The Christmas holiday ended almost as soon as it had begun, and before Marty knew it, it was time to go back to sixth form. It was a shock to wake up early, not to mention the mental tiredness of A-levels, but the promise of break time kept him going.
Break time came; Marty walked to the sixth-form common room. Vibrant murals framed a couple of inspirational quotes on the walls, sixth-formers were sitting on orange and green plastic chairs around birch-style circular tables and Jade was pissed off at her friends.
"Why are you asking me to help with your A-level Maths homework?"
"You got a perfect score in one of the GCSE Maths mocks," pointed out Everett.
"I mean, you're so perfect that you're practically Jesus," said Marty.
"I am NOT!" retorted Jade, flicking a strand of hair flippantly into her face – then subconsciously returning it to its prior place.
"Yes, you are! Your initials are even JC, for Jesus Christ!"
"Well, if initials are such an identity-defining thing, then you'd be a member of parliament!"
Marty stuck out his tongue like a petulant child. "I'd rather jump into a pool of baked beans than get involved in politics."
"At least Hassan would be with you," said Everett, "since his initials are HP, like the Houses of Parliament."
"Poppycock! It's HP for the legendary sauce that is superior to ketchup."
"You do realise that the HP in HP sauce stands for Houses of Parliament," stated Jade flatly. Marty snorted, disbelieving; then he looked alarmed.
"Are you serious?" Jade nodded. "Why does politics have to ruin everything?"
"Everett's initials are EE, which is my mobile network provider," said Hassan absent-mindedly, turning over a page of his book. He didn't usually read books while hanging with his mates, but he was doing it today for whatever reason.
Suddenly, the sound of a chair squeaking filled the room. The friends noticed a girl with candyfloss pink hair taking a seat at their table. Jade raised her eyebrows at Marty; he shrugged. He hadn't invited Katherine to sit with them, so why was she here?
"Good morning, fellow sixth formers," said Katherine with a bright fake smile. "What are you conversing about?"
"We were just talking about what our initials stand for," said Marty. "I'm a Member of Parliament, Jade is Jesus Christ and Everett is a mobile network provider. Your initials are KW, which stands for..." He trailed off, trying to think of famous people who shared these unusual initials. No one came to mind.
"Kaoru Wada," said Katherine abruptly.
"Who is that?" said Jade.
"A Japanese composer. He composed the scores for countless anime series, including Inuyasha and Saint Seiya."
No one was any the wiser for this explanation, so everyone was silent. The only sound was that of Jade eating her banana –
"I know! Kanye West!" declared Everett triumphantly; then everyone began talking over each other, discussing his latest album, his marriage to Kim Kardashian and his child called North West. Katherine sat in silence, nibbling on her iced gems.
*
On the way to their next lessons, Marty ended up alone with Hassan. Jade had split off to find her classroom in B block, Everett had a class in C block and Marty and Hassan were in A block, aka the Ancient block. Built in the 60s, its stone walls had peeling paint and asbestos had been taken out of them a few years back. The colourful pinboards displaying pupils' achievements (one of which had a picture of Jade as Year 12 of the month for December) attempted to conceal the ugliness of the walls, but not to much avail.
YOU ARE READING
Two Love
Teen FictionLight-hearted troublemaker Marty Pocock has never had a love story of his own - until now. He is instantly attracted to Lucy Ambrose, the new girl who also happens to be his Biology partner. But Lucy is an enigma, and Marty can't tell if he has a ch...
