~Nights in Brooklyn~

                                    

                                          
~Darryl, Bad Video AU~
                          
~Brooklyn, New York 1986~
                          
I tugged my jacket closer to me as a gust of cool wind brushed past me. 
                          
I walked down the every brightening streets of Brooklyn to the bus stop around the corner. My bag was cast over my shoulders and I held my books close to my chest.
                          
I knew I was already a half hour late to work but I was helping my neighbor clean up her house. Winter break had arrived and she was preparing for her sons arrival from a private school she sent him to for the semester. She told me he would be stopping at the public school in the area to get his class lists for second semester. I was going to work as a tutor for my fellow classmates at school so I promised I would keep an eye out for him.
                          
I vaguely remember her saying her sons name was Darryl.
                          
I approached the bus stop for the 8am pickup and shifted my weight impatiently. Soon enough the bus pulled up beside me and the doors open.
                          
       "Late for work Y/N/N?" Mrs. Jacobson, the bus driver, asked me. A playful smile was on her face as the skin around her eyes wrinkled. I looked to her plush red jacket that she held tightly around her small frame as the cool air entered the bus. I nodded and sighed. I watched my warm breath form in the winter air as I ascended the steps onto the bus.
                          
       "Yes, and I'm in dire need of the public transport only you can supply," I cried out jokingly. I reached my arm out to her and she slapped my hand away, laughing.
                          
       "Stop playin' child," She laughed and I smiled at her. I pulled my bag from over my shoulder unzipped it quickly. I pulled out my mothers old wallet and began to take the amount out for the bus fair. I outstretched my hand offered it to her but she placed her hand over mine and shook her head.
                          
       "Don't worry about it," She spoke kindly with a soft smile. I furrowed my eyebrows and opened my mouth to protest but she interrupted me quickly.
                          
       "You need to use that for more important things, and I won't hear anything else, got it?" She questioned me authoritatively. I gave her a shy smile as pressure built behind my eyes at her kindness.
                          
My parents had passed away a few years prior when I was only fifteen. I had to find extra jobs  to support myself and I eventually had to move from my old apartment into a new one to save money because every last dime I had went to school. All my parents ever wanted was me to finish school and make it out of our poor home in Brooklyn. No distractions. So no dating. They always made me promise that I would finish school and get out of there. And I intended to.
                          
Luckily for me I truly loved school. Learning new things each day about the world and the way things worked really interested me. So when I was looking for a side job to keep up with my bills, tutoring fit perfectly. I took mostly times after school but today was the first day of break and the school was open to the public for people to work. So I accepted a few last minute pleas from failing students and scheduled my day to be fully booked.
                          
       "Thank you," I spoke softly, biting my lip to hold back my tears. She gave me a wide smile and reached for the handle beside her to shut the bus doors.
                          
       "No problem sweetheart," She spoke sweetly. "Now go take a seat." I nodded towards her and picked up my bag, slinging it around my shoulder.
                          
I walked down the aisle and saw people leaning against windows, sleeping soundly. The bus was packed and I struggled to find a seat so I stood at the back of the bus holding on tightly to the railing above me with one hand.