Status: Active
A Day in Bridgend
Bullet for my Valentine
Over the next few days I got more and more excited. I knew the odds were against me but I might see them. What if I did?
Then, the day finally came. The night before I had gone to bed unusually early so I could get up earlier in the morning. Even though I did I was still exhausted in the morning.
Over the compulsory black trousers, I wore a green belt with black studs. This didn’t go through the loops but hung loosely on my hips. I left my auburn, bum length hair down and carefully clipped a few different coloured feathers into it. A purple ribbon was tied around my neck in a bow, a slightly thinner red one on my left wrist and a black on my right. Over my black school jumper I wore my Bullet (the BFMV hoody). It had been…a good luck charm I suppose since I’d bought it. It was one of the few possessions I knew I would feel sad about if it broke or I lost it. The only other things were Gatomon (a childhood toy I loved as if she were real), my surfboard and my diaries and notebooks.
Usually I was late for school but today I made sure I got there early. There were a lot of people walking through the corridors or just standing around talking. A lot of them stared at me as I paused while others laughed, making sure I knew they were laughing at me. Others shouted and called me weirdo and shit. I ignored all of it. I was used to it and besides, I was in such a good mood nothing could make me feel angry. A constant small smile played on my lips on my lips that nothing could remove.
After registration I walked to the back of the school where the bus was picking us up. Emily, Becca and Stacey were already there. I skipped over to them excitedly and literally leapt forward, landing between Stacey and Emily.
‘Mornin’!’ I said energetically.
The bus drive to St Ffagens and the time we spent there were relatively uneventful. Then it was finally time to go to Bridgend. During the journey there I listened to Bullet on my mp3 and could not keep still. The whole time I wriggled, bounced and poked Emily who sat beside me. When the bus finally stopped at the shopping centre I didn’t bother with the steps and instead leapt down. I grabbed Emily’s and Stacey’s hands and started running towards the building. The sky was overcast and as we were stepping inside it began to rain.
As the girls squealed I said happily, ‘Perfect Welsh weather!’
The girls stared at me incredulously and I laughed. We went straight to the food court but since I wasn’t very hungry I only bought some really disgusting fries from MacDonald’s where everyone else was buying food. I ended up eating only five fries, sharing them out with the rest of the group and then throwing the rest in the bin.
Then it was time to go explore some of the shops. It was fun at first and I enjoyed the different stores. But I’d been with this group of girls since 8:30am and now it was nearly 1:30pm and I find girls boring at the best of times. Don’t get me wrong, they were my friends and they were tidy and everything but I didn’t think I could stand it anymore. They just didn’t understand me and I didn’t understand them. When we were in a Cadbury’s chocolate shop I saw Gaz walking towards his friends outside.
‘Gaz!’ I said desperately. ‘Your male! Come talk to me!’
‘No!’ he replied, smiling. ‘Go back to your own group!’
‘But Gaz…’ I moaned childishly. He just kept walking, raising his hand to wave me goodbye. I groaned and turned back to the Cadbury’s store where the girls were waiting. I quickly bought a bar of Dairy Milk and went outside to wait for Stacey.
I swung my bag around and dropped it onto the floor in front of me and squatted to put the chocolate inside. When I was done I stood and put the bag onto my back again. I looked around casually and then turned back to the girls’ conversation. I started as what I had just seen registered.
Bullet for my Valentine were walking towards us. My mouth fell open and I gawped at them for a second. They stopped outside a shop and Jay went inside while the others waited for him at the door.
‘Oh my fucking god!’ I interrupted the girls. They all turned to look at me, startled. ‘Bullet are standing right over there!’
‘Bullet for my Valentine?’ confirmed Hope, excitedly.
‘Yeah! Lets go meet them!’ I bounced up and down with excitement.
‘No, I’m scared!’ said Hope, backing away slightly.
‘We have to!’ I exclaimed. ‘This is a once in a lifetime chance to meet them! Come on! Emily, you come too so you can take the photos.’
‘Okay,’ she said.
The three of us walked over quickly. I was scared too, even more so than Hope since this was my favourite band in the world. We stepped towards them timidly. They didn’t notice us until we were right behind their small circle.
