Alex Wayde - The Wanderer«☼»
Female - Eighteen - No Crush/Lover
Currently thrown a few feet from the bus, unconscious.
- Alex had arrived at school early that morning somewhat upset, as her regular schedule had been disrupted. Her normal day consisted of waking up, getting ready in a specific order, eating a quick breakfast with her parents, and catching the bus to school. She was not on the bus that morning, though. Instead, her parents had insisted on taking her to school, if only to make sure that all of her things were packed away on the bus. At least, that's what they had said. They had really wanted to warn the adults of Alex's little problem, her Aspergers. After all, new things and stressful situations could cause their daughter to 'fade out', or have an episode. They just wanted the adults to be more aware of what could potentially happen while they were away. Alex had known the truth of it all though, because she had overheard them speaking in hushed tones from the assumed safety of their bedroom. Maybe we shouldn't have agreed to let her go, her mother had said, sounding a little nervous. Her father had insisted that Alex needed this experience though if she was going to grow up normal. Off they had went then, with Alex in the back left hand seat instead of her normal seat on the bus- third row, right side, inside seat. The one right in front of the emergency escape window.
As Alex had left her parents' car and walked towards the bus, she had easily carried her belongings, walking with her adoptive parents right behind her. They had stayed back to speak to one of the chaperon's while she had given her belongings to someone else, someone who was loading the bus for the students. She could barely hear their murmuring voices as she boarded the bus, not offering more than a wave and a stoic look before turning and walking down the isle. She had already been told that they were seated according to last name, but having the last name of Wayde put her alone in the back of the bus, something she was simultaneously happy and upset about. After all, on her other bus she sat in the third row, right seat, next to the window. In this bus, she sat in the second to last row, left seat, next to the window. It was wrong, almost all of it. At least she was alone, and was next to a window, whether it was the right one or not, she told herself. Such was the start of a very long trip.
Alex had been unable to doze off even in the slightest during the trip, her eyes instead focusing on the scenery around her, be it outside or in. She enjoyed looking at their surroundings as much as she liked watching the other people in the bus, their interactions and what they did when they thought no one was looking. She found it amusing and perplexing; why did people do the things they did, or behave the way they behaved? She doubted she would ever really understand it, though she had to admit that she didn't really mind much. Their lives seemed so difficult and chaotic at times, their emotions running too deep and too bright, something she didn't want to have to deal with. Rather, she was content with her own existence, living yet not.
She had been doing exactly that, watching those around her, when the bus started hitting so many bumps. She wasn't troubled by this, as she knew that rounds on the mountain were bound to feel this way, especially when snow blocked the driver's view. Rather than crying out in real or fake fear, she had kept her mouth closed, her eyes focused on those in front of her. When the chaperon stood to reassure them, she tilted her head to the side a little. Were the students that afraid, that they required the help of this woman to calm themselves? Often having to take cues from others in situations such as these, Alex had wondered if she too should be afraid. She found out soon enough as the bumps grew in intensity and frequency. She was beginning to feel bad, a tightening in her chest, a cramp in her tummy, and a tingling in her hands and scalp. Alex's heart rate began to quicken its pace once more, her green eyes locked on the road ahead as a terrible noise rang out. She was slowly fading out, she knew, but she didn't know how to stop it. Everything around her was too much, every noise too loud, color too bright, or feeling too severe. She was losing it, she was going to lose it, here in front of all of these strangers. She kept her jaw locked and her face slack, expressionless even, though her body was tensed. She didn't want them to see just how badly all of these things bothered her, didn't want them to know about her being a little broken inside. They could think she was just crazy, or perhaps even dangerous. Because of this, she tried desperately to hold everything inside, not letting it out. She would not fade in front of them. She would not do it!
Another jolt and Alex was flung to the floor, dropping down hard on one knee in the middle of the isle. She winced a little, but said nothing. She didn't move, but kept her hands planted against the floor, one knee down and one up. She kept herself looking down, deepening her breathing to keep herself centered in the here and now, no matter how terrible it was to her. She could hang on to herself, to the present. Fading out, that's what she called it. When her disorder took over, causing her to zone out and sink into herself, her anxiety and over-sensitivity making her shake. She hated fading, but it was something she had little control over. Still, she shoved herself upwards, only to be thrown hard against the side of one of the seats to her right. They had hit something, she knew. Looking over with wide eyes, Alex saw that they were dangling over a cliff. Before she could say or do anything, they were going over.
