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The ancient bus's tires squeaked and rumbled against the muddy, icy ground beneath them as the vehicle rolled on, the motor giving off an ambient rumble. The driver had just pulled off the main road, now rolling across an uneven, unpaved trail. It was late March, yet the snowfall persisted, in semi-regular intervals, as it had since December. It was as if a spell had fallen on the weather in the area around Yarrow Run, that little town in the ass end of nowhere you were being ferried to, in that drafty old bus with no legible brand symbol; or license plate, come to think of it. It had one, obviously, but it was so battered and faded it would require close examination to read. Between the public transportation, the state of the road, and the strange weather, all signs pointed towards this place going by its own rules.
There were nine of you, not counting the stocky middle-aged driver, who had been grooving off to the radio in between going on tangled tangents about the town ahead. Some of the windows were misted over by disillusioned, lonely breaths, pierced by eyes wondering where they were being taken, past those dense, endless fields of dark green trees, covered by a thin layer of what looked like icing on a cake. The bus ran over a bump, probably causing at least one forehead to thump against the window it was resting against.
"Oops, sorry 'bout that," the driver said. "My windshield wipers aren't all that great, you know?" At this point he seemed aware that nobody was very interested in making conversation with him. Most of the kids probably couldn't even hear him, what with their smart walk-men and earbuds. But that was okay, he was just a driver. Another bump, this one less impactful thanks to a slight swerve. The silence didn't seem to sway the man. Maybe he just liked talking for talking's sake. "So you're all headed to that school there, huh? New students are usually the only people i drive there oh...twice a year, maybe? Hasn't been this many in a while though. I'll tell y'all what I told all the others: this town might be small, and you might feel like you're being sent into the boondocks to be alone. Just remember all the other kids are in the same boat as you. It might feel like y'all are by yourselves and ain't nobody understands you, but you don't need to be a loner. Then you'll just end up like me, drivin' a near empty bus every day for people who don't wanna talk. Anyhow, we only got 'bout a half hour left, so y'all better star preparin' to reach your destination." Finally, he cleared his throat and gave the road his full concentration again. Wouldn't do to miss any slight turns on that unchanging little road.