‘Your Bullet for my Valentine!’ Hope stated when they turned around. They smiled and Moose nodded.
‘Oh my god, I fucking love you!’ I said ecstatically. As I said this Jay came out of the shop carrying two crates of drink. ‘Can we get a photo with you?’
‘Sure,’ said Padge as they all smiled, amused by my outburst. I blushed slightly.
Jay put the two boxes on the floor and Moose said to us, ‘What are your names?’
‘I’m Hope.’
‘I’m Lilly, and this is Emily. She’s taking the photo.’
‘Not a fan then?’ asked Jay.
Emily shook her head, a little embarrassed and said, ‘I hadn’t even heard of you until Lilly mentioned you, sorry.’
We all stood in a line. Jay on the far left; Hope beside him, Padge came next, then Moose, me and Matt on the far right. We put our arms around each other. When Matt slid his arm around my waist I shivered slightly and hesitated before doing the same. As soon as the photos were done (Emily took two at my request) we pulled away from each other. Hope and I hugged each of them in turn.
‘Thank you!’ said Hope.
‘Yeah, thanks! It was great meeting you!’ I looked at them all one last time, my eyes lingering on Matt. I hadn’t been able to take them off him the whole time we had been near them, he was even more gorgeous in person. But now I had to.
Emily, Hope and I headed up the street, Emily giving the camera back to me, to some clothes shop called River Island the other girls had gone to. I’d never even heard of the place before but they all seemed pretty excited about it so I guessed I was on my way to another hour and a half of hell. That was when I heard the band calling me back. Just me. I turned at the sound of my name and saw the men beckoning me over to them.
I glanced at Emily, then Hope who was giving me a strange look. I frowned and realised the look was that of jealousy. They were calling me back and not her. No one had ever looked at me with jealous eyes before.
‘I’m going to meet the others,’ she said and walked away while Emily stayed where she was to wait for me. I walked back to the men. I was nervous and confused. Why were they calling me back? I smiled as I stepped in front of the group.
Jay grinned at me and said, ‘We were wondering…Moose just got dumped by his girlfriend and he needs a bit of cheering up. That’s why we have all this booze.’
‘Aw, I’m sorry,’ I said to Moose, realising he had been oddly quiet all this time. He tried to smile a thanks to me but wasn’t very successful. ‘But…what have I got to do with that?’
‘We were wondering if you’d like to join us for a couple of drinks?’ said Padge, a small smile on his face.
My mouth fell open in surprise. ‘You…want me…to…? Why?’ They laughed a little, even Moose smiled.
‘So, are you coming or what?’ said Matt, sidestepping my question, still smiling. It was the first thing he had said directly to me and my attention was immediately brought back to him. He really looked even more amazing in person, even better looking.
‘I don’t know… I’m here on a school trip and the bus goes in an hour and a half,’ I said uncertainly. ‘Where are we going?’
‘My place,’ said Padge. ‘Its only a ten minutes away. Oh, come on,’ he encouraged me. ‘We’ll make sure your back before your bus leaves.’
I glanced at them all in turn. ‘Okay,’ I said smiling.
They all grinned. They looked at each other quickly and in that look something secret passed between them but I didn’t notice any of it. I was checking behind me, to see if Emily was still where I had left her.
‘Wait here a second, I just need to do something.’ I quickly ran back to where she was waiting. ‘Emz,’ I said as I stopped in front of her. ‘I need a favour. Can you ring me around fifteen minutes before the bus leaves?’
‘Er, yeah, sure. But where are you going?’
‘Just for a little walk by myself,’ I decided not to tell her where I was going in case she told someone.
‘What?!’ she exclaimed. ‘Lilly, I really don’t think you should do that. You don’t know your way around this place. What if you get lost?’
‘It’ll be fine,’ I said quickly, checking to make sure Bullet hadn’t left without me. They hadn’t, they still waited where I’d left them. ‘Look, I have to go. Just ring me okay?’
She started to protest but I spoke over her, ‘Thanks lovey! Don’t tell anyone and I’ll see you later!’ I ran off before she could say another word. I bounded up to the men.
‘Ready?’ asked Jay.
