dark.” I pulled Sophie in front of me so that she was able to get on the bus first. Sophie turned around to look at me; she smiled as she swiped her student MetroCard. I missed Sophie so much.
Letters From Liz. 