Alex felt weightless, felt herself flying for a moment. As the bus began hitting the cliff's sides though, she was slammed into everything around her. Her body hit seats, the roof, the floor, windows, maybe even other people. She honestly couldn't be sure, in the midst of everything that was happening. She heard terrible screams and the sound of crunching metal as they rolled, pain brilliant and red flashing before her eyes as her head struck something with wicked force.. From then on, she remembered nothing. Darkness closed in, no longer distinguished from the light. Pain was around her, pain was in her, and eventually, pain was her, was everything, and then there was nothing.
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Jace Herondale - The Hidden«☼»
Male - Eighteen - No Crush/Lover
Currently getting off of the bus.
- Jace glanced up as the chaperon tried to calm all the stupid, immature little girls down, the ones who had squealed when they had first started going over the little bumps. He quickly looked away though, rolling his eyes and breathing out a huff of annoyance. Propping his legs up against the seat in front of him, he once again congratulated himself on his behavior earlier when he had told the teacher lady he wouldn't be sitting with anyone else. He had promptly walked all the way to the back, ignoring anyone who said anything to him or even looked at him, before plopping himself down in the furthest seat, all the way to the right. He was pretty glad of it now, as he turned sideways and allowed himself to rest one leg up on the empty space next to him, taking up the full seat. Kids these days, he thought darkly as he heard more murmurs and sounds of nervous teens. He didn't see the big deal. So the ride wasn't so smooth, who cared? It wasn't like they were dying or anything. Rolling his eyes again, he glanced out his window, content with the tall rocky wall that loomed over him. He had chosen this side for that reason-he was afraid of heights, and hated the thought of staring down the side of a cliff all day long, though he would never admit it to anyone.
Content with what he was seeing, the boy soon got himself lost in his thoughts of what had happened earlier that day.
Having woken up to the sounds of his dad going off to work, Jace had pulled his dark jeans and boots on before walking out of his room, his bare torso getting gooseflesh in the chill of their empty house. A scowl had crossed his lips as he saw what was left of the night before- a few empty bottles, toppled chairs, broken glass, and a bit of blood dropped onto the floor. It was getting old, mornings like this, yet Jace couldn't force himself to look away. He had finally pried his gaze from what laid before him, grabbing a black shirt from the pile on their dirty old couch, pulling it on with a little difficulty. His body was sore, but he said nothing of it. Instead, he went to his bathroom and looked himself over in the mirror. Content with what he saw, or what he didn't see, really, he had finished getting ready before heading out, not bothering to bring a thing with him other than his jacket and what was contained within it.
The cool morning air had hit him like a refreshing and reassuring caress after a long, hard night, something he could count on. There were few constants in his life, and the cold of an early morning was one of the only good ones. Reaching into his pocket, Jace had pulled out his smokes, tapping one out of the pack before replacing it, instead grabbing his trusty lighter Lumière to light the cigarette that he held between his lips. After placing his lighter back into his pocket, Jace had began his long walk to school, one he made when he felt like it and skipped out on when he didn't. He wouldn't have bothered going at all that morning had it not been for the perfectly lovely chance to escape home for a while. After all, a trip like this one didn't come up often. The school had even paid for the rest of his, seeing as how he was some sort of special case or something, since he was the only one in his family with a job. After his mother had died, his father had turned to drinking rather than hard work, leaving Jace to do everything on his own. In light of this, they had given him a scholarship of sorts to go off on this stupid little trip. He hadn't complained though; he saw it as a nice little vacation from dear old daddy.
It had been a little while before he had finally made it to the school, and though he didn't say anything, he had to admit he was glad to get to sit and relax on the bus. His bruised body was aching from the strain of walking the couple of miles to school, and he was ready to rest it for a while. When the chaperon had told him that he was late, he had given her a 'do I look like I give a damn' look. She had replied with an arranged seat for him to take, to which he had promptly replied "No thanks," before walking down the isle to the seat he now sat in. He was slightly amused, thinking about the look that had crossed the teacher's face, but his amusement was cut short as a loud banging noise filled his ears.
"What the hell?" he demanded, looking around him. No sooner had he said it than everything started going downhill, rather literally. He could feel himself falling, and looking over to the other side of the bus, he could see the ground coming up to grab them. His throat constricted, leaving him unable to so much as scream. He grabbed the side of his seat in a last ditch effort, slamming hist fingers into the space between it and the wall before closing his eyes tightly and holding on with all of his strength. He didn't want to see what was happening, though he could hear it. Screams came from all around him. Breaking glass and bending metal made terrible music, it's colors bright yellows and ugly oranges behind his eyes. The scent of dirt and iron filled his nose, his grip began to slip, he felt himself falling, falling- Soon, he felt nothing.