I nodded smiling and we walked to wherever Padge lived.
© Amber Williams 2008
Then, the day finally came. The night before I had gone to bed unusually early so I could get up earlier in the morning. Even though I did I was still exhausted in the morning.
Over the compulsory black trousers, I wore a green belt with black studs. This didn’t go through the loops but hung loosely on my hips. I left my auburn, bum length hair down and carefully clipped a few different coloured feathers into it. A purple ribbon was tied around my neck in a bow, a slightly thinner red one on my left wrist and a black on my right. Over my black school jumper I wore my Bullet (the BFMV hoody). It had been…a good luck charm I suppose since I’d bought it. It was one of the few possessions I knew I would feel sad about if it broke or I lost it. The only other things were Gatomon (a childhood toy I loved as if she were real), my surfboard and my diaries and notebooks.
Usually I was late for school but today I made sure I got there early. There were a lot of people walking through the corridors or just standing around talking. A lot of them stared at me as I paused while others laughed, making sure I knew they were laughing at me. Others shouted and called me weirdo and shit. I ignored all of it. I was used to it and besides, I was in such a good mood nothing could make me feel angry. A constant small smile played on my lips on my lips that nothing could remove.
After registration I walked to the back of the school where the bus was picking us up. Emily, Becca and Stacey were already there. I skipped over to them excitedly and literally leapt forward, landing between Stacey and Emily.
‘Mornin’!’ I said energetically.
The bus drive to St Ffagens and the time we spent there were relatively uneventful. Then it was finally time to go to Bridgend. During the journey there I listened to Bullet on my mp3 and could not keep still. The whole time I wriggled, bounced and poked Emily who sat beside me. When the bus finally stopped at the shopping centre I didn’t bother with the steps and instead leapt down. I grabbed Emily’s and Stacey’s hands and started running towards the building. The sky was overcast and as we were stepping inside it began to rain.
As the girls squealed I said happily, ‘Perfect Welsh weather!’
The girls stared at me incredulously and I laughed. We went straight to the food court but since I wasn’t very hungry I only bought some really disgusting fries from MacDonald’s where everyone else was buying food. I ended up eating only five fries, sharing them out with the rest of the group and then throwing the rest in the bin.
Then it was time to go explore some of the shops. It was fun at first and I enjoyed the different stores. But I’d been with this group of girls since 8:30am and now it was nearly 1:30pm and I find girls boring at the best of times. Don’t get me wrong, they were my friends and they were tidy and everything but I didn’t think I could stand it anymore. They just didn’t understand me and I didn’t understand them. When we were in a Cadbury’s chocolate shop I saw Gaz walking towards his friends outside.
‘Gaz!’ I said desperately. ‘Your male! Come talk to me!’
‘No!’ he replied, smiling. ‘Go back to your own group!’
‘But Gaz…’ I moaned childishly. He just kept walking, raising his hand to wave me goodbye. I groaned and turned back to the Cadbury’s store where the girls were waiting. I quickly bought a bar of Dairy Milk and went outside to wait for Stacey.
I swung my bag around and dropped it onto the floor in front of me and squatted to put the chocolate inside. When I was done I stood and put the bag onto my back again. I looked around casually and then turned back to the girls’ conversation. I started as what I had just seen registered.
Bullet for my Valentine were walking towards us. My mouth fell open and I gawped at them for a second. They stopped outside a shop and Jay went inside while the others waited for him at the door.
‘Oh my fucking god!’ I interrupted the girls. They all turned to look at me, startled. ‘Bullet are standing right over there!’
‘Bullet for my Valentine?’ confirmed Hope, excitedly.
‘Yeah! Lets go meet them!’ I bounced up and down with excitement.
‘No, I’m scared!’ said Hope, backing away slightly.
‘We have to!’ I exclaimed. ‘This is a once in a lifetime chance to meet them! Come on! Emily, you come too so you can take the photos.’
‘Okay,’ she said.
The three of us walked over quickly. I was scared too, even more so than Hope since this was my favourite band in the world. We stepped towards them timidly. They didn’t notice us until we were right behind their small circle.
‘Your Bullet for my Valentine!’ Hope stated when they turned around. They smiled and Moose nodded.
