Breaking Dawn by Donna Shelton Read Free Book Online Page A

I push myself up off my belly, then to my knees. I wait here, embarrassed, as the bus pulls away, taking the mocking laughter with it. My hands ache from the fall and the clumsy attempt to catch myself, and the ice at my knees is beginning to melt through the fabric of my trousers. I can’t help feeling that I deserve it.
    At home I go straight up to my room. Dad is still at work and Mom is in some room vacuuming. I just want to hide a while.
    I change out of my wet trousers and into some baggy jogging pants. In my mind I go over the fight with Perry. I just don’t have the energy to do anything more than that.
    Sitting on my bed, I look out of the window where the world is covered in a blanket of white glistening snow. The sky is grey and murky with the promise of more snow. This winter seems to be lastingforever. Why does time seem to drag so much when it’s cold outside?
    As I go to lie down on my bed, I see Perry’s manuscript on my desk. I never have got around to reading the whole thing. And although I really don’t feel like reading right now, or doing much of anything for that matter, I take it off my desk and sit down with it anyway. I have to do something to pass the time.

CHAPTER 5
    I end up falling asleep before I can finish the manuscript. But I make a point of finishing it over breakfast. It is actually a good read. I bet he could get it published if he tried. I know about a lot of the things he writes about, but there is some stuff he writes about that surprises me. I realise that I don’t know him as well as I thought I did.
    I put the manuscript in my bag, with every intention of talking to Perry and working things out. I need to try to fix everything and attempt to get our friendship back to normal.
    I stand by the window by the front door looking out for the bus. The snow is coming down in thick flakes, with almost two inches on the ground adding to the four inches that still lies from the previous fall. The bus is running late and I am secretly hoping that school will be cancelled. This would be a good ‘snow day’. Then just as I start getting my hopes up, ready to pull off my coat, the bus appears, slowly making its way to my house.
    I mush through the snow on the pavement, being extra careful of the tricky patch of ice that caught me before, and make sure I have a firm grip on the handrail going up the steps. I don’t want to look stupid again.
    I’m not surprised when Perry isn’t on the school bus. I want to think that maybe he’s stayed home because of the snow. Or his mom gave him a ride to school. And although his mom has never given him a ride to school in the past, I remain hopeful. There is a first time for everything.
    My mind is racing. Surely the entire school can’t know what happened on the bus yesterday afternoon? There hasn’t been enough time, I tell myself.
    I sit alone in our usual seat. A couple of my so-called friends ask where Perry is and some make ignorant comments. I ignore them at first, but enough is enough and I tell them to shut up because they don’t know what they’re talking about.
    When Brian gets on the bus, he walks right past me without even acknowledging me. That stings, but I have more important issues to concern me.
    I make sure I’m the first off the bus so that I can get to our locker and see if Perry’s been there. Digging through my bag, I am looking for the small piece of scrap paper with the locker combination written on it. I can never remember those numbers. Finally I find it and open the lock. Perry’s leather bomber jacket isn’t hanging there, so I guess he hasn’t come in to school today. I linger at the locker for a while, taking mytime, struggling out of my heavy parka and selecting books and other stuff. I’m hoping there’s a chance that I might catch him before first class. But that doesn’t happen.
    Halfway through the day it’s obvious that Perry just isn’t coming to school. By lunch time, I bag up my locker and grab my