Under the spotlight

Chapter 22: New York City

We were welcomed by Sarah's friends. I had only seen them once when they had picked her up for a party I guess but this was our first actual introduction. With the first glance I recognized a girl from my biology class, she had dark curly hair and dark skin. She was beautiful and her curls were long, so every time she moved her hair the curls would dance. She was dressed with almost no clothes and had a bottle of alcohol in her hands. No one seemed wasted, at least yet, which was a good sign I guessed. Besides her were a set of twins, and they were completely different from the girl in the middle. They were blondes with the skin of the color of a pearl, they were very skinny and they clutched onto the middle girl's arms, like a super trio. Some guys were here too, glancing at us when we got out of the car. I didn't recognize any of them, they all looked like frat boys though.

"Yay, let's go, I want to introduce you to them," Sarah giggled and dragged me with her.

"Yo Sarah" What's good," One guy said and gazed at us, he had brown curly hair and was dressed with blue jeans and a white t-shirt. "who's this pretty girl with you," He bumped fists with his pals.

"Don't be stupid Gregory, she's Agnes,"

"Agnes? As your roommate? the ballet one," He smirked at me.

"Hi..." I said shyly.

"Move Gregory, I want her to meet the rest," Gregory stepped back and Sarah made her way to the girls. "Hi! So, Agnes, these are Emily and Rose," She said signaling the twins. "And this is Jules," For the middle girl.

"Hey!" They said all at the same time and then giggled.

The city around us was not so crowded. I saw that each groupie had their own car and that they were planning on going to Times square. We started walking, I was practically mute, not that I wanted to talk, it helped me relax. The chilly weather was nice, my nose a little pink from the breezes and my fingertips freezing, but I didn't really care. After a while the streets began to get more crowded and we would repeatedly bump with strangers who gave us angry faces before leaving. New York was by far the best city in the world, I loved it because it was exactly the opposite of my home town, where I knew everyone and they all knew me. Don't get me wrong, sometimes it was nice to speak with whoever you wanted but it also was annoying having them all know that I danced and my parents had died. I remember my granny helping me escape so many awkward situations, running away from the cafés, sneaking out of her hair salon...

Snapping out of my thoughts I glanced at all the signs spread around the buildings and walls. Some were advertisements about shows or something like that, others had propaganda about McDonald's or Subway. We stopped on a corner because they wanted to buy more alcohol and I stood quiet by their side. A car ran past me and I jumped a bit because of how fast it had gone. I bumped with Gregory who was standing behind me.

"Hey! You okay?" He asked after turning to me.

"Yeah, sorry," I said.

"So, how is it ballet? I heard it's very difficult," He smiled generously and I did it back because I found his way of trying to converse with me very genuine.

"I mean it's not terrible but it is a lot of stress," I tucked a strand of my blonde hair behind my ear.

"Oh, that sucks," He said and we laughed awkwardly. In silence he took a joint out of a little box and he lit it up. "You want?"

I doubted and frowned, did I? I had said when I was younger that I was never going to smoke, anything, not a cigarette not weed. But now...Maybe just a bit wouldn't hurt anyone. I licked my bottom lip but nodded hesitantly and grabbed the joint. I gave it one puff and instantly coughed and coughed. I didn't like it not one bit. My throat was now drier than before and it made me feel disgusted. I gave it back to him and he chuckled.