‘Oh my god, I fucking love you!’ I said ecstatically. As I said this Jay came out of the shop carrying two crates of drink. ‘Can we get a photo with you?’
‘Sure,’ said Padge as they all smiled, amused by my outburst. I blushed slightly.
Jay put the two boxes on the floor and Moose said to us, ‘What are your names?’
‘I’m Hope.’
‘I’m Lilly, and this is Emily. She’s taking the photo.’
‘Not a fan then?’ asked Jay.
Emily shook her head, a little embarrassed and said, ‘I hadn’t even heard of you until Lilly mentioned you, sorry.’
We all stood in a line. Jay on the far left; Hope beside him, Padge came next, then Moose, me and Matt on the far right. We put our arms around each other. When Matt slid his arm around my waist I shivered slightly and hesitated before doing the same. As soon as the photos were done (Emily took two at my request) we pulled away from each other. Hope and I hugged each of them in turn.
‘Thank you!’ said Hope.
‘Yeah, thanks! It was great meeting you!’ I looked at them all one last time, my eyes lingering on Matt. I hadn’t been able to take them off him the whole time we had been near them, he was even more gorgeous in person. But now I had to.
Emily, Hope and I headed up the street, Emily giving the camera back to me, to some clothes shop called River Island the other girls had gone to. I’d never even heard of the place before but they all seemed pretty excited about it so I guessed I was on my way to another hour and a half of hell. That was when I heard the band calling me back. Just me. I turned at the sound of my name and saw the men beckoning me over to them.
I glanced at Emily, then Hope who was giving me a strange look. I frowned and realised the look was that of jealousy. They were calling me back and not her. No one had ever looked at me with jealous eyes before.
‘I’m going to meet the others,’ she said and walked away while Emily stayed where she was to wait for me. I walked back to the men. I was nervous and confused. Why were they calling me back? I smiled as I stepped in front of the group.
Jay grinned at me and said, ‘We were wondering…Moose just got dumped by his girlfriend and he needs a bit of cheering up. That’s why we have all this booze.’
‘Aw, I’m sorry,’ I said to Moose, realising he had been oddly quiet all this time. He tried to smile a thanks to me but wasn’t very successful. ‘But…what have I got to do with that?’
‘We were wondering if you’d like to join us for a couple of drinks?’ said Padge, a small smile on his face.
My mouth fell open in surprise. ‘You…want me…to…? Why?’ They laughed a little, even Moose smiled.
‘So, are you coming or what?’ said Matt, sidestepping my question, still smiling. It was the first thing he had said directly to me and my attention was immediately brought back to him. He really looked even more amazing in person, even better looking.
‘I don’t know… I’m here on a school trip and the bus goes in an hour and a half,’ I said uncertainly. ‘Where are we going?’
‘My place,’ said Padge. ‘Its only a ten minutes away. Oh, come on,’ he encouraged me. ‘We’ll make sure your back before your bus leaves.’
I glanced at them all in turn. ‘Okay,’ I said smiling.
They all grinned. They looked at each other quickly and in that look something secret passed between them but I didn’t notice any of it. I was checking behind me, to see if Emily was still where I had left her.
‘Wait here a second, I just need to do something.’ I quickly ran back to where she was waiting. ‘Emz,’ I said as I stopped in front of her. ‘I need a favour. Can you ring me around fifteen minutes before the bus leaves?’
‘Er, yeah, sure. But where are you going?’
‘Just for a little walk by myself,’ I decided not to tell her where I was going in case she told someone.
‘What?!’ she exclaimed. ‘Lilly, I really don’t think you should do that. You don’t know your way around this place. What if you get lost?’
‘It’ll be fine,’ I said quickly, checking to make sure Bullet hadn’t left without me. They hadn’t, they still waited where I’d left them. ‘Look, I have to go. Just ring me okay?’
She started to protest but I spoke over her, ‘Thanks lovey! Don’t tell anyone and I’ll see you later!’ I ran off before she could say another word. I bounded up to the men.
‘Ready?’ asked Jay.
I nodded smiling and we walked to wherever Padge lived.
© Amber Williams 2008
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