Smiles Echo In My Memory

When we got to the park, it wasn’t hard to spot Charley, Jake, Katie, Rhea, Sally and Cally sat around the swing area, Katie sitting next to a girl about my height, with red/brown hair, and the most amazing bluest eyes I have ever seen. She was dressed in electric blue skinnies that matched her eyes perfectly, with a bright red Smashing Pumpkins’ tee.
“Looks like she likes the same music as me, you and Katie,” Frank whispered in my ear whilst we were walking towards to group of eight. I smiled, nodding.
“FRANKIE, BABY!” Charley called from on of the swings, running up to us and grabbing us both into a tight embrace, making all three of us topple over and fall on the round-a-bout, making it spin vigorously.
“FUCK, CHARLEY!” Frank yelled, trying to push Charley off us and off the round-a-bout. He was giggling hysterically, as was everyone else. Sally tried to stop the rapid round-a-bout, but to no avail.
“Rhee, come and help me!” she cried, still giggling slightly. It was then that Frank had successfully managed to push Charley off the ride, and sat up, dizzy. I quickly stuck my foot out onto the tarmac, managing to slow it down.
“Ah, god, my head,” I moaned, holding my head in both my hands. Frank grumbled before standing up warily, and immediately falling back down with a ‘thump’ next to me, earning a few laughs from everyone at the swings.
Charley sat up from the floor next to the round-a-bout, rubbing his side. “Fuck, that hurt like a bitch,” he muttered, standing up slowly. Me, Frank, Charley and Sally all got up carefully, and walked towards everyone else who were situated at the swings, only a few steps away from the round-a-bout.
“Errm, are you guys okay?” Katie asked nervously, her eyes darting between me, Frank and Charley.
“Yeah, I think so…” Frank replied, rubbing his head and wrapping his arm around my waist again. “Are you okay, sugar?” I nodded, smiling at him and sitting down on his lap after he sat on the unoccupied swing.
“And you, Charley baby?” Frank added in a childish voice, grinning.
“I’m okay, Frankie,” Charley said seductively from beside Jake, who was sitting by our legs on the tarmac. Everyone laughed at Charley’s voice, earning disapproving looks from passers’ by.
“Oh, Frankie, Sazzy, this is Sydney, she’s in my history class,” Katie said, motioning to the girl next to her in the amazing skinnies. I smiled at waved at Sydney, introducing us. “I’m Sazzy, and this is my boyfriend Frank,” I said, poking Frank in the head, who hit me on the arm playfully before smiling at Sydney.
“Have you being going to Varndean since 7th?” I asked, curious to why I haven’t met her before. She nodded, smiling.
“That’s weird, why haven’t I met you before…?” I wondered out loud, scratching my head. Whenever I think or concentrate hard, I always scratch my head. Kinda like when Frank, Charley and Jake rub the back of their necks.
“I don’t know… Well, I’m never really around, to be honest,” Sydney chuckled, her incredible electric blue eyes sparkling. She was really pretty.
“Hang on; don’t you take the music vocational course?” Frank asked her, his eyebrows furrowed together. She nodded again, a confused expression on her face. “Yeah… Oh wait, your Frank Iero!”
“Yeah! Oh, and your Sydney… Perfect?”
“Yup,” she smiled warmly.
“Hey! You have a fucked up name like me, too!” I cried happily, grinning like a spastic. She laughed, walking over to the swing next to us, and plopping onto it. Everyone else had kinda drifted off. Jake, Katie and Rhee were messing about at the slides, and Charley, Sal and Cally were by those gigantic mushroom things, just talking.
“Oh? What’s your fucked up name?” Syd asked, smiling.
“Sazzy Massacre,” I replied, grinning.
“Oh fuck, that’s cool!”
“Yeah, but you always get dodgy looks at the airport or hospitals and dentists and stuff,” I complained, picking at a frayed edge on a rip at the knee of my skinnies. She nodded in agreement.

After that day in the park, I’d gotten to know Sydney as well as Rhea and Katie.
Unfortunately, the group had kind of drifted off into two smaller ones. Frank, Charley, Sydney, Katie and I were often grouped together, while Jake, Cally, Sal, and Rhea kind of drifted off. Rhee would hardly ever meet with us outside of school now; on account that she had found her old middle school friends that attend Hove Park, and were always found with them.
I didn’t really call her my best friend anymore, more like a close friend.
Frank, Sydney, Katie and Charley kind of replaced her.
I suppose it was kind of her fault for ditching all of us. She was probably the reason the group got split in two, but I suppose I don’t really hold a grudge against her, it was just the way things turned out. I still frequently talked to her, just not as often as I did.

On Thursday, the day before my birthday, I was sat in Science last lesson with Frank and Charley. We were sitting by the window of the corridor, (for some reason unknown, there was a window in Lamb’s room that faced the corridor, letting everyone see you in the classroom) and a huge ‘BANG BANG’ sounded from the window, which Charley was sat next to. He had jumped about ten foot in the air, which made me and Frank laugh so hard that we almost cried. On the other side of the window, Sydney was laughing, tears streaming down her face and clutching her side. Charley flipped her off, grinning, and still slightly shaking from the shock. Sydney made a pouting face at him, and then giggled. I looked over at her and waved, and she waved back.
“Oh!” I heard her cry slightly, before she clapped a hand to her mouth. She then stuck up her thumb, index finger and pinky, placing it to her ear, and mouthing ‘call me’. I nodded, pulling out my phone from my back pocket, and she shook her head violently. ‘After this lesson!’ she mouthed, and I nodded, putting my phone back in my pocket. She waved a ‘bye’ before scurrying off to her English lesson.